Playing High School Games In Commonwealth Stadium

[JokersWild24]

Has this ever been tried? What does everyone think? How would this work best? What would be some of the biggest obstacles?

 

I'd mentioned in another thread that I thought this would be a good idea. Maybe something like a tripleheader on a Friday night or even on a Saturday when UK is off (or out of town).

 

If it were on a Friday, the games could be scheduled to start at approximately 6:00, 7:45, and 9:30. If this were the plan, then you could have two fairly proximal schools play in the first game. I would think an excellent match-up here would be Lexington Catholic vs. Boyle County.

 

The next game could go a variety of ways. For example, this year it could be John Hardin or Caldwell County vs. Bowling Green or Johnson Central. The draws for John Hardin or Caldwell County would obviously be Matt Elam or Elijah Sindelar. This could be a big recruiting advantage for UK because it's a convenient way to get the kids on campus and in a comfort zone with their team. If the fans came out for this and "showed the love" it would be even better.

 

The final game would need to be both the biggest draw for casual fans and one that anticipation for would build up through the afternoon. IF it could get worked out, I'd like to see Highlands vs. Trinity or a similar match-up. Obviously, St. Xavier and Trinity aren't going to move their game from Papa John's to Lexington. The match-up in the finale would need to have some kind of draw though, and I think 4A Highlands playing a 6A power to see the "best team regardless of class" debate settled.

 

 

If the games were on a Saturday, the formats and teams could be tinkered with. For example, there wouldn't be as much concern for a Johnson Central or Caldwell County missing class time. There could also be more lead time in preparing for the games, letting teams warm up on the field itself as opposed to them warming up in Nutter and/or on the outdoor practice fields. You could possibly even throw in a fourth game to draw more fans in.

 

I don't think there'll be a high school event that will fill Commonwealth anytime in the foreseeable future, but I don't think that filling Commonwealth near capacity would be something that would be required to make it work. Just think about the number of parents, friends, and family members who'd go to Lexington just to see their child play, cheer, or perform. Under these scenarios, would there be enough of a pull luring in the casual fan to make this event successful?

 

Getting even more outside the box, would it be possible that Stoops could draw in an Ohio team that UK wanted a nice working relationship with? Even if he could would this be a good idea?

 

Thoughts?

[Bluegrasscard]

Natural turf makes it difficult. That is why state finals are out of the question. Even a single game or two game bowl night during the regular season may be a headache for the grounds crew.

 

Also, though LexCath vs. Boyle may be one of the best fits it would not come close to getting a crowd that would look good in the giant stadium. The games are usually well attended but no where near the scale of X-T at Papa Johns.

[Bluegrasscard]

BTW, UK did host 7-on-7 games there this past summer so they obviously are supporting the local and statewide high schools.

[JokersWild24]

Natural turf makes it difficult. That is why state finals are out of the question. Even a single game or two game bowl night during the regular season may be a headache for the grounds crew.

 

Also, though LexCath vs. Boyle may be one of the best fits it would not come close to getting a crowd that would look good in the giant stadium. The games are usually well attended but no where near the scale of X-T at Papa Johns.

 

For sure.

 

My thought was that the attendance would look filled out based on fans of all of the schools staying to take in their team's games, and the casual fan who might not take in the Boyle County-Lexington Catholic game by itself who'd drive up from somewhere like Richmond or down from Frankfort to see three or four games on one ticket.

 

Maybe having a couple of sections allotted to each team could help with this, as it would keep the camaraderie of going to a game with your neighbors, co workers, etc. in tact.

 

I think one of the biggest problems with this idea would be that the casual fans of schools who were also playing that night would just stay local with their attendance. If there were a way to isolate one day/night for this type of event, I think you've got one of the biggest obstacles solved. If the grounds crew is a worry, maybe playing the games on a Sunday could be an option. I'm guessing that the field after one game is no worse than what most schools play on anyway.

[Lawnboy13]

At least that stadium would finally see quality teams on the field for once. :banana:

[Rebel]

Boyle did play Henry Clay at Commonwealth back in 2003 or 2004.

[Content1]

A great idea once synthetic field turf is installed. :thumb:

[gchs_uk9]

Boyle did play Henry Clay at Commonwealth back in 2003 or 2004.

 

2004. Boyle beat Henry Clay pretty bad. I had totally forgot about that.

[JokersWild24]

2004. Boyle beat Henry Clay pretty bad. I had totally forgot about that.

 

I didn't even realize they had played there.

 

What was the attendance like?

 

When was the game played and what other circumstances were surrounding the game? E.g., recruits playing?, UK home game that weekend?, Keeneland weekend?

[Rebel]

I didn't even realize they had played there.

 

What was the attendance like?

 

When was the game played and what other circumstances were surrounding the game? E.g., recruits playing?, UK home game that weekend?, Keeneland weekend?

 

I believe the reason was because Henry Clay's new field was being built. Attendance was about a average game between these two from the previous year at Boyle, but looked empty with all the seating available. Too far back to remember about Keeneland or if UK had a game at home that weekend

(my guess is no). The following year, Chuck Smith did take a job with UK. :irked: Wished that game never happened now.:banghead:

[Clyde]

As one who hates high school games in huge venues let me say I'm fully against it.

 

It might be cool to be in the lockerroom but once the game starts and the 4,000 fans in a 68,000 seat stadium can't be heard it will be a non-event for the boys on the field.

[punttheball]

As one who hates high school games in huge venues let me say I'm fully against it.

 

It might be cool to be in the lockerroom but once the game starts and the 4,000 fans in a 68,000 seat stadium can't be heard it will be a non-event for the boys on the field.

 

Strongly agree!

[thsrocks]

This was a financial bust when Trinity defeated Henderson County in the 4A final in 1976. The score was 28-24 at the half. That happened to be the final score as well! Henderson County was in the midst of their version of TC Williams made famous years later in Remember the Titans. Henderson city and county merged the summer before.

[thegeneral]

As one who hates high school games in huge venues let me say I'm fully against it.

 

It might be cool to be in the lockerroom but once the game starts and the 4,000 fans in a 68,000 seat stadium can't be heard it will be a non-event for the boys on the field.

 

That makes a lot of sense, and 4,000 might be stretching it these days. The Boyle-Lexington Catholic game didn't even fill Boyle's stadium this year.

[Colonels_Wear_Blue]

A great idea once synthetic field turf is installed. :thumb:

 

With the top-notch agriculture program that they have at UK, I don't see this happening any time soon.