ARLINGTON, Texas – More than nine months after the city announced a $684 million sports venue enhancement plan, Memphis still has not decided how much money will be allocated for major renovation of FedExForum.

Nor has it determined how much will be left over for other projects including a much-needed makeover of Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.

University of Memphis officials previously announced planned renovations on the football stadium that will cost between $150 and $200 million. But the Memphis Grizzlies – the primary tenant of FedExForum, where the Memphis Tigers men’s basketball team also plays – still have not publicly announced how much of the pie they are seeking.

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Some wonder if – should the Grizzlies get all they need, which could be well in excess of $400 million – there will be enough left over to do things right at Liberty Stadium, not to mention money for other projects proposed as part of Mayor Jim Strickland’s plan, including converting the shuttered Mid-South Coliseum into a pro soccer stadium for Memphis 901 FC and sprucing up AutoZone Park, home of the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds baseball team.

Do not, however, count Ryan Silverfield among those worrying if city-owned Liberty Stadium will get the funding it desperately needs to add modern-era necessities and conveniences.

“We have, the University of Memphis and our athletic department and our football program, 100% trust in the mayor,” the Tigers coach said Tuesday while in Arlington for the American Athletic Conference’s 2023 football Media Days. “He’s worked tirelessly in making sure that things are aligned the right way, and we’ve got full trust and full support for him and the decisions he’s making. … We have great faith that everything will come down the right way.”

Strickland declined comment on the stadium funding issue, referring instead to a statement previously issued to The Daily Memphian that said: “Discussions are ongoing, and we are continuing work through exact timelines with all parties.”

The university announced last April that renovation work is scheduled to start after the conclusion of the 2023 season, continue through 2024 and – as currently anticipated – be completed prior to the start of the 2025 season.

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Tiger coaches already are using renovation plans as part of their recruiting pitch for current prospective signees.

“We talk about it, have pictures of it, present it,” Silverfield said.

Current Tiger players also are clued in as to what is planned.

In April, when the State of Tennessee approved $350 million in funding to be used as part of the plan, the university announced that a “stadium renovation design phase is currently well underway with partners Populous, Barton Malow and MFA.”

Priority elements of the project, it said then, include transformation of the stadium’s west side, providing multiple premium seating option; creation of a “hospitality experience within the halo space surrounding the stadium;” restroom and concessions upgrades; and “potential renovation” of the stadium’s east side.

“When the renovations are going to be done, it’s going to be terrific.”

Ryan Silverfield

“We definitely know about the renovations, and we’re excited to see them coming, because Memphis deserves that, and the football team deserves that,” Tigers defensive lineman Jaylon Allen said Tuesday. “We put in so much effort and blood, sweat and tears into that, so I feel like it’s going to be good.”

Just how good it can be may depend on how much of the plan’s funding the Grizzlies get – and how much the city is willing to give to the NBA franchise.

If actual funding streams for Strickland come in lower than initially anticipated and the Grizzlies’ request indeed is much higher than anticipated, something likely has to give.

But that seemed to be the last thing Silverfield was concerned about Tuesday.

“When the renovations are going to be done,” he said, “it’s going to be terrific.”