ATHENS -- A new $1.4-million video board is the biggest change Georgia football fans will notice on Saturday when they make their first trip of the season to Sanford Stadium.
The 36-by-73-foot screen can be used for a single image, a replay of, say, a Georgia touchdown that will be more than twice as large as before. At other times, the screen will split into multiple windows to incorporate statistics, graphics or advertising around the video display.
"It's dynamic," UGA athletic director Greg McGarity said. "It will add a lot of pop to the game experience."
Georgia opens its home season at 4:30 p.m. Saturday against South Carolina.
Towering over the west end zone, the new video board is in the same location and on the same structure as its predecessor, which Georgia said became technologically outdated after five seasons.
The UGA Athletic Association's board of directors approved the purchase of the new mega-screen early this year. The athletic board was told the cost would be offset by a windfall the association received when its marketing and multimedia rights holder, ISP, was acquired by IMG.
Georgia received a one-time payment of $1.4 million for the fiscal year that ended June 30, resulting from the company's change of ownership, because of a clause in its contract with ISP.
Improved picture quality and the capacity to devote the full face of the 2,628-square-foot screen to replays or other videos are the most noticeable changes with the new video board, said Alan Thomas, Georgia associate athletic director for external operations.
The previous board, though the same overall size, had fixed panels for statistical data and accommodated video displays no larger than 25 feet by 47 feet.
"You have a blank palette with the new board," McGarity said. "Without any fixed digits on the board, you can program it however you desire."
Said Thomas: "When we push up to full-screen video, fans will notice a big difference."
The screen will include pertinent data normally found on a scoreboard at most points during a game, Thomas said. Yet when the screen goes to full video, McGarity noted, "We've got several other boards throughout the stadium that have score and game time and down and distance, so everybody is always going to be able to see that information."
The board, like its predecessor, was manufactured by South Dakota-based Daktronics, which said the screen has the latest in LED video technology. Installation was completed in early August.
Super-sized as it is, Sanford Stadium's new screen is far from the largest in college football -- or Georgia.
The largest screen in college football is the University of Texas' 55 1/2-by-134-foot wide screen, nicknamed the "Godzillatron." The largest in the SEC is Mississippi State's, which is 47 by 111 feet. And the largest in Georgia is at Turner Field, measuring 71 feet by 79 feet.
Georgia's new board eclipses in square footage the 40-by-60-foot (2,400 square feet) board installed at Georgia Tech's Bobby Dodd Stadium in 2009.
About the Author
