Millis Center

Millis Center

Home of High Point Panthers basketball and volleyball

Opened: 1992

Seating Capacity: 1,750

Location: West College Drive (now better known as Panther Drive) between Farris Avenue and North Avenue in High Point, Guilford County, North Carolina

Games seen in Database Era: 56 between August 24, 2007 and March 2, 2013

Latitude: 35.97352 N

Longitude: 79.99565 W

Distance from my house point-to-point (as the crow flies): 142.51 miles

Driving time from my house: 3 hours and 24 minutes (204 minutes)

The Millis Center, as seen prior to the renovations in the summer of 2008:

The Millis Center as shown above is over three hours of driving away from me, and over 140 miles point-to-point. But for four years, this was my home stadium. Prior to the launch of my record keeping in the Database in the late spring of 2007, I went to the Millis Center quite frequently. My first game here was a HPU win over UNC Asheville in February 2004 when I made only my second visit to campus. But during the tenure of AZ Reid at High Point which overlapped mine as a student, I attended over 80 percent of all home men's games, over 60 percent of all home women's games, and over 40 percent of all home volleyball matches. In the six years of the Database, I have been to 56 games. But in three years prior to the Database, I likely went to more than that. The Millis Center is only a ten minute walk from Finch Hall, my home for four years. Since I made my first visit to the HPU campus in the summer of 2003, much has changed. But the Millis Center to a large extent has not.

The Millis Center was completed in 1992. It was basically a heavily renovated and expanded version of its predecessor Alumni Hall, which had sat on the spot since 1957. I have seen pictures of Alumni Hall in old HPU yearbooks, and one can tell that the foundation for the present day Millis Center was still there. Alumni Hall, like the Millis Center, had an unusually high percentage of its seats behind one basket (although the Millis Center has seats behind both baskets). The Millis Center was a much nicer Alumni Hall, more clean-cut and modern with extra amenities for the school including classrooms, athletic offices, weight rooms, and a swimming pool one can view from the concourse. But while the Millis Center (built during the transition of what is now Conference Carolinas from NAIA to Division II) is a much nicer building than Alumni Hall, it actually is not any bigger. And it is certainly not up to Division I standards, which High Point would join in 1999 seven years after the building opened. The arena seats just 1,750, with at least 60 percent of those seats behind the baskets. The big problem for expanding the gym itself past what Alumni Hall had is geography. The Millis Center sits on a hill between two creek beds, which leads to a narrow and oddly laid out gym. 

Since becoming High Point University President in 2005, Nido Qubein has done a lot to build the campus up. But much of the increased spending has come on superficial stuff designed to attract more students (particularly those with money). Most of the substantive spending has gone towards accommodating the new students pulled in by Qubein, with HPU having far more residence halls than it did when I was a student with far greater modern amenities than the Finch Hall I was used to. Athletics has not been neglected however. When I was a student in 2007, HPU built new stadiums in soccer and baseball that were of a highly acceptable quality for mid-major athletics. But construction space and money has delayed what Qubein would hope could be a "mini-NBA" arena. The Millis Center was renovated as I was graduating in the summer of 2008, and it was marketed as being almost a different place. But aside from a new paint job and new seats, it was the same Millis Center. And as other schools in the Big South improve arenas like Campbell, Coastal Carolina, and UNC Asheville, the Millis Center could hurt the growth of the basketball program. There are some positives that I will talk about here, but it is not quite what a Division I arena should be.

Seating Capacity: D

Seating only 1,750 fans should normally be a F grade for a Division I arena. But most of the Big South struggles to get over 1500 fans a game, and the same is true for High Point. But with the expansion of the rest of the school along with more students, HPU is on the verge of being pushed to the brink of having an arena that is way too small for its level. When HPU invites touring prospective students as well as visiting families, tickets are unavailable for the general public. And when you are a basketball team at the level of High Point, you should not normally have two Saturdays every year that are impossible to get tickets for. In the near future, it is possible that if the team becomes popular enough (or the enrollment continues to grow) that there will not be enough seats for students (starting in 2007-08 both lower ends of the lower baseline seating goes to students).

The listed capacity prior to the 2008 renovations was 2,565. That number was way overstated, and was dropped to 1,750. Total seating capacity only dropped by about 100 seats during the renovations, not 800. HPU also had a habit of listing attendances much higher than they actually were prior to 2006. For example, in the 2004 game I was at the listed attendance was 1,718 even with few people in the mezzanine (what we call the balcony baseline seating). Actual attendance for that game was probably only slightly more than a thousand. Until the growth of the school under Qubein and before HPU had quality players like AZ Reid and Nick Barbour, empty seats were common. Now 82 percent of all seats are sold on average at the Millis Center for men's games.

