BAY CITY, MI – The twilight takes hold, the grass glistens beneath Friday night lights and the buzz of football is in the air.
That’s when the spirits of Elmer Engel Stadium spring to life.
“Oh, no doubt, that place has ghosts,” said Dave Mikolajczak, the longtime Central booster who once played on that famed field. “I know every time I walk by that stadium, I see Elmer Engel staring at me.”
Now a full century after it debuted, Engel Stadium is not a haunted field but a hallowed ground. And when Bay City Central hosts Midland in their age-old high school football rivalry at 7 p.m. Friday, the fabled facility takes center stage.
Central celebrates the 100-year anniversary of the opening of Engel Stadium, one of the most iconic football stadiums in Michigan. Former players and cheerleaders are invited to attend a 5 p.m. tailgate gathering and will be celebrated as part pregame festivities. Alumni are asked to register online.
It’s a centennial celebration in the making since the Central Wolves hosted Detroit Western on Sept. 26, 1925. Coach Garland Nevitt’s hometown team defeated the visitors 14-0 and a tradition was born near the corner of Johnson Street and Columbus Avenue.
As legend goes, Bay City Central hosted Flint Central in the 1924 Saginaw Valley League championship game that would also decide the state title. More than 10,000 fans turned out at the field located where the current student parking lot sits – and there was nowhere to put them.
Flint Central was declared the 12-3 winner when the game was halted with 2 minutes to play as officials could not keep the patrons off the playing field. Otto E. Louis, president of the Chamber of Commerce promised students at an ensuing pep rally that a stadium would be built.
Through a sale of bonds and a rally of business leaders to the cause, the $45,000 stadium was amazingly constructed between the end of school in June and the start of football season in September.
A headline in The Bay City Times proclaimed the new facility “The Finest of its Kind in Michigan.”
“The result is a wonderful structure. Two stands on either side of the field of solid concrete, 360 feet long, capable of seating 7,100 persons, allowing 18 inches to each person,” the Sept. 24, 1925 story read.
“The fact that it was procured and built without a penny’s cost to the board of education or the taxpayers of the city, but entirely through the efforts of a small group of local businessmen, makes the gift to the school all the more appreciated.”
Wondrous things would play out in that stadium. The Wolves won their first of six state championships in 1928 and became a statewide power under the leadership of coach Elmer Engel from 1950-72.
Engel’s 165-34-8 record with 10 Saginaw Valley League titles and five state championships created a legacy for all time, making his name the ideal 1973 addition to the stadium the Wolves call home.
The facility would host rock concerts in the 1970s and sprinkled in soccer and lacrosse games over the years, but it is primarily the home of Bay City Central football.
Engel Stadium is known for its cozy confines. It is tucked right next to the school building and has no track, putting fans just feet away from the playing surface. MLive readers voted it the grandest high school football stadium in Michigan in 2014.
“It’s not just because it’s Bay City Central, although that plays a large part,” Mikolajczak said. “It’s a community treasure. They took a lowly football field and turned it into something that’s been around for 100 years – and it’s been celebrated every year since they put it together.
“It’s a tradition that still rolls on.”
Mikolajczak, who headed the stadium’s $1.5 million renovation project in 2000, returned to the cause this year. He is part of a committee of boosters who launched this celebration project, which runs throughout the season.
A linebacker and 1969 Central graduate himself, Mikolajczak said nearly 150 former players are expected to join the fun Friday. The stadium has been spruced up with a commemorative flag and stenciling on the field proclaiming the 100-year anniversary.
New signage on the scoreboard recognizes the program’s state championship seasons. A rolling screen is displayed at the school, telling of the history of the stadium and beloved public address announcer Mike Vincent plans to share historical tidbits throughout each home game.
“It’s a field of dreams for many,” Mikolajczak said. “There’s a lot of history to it… a lot of history.”