Posted by
nimanya on Sunday, August 30, 2009 5:21:10 PM
From the giant
bulldog logo at midfield to the spongy new artificial turf, there's a
lot to like about the Waterloo Bulldogs' new football complex.
Waterloo
broke in its new field Friday with a 26-0 victory over Freeburg and the
entire night oozed the excitement of a new field, a new school and a
new prep football season. Waterloo is the smallest school in the area
to switch from grass to the new-style artificial surface, joining East
St. Louis, O'Fallon and Edwardsville.
The field withstood some light rain and the bright green surface and sharp white lines gave the game an NFL-type atmosphere.
"You
definitely ahve to get used to it," said Waterloo running back Tyler
Fickas, who gashed the Midget defense for 182 yards. "The first couple
days I was slipping around like crazy just like everybody else. But
after a while you start to get used to it; you slow it down a little
bit and just take your cuts."
A spacious new press box sat
atop a large set of bleachers and Waterloo fans showed up early, some
doing some tailgating and others simply hoping to get a look at the new
facility.
One of the last people to leave the premises Friday
night was Waterloo athletic director Rick Keefe. Keefe kept track of a
few unforeseen issues that cropped up on game night, but said he was
extremely pleased with the opening-night events.