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FHSAA Moves Football Championship Games To Tallahassee, Daytona Beach
April 6, 2019
The road to the state football championship will be a shorter one for 1A-3A teams and a change of scenery for other classes.
The FHSAA announced Friday that the 1A-3A state championship games will be played in Tallahassee for at least the next three years, and the 4A-8A games will be held in Daytona Beach.
“I think this was a great move by the FHSAA,” Northview head coach Derek Marshman said. “The FHSAA is starting to listen more to schools’ requests, and this is a big step in what schools and coaches want. Over 90% of the 1A schools are from Pensacola to Jacksonville, so this makes sense.”
For Northview High School, for instance, the distance to a state championship game drops from about 450 miles to Orlando to about 200 miles to Tallahassee. That means a much easier trip for teams and fans, Marshman said.
When Northview defeated Trenton for the 2012 1A state championship in, over 3,000 Northview fans were on hand in Orlando in what was then known as the Florida Citrus Bowl. It’s now called the Camping World Stadium and holds 65,000 people.
The 1A-3A championship games will be played December 5-7 this year on the artificial turf in the 6,500 capacity Gene Cox Stadium.
“The smaller stadium will make a big difference in the feel of the game,” Marshman said. “There’s no way for a 1A team to fill the stadium in Orlando. But in Gene Cox in Tallahassee, teams can look up and it will be a big time feel with a stadium that’s nearly full.”
The 4A-8A games will be placed December 11-14 at Daytona Stadium, capacity 15,000.
“After listening to feedback from our membership, we felt having two locations stretched out over two weeks made the most sense,” FHSAA Executive Director George Tomyn said. “This new schedule gives families and fans the most flexibility when it comes to supporting their student-athletes.”
Both venues recently underwent significant renovations. Daytona’s $20 million renovation included new field turf, remodeled locker rooms, an open-air VIP club, VIP space with theater seating and a completely redesigned expansive concourse area. Gene Cox Stadium underwent an $800,000 renovation featuring installations of completely new field turf and a pair of HD video boards.
For a Pensacola area team, such as Tate High School, the distance to Daytona Beach and Orlando are essentially equal.
Pictured: The Northview Chiefs won the 2012 1A state championship in Orlando. NorthEscambia.com file photos, click to enlarge.
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