UpNorth

My pleasure I am glad everyone enjoyed it as much as I did/do everytime I read the poem. Like many of you said its home and HARD. Whether you have a kid not even close to graduating (Me) or one that graduated years ago or even played the game. This poem gets you no matter what and thats what I love about it. I was at a team dinner a couple of years ago ( I had known about this poem by then) and a senior mom stood up to talk. This was I think Week 9 of the season.She asked that all the seniors and their parents stand up as well. Then she started reading this poem and I knew I wouldnt be able to hold back the tears for the life of me and I didnt even have a son to cry for. Matter of fact I think they started before she even got the first sentence finished!!LOL By the end of the poem there was not a dry eye in the room. To all you parents out there please let your sons know how special this time is and to not take for granted this moment in their lives. This will be one of many "The time of their lifes" as they get to be grown men. But no matter if they are undefeated or have not won a game all year Friday Nights are SPECIAL and you cannot get that feeling back when they are gone. I was lucky enough to go on and play one year of college football and it did not compare to playing in front of your hometown on Friday Nights. Once again I am glad everyone has enjoyed this poem as much as I have.

Moto you must have been part of the same league I was in up here!! LOL We tried as well and didnt quite work out how we had planned! Oh well there is nothing like playing under those Friday Night Lights!! I have a boy in middle school right now that their season just ended. I told him to take it all in because before he knows it he will blink and it will be the last game of his senior year.

So I normally stay quiet on here and just like reading the topics. Being from Ohio I do not have much insight on the programs down there only when I come down to visit. But I came across this poem and thought that every parent should read this and remember how fast these times go by. This poem is especially fitting for those senior parents out there with the season winding down. I have modified it to include the dads as this was a football mom poem but I know us dads out there still feel the same way. So enjoy feel free to share it with others....... Dear FOOTBALL MOM/DAD, You dreaded this year’s arrival, but it has come just the same. A year full of promise, but so many “last times.” Over the years you have helped with countless team meals, washed mounds of sweaty uniforms, chauffeured to more early morning practices then you care to remember. You have been top-of-the-world elated when your son has had a good night and endured his deathlike silences when he hasn’t. It is amazing how the family mood bobs with the rhythm of each game. You have laughed, cried, screamed, sulked, pouted, sweat, pulled your hair, bit your nails, bit your tongue, paced, worried, shoved, frowned, and smiled all very gracefully and within a two hour span. Such is the life of a football mom/dad. You may not be in on the big play, but you feel the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat right along with your son. You keep your composure when some fan behind you wants your son’s head while the opponent on the field is mashing it into the grass. “Get off him, that's my baby” you’d like to shout! You breath football at this time of year, especially this time of year when your heart whispers “just a little longer” as the season slides by. You plead and bargain, knowing full well that some other mother/father on the opponent's team is making her/his own deal with the Almighty, But you do it anyway, because you no more want it to end than your son does. You do not want to see the desperation in his eyes and the pain on his face as he struggles to put away childhood dreams. You are helpless in the stands, with no way to make it better. Is it worth it? YOU BET IT IS! Every lost game sock, busy Friday night. Every recovering Saturday, every aspirin, every ruined hair do, hot bath, goose bumps, and every obnoxious fan and sports writer you’ve had to tolerate is worth it. The fun isn’t measured by how many times your son gets into the newspaper, the game, or what he does when he gets there. The fun- what makes those trips to the ER for the pigskin stitches all worthwhile, is watching a game, What a sport experience can do to convert your little boy into a young man. Watching him tackle the world and you have a front row seat. You still see that rambunctious 5 yr old playing football in the yard. You bite your lip and hold back the tears because though you are fiercely proud of the young man he has become, you miss the boy. In fact you mourn for all the little boys. You have watched them grow up together, plot and scheme together, win and lose together. They have raided your kitchen, camped out in your basement, stole your heart. They are blessed with something they will never have again. They know it and you know it. So you pray that wonder will last another game, and then another, because as long as it does, you hang on to a piece of your boy for a bit longer. Watching him walk off that field one last time will be no less painful then giving birth to him all those years ago. We will miss this group of young men. We will miss watching them run on to the field like soldiers going to battle, the hi-fives after a great play, the chest slams after a great tackle, the celebrations over a big win and the sober faces after a disappointing loss. We will missing watching the boys we love, play the game they love .Football. Anonymous

