BY TATUM NORTHINGTON
ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS
Photos contributed from Facebook, Lisa McDaniel, and Michelle Studdard
The annual Meet the Lions was held last night at Kevin Turner Memorial Field at Stanley Jensen Stadium in downtown Prattville. Meet the Lions is a community event where the Prattville High School and Prattville Junior High introduce their football teams, cheerleading squads, and the band. This year was a little extra special because the City of Prattville has renovated parts of the stadium and the new light show was shown at the end of the evening – which is just the beginning as a multi-million dollar renovation is forthcoming after the fall.
Mayor Bill Gillespie welcomed everyone to the stadium and thanked them for their time in supporting these wonderful programs. Councilman Robert Strichik, head of the Parks and Recreation committee with the City Council, was also on hand to speak and welcome the crowd. Strichik also is the voice of the Prattville Lions and begins his 37th season in that role.
Superintendent Tim Tidmore spoke next welcoming the fans and introduced the Junior High Coaches. The Prattville Junior High teams and cheer squads were introduced first, and they seemed very excited for their upcoming season. Then the Pride of Prattville Marching Band performed their halftime show. Next, the Prattville High Lions football team and cheer squad was introduced.
Coach Jason Wallace spoke saying “Thanks for coming out to support our Junior High and High School players. If it is looking like this for Meet the Lions, I can only imagine what our stadium will be like next Friday.”
The Varsity team then scrimmaged for approximately 35 minutes and towards the end of the scrimmage fans were able to see the new light show hosted by the City of Prattville Parks and Recreation Department.
After the scrimmage, we caught up with Councilman Strichik who said “This was a terrific crowd tonight. We had a chance to see all the teams and we were excited to show off our new lighting system along with all the different color options it offers. As I begin my 37th season as the voice of the Prattville Lions, I believe Coach Wallace has our young men on the right track to bring home state title #6 back to the Fountain City.”
Sentiments seemed to be the same across the board talking with fans and coaches. Coach Wallace ended the evening speaking to us saying “I believe our guys will compete and play as a cohesive team this season. We have a tight knit group of young men that care about each other and get along well. I am excited to see our finished product.”
All fans are encouraged to come out and support the Lions as they host the first home game of the season on Friday, August 19 against Foley. Tickets for this game can be purchased via the schools GoFan link HERE. Good Luck Prattville
Lions!
