Georgiana High School, Georgiana, AL

Sign to Georgiana High School

     Georgiana High School was a school I barely happened to stop by.  I was on my way to Mobile, and told my buddy that I was finally finished looking at schools.  However, to get back to the interstate I had to take this shortcut road that led me right past the stadium.  I couldn't pass up the opportunity.
     Georgiana is a Single-A school in the Alabama High School Athletic Association w/ a daily average enrollment of 110.  I've seen where Georgiana is a 7th-12th grade school with an enrollment of around 250 but there is not much information out there about this high school.  However, Georgiana, AL is the home of Hank Williams.

Home stands

     This is one of the neater set of home stands that I've seen on my trips.  I love the layout, that they stretch the whole length of the field.  It's a very old field and its evident by the buildings and press box in the background.  But to me that's what gives it character and one of the reasons I enjoy traveling around finding jewels like this.

Visitors stands

     These are the visitor stands and again a very old structure, complete with the rickety press box which gives it even more character.  There's a huge grass lot right behind these bleachers, I'm sure this is one of the easiest drive in, watch the game and drive out times that visiting fans ever have.  (I know that sentence doesn't make much sense grammatically, but you get the point).  It's obvious from the pictures that the team was practicing.  In the photo of the home stands you can see two ladies sitting up on the bleachers.  I had a conversation with them about the team, and they were happy to have someone come out and take pictures of their boys.  I'm not sure If they quite understood what I was doing there, but I enjoy talking to people I meet along my journey. 

End zone shot of the stadium

Scoreboard 

Home stands press box

New concessions facitlity

       I was thrilled when I passed by the sign to Georgiana High School, and it was even neater when I found out Hank Williams Sr. had lived there.  I couldn't find out if he went to high school here, but I did read that he got into a fight with his physical education coach, and after the board did not suspend the coach he and his family moved to Montgomery, AL.  The football team may not be that great, but they do play in one sweet, old school stadium.   

I know I haven't posted in a while.  I left my camera with all my pictures on it in Charleston, and will be getting it back soon.  For some reason I never fully transferred them over to my laptop.  

Westside High School, Anderson, SC

Westside High School Rams

      Westside High School is the crosstown rival of TL Hanna High School.  They play at Westside Stadium (formally known as District 5 Stadium).  Although their success on the football field hasn't been great recently, they play in one of my favorite stadiums.  TL Hanna and Westside start and finish their seasons with each other.  The first game does not count in the region standings but the last game of the year does.  Westside is in the 4-A classification of the SCHSL.  

 

Home stands

      The home stands are concrete with metal bleachers on top, which is probably the best look, in my eyes, for a high school stadium.  It adds more character and its more sturdy.  The stadium is built into a hill and you walk down into the seats which is also pretty cool because you're able to see the game while walking to your seats.  On the bottom level of the press box there are restrooms and a concessions area.  This picture was taken from the walkway at the entrance gates to the visitors side of the field.

Visitor stands

     The visitors stands are oddly configured with only 3/4 of the hill covered in concrete bleachers (I'm guessing they left the other hill open for children to play on, because I know I did when I was a child since Hanna and Westside shared this stadium for quite some time).  There are bathroom and concessions areas for the visitors in the those two buildings behind the stands.  For the visiting fans you can't walk below the stands and get to your seats but you can walk through the stands or down from above.

Scoreboard with scrolling message board

Ticket gates

     I'm not a Westside fan at all, but these next few pictures show why I think this setting makes Westside Stadium one of my favorites.

View from walk way to visitors side of the field

View from end zone

     I couldn't back up enough to get both sides in the picture, but you understand what I'm trying to do here.  I love stadiums that are built in a bowl.  To me it adds to the atmosphere, the lights shine brighter and everything just seems more intense.  I'd never pull for Westside, but the stadium was always fun to go to once a year for tailgating and fun times. 

Pendleton High School, Pendleton, SC

Pendleton High School Bulldogs

     Pendleton High School is located in Anderson County, between the city of Anderson and the city of Clemson.  Pendleton is in the 2-A classification of the South Carolina High School League and has an enrollment of 827.  They have had a lot of recent success on the football field which pairs nicely with their three-year-old football stadium.

Home stands

Side-view of the home stands

      The home stands are brand new  replacing the old cement-style stands that stood before.  They're extremely nice, and in good shape.  However, that is a long hike to walk up there from the bottom, but with the way they were built there really wasn't any other option.  The press box on top has plenty of room for both home and away radio teams, and gives coaches a nice birds-eye view of the field. 

  
   

     The side-view picture was taken just to show the slope of the stands and the entrances, pretty tall if you ask me.  There seems to be some sort of storage building below the stands.

   

Visitors stands

     The visitors stands also replace cement stands, and the design is perfect for the stadium.  Just like Vestavia Hills, the visitors side is shorter and just a bit more narrow.  The visitors side concession stand and bathrooms are scene in the far right corner.  I love it when there are separate concessions and bathrooms for the home and visiting stands, because lets be honest those lines can get pretty long.  The last thing about the visitors stands that I like are the middle entrances at the front.  Fans don't have to crawl over one another as much if there were only side entrances.

Scoreboard

      I love this scoreboard!  It gives all the information a fan would like to see and there's even a little scrolling message board, which is a great touch.  The logos on the top are a great addition and really make the board stand out. 

