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Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2007

Moving title games a sad end to a golden era

I am not what one would consider a betting man, unless you count wagering the result of a game on something like a pizza or a sandwich.

But there is one thing that is a safe bet right now - that Friday will likely be the biggest day in the history in the little town of Rochelle.

Wilcox County is enjoying a magical season with the Patriots playing for the GHSA Class A state championship Friday against ECI. Fans in Rochelle and other nearby hamlets are getting some icing on what has already been a sweet season with Friday's game being played in Wilcox County.

Any fans making it to either Rochelle for Wilcox County's shot a title or down to Ware County to see Northside go for its second GHSA Class AAAA crown should enjoy this week while they can. That is because after this year, the state championships in all five classifications are moving to the Georgia Dome with individual schools hosting the semifinals, which are currently hosted at the Georgia Dome.

Georgia is going the way of other states in moving its championships to one site. But just because everyone else is doing it, doesn't mean it has to be done.

By moving championship games, something that holds an incredible atmosphere even if you end up on the losing end, communities, including those in suburban Atlanta, are robbed of part of what makes high school football so great in this neck of the woods - quaint stadiums hosting the climax of the high school football season.

Growing up in Valdosta, I saw a handful of championship games. Tickets were tough to come by, even with what was then known as Cleveland Field seating more than 11,000 people. There were plenty of fans wishing they could have gotten in to see a championship game then, and there will probably be others in similar predicaments this weekend in Valdosta, Waycross, Cairo, Buford and Rochelle.

And that's what makes championship games at these smaller stadiums so unique - fans fighting for the right to be packed in tighter than a can of sardines and trying to will their hometown team to a championship while dreading the long lines for hot chocolate at the concession stand.

Contrast that with the Georgia Dome, where teams play in a sterilized atmosphere in front of fans who had to pay an arm and a leg just to park close to the Dome.

Yes, I know that more people will get to go to the championship game with it being in Atlanta, but there is no guarantee that if ECI and Wilcox County were playing at the Georgia Dome on Friday instead of in Wilcox County that the same number of fans would make it to Atlanta. Looking forward to heading onto the field after the game if your team wins a championship? Don't count on it at the Georgia Dome, although I'm not sure the fieldturf in Atlanta could look much worse after the NFL football that has been played on it for the past few months.

It's a sad week for high school football in Georgia with championship games being stripped from the communities that have rallied around players, coaches and others throughout the season.

But this weekend, towns throughout the Peach State will get one final chance to soak up a championship environment before it is shipped off to Atlanta.

Enjoy it while it lasts.