Decades’ Old Outdated Lighting System Is Now Just A Memory
For the first time in more than four decades, Sulphur High School’s football stadium is shining under a completely new set of lights.
Work crews recently completed the installation of a state-of-the-art LED lighting system at Agee Field and Track, replacing a lighting system that had served generations of Sulphur athletes and fans.
According to Sulphur Head Football Coach and Athletics/Operations Director Corey Cole, the previous lights had a remarkable history of their own.
“The old lights on the Sulphur High School football field actually came from the old football field when it was located where the baseball field is today,” Cole said. “Those lights were moved to the current stadium at the beginning of the 1985 football season, but they had already been in service at the original field for about 12 years.”
That means the lighting system had been illuminating Bulldog football for approximately 53 years before being replaced.
While the old system served the school well for decades, advancements in sports lighting technology made an upgrade both practical and beneficial.
The new LED lighting system provides brighter, more uniform illumination across the entire playing surface while also extending coverage to the surrounding track area. The improved lighting is expected to enhance visibility for players, coaches, officials and spectators, while also providing a better environment for practices, games and other school activities held at the stadium.
The LED fixtures are considered top-of-theline athletic field lighting and offer greater energy efficiency and reliability than the previous system. They also require less maintenance and provide more consistent light levels than traditional metal- halide fixtures. The project marks another improvement to Sulphur’s athletic facilities as preparations continue for the upcoming football season. When the Bulldogs take the field this fall, they will do so under a lighting system designed to serve the school for decades to come.
For longtime Bulldog fans, the change also marks the end of an era. The original lights had been a fixture at Sulphur football games for more than half a century, connecting generations of athletes who played under the same poles from the school’s former football field to the current stadium, and illuminating many great plays by past Bulldog players.
