photo by: University of Kansas/HNTB

This rendering shows the most recent design for a renovated David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. The rendering also shows some possibilities for ancillary development on the east side of the stadium, although KU is still awaiting proposals from developers on that portion of the project.

There’s a chance the University of Kansas’ home football games next season could be played at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium, as KU leaders become concerned construction work at their campus stadium will make true home games infeasible.

KU Chancellor Douglas Girod confirmed to the Journal-World on Wednesday that KU has had some preliminary discussions with Arrowhead officials about using the stadium for 2024 home games.

But Girod said no agreement has been reached to use Arrowhead, and Girod said KU officials are still hoping that games can be played on the Lawrence campus at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

“It always would be our preference to do it on campus,” Girod said.

But Girod said KU leaders have been receiving concerning information from their building contractor about how a full home football season at Memorial Stadium could significantly delay completion of a $448 million renovation of the stadium, which is underway.

“We are in the process of going through the construction timeline with (the contractor) to see what is feasible for us to finish on time, meaning that in fall of ’25, we have to be in that stadium,” Girod said.

Girod said the latest information from the construction company, Turner Construction, is that every home football game hosted at the stadium will add about one week onto the length of the construction project.

If KU does move its games to Arrowhead — which is home to the Kansas City Chiefs and is about an hour’s drive from Lawrence — it would be a significant departure from the plans KU announced when it publicly unveiled the football stadium project in August.

At that time, KU said its plans were to host games in the stadium. University leaders knew the west and north sides of the stadium would largely be inaccessible for games due to the construction work. But leaders anticipated that the east side and south end of the stadium would be available for fans, and KU leaders said they were prepared to play home games with a substantially diminished seating capacity.

But now, Girod said he’s learning that the disruptions may be greater than he personally envisioned when the original idea of playing in the under-construction stadium was first presented. For example, he said the construction work on the west side of the stadium will significantly impact water service to the east side of the stadium.

“There is some complexity that I certainly was not privy to,” Girod said.

Girod emphasized that a deal to play games at Arrowhead is far from certain. He said officials with Arrowhead have not said that the plan would be feasible in all instances.

“We have had enough conversation to see if it is even a possibility,” Girod said of talks with Arrowhead officials. “It obviously depends on dates and everything else. Once we figure out what we can do, we will visit with them again.”

Girod said he believes decisions about the location of games for next season will need to be made in approximately a month. He said the decision likely will come down to the campus stadium or Arrowhead. The Sporting Kansas City stadium in the Legends district in Kansas City, Kan. would at least keep the games on the Kansas side of the state line. Arrowhead is in Kansas City, Mo. But Girod said the soccer stadium is not a likely option because past football events at the Sporting Kansas City stadium have been rough on the soccer turf.

“We don’t have a lot of options,” Girod said.

Girod said KU officials don’t like the idea of all the games being off campus, in part because it will detract from the student experience, which is a major selling point the university uses in attracting students. It also creates multiple logistical issues, such as how students in Lawrence would get to the games in any sizable numbers.

“There is not a simple answer to any of this, unfortunately,” Girod said.

Girod also said KU would have to consider making changes to other ancillary events, like Homecoming, if the games were moved from the Lawrence campus.

Girod said he understands that Lawrence merchants and others that rely on large crowds from KU football games likely will have concerns about an entire season without any home games.

“If we end up doing some games over there, we will be thinking about what activities we can do in Lawrence to counter that, if you will, for not being in Lawrence,” Girod said. “That would be for both students and the community, which means we may think differently about how we do Homecoming or Family Weekend, or maybe we would create some new events.”

KU leaders also think Lawrence merchants and others are poised to benefit in a major way from the improvements that are planned for the stadium, once they are completed. In addition to multiple new game-day amenities at the stadium, the project is being billed as a Gateway District that will include a new conference center, hotel and other attractions that are designed to make the campus location a destination for visitors across the state and nation who would travel to Lawrence for a variety of events. Girod has said a high priority of the project will be to create new connections between the campus site at 11th and Mississippi streets and the Lawrence commercial district in downtown Lawrence.

There’s also one other issue that likely will be on the mind of merchants and students alike: Commencement ceremonies.

Girod previously has said he’s very committed to having KU’s commencement ceremony at the stadium. The ceremony, among the top traditions at KU, features a walk by the Campanile, down the hill and into the stadium.

On Wednesday, Girod said he is not considering any scenario that would move commencement ceremonies from the stadium.

“That is still a go,” Girod told the Journal-World. “That is non-negotiable. If that slows us down, it slows us down.”