So I normally stay quiet on here and just like reading the topics. Being from Ohio I do not have much insight on the programs down there only when I come down to visit. But I came across this poem and thought that every parent should read this and remember how fast these times go by. This poem is especially fitting for those senior parents out there with the season winding down. I have modified it to include the dads as this was a football mom poem but I know us dads out there still feel the same way. So enjoy feel free to share it with others....... Dear FOOTBALL MOM/DAD, You dreaded this year’s arrival, but it has come just the same. A year full of promise, but so many “last times.” Over the years you have helped with countless team meals, washed mounds of sweaty uniforms, chauffeured to more early morning practices then you care to remember. You have been top-of-the-world elated when your son has had a good night and endured his deathlike silences when he hasn’t. It is amazing how the family mood bobs with the rhythm of each game. You have laughed, cried, screamed, sulked, pouted, sweat, pulled your hair, bit your nails, bit your tongue, paced, worried, shoved, frowned, and smiled all very gracefully and within a two hour span. Such is the life of a football mom/dad. You may not be in on the big play, but you feel the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat right along with your son. You keep your composure when some fan behind you wants your son’s head while the opponent on the field is mashing it into the grass. “Get off him, that's my baby” you’d like to shout! You breath football at this time of year, especially this time of year when your heart whispers “just a little longer” as the season slides by. You plead and bargain, knowing full well that some other mother/father on the opponent's team is making her/his own deal with the Almighty, But you do it anyway, because you no more want it to end than your son does. You do not want to see the desperation in his eyes and the pain on his face as he struggles to put away childhood dreams. You are helpless in the stands, with no way to make it better. Is it worth it? YOU BET IT IS! Every lost game sock, busy Friday night. Every recovering Saturday, every aspirin, every ruined hair do, hot bath, goose bumps, and every obnoxious fan and sports writer you’ve had to tolerate is worth it. The fun isn’t measured by how many times your son gets into the newspaper, the game, or what he does when he gets there. The fun- what makes those trips to the ER for the pigskin stitches all worthwhile, is watching a game, What a sport experience can do to convert your little boy into a young man. Watching him tackle the world and you have a front row seat. You still see that rambunctious 5 yr old playing football in the yard. You bite your lip and hold back the tears because though you are fiercely proud of the young man he has become, you miss the boy. In fact you mourn for all the little boys. You have watched them grow up together, plot and scheme together, win and lose together. They have raided your kitchen, camped out in your basement, stole your heart. They are blessed with something they will never have again. They know it and you know it. So you pray that wonder will last another game, and then another, because as long as it does, you hang on to a piece of your boy for a bit longer. Watching him walk off that field one last time will be no less painful then giving birth to him all those years ago. We will miss this group of young men. We will miss watching them run on to the field like soldiers going to battle, the hi-fives after a great play, the chest slams after a great tackle, the celebrations over a big win and the sober faces after a disappointing loss. We will missing watching the boys we love, play the game they love .Football. Anonymous

