Georgia Dome is now history

You can put a fork in Atlanta’s Georgia Dome. It’s done following the completion of the Monster Jam Motorsports event last weekend.

The building opened in 1992 and is only 25 years old and is still very serviceable. I have been in quite a few domed stadium in the country, the Superdome in New Orleans, Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ford Field in Detroit, the Alamodome in San Antonio, the Sun Dome in St. Petersburg, Florida, and even the now dismantled Kingdome in Seattle, the Astrodome in Houston, the Metrodome in Minneapolis and the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, and the Georgia Dome is as good or better than any of those.

But Falcons owner Arthur Blank wanted a new building, at a cost of $1.4 billion, and he got it. The new Mercedes Benz Stadium, with its retractable roof, will become the home of the Falcons in September and will also serve as the home of Atlanta United FC in the Major League Soccer. In addition to sporting events, including the national college football championship game in January, and Super Bowl LIII in 2019, major conventions will also have access to the facility.

The Georgia Dome served as the Falcons’ home for 25 seasons, and it was the site of their NFC title game win back in January when they demolished the Green Bay Packers 44-21 en route to their second Super Bowl appearance. We all know Falcons surrendered a 25-point lead in that game, losing to the New England Patriots in overtime.

Since the Georgia Dome opened, sports fans in Atlanta, the state of Georgia and the Southeast have had the opportunity to see some of the world’s greatest sporting events. Having that arena in Atlanta has led our state capital to host Super Bowl XXVIII, in which the Dallas Cowboys routed the Buffalo Bills 30-13, and Super Bowl XXXIV, when St. Louis defeated Tennessee 23-16.

There have been three NCAA Final Fours at the Georgia Dome. Maryland won its only title in 2002, beating Indiana, while Florida captured its second consecutive title in 2007, beating Ohio State, and Louisville defeated Michigan in 2013. It was also the basketball venue in the 1996 Olympic Games, where America’s “Dream team” won another gold medal.

You may remember the Hawks called the Georgia Dome home for two seasons, from 1997 through 1999, and set an NBA attendance record in 1998 of 62,046 when Michael Jordan played in what was to be his final appearance in Atlanta. It wasn’t as he would play through the 2003 season.

Annual events include the Peach Bowl, which has been played there since 1993 (the 1992 season), and the Chic-fil-A Kickoff Classic, which started in 2008. The 2017 kickoff classic, which moves to the Mercedes Benz Stadium this year along with all the other events, will feature two games in September. Alabama plays Florida State on September 2 and Georgia Tech meets Tennessee on Labor Day night. Auburn and Washington play in the 2018 kickoff classic.

The Georgia Dome has been the home field for Georgia State Panthers football since the program started in 2010 and host for the GHSA football playoffs, as well as an occasional site for both the ACC and SEC basketball tournaments. One of the most memorable events ever held at the Georgia Dome was the 2008 SEC basketball tournament, which was hit with a tornado that ripped a hole in the Georgia Dome roof, forcing games to move to Georgia Tech.

Georgia fans will recall that tournament fondly. The Bulldogs played three games in 30 hours and won the SEC crown on Georgia Tech’s home floor. It is their only SEC basketball championship since 1983.

So now what happens to the Georgia Dome? First, a company out of St. Louis has been contracted to sell off items that will not be used at the new stadium, including pairs of seats at $599. It then will soon feel the wrath of the wrecking ball and be demolished reportedly to make way for a new hotel complex that will be attached to the Mercedes Benz Stadium for easy accessibility to either the stadium or to the complex.

I’m sure it will be grand, but the Georgia Dome is a great facility, and I didn’t see a need for a new stadium. But get ready for a building that will rival Jerry Jones’ AT&T Stadium in Dallas.

This story was originally published March 6, 2017 at 2:23 PM with the headline "Georgia Dome is now history."