Ticket gate

View of the home concession stands and bathrooms and a full view of the field.

Full view of the stadium from the tennis courts

     I've never been to a game at Pendleton, but I really enjoyed seeing their football stadium.  I also love all the trees planted behind the end zone to add some scenery (although it blocked my view of a perfect full stadium shot), and the hedges are also a nice touch.  They've done a marvelous job with all the upgrades and it's one of, if not the best, football stadiums in Anderson County. 
     *If you use Google maps and search for Pendleton High School and click on the satellite view, you will not be able to see the current high school stadium.  Apparently it wasn't built the last time a satellite picture was taken of the area.  I thought that was pretty funny.

Crescent High School, Iva, SC

Crescent High School Tigers

     Crescent High School is located in Iva, SC just outside the city of Anderson but inside the county, but the high school serves the towns of Starr and Iva (which are located in the country). They are in the 2-A classification and the school has a student body of around 750 students.  They are known for their stellar softball program.  The stadium is small, but has several unique characteristics that add to its charm.

Home stands

     The home stands have enough seating for the fans, and since they aren't that tall the side entrances work well.  One thing I like about the side entrances here is that since most fans know each other any way, they are able to pass by and chat with one another on the way to their seats.  The press box is tiny but it serves its purpose here, and there is room on top for the coaches to stand and get a good view of the game.  The tiger mural in between the stands is a nice touch and one of the unique characteristics of the stadium.
   

Visitors stands

     These are the visitor stands which might be a little small, but I have never been to a game at Crescent besides a JV game.  However, I suspect that the seating is fine for most teams visiting.  The press box/coaches area behind the stands is a neat touch, although I'm sure the coaches would like to have a more separated area to talk amongst themselves and the radio guys would probably like to be more distant to drown out crowd noises.  But, this is a luxury at most 2-A high schools so it's something not to take for granted.  

     The other unique characteristic about this field is the field posts.  I'm not sure what era or what the reason for their design is, but it looks like something out of the '60s and '70s and its awesome!

Scoreboard 

     Looks like a new scoreboard and it's great for Crescent.  The sponsorship locations are great and not over-done, and the logo in the middle of the scoreboard is pretty sweet.  Good job on the new scoreboard Crescent.

New concessions and bathrooms

     Another great upgrade to the stadium with the new concessions and bathrooms.  It's located in the spot where I took the end zone view picture, opposite the scoreboard. 

     

End zone view of the stadium

     It was good to get over to Crescent High School and see their football stadium.  I hadn't been there in over 10 years and the only thing I had remembered from it was the tiger mural.  Its a great small town football stadium and the field goal posts and mural are great touches along with the updated scoreboard and concession and bathroom area.  I hope to make it over to a game at some point this season.

TL Hanna High School, Anderson, SC

TL Hanna High School Yellow Jackets

      *** Click on the pictures for a better resolution, I'm not sure what happened for these to be so blurry***

      TL Hanna is located several miles from my house and it is where my father went to high school.  Growing up I went to TL Hanna football games over at what is now Westside High Schools football stadium, formally known as District 5 Stadium.  After a student died a little over 10 years ago, her family donated money for TL Hanna to build a new football stadium at the new campus.  It's a gorgeous stadium and in my high school years it was always fun to go to games because Rafael Little was the RB (eventually signed w/ Kentucky, then was with the Tennessee Titans for a while and is now playing in the CFL).  TL Hanna is also home of 'Radio', the lovable guy who still roams the hallways and leads the team out onto the field before every game.  I will go into some more detail about him later.  Enjoy!

Home stands

     The home stands are unique because the bottom half that is built into the hill are cement with metal seats, and the top half are completely metal bleachers.  You can walk up from the bottom or in through the middle entrances.  There is a press box as you can see, and on top of the press box there are spaces for coaches to stand and watch the game.  It spans the entire length of the field.

View from teachers parking lot

Visitors stands

     The visitors stands don't exactly span the length of the field but come close to doing so.  The can either be accessed from the bottom of the bleachers or the middle which is something I think is really nice at any football stadium.  Other than that, they are just your standard metal bleachers.  There are areas behind both the home and visitors stands for students to hang out which is nice.

Scoreboard

     This is a standard high school scoreboard with everything you need when watching the game.  There are game clock boards in both end zones which is a nice touch as well.

Close-up of the ticket gates

Wide shot of the ticket gates

Statue of James 'Radio' Kennedy 

     Radio was a young man when he started hanging around football practice back in the '60s.  He was allowed to ride on the bus to away games, and attended all practices.  He has been going to school at TL Hanna since then and has become a fixture at the school.  There was a movie made about Radio in 2004 and it starred Cuba Gooding Jr. and James Harris.  He got the name Radio from the transistor radio he would carry around with him wherever he went.

Front of the high school

     I hope you enjoy one of my hometown high schools and the school that I rooted for growing up.  It is a great place to watch a football game and even going to one home game just to see radio is a show in itself.

Next round

The past several stadiums I've profiled have been from trips to south Georgia, Mobile and Birmingham.  The next round of stadiums will be from the area I grew up: Anderson SC, Greenville SC and Athens GA.  I'll finish up the ones from previous trips soon, but I want to profile some local stadiums first.  Hope everyone is enjoying the blog, comment if you wish!