Quality of Seats: B-

The seats themselves are great. They are very comfortable, especially the purple padded seats implemented after the renovations. The green plastic seats that preceded them as well as the bleachers in the mezzanine were not particularly comfortable, but the new ones are. But the sightlines are not particularly good at the Millis Center. Unless you are a Panther Club member, your seat will likely be behind the baseline. The student seats are not too bad, as being underneath the basket with the basket support attached to the ceiling is a pretty good view from down low. But if you are in the mezzanine, you will not have the same advantage. It is basically the cheap seats, except in an arena that is already small. But overall you can watch the game and are at least closer to the court at one end than you are in most large venues. But it's not ideal, especially if you are seated low in your section where you have to look over guard rails (also true in some of the sideline seats as well). 

Attractiveness/Uniqueness: A

The 2008 renovations made the Millis Center a somewhat attractive and modern place, even though the exterior of the gym is a bit too dark from what it had been. But the great thing about the oddly laid out small gym is that it looks much different from any other arena. Even if you picture a tiny arena, you probably are thinking more like a high school gym. And the Millis Center happens to be a building with the capacity of a high school gym that looks nothing like a high school gym. So if you want to see a unique building, this is the place to go to.

Concessions: C+

Selection is decent, although it varies a bit depending on what food can be imported from the rest of campus. As a result, food selection is down when campus dining is shut down for the holidays. You can usually get the basics as well as pizza and chicken sandwiches, although then again it varies. And while prices have gone slightly up since I graduated, the selection has not. Otherwise the Millis Center would have gotten a higher grade in this category.

Parking: C

When I was a student, I did not normally have to worry about this as much. But parking was a problem at times, with few spaces near the Millis Center. Most of these spaces were either reserved or taken by students and faculty already parked. That is now even more enforced today than it was before. Today general parking is at the soccer stadium over a quarter mile away. You can take a shuttle, which like at Carolina Stadium is not ideal. At least it is better than in the past, where the shuttle left from overflow parking at Oak Hollow Mall a mile and a half away.  It is typically easier to walk from the soccer stadium, which now has a sidewalk along West College Drive (now referred to by HPU as Panther Drive, although city signage still often shows it as West College). It is not an easy arena to access, but it is at least better than some of the major conference venues. Typically getting in and out is not a problem unless the HPU campus is busy, which it occasionally can be.

Lighting: B+

The lighting is overall pretty good at the Millis Center for a smaller Division I venue. The lighting is more concentrated on the court than it was prior to the 2008 renovations, when the entire arena was well lit. Now there are some dark spots around the arena, with the gray walls feeling drabbier than the white walls before. The darker portions of the seating areas behind the baskets can sometimes be a challenge for lighting contrast when taking pictures, although it makes it easier to focus on the game itself.  Otherwise, the Millis Center does well in this regard compared to most comparable venues.

Fans: A-

I know this is somewhat a homer grade on my part, but the Millis Center is capable of getting loud for big games. A "black out" game against Winthrop is a must-see for any mid-major basketball fan. When the team is playing well and the students are in full-force, the Millis Center can be a great place for basketball. Even the season ticket holders can get passionate about the games, although they are largely an older crowd that seems tightly knit with each other and less so with outsiders and younger fans. As the school continues to encourage more on-campus student activity, the quality of the basketball crowds continues to increase. The crowds were much lighter when I first went, and overall much better now. The one time not to go is when school is not in session. HPU tends to give those student seats away to community groups, meaning the stands are full but of a much lower quality of support. Otherwise, you will see a great basketball atmosphere even if you are only looking down on it from the mezzanine.

Other Stuff: B-

As mentioned early, superficial stuff is something that High Point spends a lot on. So the Millis Center, as small as it may be, will always be kept in great shape. The staff will always treat you well, and you will always feel welcome at the Millis Center. And it will be as modern as a 1,750 seat arena can be, as HPU tries to overcome its lack of size with a higher production value (also very true at USC Upstate's Hodge Center). The jumbotron above the scorers' table sideline was installed for the 2006-07 season, with two more installed before the 2007-08 season. And then another was installed during the renovations prior to the 2008-09 season, bringing the total to four video boards. Most arenas do not have four video boards, much less in a building the size of the Millis Center (Elon is now similar after their recent renovations). HPU tries to be modern, but it still can't overshadow the other shortcomings of the Millis Center. The entire building (not just the seating area) is a bit cramped, and the concourse is also not very good. The Millis Center may not be a nice facility, it just tries to look like one.

