(Courtesy of Tyler Lockman)

Members of the ASU football team practice inside Sun Devil Stadium with the renovated north end zone in the background.

The Arizona State University football team faces Weber State in its Thursday night season opener. It's the team's first game since its stadium lost a few thousand seats.

This spring, construction crews started demolishing sections of the upper deck of Sun Devil Stadium's north end zone. With almost 6,000 seats now gone, the stadium opens up to views of Tempe Town Lake, depending on where you're sitting. The north end zone project is just the beginning of a planned renovation of Sun Devil Stadium.

Speaking at a press conference earlier this year, Head Coach Todd Graham said the stadium's new look will help with recruiting student athletes.

"Obviously the fan experience, too," Graham said. "That's the number one thing, the game day experience. Our fans have been tremendous supporters, our student body and what they've done. Everything about the fan experience is going to improve with this project."

Earlier this month, ASU announced the design and construction firms that have been chosen for the stadium's renovation, which is set to cost more than $200 million and wrap up in 2017.