So I normally stay quiet on here and just like reading the topics. Being from Ohio I do not have much insight on the programs down there only when I come down to visit. But I came across this poem and thought that every parent should read this and remember how fast these times go by. This poem is especially fitting for those senior parents out there with the season winding down. I have modified it to include the dads as this was a football mom poem but I know us dads out there still feel the same way. So enjoy feel free to share it with others....... Dear FOOTBALL MOM/DAD, You dreaded this year’s arrival, but it has come just the same. A year full of promise, but so many “last times.” Over the years you have helped with countless team meals, washed mounds of sweaty uniforms, chauffeured to more early morning practices then you care to remember. You have been top-of-the-world elated when your son has had a good night and endured his deathlike silences when he hasn’t. It is amazing how the family mood bobs with the rhythm of each game. You have laughed, cried, screamed, sulked, pouted, sweat, pulled your hair, bit your nails, bit your tongue, paced, worried, shoved, frowned, and smiled all very gracefully and within a two hour span. Such is the life of a football mom/dad. You may not be in on the big play, but you feel the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat right along with your son. You keep your composure when some fan behind you wants your son’s head while the opponent on the field is mashing it into the grass. “Get off him, that's my baby” you’d like to shout! You breath football at this time of year, especially this time of year when your heart whispers “just a little longer” as the season slides by. You plead and bargain, knowing full well that some other mother/father on the opponent's team is making her/his own deal with the Almighty, But you do it anyway, because you no more want it to end than your son does. You do not want to see the desperation in his eyes and the pain on his face as he struggles to put away childhood dreams. You are helpless in the stands, with no way to make it better. Is it worth it? YOU BET IT IS! Every lost game sock, busy Friday night. Every recovering Saturday, every aspirin, every ruined hair do, hot bath, goose bumps, and every obnoxious fan and sports writer you’ve had to tolerate is worth it. The fun isn’t measured by how many times your son gets into the newspaper, the game, or what he does when he gets there. The fun- what makes those trips to the ER for the pigskin stitches all worthwhile, is watching a game, What a sport experience can do to convert your little boy into a young man. Watching him tackle the world and you have a front row seat. You still see that rambunctious 5 yr old playing football in the yard. You bite your lip and hold back the tears because though you are fiercely proud of the young man he has become, you miss the boy. In fact you mourn for all the little boys. You have watched them grow up together, plot and scheme together, win and lose together. They have raided your kitchen, camped out in your basement, stole your heart. They are blessed with something they will never have again. They know it and you know it. So you pray that wonder will last another game, and then another, because as long as it does, you hang on to a piece of your boy for a bit longer. Watching him walk off that field one last time will be no less painful then giving birth to him all those years ago. We will miss this group of young men. We will miss watching them run on to the field like soldiers going to battle, the hi-fives after a great play, the chest slams after a great tackle, the celebrations over a big win and the sober faces after a disappointing loss. We will missing watching the boys we love, play the game they love .Football. Anonymous

Looking at the pic posted that place is really nice. Like I mentioned before I am a HUGE fan of stadiums with no track surrounding the field. From what I have noticed alot of schools in Tennessee do not have the track. Question for all of you, is track big down there? I am guessing not just by not seeing alot of tracks surrounding the football fields. Here in Ohio 95% of the fields will have that darn track which puts the fans even further from the field. Keep the pics coming guys I love seeing them!

Let me make this statement on this forum as their a few over in 5A/6A who think I am trying to make this a competition. Ohio vs. Tennessee. Thats not what I am trying to do at all with this thread. I am simply trying to see some photos of the stadiums down in Tennessee good or bad. I know the pictures I have posted the stadiums are pretty nice but believe me we have more DUMPS up here than good ones. If you guys can post pics please do I just like seeing where high school athletes are playing and the unique design and setup of each facility.

And a few more...... Piqua Alexander Stadium - Home of the Piqua Indians. Very new stadium, host many playoff games. http://www.piquamusic.com/files/image/stadium.jpg Troy Memorial Stadium - Home of the Troy Trojans. Their Rivalry with Piqua I think is the oldest in the State of Ohio. http://image20.webshots.com/20/8/96/23/ ... bLs_ph.jpg Wildcat Stadium - Home to the Mogadore Wildcats. Mogadore has a rich football history and tradition. They are in the playoffs every year and usually make some noise when in them. http://www.mogadorefootball.com/stadium.html Mentor Stadium - Home to the Mentor Cardinals and Lake Catholic Cougars. Mentor is one of the largest schools in Ohio. http://www.1team1dream.com/stadium.html Jackson Alumni Stadium - Home of the Jackson Ironmen. http://www.stadiumconnection.com/stadium.php?id=1158 West Portsmouth Stadium "The Rock" - Home of the West Portsmouth Senators http://www.west.k12.oh.us/highschool/Gr ... Darker.jpg

