Northwestern's coaching staff walked through the $875 million Ryan Field construction site on Wednesday, June 25, getting their first inside look at the 35,000-seat stadium rising on Central Street in Evanston.

Northwestern Athletics posted four photos of the tour to X, showing the venue taking shape about three months before its scheduled debut: a Friday, October 2 prime-time game against Penn State.

The stadium, which Northwestern says is entirely privately funded by the Ryan family, replaces the nearly century-old facility that held 47,500 fans. Cold and rainy weather through fall and winter slowed construction by about five weeks, pushing the opener from the start of the season into October.

Pat Ryan Jr., CEO of Ryan Sports Development, told Pioneer Press the cost grew from the originally reported $862 million to approximately $875 million due to weather-related overtime and rising construction costs. "With all these data centers being built, frankly, construction costs are going up dramatically," Ryan said.

Among the stadium's signature features is the "Wildcat Wall," a 2,000-seat European soccer-style safe-standing section angled at 33 degrees over the south end zone, placing students directly above the field.

The new venue will also host the ETHS vs. New Trier rivalry game on Friday, October 16, rent-free, just two weeks after the Penn State opener. Northwestern's Homecoming follows on Saturday, October 10.

Noyes Street businesses near the stadium reported to the Daily Northwestern in May that they're counting on the larger capacity to restore gameday foot traffic lost during two seasons at the temporary 12,000-seat Martin Stadium. The first test comes October 2.