When Memphis football fans file into Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Sept. 1 for the Tigers home opener against Mercer they will hear things a bit clearer, thanks to an upgraded sound system.

The city of Memphis, owner of the stadium, is trying to keep the Tigers’ home stadium as up to date as possible. In addition to the sound system improvements, renovations have come to coach Mike Norvell’s home locker room.

“We at City government are the landlord, and it’s on us to make sure the Liberty Bowl is up to date,” Mayor Jim Strickland said recently on Sports 56’s Wolo & Peter Show. “The Tigers have upgraded their program, and we’re upgrading their home.”

The City Council approved the $2.5 million renovations in May after Councilman Reid Hedgepeth proposed the funding. According to the resolution, the renovations will “provide comparable facilities to other collegiate football stadiums.” The improvements also will ““support the recruitment, growth, and increased visibility.”

Past renovations include a an upgraded video board, new playing surface, chairback seats and the continued development of Tiger Lane.

The new sound system falls in line with that initiative – the JBL Variable Line Array system is commonly used in major football venues across the country. Strickland tweeted “we worked with Daktronics to design a sound system specifically for the unique shape of Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.”

According to a release, the new locker room provides nearly 6,000 additional square feet of space. There are 105 lockers with LED Monitors and full data connectivity. A new coaches’ room will come along with a new training room providing direct access to the Liberty Bowl field.

The Tigers were undefeated at home in the 2017 season with a win over then- No. 25 UCLA. Memphis averaged 36,302 fans per game, fifth among the group of five schools and third in the American Athletic Conference.