Players and coaches will use Outdoor Sports Center for practice during season

This story was published Jan. 14, 2023, on morganhilllife.com, rewritten from a press release from the city of Morgan Hill

Photo by Marty Cheek at November’s announcement at the SAP Center that the Bay Area Panthers intend to make their practice home in Morgan HIll.

 

By Staff Report

The South Valley welcomes a professional football team that will soon make its home at Morgan Hill’s Outdoor Sports Center.

The Bay Area Panthers chose the city as their practice location for the 2023 season, taking place March through August. They will have their administrative office near the downtown.

An affiliate of the Indoor Football League, the Panthers will play 15 games this year, with seven home games at San Jose’s SAP Center. Players will live in the community and intend to interact with residents including school children.

The team’s practice program moves about 25 players, eight coaches, and the team’s operational headquarters to Morgan Hill for the season. They will use the OSC’s fields and parking lot, Aquatics Center, Centennial Recreation Center, hotels, meeting spaces, apartments, office space, and provide local jobs. Local officials began site tours and negotiations with the Panthers in October.

“This partnership is possible thanks to a collaboration between Visit Morgan Hill, and the Morgan Hill Outdoor Sports Center, and the city of Morgan Hill,” said Chris Ghione, the city’s public services director. “We are thrilled to have the Bay Area Panthers choose Morgan Hill for their practice location and are honored to support the Panthers for a successful season.”

Click HERE to read Morgan Hill Life’s story on the Panthers

Morgan Hill community members can meet the Panther’s head coach, Darren Arbet, an Arena Football Hall of Famer, at a welcome event at the Morgan Hill Community and Cultural Center at 5:30 p.m.. Thursday, Jan. 26. There will be a season preview, live music, a prize drawing, light refreshments, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

For more information, visit www.visitmorganhill.org.

Promotional benefits for the community’s partnership with the Panthers include radio, TV and on-field advertising, group tickets, and digital media collaboration, according to the press release. The hosting arrangement also entails engagement opportunities for local businesses and organizations, such as sponsoring team meals, special events, game night promotions, player appearances, youth programs, and volunteering.