Alabama Christian moving football games to Faulkner's stadium
For the next several seasons, Faulkner’s Billy D. Hilyer Stadium will be the home to Alabama Christian football. (File Photo)
By TIM GAYLE
Alabama Christian Academy will open the 2022 football season this Friday night with a home game, but it won’t be played at home.
The Eagles are moving all of their home games to Faulkner University’s Hilyer Stadium as part of an agreement between the two programs.
“It’s been in the works for a while, at least exploring that option,” Alabama Christian Academy athletic director Aaron Greenwood said. “Faulkner has a lot of resources that we can benefit from and we’ve got a lot of resources that Faulkner can benefit from, so we’ve been intentional in trying to strengthen that partnership and relationship. So when this opportunity came up, an opportunity to play on the best field in the city, it’s an opportunity to make it a better experience for our student-athletes and for our fans. It’s going to be a much more exciting game day.”
The ACA Eagles will hold their first home game in the stadium on Friday against Catholic, the first of five home games in the stadium this season. In addition, ACA home games with Sumter Central on Sept. 16, Montgomery Academy on Sept. 23, Prattville Christian Academy on Oct. 7 and Greensboro on Oct. 14 will be held at Hilyer Stadium as well.
To prepare for the change, ACA coach Michael Summers has held one practice a week on the artificial surface and will also conduct his weekly walk-through practice session on Thursdays at the stadium before every home game.
“The field is really good,” Summers said. “It had flooded (on Wednesday) and (the players) practiced on it and you couldn’t even tell it had rained. It feels like it absorbs the heat. And, look, everyone knows our facilities are behind (other schools in the area). This helps us. I can look our kids in the eye and tell them you’re playing on the gold standard of what a football field is. I think it’s a good move for the long term.”
Greenwood said the change is considered a long-term move by the high school as it explores future options with Wade Black Norton Field.
“We’re constantly looking for ways to improve our facilities, to make the atmosphere better for our fans, our student-athletes, bring in things that we don’t have,” he said. “This certainly provides the opportunity to do that. In the short term, we’re still playing soccer at ACA and will still play our middle school and JV football games on our campus. In the long term, (making changes to the stadium) is certainly something that we’re considering.”
The playing surface at Hilyer Stadium was installed 13 years ago but the stadium wasn’t completed until 2012. A sinkhole opened up on the playing surface in 2020, forcing all Faulkner football practices and home games to Cramton Bowl, but the school returned to the stadium in 2021 with a new artificial playing surface that is now in its second season.
Summers said moving from Wade Black Norton Field to Hilyer Stadium was a difficult sale to a group of seniors that had played every home game on the school campus.
“There’s some sentimental (feelings) with them in the sense that every home game they’ve ever played has been in that stadium,” Summers said. “We’ve got a lot of stuff we’re going to do to try and make the game day experience a good experience for them. I think the big concern is that’s a big stadium, but we’re going to do some things to make it feel like the fans are a little closer and it doesn’t feel like an empty stadium.”