GUYTON, Ga. – South Effingham athletic director Justin Merritt says one of the Mustang coaches can’t wait to use the newly expanded seating at the school’s football stadium.
And that team hasn’t even played in the Corral.
“Coach (Christopher) Bringer wants to know when the stands will be ready for his wrestlers to run for conditioning,” Merritt said.
That may still be a few weeks away.
At a cost of $5.9 million—funded through the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax approved Aug. 8, 2024, and built by Pope Construction Company in Statesboro—South Effingham’s football stadium is getting a major upgrade, with full completion expected by the preseason scrimmage against Screven County on Aug. 8. South opens the season in the Corral with New Hampstead on Aug. 15.
Depending on how you calculate seating widths (18 or 24 inches per person), capacity has increased to between 6,165 and 7,102 seats.
New home side brings shade and more room
The former visitors’ side is now the new home side, with aluminum bleachers seating between 3,565 and 4,602. The old home side, now the visitors’ side, remains at about 2,500 seats.
The switch also means the sun will no longer be in the faces of home fans in the stands or the SEHS players on the sideline.
Atop the stands, a 500-square-foot press box will house scoreboard electronics, computers and the public address system. It includes compartments for coaches, media and streaming services. An elevator—required under updated construction codes—will carry people and equipment to the top.
“I think one of the thoughts was to bring our facility up to the level of our school size,” Merritt said. “The other, it’s a lot better for our home crowd to have the sun behind us instead of the sun in our faces.”
In the past three years, SEHS has installed an artificial playing surface by Sports Turf Company, added new stadium lighting and now expanded the stands.
Expanded stadium fits school growth
“It’s just so many things that were a long time coming,” said school district chief operations officer Ron Womack. “The stadium was fine when we started out as a Class AA school, but we’ve grown.”
And the stadium’s use has grown as well. Football, flag football, boys and girls soccer, boys and girls lacrosse and track and field all compete at the stadium. The facility also hosts band competitions and graduation ceremonies.
Womack said South used stadiums in Burke County, Statesboro and Richmond Hill as models during planning.
Work began as soon as the 2024 football season ended on Nov. 8. Crews cleared land behind the old visitors’ bleachers, which held about 800. Water and sewer lines and lighting were relocated. A drainage pond was dug, and utility storage buildings were moved.
The project also includes new fencing, a new ticket booth and improved access for handicapped fans.
The old press box will remain for use by visiting coaches. Womack said South Effingham’s new home seating now equals the seating capacity at Effingham County High School’s stadium.
The new stands made their debut during the Mustangs’ graduation ceremony in May.
“At previous graduations, people would be standing everywhere, but at May’s graduation, everyone was in the stands. That was nice, safer, a little more controllable,” Merritt said.
The elevator isn’t finished and electronics for the new press box haven’t been transferred yet, but Merritt is hopeful everything will be operational by the Aug. 8 kickoff.
And soon enough, South’s wrestlers may be running the 58 steps from top to bottom.
“I think we’re in good shape right now,” Merritt said. “This is a good place to watch a football game. This is a good place to watch a soccer game. It’s going to be comfortable and we’ll have a better fan experience because of it. I think that was the goal the whole time.”
