Auburn residents: If your dog suffers a nervous breakdown this season, blame Gus Malzahn.
Auburn’s offensive fireworks may decrease (slightly) this year, but the actual fireworks display in Jordan-Hare Stadium is only getting bigger.
The Auburn Athletics Department is reportedly in talks with Birmingham-based H&H Gameday Pyro about expanding the use of pyrotechnics on gamedays. The company has been providing fireworks for Auburn football games since 2006. “One of the first games we did was the Tre Smith flip Florida game,” said H&H partner and Auburn alum Ronnie Hardy. “I was up in the scoreboard for that one. I thought it was going to fall down.”
Last season, the company only shot fireworks for the Clemson and South Carolina games, both played ay night.
“This year, they want to do every game and make it a little bit bigger,” Hardy said.
For each home game, the team will run onto the field through sparks shot from fireworks fountains placed not on the ground as in years past but atop 6-8 foot poles. Fireworks will also be set off after Auburn touchdowns.
“They want to do four to six shots after touchdowns and this year they want to shoot them off the scoreboard,” Hardy said. The fireworks will be placed inside small cages on top of Jordan-Hare’s HD video screen. “Then they want to do four to six orange and blue shots when we’re winning and time expires.”
Despite Tommy Tuberville once joking to media about being burned by the pre-game sparks display, Hardy insists the production is “extremely safe.” Though not entirely lucrative.
“What with the cost of insurance and transportation and purchasing the fireworks, you don’t make a ton of money,” he said. “But you do get to see a ton of great football.”
Photo by Ronnie Hardy.
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I hope Malzahn takes it personally when they only queue up enough fireworks for seven touchdowns.
Uh-oh – remember the last time a coordinated celebration after touchdowns was in the works? This side will be Touchdown, this side will be Auburn…..
Hate the idea.
Sammy, why’d you go there? I would have rather not remembered that. And it coulda, shoulda, woulda been a great new tradition to start. Not scoring ANY touchdowns until Vanderbilt kinda axed it though.
This sounds like something Tiny Terry would have dreamed up. Not real enthused about it.
Bah humbug.
No worries, Sammy. Gustav > Nallsminger
I will never forget that ’06 Florida game. Awesome atmosphere! We had Jordan-Hare lit up like a damn KISS concert that night.
[...] the daytime fireworks innovators, now have company in the failed midday celebratory methods, as Auburn has promised to step up their “explosions into blinding noon time sun” game for t… The Auburn Athletics Department is reportedly in talks with Birmingham-based H&H Gameday Pyro, [...]
Not against, but they obviously don’t need it.
(I still vote for a Jim Fyffe button. Cross the line and an intern hits a giant “TOUCHDOWN AUBURN!” button that plays a good recording before Ric Smith makes the stadium call. I’ve been lobbying this since 2003. Someone help me out here.
Now, if we’re talking full battery cannonade …
Really wish they wouldn’t do this.
Bad idea. AU is better than cheap theatrics to gain attention. The fan’s cheering is easily enough for me ..I don’t need to be prompted or distracted with fireworks
This has to be one of the lamest ideas Auburn has ever come up with. It has mid-major, Conference USA written all over it. Hell, I think UAB shoots fireworks after they score. Please, Auburn, for the love of all that is Shug Jordan, DON’T DO THIS!!! Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb and some more dumb. TWER, who is the idiot that decided this? He should be burnt at the stake. Unreal. This really rubs me the wrong way for some reason. Just plain ol’ cheesy!
I don’t like this at all at first listen–it sounds like the Not-really-the Football-mattering-anymore League to me–like the football itself can’t sustain the interest. But, I guess you have to try it to see if it becomes something cool or not.
Michael Val
(who thinks anything that takes attention away from the game is just pandering to the short-attention span folks who are mostly responsible for things sucking the way they are!)
Like the idea, but fireworks for 11 am games won’t be very exciting.