The Blue Wahoos are blending Halloween, football and fireworks into a unique night with their latest themed event on Friday at Blue Wahoos Stadium.
It’s a combination centering around the second First City Bowl/Halloween Spectacular, presented by Cox Mobile, featuring Pensacola High against West Florida with its kickoff at 7 p.m.
The pregame is a trick-or-treat experience for children and families beginning at 5:30 p.m. with more than 25 businesses set to participate throughout the stadium concourse.
You don’t have to be connected to either school for the event. Everyone is welcome. A fireworks show follows the football game.
And it’s a one-price event, $7 general admission, $6 students, designed to enable families and kids in costumes to also enjoy some football and fireworks.
“It will be a great atmosphere, kind of a college stadium atmosphere almost,” said Pensacola’s first-year head coach Wade McKinney, who has already elevated the Tigers (3-5) to their most wins in six years and had the team battling into the fourth quarter in every game.
“It will be neat,” he said. “We’re about eight or 10 minutes here away from our school, so we’re hoping a lot of PHS fans come out here and support us. I think it will be a great night of football, good weather, and two teams still have a shot for the playoffs, so there’s a lot to play for.”
The game is also senior night for West Florida (3-5). The home team in this game with the Jaguars honoring their senior football players, cheerleaders and band members. The Jaguars will utilize the Blue Wahoos home team clubhouse as their locker room.
“Oh, it’s going to be great. And it’s the reason why I scheduled it (as last home venue), so those guys could have memories,” West Florida head coach Harry Lees said. “This is something really cool and I’m excited for the kids.”
McKinney was an assistant coach on Lees’ West Florida staff last season, part of a lengthy journey he took in this area as a longtime assistant before jumping at the chance last December to be hired at Pensacola.
“It’s going to be fun,” McKinney said. “Glad we get to play Coach Lees’ team. I got to coach with him last year, learned a lot from him. He’s a great coach and I’m just so glad he asked us to come (to Blue Wahoos Stadium) and play him.”
Both teams sustained losses to Bay, which became the District 1-3A winner. But there is an opening as the second team from this district if Friday’s winner follows with another win and attains a 5-5 season. It’ll depend on how the last two weeks of the season goes with the rankings.
That has added the desired extra incentive with this game.
“That’s what you play for, to give yourself a chance in the playoffs every year,” said McKinney, who experienced multiple post-season trips when he was an assistant coach at Pine Forest. “We’ve played a strong schedule. We’ve been in every game, so it’s been tough Friday nights where we’re in a dogfight.”
The event began last year as the season finale game when Tate beat Booker T. Washington. Blue Wahoos events manager Shannon Hannah has worked to make the game a special kind of experience enabling both bands to have a halftime show and the post-game fireworks added.
The only previous high school football played at the bayfront stadium was the Pensacola Sports All-Star Game that was held for a couple years in December.
“When we were approached with the idea, I jumped on it,” Lees said. “Because I know coaching in the those all-star games in the past, it was just a different venue and the kids really enjoyed it. So, I wanted to give our kids a memory. …
“Everytime we brought it up, the kids got excited about it, so I think it was a stand alone deal that regardless of how the season was going, they will be excited about it.”
The setup itself will be different. The teams will enter through dugout tunnels on either side. As home team, West Florida’s sideline will be in right-centerfield area. The Pensacola sideline will be on the third base side.
Because there is no protective netting beyond the left field wall, all field goals and extra points will be kicked at the goal posts on the first base side where there is netting. It will prevent footballs from bounding down toward the water beyond left field.
The playing surface will be unique with the synthetic turf and the dirt baseball infield, minus the pitcher’s mound, which has been removed and the dirt smoothed.
“It will be great,” said West Florida senior defensive back/running back Trevor Rogers, who was on the field for the Jaguars’ goal-line stand on the final play to preserve their win against Milton in Week 9. “I’ve never played at Blue Wahoos Stadium before and I think it will be great experience playing PHS, and it should be a good game.”
FIRST CITY BOWL/HALLOWEEN SPECTACULAR
WHEN: Friday, gates open at 5:30 p.m.
WHERE: Blue Wahoos Stadium
FORMAT: One price ticket for all. The Trick-or-Treat experience for children is from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Costumed children and families can enjoy a Halloween experience throughout the entire stadium concourse. You don’t have to be connected to either school. More than 25 area businesses have committed to set up decorative booths to hand out treats to kids and families.
At 7 p.m., kickoff for the second annual First City Bowl high school football game featuring Pensacola High vs. West Florida. A post-game fireworks show will follow the game. The event is presented by Cox Mobile.
ADMISSION: $7 general admission, $6 students, allows admission to both events.
TICKETS: www.bluewahoos.com/tickets. Or stadium box office during business hours. Info: 850-934-8444
PARKING: $5 at main parking lot.
REMINDER: Blue Wahoos Stadium is a cashless venue, just like Pensacola Bay Center. Ticketing is digital ticketing. Concessions and merchandise purchase at stadium with debit/credit card.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola, West Florida football teams to clash in First City Bowl