Summary: As shown above, the Millis Center comes out decent in most categories. The food sometimes is not too bad, the fans are sometimes great, and the arena is designed to be comfortable and a modern facility. The only problem is that ultimately it is not. If the Millis Center seated 1,750 with a different seating configuration, it would be an adequate facility (for the Big South anyway). If the Millis Center seated much more than 1,750 with its current amenities, it would be a great facility. But what makes a decent Division II arena does not make a great Division I arena. It scores well in most categories, and that is why the overall GPA shown below is actually pretty good. But it still needs to better. It needs to be adequate enough to recruit better basketball players, and at the same time be big enough that out-of-town fans like myself do not have to worry about getting a ticket for select weekends. The Big South is finally starting to catch up in this regard, and as a High Point alum I hope my old school can keep pace.

Overall GPA: 2.7125

American Legion Field

American Legion Field

Home of Florence Post 1 Baseball and former home of the Florence RedWolves

Opened: 1968

Seating Capacity: 3,500 (including standing room and picnic areas)

Location: Stadium Road two blocks south of US Highway 76 east of Florence, Florence County, South Carolina

Games seen in Database Era: 78 between June 27, 2007 and July 3, 2012

Latitude: 34.194438 N

Longitude: 79.713396 W

Distance from my house point-to-point (as the crow flies): 42.37 miles

Driving time from my house: 1 hour and 5 minutes (65 minutes)

Florence's American Legion Field (also referred to as American Legion Stadium) dates back to 1968, and as the name says has traditionally hosted American Legion Baseball. Unlike Sumter's powerful teams, Florence up until last year when they made the American Legion World Series has had its teams get stuck in the playoffs after typically successful regular season play. But while this stadium has seen plenty of quality Legion play and bares the Legion name, it is not best known for hosting Legion ball. That is not even what it is best known for locally, as is the case with Riley Park in Sumter. Like Riley Park, Florence hosted a South Atlantic League team in the 1980s that did not stay very long. From 1981 to 1986, American Legion Field was home to the Blue Jays' Class A affiliate before they packed up and headed to the Coastal Carolina campus in 1987 before ultimately settling Hagerstown, Maryland in 1993 (Hagerstown had just lost their Class AA team to Bowie). Florence also hosted one year of independent league ball in a fly-by-night league back in 1995. 

But Florence was able to quickly get a team in the new upstart collegiate summer league, the Coastal Plain League back in 1998. This new Florence team, the RedWolves, had spent a year in Raleigh at NC State (hence the name RedWolves) before realizing they would have better fortunes in a smaller market with less competition. Even with future Red Sox star Kevin Youkilis playing in Florence in 1999, the RedWolves had a hard time getting off the ground in Florence. Fortunately local attorney Kevin Barth was able to purchase the team and created greater community investment in the team, saving the RedWolves from the fate its short-lived professional predecessors had. The team took off as the area's most popular team in the mid-2000s, hosting the CPL All-Star game and the CPL Pettit Cup Playoffs. The RedWolves eventually became one of the league' most successful franchises.

But like their in-state league counterparts in Columbia, American Legion Field would let the team down in creating long-term stability. I have talked previously about modern facilities at the University of South Carolina, such as Carolina Stadium. American Legion Field is not even as modern as Sumter's Riley Park, yet was able to host amateur baseball at a much higher level. Florence's CPL opponents frequently complained about field conditions, and most importantly the lack of a locker room for visitors. The RedWolves' opponents had to dress on the bus before heading into American Legion Field, and often had to wait until they got to their hotel or back home to shower. The Coastal Plain League ordered Florence to rectify this problem. But getting local government leaders to make improvements to municipal facilities is never easy. With the team nearly endangered, Barth was contacted by Francis Marion three miles to the east (American Legion Field is already three miles itself east of downtown Florence) who offered their new park to save the RedWolves. And midway through the 2012 season, the RedWolves packed their bags and left American Legion Field, quite possibly for good. And for 2013, local junior college Florence-Darlington Tech moved to Francis Marion's old park as city leaders tried to ponder American Legion Field's future. I would expect that for now the local Legion team will use the stadium that bares its name. It is quite possible that in five years, American Legion Field will be renovated and home to the RedWolves again. Or it is possible that in the same time frame that this stadium will be no more.

