Photos by Aaron S. Terry, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 3.86
Callaghan Stadium 605 Beckett Hill Rd Princeton, WV 24740
Capacity: 3,700
Appalachian Mountain Lions
Concord University is located in Athens, West Virginia, though your GPS might call it Princeton, WV instead. Their football teams compete in NCAA Division 2’s Mountain East Conference, which includes schools in West Virginia, Ohio, and Virginia.
The Concord Mountain Lions play their home games at on-campus Callaghan Stadium, which has a capacity of 3,700. The team’s school colors are maroon and gray, although the athletic teams sometimes don all-black uniforms.
Food & Beverage 2
There are very basic concessions at Callaghan Stadium – a small selection, but enough to get you through a game. On offer are hot dogs, Chick-fil-A sandwiches, popcorn, candy, and drinks (bottled Pepsi or diet Pepsi, water, and Powerade). Prices are low with most items costing $3 or less, though they might run out of food by halftime, so you may want to grab your snacks early.
Atmosphere 3
The gameday atmosphere during a Concord Mountain Lions game is decent – they have a mascot who races kids and teens across the field during breaks in the action. The first 50-yard dash includes kids 11 and younger and is run during halftime; the second is run after the third quarter and includes kids 12 through 17.
Another nice feature is that re-entry is allowed; you can leave the stadium during the game and come back later, which is convenient in case you want to hit the Subway in the student center, find better bathrooms, or just want to get out of the sun for a few minutes.
Speaking of the sun, there is no shade to be found, even though the facility is surrounded by greenery, although you can bring umbrellas inside the stadium, something a lot of larger venues won’t let you do. Another nice perk is that there are two team gear stands inside, one right next to the main entrance (where the ticket booth is) and another up the short hill next to the grandstand – it is not a long walk between the two by any means but is a nice touch to have multiple locations so that lines are shorter.
The facilities seem a bit dated, as there is only one static scoreboard behind one end zone, with no capability for video replays.
Neighborhood 2
Athens is a very small town with almost nothing of note near Callaghan Stadium – though you are only about 5 miles east of I-77 (use Exit 14 for the venue), from the setting you would never know it. There is a pizza place in town, as well as a gas station, and the aforementioned Subway inside the Concord University student center, but nothing in the way of hotels or nice restaurants unless you want to drive about 10 miles back to Princeton proper; if you take Exit 9 from I-77 you will see all kinds of hotels and restaurants, as well as the West Virginia welcome center.
There is a small wildlife museum a mile or two from Callaghan Stadium, but it is only open on weekdays, so you wouldn’t be able to visit before or after the game unless you come for the weekend. There is also a railroad museum and a Civil War Museum nearby, but the Civil War Museum is also only open on weekdays, and the railroad museum is only open from 11-4 daily, making it tough to see either of those on football game day, either.
Fans 2
The fans are pretty solid during a Concord Mountain Lions game, making some noise during big plays, but there are not very many of them – the visitor grandstand especially is practically deserted, and the home side stands are nowhere near a sellout. I didn’t notice a real student section either.
Access 4
Except for the potentially out-of-the-way location (although remember you are only 5 miles from I-77), it is easy to access Callaghan Stadium. Even if you arrive close to kickoff time, you should still be able to park at the top of the hill right behind the main stands, either in one of the small lots or along the roadway. There is also a larger parking lot at the bottom of the hill, though it may be reserved.
The stadium's main entrance is at the bottom of the small hill, where the ticket office and one of the team gear stands are located. However, I entered through the gate at the top of the hill, without a ticket, and they still let me in through that gate, after which I walked down the hill and got one.
It might not look like it, but there is one set of real bathrooms inside the facility, on the home side – the men’s is on the right side of the press box/concessions building and the women’s is on the left. There are also port-a-johns you can use, so you may not think there are real bathrooms, as they are kind of tucked away, but they are there.
Return on Investment 3
Tickets are only $10 each, parking is free, and concessions are cheap. That said, it may not be worth your while to come to this out of the way location unless you are a pretty diehard fan, or unless your team happens to be playing the Mountain Lions that week. Concord football is a pretty basic experience, so some fans may miss the raucous atmosphere of a larger venue. However, on the plus side, it is dirt cheap, and you won’t have to fight any crowds – you can be in and out before and after the contest in no time at all.
Extras 2
Callaghan Stadium has great scenery with all the greenery around the venue, and the mascot is solid. They also have cheerleaders on hand to entertain fans, but the marching band is small.
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