This week’s football showdown between Port Neches-Groves High School and Nederland High School marks the 101st battle between the Mid County rivals.
Dubbed Mid County Madness, the heated contest has captured the attention of Southeast Texas and the nation, recently being voted first through Sports Illustrated’s “High school football rivalries in America: Vote for the best.”
The pomp and circumstance come to an end Friday (Oct. 25) when the Indians host the Bulldogs in Port Neches.
PNG is the defending state champion and sports an impressive 7-0 mark under third-year head coach Jeff Joseph. The Indians are on a 22-game winning streak, dating back to last season.
Looking to end that impressive run is Nederland, which is 6-1 under the guidance of first year head coach Scott Rich.
However, this football rivalry goes way beyond final scores and gridiron accolades.
The big game routinely packs 10,000-plus fans into stadiums as generations gather to share fond memories and create new ones as a fresh crop of student participants make their mark in a century-old Texas tradition.
Standing tall throughout it all are the football stadiums that house neighbors and friends from across the country.
That’s a special partnership for H.B. Neild Construction, which led the building of both stadiums and multiple facilities for Port Neches-Groves and Nederland independent school districts throughout the decades.
CEO Taylor Neild Sr. said there is a sense of pride knowing the family company’s skilled workforce was part of something so special for both districts.
“Friday nights are a big deal in Mid County,” he said.
“Any time you have an opportunity to perform a service for a respected organization like NISD or PNGISD, it is special for our entire organization. Having worked for both groups, I can tell you without hesitation, both groups are first class School Districts and will continue to have a high level of success in the classroom and on the field.”
Throughout the year, the hard work and dedication to the unified goal of winning shines bright on each side of the line of scrimmage. H.B. Neild Construction President Thomas Neild was quick to point out the successes both of these great teams have shared on Mid County football fields can, in part, be attributed to a legacy of coaches and staff who support and positively reinforce their students, pushing them to be better every day on an off the field.
“Our team at H.B. Neild has watched student athletes from Nederland and PNG excel on these football fields, graduate, and go on to be respected leaders in their local communities and beyond,” he said. “When you have good teachers, coaches, and role models, you will fall back to the training that those individuals helped instill, putting you in the best position to run the right play in life.”
The Stadiums
The Port Neches-Groves stadium, known to many as “The Reservation,” was overhauled and reopened for football in 2008 with new field turf, a seven-lane track, north-end bleachers, video replay scoreboard and dual-decked press box.
The amenities included all-new concessions and restrooms.
The $10.2 million project includes a fan capacity exceeding 12,000 people.
Located at 1401 Merriman St., the stadium has been the home to PNG since 1951 and now has 8,500 seats on the home side.
In 2020, it was named the best high school football stadium in the state, according to fan voting for Dave Campbell’s Texas Football.
The stadium has been home to state champion title teams in 1953, 1955, 1975 and 2023.
Bulldog Stadium has sat in the heart of Nederland for 70 years. The stadium opened in 1954 and has seen an abundance of success on the field. Two years after the stadium was built, the Bulldogs, led by Bum Phillips, went to the 3A title game, where they fell 3-0 to Garland.
The following year, the Bulldogs went 14-0 under first-year head coach Emmett McKenzie, beating Sweetwater 20-7 for the 3A championship at Bulldog Stadium, which also hosted the 1956 final.
Recent upgrades were part of a $4.5 million proposal and included replacing the grass field with turf, a new press box, ADA compliance requirements and upgrades to the restrooms and concession stands.
The new turf is not just a football thing. The band and Westernaires can perform and avoid muddy conditions. School officials say there are JV games and a host of other events held at the stadium without the worry of tearing up the field for Friday.