Seating Capacity: B-

Seating capacity wise, American Legion Field was satisfactory towards CPL standards. Half of the Coastal Plain League seats less than American Legion Field, and only Columbia's Capital City Stadium seats far more within the league. Aside from the Fourth of July weekend as part of Florence's "Spirt of Florence" celebration, Florence was no more likely to sell out than Columbia. And that is even with the RedWolves drawing in crowds better than the Blowfish often times. When it comes to seating capacity, the RedWolves downgraded in their move to Francis Marion's Sparrow Stadium which has half the capacity of American Legion Field.

But with that said, American Legion Field is nowhere near as big as its listed capacity of 3,500. Saying that American Legion Field is that big is like saying that 2,000 seat Riley Park in Sumter seats 4,000 (which indeed is listed as such in many older professional stadium directories). The main grandstand behind home plate seats about 1,000, which is flanked by two smaller stands of about 500 each towards third and first base. An old set of green wooden bleachers down the right field line that appeared to be on its last legs were taken out prior to the 2012 season that also seated about 500. With those sections all in place, that means the true seating capacity is about 2,500 (and about 2,000 minus the removed old bleachers). So the park would have to hold between 1,000 and 1,500 in the picnic areas and other standing room. Seeing that many younger Florence fans spend most of the game running behind the main grandstand on the American Legion Field grounds without caring to watch the game, 3,500 might be possible. But the actual seating capacity makes it hard for Florence to get better events than what it has, similar to Riley Park in Sumter.

Quality of Seats: C+

Most of the stadium is bleachers, and for the most part not very good bleachers. Most of the bleachers in the home plate grandstand are metal bleachers that can be a bit uncomfortable in bad weather, as it can get too hot, cold, or wet. The rest of the bleachers are wooden bleachers without much room for spectators on a crowded night. They can also get a bit shaky, especially in the old green bleachers down the right field line that were finally removed before they could collapse. At least the home plate metal bleachers have backs, and the box seats are red plastic seats slightly more numerous than those at Riley Park.

But unlike at Riley Park, there is no solid roof. There is some roof, an oddly constructed canopy built over the first base seating areas in August 2007 in preparation to hosting CPL playoff games during a record heat wave in the afternoon. But this canopy can let some sunlight get through, as can blowing rain. And it is not over the home plate grandstand either, which has much better sightlines than the first base seating. The sightlines can be obstructed by an oddly constructed backstop consisting of both a chainlink fence and a net. The seats down the lines are not angled as well as at Riley Park either, which has a much more solid structure than American Legion Field. 

But that is not to say you can't see the game well from the stands at American Legion Field. Particularly behind home plate you are pretty much on top of the action, largely because American Legion Field has very little foul territory. Even some high school fields have more foul territory than this now-former CPL park.

Attractiveness/Uniqueness: C

The view looking out towards foul territory is a bit unspectacular, it is just a wide open grass parking lot surrounded by indescribable flat land. The main highlight in foul territory surrounding the park is the Florence Regional Airport  behind first base whenever planes come in and out (it is not a particularly busy airport though). Looking out towards the outfield is a little better, with a stand of trees on top of the center field fence and the local high school football stadium looming past the right field wall. Perhaps a bit of uniqueness is the odd layout of the stands itself around the field, which gives American Legion Field some degree of character. The beer garden in right field along with the picnic areas and playground with a full bounce house gives the stadium some degree of life to it when viewing it during the course of a game.

Concessions: A

You have all your standard ballpark favorites here: nachos, hot dogs, and burgers. The RedWolves even have their own specialty burger in the Wolf Burger! You do not see specialty food items too much at this level. You also have a variety of snacks and food items, and you can like at Colonial Life Arena mix up different meals for different visits. Among the best items are Domino's Pizza and Chick-Fil-A sandwiches. They also have a good variety of sweet products, from a flavored shave ice stand to one concessions stand that specializes in a variety of different candies. The selection food is almost as good as at USC's stadiums, but with more reasonable prices and a better selection of drinks. You can not expect any better from a team at this level and especially in a rundown facility. So the RedWolves and American Legion Field ace this category.

Parking: B

You can park as close as you want to here (at risk of getting hit by a foul ball), and unlike Columbia it is absolutely free! It might be as easy a park to pull into as any I have been to. Just drive in off US-76, and find a space in the grass. Unfortunately, it is grass rather than paved. And getting back onto US-76 can be difficult coming out of a game, especially with most fans turning left to go back towards Florence itself. So the parking situation is usually pretty good in Florence, but definitely not flawless either.

