AUGUSTA, Ga. - After a 51-year hiatus from football, Lions fans and the Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) will again get the chance to witness Paine College football starting in October. The Paine College Athletics Department has announced that the team will play each of their four club games this season at nearby Lucy C. Laney Memorial Stadium.
"We are very thankful to the Richmond County Board of Education for working with Dr. Bradley and I to secure a home field for our young men to compete this season," said athletics director
Tim Duncan. "We are excited that our alumni, students and fans will truly be able to enjoy a first class facility like Laney Stadium and all that it has to offer."
The 9,000-seat stadium opened in 2006 and is no stranger to competitive football as it serves as the home stadium for Lucy C. Laney High School and the Augusta City Classic. The Augusta City Classic annually hosts some of the most exciting college football games in the area with teams like Morehouse, Savannah State, Benedict and Fort Valley State regularly taking the field for one of the nation's many black college football classics. Laney Stadium also has a 70-locker home locker room, 60-locker visiting team locker room, two scoreboards, two ticket booths and press boxes for each team.
Coach Ruffin and his team have two games scheduled for October and two games scheduled for November. The games will follow an intensive month of training and preparation.
"There are four great games ahead of us this season," stated head football coach
Gregory Ruffin. "These young men have been working hard and we are looking forward to bringing college football back to the area and once again hearing the Lions roar!"
The inaugural game of Paine's new football era will be a battle of the Lions as the Paine College Lions face the Georgia Prep Academy Lions on Oct. 12. On Oct. 19, Paine will face the Atlanta Sports Academy Spartans. On Nov. 2, the Lions will take on the Gladiators from Orangeburg Tech. The 2013 season will close with a game against the Jireh Prep Warriors on Nov. 9. Kickoff times for each game have been scheduled for 2 p.m. Tickets will go on sale Sept. 16.
Next season, Lions football will join the rest of Paine's athletics teams as a proud member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) and play a full schedule against conference opponents.
For additional information on all aspects of the Paine College Department of Athletics, please visit www.paineathletics.com or contact Kayla Thomas at 706-821-8438. Paine Athletics is now on Facebook and Twitter. Visit www.facebook.com/PaineAthletics and www.twitter.com/PaineAthletics to get the latest news and notes on the Lions.
2013 PAINE COLLEGE CLUB FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
|
*DATE |
OPPONENT |
|
OCTOBER 12, 2013 |
GEORGIA PREP ACADEMY |
|
OCTOBER 19, 2013 |
ATLANTA SPORTS ACADEMY |
|
NOVEMBER 2, 2013 |
ORANGEBURG TECH |
|
NOVEMBER 9, 2013 |
JIREH PREP |
*All games will kickoff at 2:00 PM and will be held at Lucy C. Laney Stadium.