Photo courtesy of Samford University Athletics.
Homewood and Pelham will play at Samford’s Seibert Stadium to open high school football season.
Homewood High School is going across the street for its first football game of the season. The 1st Annual Milo’s Breakfast Kickoff Classic between Homewood and Pelham will take place Thursday, August 18, to jumpstart the season.
“It’s just a good community event,” said Homewood City Schools athletic director Kevin Tubbs. “It’s something different. We’re hoping that some people come out that don’t normally come out to a game, especially early in the year. We’re hoping that it keeps going.”
Homewood and Pelham entered into a two-year agreement to play the season-opening game at Samford University’s Seibert Stadium, in hopes that the series will last much longer than that. A perpetual trophy will be made in honor of the event, and the winning team will keep it each year.
Tubbs credits the idea to Homewood head coach Ben Berguson, mentioning the chance to play a game on a turf field and playing a game on a Thursday night to draw a more diverse crowd. The timing worked out for all parties, as the majority of Samford students will not have arrived on campus yet.
“It should be a really cool environment for both teams. Very few kids get to play in that type of setting. We’re just excited about it,” Tubbs said.
Berguson said, “Just the change in venue, to add some excitement. We’re excited about that game and Pelham will be much improved this year. I watched them in their spring game, and hopefully we’re the only show in town that Thursday night, August 18. I just think it’ll be a neat atmosphere.”
Homewood had to consider a few factors before reaching out to Pelham about the idea. The AHSAA’s reclassification moved the two programs out of the same region, and set the stage for a great out-of-region matchup while still pitting two local, competitive teams against each other.
In the end, Pelham was the perfect fit.
"I am excited about this opportunity for our players and coaches to not only play on a collegiate field, but to also kick off the 2016 football season. We are the only game in town on Thursday, and our two communities will benefit from the special excitement that surrounds high school football," said Kim Kiel, Pelham's athletic director.
Tubbs also noted the opportunity for players, students and supporters to go somewhere they may not find themselves regularly.
“It’s good for kids to go on a college campus. There’s a lot of kids that live in Birmingham that may not have even walked on Samford’s campus. It’s good for everybody,” he said.
The trend in recent years has seen many college football games played at neutral sites, and Tubbs sees the game as a way to open up to a larger array of people.
“High school athletics is an incredible product that’s generally for students and parents. But as we know with college football, everybody’s a football fan. Having it at a site like this, people won’t be as intimidated to drive over,” he said.
Before the game, Homewood’s marching band is planning to march from the high school to Samford.
Tickets for the game will be $8, but there will be no charge for parking on Samford’s campus or at Homewood High School.
Also of note, 99.1 “The Game,” a new sports talk radio station in Birmingham, will broadcast many of Homewood’s football games throughout the season.