Here are a couple more I found: Ironton Tanks Stadium- Home of the Ironton Tigers. Very very very old stadium with a ton of history. I love the covered stands very unique to high school football. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e ... m_wide.jpg Dublin Scioto Stadium - Home of the Scioto Irish. Typical affluent high school with turf http://www.sciotofootball.com/images/st ... adium6.jpg Cincinnati Colerain Stadium - Home of the Colerain Cardinals. Newer field they made it unique with the off color green every five yards. http://www.colerainboosters.com/gallery ... ld0717.jpg Crater Stadium- Home of the Dover Tornadoes. Very nice facility their rivalry with the New Philadelphia Quakers is one of the oldest in the state. http://media.photobucket.com/image/crat ... 4Oct03.jpg Grove City Stadium - Home of the Grove City Greyhounds. Very sad situation in this school district and other Grove City schools. Voters did not pass a levy to increase money needed for the schools. Therefore all sports were done away with, no kid should have to go through something like that. http://www.swcs.us/buildings/GCHSweb/03 ... /Dawgs.jpg

Easy easy easy, not trying to put this into a competition at all. Trust me there is as many dumps up here in Ohio as there are nice stadiums. The only bad thing is its hard to find those dumps on the web when I am trying to find some of the stadiums up here in the North. I have tried but I am sure the people who play in those dumps are not running to the computer posting pics of their stadiums for everyone to take a look at and laugh. I personally love the atmosphere of Tennessee football. I can tell you unless you are a perennial power up here in Ohio the following from the fans last about the first four weeks of the season. After they can gauge the team and see if they will be successful or not they either continue the rest of the season or go back to their holes. From the games I have been to at different times of the season between good teams and bad teams down there the fan support seems to be tremoundous. Just wanted to let everyone know that this is by no way a competition between Ohio vs. Tennessee. That competition will come in about ten years as the Vols and Buckeyes have signed on to play against each I believe around that time!! HAHAHA

And a few more...... Piqua Alexander Stadium - Home of the Piqua Indians. Very new stadium, host many playoff games. http://www.piquamusic.com/files/image/stadium.jpg Troy Memorial Stadium - Home of the Troy Trojans. Their Rivalry with Piqua I think is the oldest in the State of Ohio. http://image20.webshots.com/20/8/96/23/ ... bLs_ph.jpg Wildcat Stadium - Home to the Mogadore Wildcats. Mogadore has a rich football history and tradition. They are in the playoffs every year and usually make some noise when in them. http://www.mogadorefootball.com/stadium.html Mentor Stadium - Home to the Mentor Cardinals and Lake Catholic Cougars. Mentor is one of the largest schools in Ohio. http://www.1team1dream.com/stadium.html Jackson Alumni Stadium - Home of the Jackson Ironmen. http://www.stadiumconnection.com/stadium.php?id=1158 West Portsmouth Stadium "The Rock" - Home of the West Portsmouth Senators http://www.west.k12.oh.us/highschool/Gr ... Darker.jpg

