Jamie Mitchell is appreciative of where North Little Rock will be playing its home games beginning today.
"You get wowed every time," Mitchell said.
LR CATHOLIC AT
NORTH LITTLE ROCK
WHEN 7 p.m.
WHERE Charging Wildcats Stadium, North Little Rock
TICKETS $5
GATES OPEN 5 p.m.
NOTEWORTHY $7.5 million stadium part of North Little Rock School District’s $245 million capital improvement project. … Pregame warmups begin at 5:30 p.m. A dedication ceremony with the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce is at 6:30 p.m.
The Charging Wildcats are finally getting to play a true home game for the first time in almost two years when North Little Rock christens Charging Wildcats Stadium today against Little Rock Catholic.
It's the first time since November 2013 that the Charging Wildcats will play on its campus. The school's previous stadium, North Little Rock Stadium, was open from the 1930s to 2013. It was home to the Charging Wildcats since 1990, following the merger of Ole Main and Northeast high schools.
The $7.5 million stadium is part of the North Little Rock School District's capital improvement project, which started at $245 million. The district is reducing 21 campuses to 13 schools.
Last year, the Charging Wildcats played their home games at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock because the new stadium wasn't ready following construction delays.
They're glad to be home for the 2015 season.
"You only get one chance to open a new stadium," Mitchell said.
The stadium will hold 5,039, according to Baldwin & Shell, a Little Rock construction company that has worked on the project. The school's new four buildings -- Towers A, B, C and D -- will hold classes and wrap around the west and south sides of the football field.
"I haven't found a district in America that has done this much transformation," North Little Rock Superintendent Kelly Rodgers said.
Rodgers and the district are pleased with the completion of what is expected to be one of the state's top high school football stadiums.
"This is comparable to some of the largest stadiums in Texas," Rodgers said.
The stadium's 1,449-square-foot press box includes booths for the home and visiting coaches, the public address announcer, broadcast journalism department and media members. It is part of the new high school and can be accessed on the third level.
NLR's broadcast journalism department will be in charge of the stadium's scoreboard system, which cost $325,000. There will be two cameras on the field, said Hannah Sullivan, a NLR teacher.
Sullivan added that during a game, the department will have a technical director, a graphic engineer, camera operator, director and producer.
"It's pretty spectacular," Sullivan said. "No other high school has the scoreboard that we'll have."
Rodgers said that the hallway underneath the press box on the second level of the school that connects Towers A and B will be used for meetings and reunions. The 1965 Ole Main state championship football team will have its 50-year reunion next Friday when North Little Rock hosts Fayetteville.
The new stadium is ready for play, but North Little Rock players and coaches will be in temporary quarters located on the northwest end of the stadium. They'll be housed on the southwest end of the stadium in 2016, Rodgers said.
A plaza on the stadium's west side will serve as a meeting area on game days. Rodgers said his vision is to have the school's pep band and cheerleaders perform pregame in the area.
A large crowd is expected, with the opening of the new stadium and Little Rock Catholic as the opponent, Rodgers said.
North Little Rock fans are asked to park in the west parking lot, with access off Pershing Boulevard. Little Rock Catholic fans can park in the east parking lot off Main Street. Tickets for today's game are $5.
From a football standpoint, Mitchell is glad gametime is here for his Charging Wildcats.
"They're ready to go," Mitchell said. "It's been a long five weeks. They're tired of banging on each other."
Sports on 09/04/2015