Friday night lights shine brighter in Mid-Del

By Jeff Harrison
Midwest City Beacon

Fans will notice a big difference when the lights come on at Mid-Del high school football games this fall.

The district has installed brand-new Musco LED lighting systems at each high school stadium, giving athletes and spectators the same top-of-the-line experience found at AT&T Stadium, Bricktown Ballpark, and the USA Softball Hall of Fame Stadium. Each field is now illuminated at 100 foot-candles, placing Mid-Del’s facilities among the top 10% statewide in brightness and quality.

The new lights are brighter, more energy-efficient, and designed to keep neighborhoods nearby from being flooded with glare. Special visors direct every beam onto the field, while ball-tracking lights make sure punts and long passes don’t disappear into the night sky.

“We want to make sure light’s not leaving this premises,” said Rico Velazquez, field representative for Musco Lighting. “So really, even if you’re behind the bleachers, touching that fence, you’re not going to have much light on you because it’s cut off extremely well.”

The lights also come with some fun extras — including programmable color scenes and light shows that can sync to music for team entrances and celebrations.

Installation began in June and wrapped up in July. Musco built the fixtures at its Iowa factory, and Guerrero Electrical Services handled installation, using cranes to mount them to existing poles.
For company owner Noah Guererro, a Carl Albert graduate and former Titan athlete, the project was personal.

“This wasn’t just another job us – this hit home for me,” he said. “I’m very close to Mid-Del, and I was very happy to bring this in for them.”

Football will be the first sport to use the new stadium lighting, but it will also be beneficial for soccer, track and band events.

The project cost $1,455,000 and is paid for with bond funds. The district also installed new video scoreboards at each stadium.