Tonight is the end of an era and the start of a new beginning in Knoxville as high school football games will start being played at Randy Wilson Track.

Knoxville High School football games have been played at Ken Locke Stadium since 1939 up until last season, and the space with a unique castle look has been a landmark in the community. Over the last several years people who drive through Knoxville have probably noticed bright yellow Save Our Stadium “SOS” signs in yards. The Knoxville Alumni Association’s SOS Committee has spent years raising funds and awareness to save the stadium, which has been in great need of repairs and updates. 

The Knoxville Community District ultimately made the decision they were going to move forward with investing $2.5 million into Randy Wilson Track to be the new home of Knoxville Panthers football. This decision did not come without contention and division throughout the community for the last several years. However, anyone who drives by the new home of the Panthers will see what Activities Director Ryan Paulsen describes as a state of the art high school football stadium with a big time feel.

“The first football game of the year is always a really cool moment and when you have it at home it’s even more of a special moment. To add on top of that we are playing at a brand new facility that we are incredibly excited about. This is an awesome complex. We’ve had the turf for a couple of years now but when you add in the new bleachers on the home and visitor side, the press box, the new fencing, the concrete, the building that has a brand new concession stand, restrooms, storage space, it really gives this facility a big time feel and we’re really excited about that.”

Although football will no longer be played at Ken Locke Stadium, the SOS Committee has a vision of what the stadium will be used for in the future and they are working on a goal of over $7 million to make it happen. Pennie Sommar with the SOS committee says it is time to make new memories at Ken Locke.

“We have plans for pickleball courts, outdoor ice skating, a concert venue, and a community building. It just kind of goes on and on of the capabilities of what we can do there. The stadium thing was and it is time to move on from that. It’s memories for a lot of us to cherish, but it is time to make new memories.”

The SOS committee is currently in a five-year agreement with the school district where the school district will maintain Ken Locke Stadium while the SOS committee raises the funds to renovate it. The Panthers will host Boone tonight in the inaugural game at Randy Wilson Track at 7:30 pm.