Aug. 21, 2002
With the season opener just 10 days away, the Georgia Tech football team practiced in the newly renovated and expanded Bobby Dodd Stadium at Historic Grant Field for the first time Wednesday.
The Jackets, who host Vanderbilt Aug. 31 at 6 p.m., conducted a two-hour workout in the stadium, including coaches utilizing headphones and the press box for a portion of the practice.
“We wanted to let the players get a feel for the new stadium,” said Tech head coach Chan Gailey, who will make his debut on the Tech sideline against the Commodores. “It never hurts to come in here and get a feel for the place. It gives you a little extra pep in practice, and we were able to cover a lot of situations today.”
With the finishing touches going on Phase I of the two-year, $70 million expansion and renovation project, the Yellow Jackets will play in a 43,719 stadium this fall, including new seating areas in the South, East and North areas of the facility.
The field was shifted slightly to the north and west, and a completely new natural grass playing surface was installed.
“We wanted to work on the flat surface since we’ve been practicing on a crown, and we wanted to see what it was like to work on this turf,” said Gailey. “We wanted to see how it would hold up, and I think it held up really well. We had 100 guys out here for over two hours, and it held up well.”
Tech will not practice Thursday and then return to work Friday and begin game preparations for the Vanderbilt contest.
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