LARAMIE – The War is nearly restored.
 
On Tuesday members of the media were given a tour of the ongoing renovation at War Memorial Stadium, including an inside look at the Wyo Sports Ranch Club and loge seating area on the west side.
 
The $85 million project is scheduled to be completed by the final week of August, according to Andy Sandoval, the senior superintendent at GE Johnson overseeing the construction.
 
"I'm very proud of the work all of us in this room have done and Coach (Craig) Bohl and people who were before us and the donors," UW athletics director Tom Burman said. "I'm very proud of it. I'm also very excited about what it means for Wyoming in the future."
 
Phase II of the "Restore the War" project includes all-new concession stands, six new restrooms (two men's, four women's), a 1,532 square foot Brown & Gold Outlet store, a new 2,800 square foot visiting locker room, two new elevators and a modernized press box on the west side.
 
The Wyo Sports Ranch Club includes over 3,000 square feet of climate-controlled premium club space with two bars, a full-service buffet and five single-game party suites.
 
 
Juan Soto, the Cowboy Joe Club's director of development and premium seating, said there are fewer than 50 of the 216 loge seats still available.
 
"There's not a better view," Soto noted of the loge seating.
 
Phase I of the project began on Nov. 19, 2023. Prior to last season, the lower stands on the west side were demolished and removed, precast bleachers and approximately 3,000 new chairback seats with increased width and leg room were added.

Total capacity of War Memorial Stadium will decrease from 29,000 to 25,000 upon completion of the project. There is currently a waitlist for the Wildcatter Stadium Club and Suites, which were completed on the east side in 2010.
 
Burman has photos of what the stadium and surrounding athletic complex looked like when he was hired in the days when the east parking lot was dirt with donor names on wooden posts and the days before the High Altitude Performance Center.
 
"A lot of people have helped us make this a much better environment," Burman said. "I would say one of the things we're proud of, and (deputy athletic director for revenue and external relations) Randy (Welniak) has been key to this, we have developed a great tailgating, in-game atmosphere that wasn't here not that long ago.
 
"That gives us a competitive advantage in the Mountain West Conference, the current Mountain West and the one going forward for sure."
 
The construction of the UW Aquatic Center, a roughly $60 million project, is expected to be completed in the summer of 2026.
 
The modern natatorium, located at the intersection of North 22^nd St. and East Willett Dr., will include a 50-meter pool with 10 lanes, a separate dive well with a 3- and 5-meter platform as well as 1- and 3-meter springboards and new locker rooms for the Cowboys and Cowgirls swimming and diving programs.
 
Burman praised Gov. Mark Gordon and the State of Wyoming Legislature for providing funding to make these long-imagined dream venues a reality. About $20 million in private donations were also raised for the "Restore the War" project.
 
"If we don't have those kinds of leaders in Wyoming, A, we don't have a stadium that looks like this and B, we would have had to sell the naming rights to War Memorial Stadium," Burman said. "We have to demonstrate to the people of Wyoming that we value War Memorial Stadium. This is an iconic facility."
 
The Cowboys, who went 7-0 at home during Bohl's final season in 2023, are looking to bounce back from last year's 3-9 finish this fall.
 
UW will host Northern Iowa on Sept. 6 in the first post-construction game at the War. Former rival Utah, now a member of the Big 12, visits Laramie on Sept. 13.
 
Two projected Mountain West contenders, UNLV (Oct. 4) and San Jose State (Oct. 11), will visit to open conference play. Border War rival Colorado State will make its final trip to the War as a conference foe on Oct. 25 and a game against Nevada (Nov. 22) concludes the home slate.
 
"We've got to win," Burman said. "That's the key to this whole endeavor is we've got to win, we've got to provide a product that the fans when they come, they trust because they're coming a long way. They've got to trust the experience. That doesn't mean you (always) have to win but you've got to be competitive and win the majority of the time at home."
 
For information about purchasing loge seats and access to the Wyo Sports Ranch Club, contact Juan Soto at: jsoto1@uwyo.edu or 307-766-6242.
 
If you are interested in learning more about NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) or would like to support our student-athletes, please visit 1wyo.org. 1WYO was created out of Wyoming's culture of neighbor helping neighbor. The mission is to promote and strengthen local charitable organizations and develop Wyoming student athletes. 
 
Follow Ryan for more stories on Wyoming athletics on X at @By_RyanThorburn on Facebook at Wyoming Athletics and Instagram at wyoathletics. Also follow him at Pokes Insider at Gowyo.com/pokesinsider.