Ever since the Campus Crossroads project was announced in the spring of 2013, speculation ran wild that the addition of a jumbotron to Notre Dame Stadium would be part of the upgrades. On Tuesday that speculation became reality when Notre Dame announced the addition of a new “video board” in the south end-zone for the 2017 season among other much needed upgrades.

So there you have it. Notre Dame will finally have a Jumbotron in the stadium for in-game replays, pre-game introductions, and other in-game fan entertainment. Such an addition has long been debated, and staunchly opposed by many traditionalist fans, but based on everything Notre Dame said in its announcement today, it’s hard to argue with the addition.

Just like the video boards in Purcell Pavillon and the Compton Family Ice Arena, one thing that will not be featured on the new video board is advertising. Notre Dame successfully added video boards in both venues without introducing any sort of advertising. So rest assured Irish fans. There will not be a “kiss cam” coming into the House that Rock Built anytime soon.

For any fan who has sat in Notre Dame Stadium during a prolonged instant replay wondering what the heck actually happened on the play in doubt, they will soon be able to see replays in brilliant display in the near future.

Other Notre Dame Stadium Enhancements

The new jumbotron was not the only improvement to Notre Dame announced on Tuesday. All of the following enhancements are on their way as well.

Improved sound system. Another much needed improvement ever since Notre Dame started playing in-game music during games in 2011.

Vinyl Seats. Notre Dame will be replacing the wooden benches with vinyl covered bleachers.

18 inch seating spaces. Each seat in Notre Dame Stadium will be at least 18 inches wide.

Improved Wifi throughout the stadium. No more need for a mophie pack to make it through a game.

Renovations to restrooms and increased women’s restrooms.

Renovations to the concessions throughout the stadium.

All in all, it is hard to argue with any of these enhancements and yes that includes the Jumbotron. Many old school fans don’t think it makes a difference or that it shouldn’t make a difference on the recruiting front, but other schools hammer home little things like the lack of Jumbotron as reasons that Notre Dame is behind the times. So from a recruiting standpoint, it’s a no-brainer.

From a fan experience standpoint, having the ability to see replays and have highlight reels or in-game highlights during those lengthy NBC TV timeouts will no doubt help keep the energy level high throughout the game. If you don’t agree, just wait until the first pre-game Notre Dame historical highlight package put together by the WatchND folks is displayed throughout the stadium. Those guys can make a 90 second video featuring the top plays from a single day of practice entertaining, just wait til we see what they can do with creating a pre-game hype up video.