For the first time in school history, West Georgia Technical College will celebrate homecoming on a football weekend this Saturday at Staples Stadium at Heard County High School in Franklin.
The pageantry of homecoming is not new to West Georgia Tech, but in the past the WGTC family has honored the fall tradition in a basketball gymnasium.
That will change this weekend when the Golden Knights football team plays its third intrasquad “Black vs. Gold” scrimmage game of the year in front of a homecoming crowd.
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Previous scrimmages have taken place in Mt. Zion and LaGrange.
West Georgia Tech will officially open the football era next year with a full schedule as a D-1 junior college program.
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Kickoff for Saturday’s game is at 5 p.m.
“Homecoming is a time-honored tradition on campuses throughout the country and we are excited to start a new tradition, of sorts, here at West Georgia Tech,” said West Georgia Technical College president Dr. Skip Sullivan. “I am really looking forward to seeing our current and former students, faculty and staff, as well as new and old friends, come together to celebrate our first football homecoming on Saturday.
“We thank the city of Franklin, Heard County, and the Heard County School District for their partnership and we look forward to working with them to bring a fantastic football experience to local fans in that community,” Sullivan added.
West Georgia Tech will play its home games at Heard County High School when the program officially begins playing next year.
On the field, West Georgia Tech head coach Walter Dunson and his staff continues to evaluate personnel with a full practice schedule mixed in with the intrasquad scrimmages.
“Our team continues to improve each week,” Dunson said. “We will play certain guys longer this week so that we can better evaluate them to determine whether they will have the opportunity to make our team that will be invited back in the spring. We expect to have 60-70 players from our fall team that will be invited back to continue competing in the spring of 2014.”
Dunson said that he is anticipating a good crowd at Saturday’s homecoming game.
“We are excited about playing at Heard County, which will serve as a preview of what is to come in 2014,” he said. “The community at Heard County has welcomed West Georgia Tech and its football program with open arms.”
The public is invited to join West Georgia Tech students, faculty and staff at a tailgate party at Staples Stadium starting at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
The tailgate party will include free food along with a DJ, inflatables and sno-cones for the kids, and various give-aways.
Pregame activities include the introductions of West Georgia Tech’s men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and softball teams.
The WGTC Homecoming Court will be presented at halftime with the crowning of the 2013 Homecoming Queen and King.
Staples Stadium at Heard County High School is located at 545 Main Street in Franklin.
Visit www.WGTCAthletics.com for more information.
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