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AMES, Iowa — When Marshalltown native and Iowa State grad Mark Williams grabs a seat at the Super Bowl on Sunday, he’s already won, no matter if the Rams or Bengals prevail.

Williams and Texas-based architecture firm HKS first began meeting with Rams owner Stan Kroenke when the team was still in St. Louis. When the franchise moved to Los Angeles, the project continued. After two years in design and three years of construction, SoFi Stadium opened in 2020.

“It’s just a great event. Being able to work on buildings like this and having a lot of individuals around me, from HKS and our consultants, work on these things for years, then having them come to life with people in them,” said Williams. “On weekends like this, it’s truly a global stage, the world’s eyes will be on this building.”

Williams said putting together this massive project took time.

“We spent over two years designing SoFi Stadium and really the 298-acre master plan and campus and then on top of that we monitor the design during the construction process,” said WIlliams. “The first new NFL stadium was Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, and then we did AT&T Stadium for the Dallas Cowboys, and then we did US Bank Stadium for the Minnesota Vikings, and now we have SoFi Stadium for the LA Chargers and LA Rams.”

Williams said they hope to pick up a new project soon as teams consider building new stadiums. Williams is enjoying this weekend of the Super Bowl.

“Last night I went to the NFL Honors show which is a great show … I’m going to go to the Commissioner’s Party tonight,” said Williams. “Finally, I am going to sit down in the building and relax and watch the football game.”

Williams said he and several other Iowa State grads were working on the design team for SoFi Stadium.

“We had a very neat Cyclone family working on SoFi stadium,” said Williams. “There were five or six of us who were all Cyclone grads that were very intimate in the design of the project.”

“What I will tell you is what I hear over and over and over again from employers all over the world is that the students from the College of Design have the right balance between theoretical knowledge and practical knowledge,” said Luis Rico-Gutierrez, dean of the Iowa State University College of Design. “And that’s why they are ready to perform on day one.”

Rico-Gutierrez added that they’ve learned five more Iowa State grads were employed by a subcontracting firm that worked on the roof of SoFi Stadium.

As a kid growing up in Marshalltown, Williams never had an idea that he could be involved with the Super Bowl.

“It was a combination of a love of architecture and a love of sports, but I never had any idea that I would be working on Super Bowl facilities,” said Williams.