Out With the Old, In With the New…Scoreboard Style

The last two years have brought many new upgrades to Bill Clabo Field and the surrounding facility, including a new track and the new artificial turf football field, both thanks to the generosity of the Haslam Family and Pilot Flying J, with the help of Mark Packer. This year, the Farragut Football Booster Club and Coach Courtney set out to bring closure to a project that has been ongoing for nearly 5 years, bringing a new scoreboard and Jumbotron to our stadium. When presented with the task from Coach Courtney, the football booster club, combated it head on. Seeking bids from all the major players in the scoreboard market, and working tirelessly to make it happen for the 2017 football season.

When the dust settled, Electro-Mech won the final bid, and then the real work began. From choosing the resolution of the screen, to decorating the top arch, and choosing the color of the scoreboard itself, there was a lot of work to do in a short period of time. Work began on August 22nd, digging four footers, 13-feet deep and 3-feet wide, for the new structure. Two 48-foot and two 50-foot I-beams were lifted into position with each pole weighing in at over two tons. After the poles were set, the concrete was left to settle and cure for 5 days. In the meantime, work began to dismantle the existing scoreboard and structure. On Saturday, August 26th, the scoreboard was removed, and the structure that stood for nearly 20 years was dismantled. After the concrete and I-beams were settled, work quickly began on Monday, August 28th to construct the new scoreboard. By sundown the new scoreboard and bottom advertising panel was assembled and welded to the structure. With time running out, and 48 hours before kickoff for the 2017 home opener, crews finally assembled the video board on Tuesday evening. On Wednesday, August 30th, crews completed the structure with the two ad panels that flank the video board, and topping it off with an illuminated Farragut Admirals arch. Work quickly turned to connecting the scoreboard, video board, and play clocks to electricity, as well as connecting and provisioning the new scoreboard. Finally, after months of hard work by the football booster club, Coach Courtney, and Lee Ann Kelly of Electro-Mech, as well as gracious donations from our supporters and sponsors, the video board came alive on Wednesday, August 30th!