Lakewood Stadium is a 10,000 seat stadium located in the Lakewood Heights neighborhood of southeast Atlanta, Georgia. The stadium is the larger of two stadiums owned and managed by the Atlanta Public Schools system. The other stadium is Eddie S Henderson Stadium, located on the campus of Midtown High School. In October 2006, Lakewood received an Honorable Mention in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as one of the top 10 high school stadiums in the state of Georgia. As chosen by the voters of Atlanta, Lakewood was picked as the 4th best stadium for high school football in the Atlanta metro area.[1] As the largest stadium in the Atlanta Public Schools system, it essentially has been the home field for several future NFL players, including Jamal Lewis and Ahmad Carroll (Douglass), Lawrence Smith (Washington), Kelly Campbell (Mays), David Rocker, Tracy Rocker, and Corey Barlow (Fulton), Greg Favors (Southside), Kelvin Pritchett (Therrell) and Super Bowl XX MVP Richard Dent (Murphy).[2]

Lakewood Stadium
Lakewood
View from home side before renovation
Map
Location70 Claire Drive, Atlanta, Georgia
Coordinates33°42′10″N 84°23′15″W / 33.70278°N 84.38750°W / 33.70278; -84.38750
OwnerAtlanta Public Schools
OperatorAtlanta Public Schools
Capacity10,000
SurfaceField turf
Opened1971
Tenants
Atlanta Public Schools

History edit

Lakewood Stadium was the first high school stadium in the state of Georgia to have artificial turf.[citation needed]

Lakewood Stadium was the site of the 1975 GHSA Class AAA Football Championship Game between Douglass High School and Central High School (Macon). Central (Macon) defeated home team Douglass 21–14.[3]

Lakewood Stadium has been used in commercial shoots and currently for the BET TV show The Game.[4] This stadium is featured in the 2009 horror-comedy film Zombieland.[5]

In 2012, Lakewood Stadium was reopened after a $17 million renovation. The stadium received new lights and sound systems, new stands and playing surfaces and other upgrades.[6]

References edit

  1. ^ "Best high school stadium | Best of the Big A". Archived from the original on 2009-08-19. Retrieved 2009-08-31.
  2. ^ "Atlanta native Richard Dent among Black College Hall of Fame inductees". Atlanta Daily World. February 25, 2015.
  3. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-12-22. Retrieved 2015-12-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ^ "'The Game' films in Atlanta | accessAtlanta". Archived from the original on 2010-10-13. Retrieved 2011-01-19.
  5. ^ "New Atlanta studio complex opens as Georgia filming booms". June 16, 2010 – via LA Times.
  6. ^ Jaime Sarrio, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "School officials debut Lakewood Stadium makeover". ajc.