Blue Wahoos Stadium Hosts First-Ever Prep Football Livestream Media Event 

One of his players sent Pensacola High football coach Cantrell Tyson a text message at 5 o’clock in the morning Saturday.

The anticipation was already racing to be part of the first-ever Panhandle High School Football Media Day, organized by new venture Marketable Sports and staged at Blue Wahoos Stadium with the ballpark’s wide-open space able to present a memorable experience.

“I started getting these message and (players) wanted to get here so early, because they were so excited,” said Tyson, hired in March to take over Pensacola’s tradition-rich prep football program. “This is amazing, incredible.

“We appreciate everybody that put this on. I know there are people behind the scenes that won’t get any recognition, but we appreciate everybody.”

The event itself became a breakthrough experience with 24 high school teams represented from Panama City to Pensacola. Nothing like this had ever been put together in Northwest Florida and it enabled coaches and players to visit between interviews.

Johnny Mayes, founder of Marketable Sports, worked in conjunction with Varsity Sports Network’s Panhandle channel to live stream the event on two different apps, websites, along with availability to access on Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire Stick.

Mayes and David Wilson, long-time area high school football coach who also runs the NFL Flag Football youth program in Pensacola sponsored by Derrick Brooks, interviewed each team’s coach and four to five players at Blue Wahoos Stadium’s Hancock-Whitney Club level. As a backdrop, there was the field, Pensacola Bay and the Gulf of Mexico in the distance.

Those same coaches and players then visited with other area and state media outlets inside the season-ticket holder’s lounge at the Region’s Club entrance near the Blue Wahoos clubhouse.

The expanse of the stadium, along with the Blue Wahoos team on the road in Biloxi, enabled the event to be staged Saturday. The ballpark provided an easy access place for an event of this kind. +

“I literally got butterflies in my stomach when we walked up on the stage and you had the ocean behind you, the scenery, wow. Couldn’t have been a better venue,” said Tyson, who grew up in Opp, Alabama, where he played high school football and later coached at his alma mater. He had not been inside the stadium until Saturday.

“This is an experience that kids need, that programs need,” Tyson said. “Not a lot of places provide this kind of attention to high school teams and a chance to be out there. I absolutely love it. This is a great, great experience.”

Chipley High head coach Marcus Buchanan didn’t learn about Saturday’s event until a week ago. But he quickly signed up and brought five players in a van for the 120-mile trip to Pensacola.

Chipley, along with Lynn Haven Mosley from Panama City and Bay High in Panama City, were the furthest travelers, making the effort to drive two hours-plus to Blue Wahoos Stadium.

“It is something we really wanted to do,” Buchanan said. “It this is something that is good for the kids, it’s good for the programs and it’s good for Florida high school football. I think we are trying to make florida high school football relevant and this is a good way to do it.”

High school football practice in Florida begins on Aug. 1. The preseason “Kickoff Classic” games are Aug. 18-19 with the regular season beginning a week later.

“Oh my goodness, this is tremendous,” said new Tate High coach Rhett Summerford, who worked previously as West Florida High coach. “Good way to get started.”