CHAMPAIGN — The Illinois athletic department announced the largest donation in its history Tuesday: a $100 million gift from alumnus Larry Gies.
In recognition, the Illini will rename their nearly 102-year-old football stadium Gies Memorial Stadium.
Gies is the founder and CEO of Chicago-based Madison Industries, which calls itself one of the largest privately held companies in the world. He made the gift in honor of his late father, Larry Gies Sr., who was a U.S. Army veteran.
Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman said the donation, which will be given over several years, will be used “to support the football program with a focus on this stadium.”
Some of the early payments will go toward planned renovations. The university announced this summer $9 million worth of upgrades, including a wireless internet system and a new sound system, video boards and LED lighting. Illinois will bring in an architectural firm to advise on how else to use the resources for a stadium that has been renovated multiple times.
Whitman called the stadium “one of the most majestic, important buildings in our state.”
“It was imperative to me we protect and preserve this stadium, its mission, its history, its tradition,” Whitman said. “That is one of the biggest, most important responsibilities I have as the athletic director here. … Making sure this building remains what it is and what it has been in the next 100 years is right near the top of that list.”
Gies’ donation comes in the midst of a massive change in college sports thanks to the finalization of the House vs. NCAA settlement in June. College athletic departments now can participate in direct revenue sharing with their athletes, with the cap set at $20.5 million this year, and many still are figuring out how to navigate the new landscape.
Whitman said the donation can help with some of the department’s financial goals in the new era. But he also believes “there’s a symbolism to a gift like this” at a time when there’s a buzz around many Illini sports programs.
“It demonstrates to the college athletics world — and perhaps more importantly, to our little corner of that world — that people like Larry see what’s happening within our program,” Whitman said. “They value what our program does, not only for the people directly within it but for our broader university community, and they are choosing to invest their scarce resources for us.
“In talking with Larry, he’s excited about what that can mean for other people connected to Illinois athletics.”
Among the athletic department’s recent successes, the football team is ranked in the Associated Press top 10 for the first time since 2001. The men’s basketball team has won 20-plus games in six straight seasons, made an NCAA Tournament Elite Eight appearance in 2024 and advanced to the second round in 2025. The women’s basketball team has made two NCAA Tournament appearances in coach Shauna Green’s first three seasons.
Illinois signed football coach Bret Bielema and men’s basketball coach Brad Underwood to six-year contract extensions in May through the 2030 and 2030-31 seasons.
Larry Gies, center, poses with Illinois College of Business students. (University of Illinois)
Gies recognized that success in a statement announcing the donation.
“Sports is how most people first experience the University of Illinois — it’s the front door of the amazing house we are building,” Gies said. “Illini sports moments bring our orange and blue community closer together.”
It’s not Gies’ first major donation to Illinois. In October 2017, he and his wife, Beth, donated $150 million to the university’s business school, which was renamed the Gies College of Business.
Whitman first met Gies when he made that donation and has cultivated a relationship with him since. He said the “launch point” of their conversations came in his office in 2021.
“(Gies) talked about wanting to do something profound for the athletics program,” Whitman said. “He challenged us to think big. He said he wanted to help us take advantage of our most compelling opportunities.”
Since then, Whitman said, Gies has been around the football program a lot — building a friendship with Bielema, going on road trips, standing on the sideline during games and even advising student-athletes about their careers.
Now his name officially will be associated with the program.
Whitman said university leadership was involved from the start regarding the name change to the stadium, which opened in 1923 and was dedicated to Illinois students and alumni who died in World War I.
“You don’t just put somebody’s name on Memorial Stadium by yourself,” he said.
In 2013, Illinois entered into a 30-year, $60 million naming rights agreement for its basketball venue, Assembly Hall, to be named State Farm Center. The football stadium’s field was named Zuppke Field in 1966 after former coach Robert Zuppke, but the Memorial Stadium name has been untouched until now.
“A big part of these processes for us is being really strong listeners and understanding what gets people excited and where their passions lie,” Whitman said. “Another part of our job is we’re going to challenge people, we’re going to ask people to stretch, and in order to do that, sometimes you have to put really meaningful opportunities to be recognized in front of them.
“As we started to get down the path of thinking about where this could go with Larry, we knew the kinds of numbers we wanted to put in front of him. And there were only so many options we could use to try and capture that interest.”
The back wall near the stadium’s north end zone already had Gies’ name on it Tuesday.
Gies and Illinois Chancellor Charles L. Isbell Jr. recognized the stadium’s dedication to veterans in statements.
“(Gies’) generosity not only honors the memory of his father and all who have served,” Isbell said, “but it also ensures that our stadium will continue to stand proudly as a lasting tribute to the courage, sacrifice and loyalty of our veterans for the next 100 years and beyond.”
Originally Published: September 9, 2025 at 1:43 PM CDT