I guess since I’ve seen so many of them over the past fifty-eight years, I’ve always been kind of fascinated with press boxes. I got fascinated before I ever really became a broadcaster. I remember being at a ballgame one night in Abilene. It was the second half of a Howard Payne game at Shotwell Stadium. About five minutes after we got there it started raining and it was chilly so we decided to head back to the car and on the way back I stopped at one of the entrance ways in the stadium. I remember standing there just watching rain pouring down. I was looking up in the lights at the press box on the other side. There were people up there with short sleeve shirts on and they were sitting around with smiles on their faces, having a heck of a good time. They were all very comfortable! I’m not real smart, and I was probably dumber at that time in my life, but I remember looking up there and saying, “You know, looks to me like the smart people are up there in that box”. It was about a year later when everything fell into place and Ken Schulze and I took over the broadcasts of the Brownwood Lions and low and behold, the first game we ever did was out at Shotwell Stadium.
Speaking of those press boxes, they are varied, to say the least. Fact is, in my career, I’ve even had a varied bunch of press boxes here in Brownwood. I started out in Old Lions Stadium and then in 1972 moved to what’s now Gordon Wood Stadium. In that stadium, I’ve actually worked in 4 different press boxes. Certainly four different areas to do a game from. I started out in what is now the coach’s room. A lot of times I was by myself and you could put fifteen people in that room. They decided that maybe I didn’t need that much room so we would go elsewhere. I went downstairs where the video room is now and then went upstairs where the radio is now, except it was one very small booth. Fact is, there were two small booths side by side. Steve Freeman, during one of the makeovers at the stadium, said, “Hey, give that guy a bigger booth”.
So, they took out the one little room and made it part of a bigger room which is where they broadcast from right now.
As far as press boxes go, some people think the newer stadiums have “the best”. Some think the bigger stadiums have “the best”. That’s not always been the case. Some of the big stadium’s press boxes are nice. One of the oldest stadiums, which is now being refurbished, is Shotwell in Abilene. I like that press box and always have. I liked the press box in the old Baylor stadium. Texas Stadium was very high, very distant, like in another country. AT&T Stadium where the Cowboys play now has much better press boxes and with that giant scoreboard, it’s ok. But I love the Brownwood press box. Some of the bigger stadium press boxes are just – I don’t know how to say it – they are just too big and I don’t like them that much. My favorites over the years, Brownwood and the stadium in Abilene, which I have always thought was one of the best anywhere. There are those that are just high school stadiums all over the place. San Angelo stadium’s press box is small and it’s situated above the concession stand which doesn’t bode well for a crowd mike! Wichita Falls has a nice stadium but I don’t like the way the press box is set up. I can remember some of the great playoff games in Brownwood’s history. Some of them were from a good press box and some of them from a terrible press box. I guess the point I’m trying to make is this – just because it’s a new stadium, just because it’s a beautiful stadium, doesn’t mean it’s a great stadium for broadcasting. I’ve got my favorites!
Until next time, so long everybody.
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‘Out of the Box’ with Dallas Huston is published each Monday morning at BrownwoodNews.com. Dallas was the radio voice of the Brownwood Lions and Howard Payne Yellow Jackets for more than 55 years. He currently is Pastor of Center City Baptist Church and hosts a Men’s Bible Study in Brownwood on Monday evenings. Your comments are welcome at [email protected].