Lighting: B

This is the la st place you would expect television-level lighting. After all, the stadium is otherwise as un-modern as it gets and shabby in some places. After all, the CPL practically forced the RedWolves out of here. But American Legion Field is much better lit than Riley Park, slightly better than Capital City Stadium and about on par with Carolina Stadium. Carolina Stadium got a C+ in this category, and the expectations are lower for a CPL park than one in the SEC. You won't get quality pictures here at night, but you can get adequate ones and that is about as good as you can expect most places. Walking around the stadium after dark is much easier than at most comparable facilities. The lighting situation has been described by in the past by Florence-Darlington Tech as being "AAA quality". So it is not "Major League" quality, and thus not perfect. But it is still pretty good here considering the shape of the facility, as is the case with many things at American Legion Field.

Fans: B

At many minor league stadiums, fans have come without thinking about the game they are going to watch. This is also true in the Coastal Plain League, with many fans in Columbia coming to drink beer and many fans in Fayetteville coming to see some "EXCITING SWAMPDOGS BASEBALL!", which is really neither exciting or has much to do with baseball. But the fans in Florence value their RedWolves, and know that what they are seeing is good baseball for a community its size. Like in Sumter at Riley Park, a non-local might feel out of place here with the fans in Florence being a more blue-collar, Jeff Foxworthy type of crowd. But the locals know how to have fun, and while on-field promotions exist it never distracts from the game. One fan in particular who sits underneath the press box is particularly good at ripping on the visiting team and the umpires. As that fan said to an offended parent from Columbia, "It's all about fun here". The press box PA once irked an umpire by playing "You're right!" after a series of questionable calls. It is not quite as good as a college crowd though in being intense about the game, but that is in part because of the nature of the summer league. The kids running around can take something away when they dominate the crowd as they occasionally do when they come in groups. But at least they can get their energy out with the on-field Chicken Dance in the third inning that many players join in with as well.

Other stuff: F

If Carolina Stadium is the hallmark of being a modern stadium, American Legion Field is the antithesis of being a modern stadium. In addition to the issues of a small locker room that can't hold the visiting team as mentioned earlier (the main reason for the team's exit from the stadium), the field is not too sharp either. As touched on earlier, the playing dimensions are more suited for high school ball as is the field itself. 

Drainage is better than the RedWolves' league counterparts in Columbia, but that happens to be Capital City Stadium's fatal flaw. Drainage otherwise is not very good here, and American Legion Field lacks a professional crew to work on the field (like at most high schools and small colleges, the players have to work on the field themselves). The field has been voted on by visiting teams as the weakest in the CPL. While somebody has to be the weakest, it is part of the reason the RedWolves were also quick to get out. Much of the rest of the stadium is in poor shape, particularly the bathrooms which are bad even by old convenience store standards. The restrooms are badly undersized with tiny stalls with toilets that sometimes don't flush. The sink often is hard to use as well. And there is no air conditioning either, so the hot and humid air gets trapped inside. And as I mentioned about some of the wooden bleachers, they feel a bit unstable. Fortunately the green bleachers down the right field line, a disaster waiting to happen, were finally removed at the expense of the park's seating capacity.

The staff is not usually unfriendly like is occasionally the case at USC, but not particularly friendly like at Blowfish games at Capital City Stadium. And I did have one problem with my camera back in 2009. That was one isolated incident, but aside from a few suspicious ushers (particularly at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte) I really have not had a problem at other parks either. As far as the operation of a modern facility, the RedWolves do a few things right as I mentioned in the "fans" section. But the negatives definitely outweigh the positives in this category. Much of the park's problems are not under ownership's fault, and that is why the CPL was happy to see the RedWolves pack up and head three miles east.

Summary: I definitely have some problems with American Legion Field. It is not a fan-friendly park. But it is  even more player unfriendly, and that is why this is a former CPL park. And it's a real shame, since this stadium has a lot going for it otherwise. Hopefully in time the Legion team can make good use of it, as they come off a Southeast Regional title. Like Capital City Stadium, this is a quirky park that has some real positives but its negatives instead turn it into another endangered stadium. It is probably for the best that the RedWolves moved to FMU, even though Sparrow Stadium is not a perfect solution either. It is a smaller stadium with poor access for many Florence residents. American Legion Field is a classic pure baseball experience, one that might be going away. It may now be the second best baseball park in Florence. But for being the second best baseball park in a small city, it's not too bad.

Overall GPA: 2.5