Here are a couple more I found: Ironton Tanks Stadium- Home of the Ironton Tigers. Very very very old stadium with a ton of history. I love the covered stands very unique to high school football. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e ... m_wide.jpg Dublin Scioto Stadium - Home of the Scioto Irish. Typical affluent high school with turf http://www.sciotofootball.com/images/st ... adium6.jpg Cincinnati Colerain Stadium - Home of the Colerain Cardinals. Newer field they made it unique with the off color green every five yards. http://www.colerainboosters.com/gallery ... ld0717.jpg Crater Stadium- Home of the Dover Tornadoes. Very nice facility their rivalry with the New Philadelphia Quakers is one of the oldest in the state. http://media.photobucket.com/image/crat ... 4Oct03.jpg Grove City Stadium - Home of the Grove City Greyhounds. Very sad situation in this school district and other Grove City schools. Voters did not pass a levy to increase money needed for the schools. Therefore all sports were done away with, no kid should have to go through something like that. http://www.swcs.us/buildings/GCHSweb/03 ... /Dawgs.jpg

Thats one thing I like about your stadiums down there no tracks around the field. Here in the north you will find a majority of the stadiums with that dang track forcing you further from the field!!!

Here are a couple more I found: Ironton Tanks Stadium- Home of the Ironton Tigers. Very very very old stadium with a ton of history. I love the covered stands very unique to high school football. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/e ... m_wide.jpg Dublin Scioto Stadium - Home of the Scioto Irish. Typical affluent high school with turf http://www.sciotofootball.com/images/st ... adium6.jpg Cincinnati Colerain Stadium - Home of the Colerain Cardinals. Newer field they made it unique with the off color green every five yards. http://www.colerainboosters.com/gallery ... ld0717.jpg Crater Stadium- Home of the Dover Tornadoes. Very nice facility their rivalry with the New Philadelphia Quakers is one of the oldest in the state. http://media.photobucket.com/image/crat ... 4Oct03.jpg Grove City Stadium - Home of the Grove City Greyhounds. Very sad situation in this school district and other Grove City schools. Voters did not pass a levy to increase money needed for the schools. Therefore all sports were done away with, no kid should have to go through something like that. http://www.swcs.us/buildings/GCHSweb/03 ... /Dawgs.jpg

Now I will post a couple of pics for you guys to see some of the good ones up here and some of the not so good. Believe me I am not tooting Ohio's horn at all. This is Huron Tiger Stadium, nice place to watch a game. Lucky for them a huge indoor waterpark resort donated $650,000 to the project and thus a new field for the Tigers. http://www.hurontigers.com/stadium/2008stadium.JPG Massillon Paul Brown Tiger Stadium is where Massillon Washington High School plays, but also where 3 Divisions of State Championships are held every year. I have also posted their new indoor practice facility thanks to a deep pocket alumni. http://doclehman.files.wordpress.com/20 ... tadium.jpg http://blog.cleveland.com/hs/2008/10/la ... sillon.jpg Canton Fawcett Stadium. Home to numerous Canton public and parochial schools as well as two small colleges I believe. The other 3 divisions in football state championships are held here just up the road from Massillon. The picture can you fool you though, this place is not fun to watch a game unless its for a state championship. http://www.gossipcraze.com/_mm/_d/_ext2 ... dium01.jpg Parma Byers Field - Home to numerous high schools and playoff games. This place is a total dump and I would not be sad one bit to see a bulldozer go right through the place http://www.internationalssoccer.com/images/byers3.jpg Steubenville Harding Stadium- Now I have never been to this place but everyone raves about it and from the pictures I can see why. I do know that Steubenville loves their football and has a great tradition. http://www.hsfootballweb.com/bigredsky.jpg Sandusky Stroebel Field, Home of the Sandusky Blue Streaks. Very very very old stadium. I could not find a picture of the home side. This place is very outdated but has a ton of history within the walls. http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3221/281 ... da.jpg?v=0 The Pit home to Cincinnati Elder. Never been here but I like the horseshoe shape pretty unique. http://www.elderphotos.com/albums/ThePi ... 052005.JPG Martins Ferry Alumni Stadium - Home to the Martins Ferry Purple Riders. This place is probably my all time favorite and I have not even been to the place. I love the setting in the hills of Southern Ohio. http://i240.photobucket.com/albums/ff12 ... fs0042.jpg These are just a few good ones and bad ones. If you guys have pics please please please share them.