‘Football City USA’: York County leaders want you to see those words. Here’s where.
Rock Hill’s favorite moniker might soon be painted in a place where everyone can see it.
At its Monday night meeting, the York County Council agreed to help fund a feasibility study on painting the words “Football City USA” on both sides of the Norfolk Southern Railroad Bridge over Dave Lyle Boulevard near downtown Rock Hill.
The study, which will involve local engineering consulting firm Kimley-Horn and Associates, will report the “anticipated process for obtaining approvals and implementing” the painting — including how much the project will cost, how the visual design will look, how long the project will take to be completed and other logistics.
Councilman William “Bump” Roddey introduced the motion, arguing that “Football City USA” is how the country knows Rock Hill, and that putting up government-sponsored signs demonstrates that the county and city is proud of its identity.
“(The name) has been said at least since 2012 or 2013, but it’s nowhere up in the county and it’s nowhere up in the city,” Roddey said at the meeting. “So I think we’ve been missing out on a lot of marketing capabilities with not having this up in the city. This will be another destination that, once people visit Rock Hill, they’re going to go by it and look at this thing. They’re going to take pictures of it.
“It’s just another way to keep our name in front of visitors who may be looking to come to Rock Hill.”
The study itself will cost $5,000. The county council, in an amendment to the original motion, voted to move forward with the plan on the condition that the city of Rock Hill agrees to pay half of the cost, including $2,500 for the feasibility study.
“The process for what seems to be a very simple project of painting something on a railroad overpass is incredibly complex primarily due to the requirements of the railroad and complicated by the requirements of the (South Carolina Department of Transportation),” York County Manager David Hudspeth said at the meeting.
He explained the need for the feasibility study.
“Work has to be done at night,” he said. “Traffic control has to be in place, employees of the railroad have to be present — a number of things like that.”
Why ‘Football City USA’?
Rock Hill has a renowned sports tourism industry — one powered by high profile partnerships (e.g. Carolina Panthers) and large-scale sports facility investments that compel thousands of youth sports enthusiasts to come to the city on weekends.
But the city is particularly known for its football.
“Football City USA,” a name made famous by The Herald’s late high school sports editor Barry Byers, brings attention to the football talent Rock Hill and its surrounding towns have produced over the last few decades.
There are at least eight players who hail from one of the three Rock Hill high schools who played on an NFL team last season: Stephon Gilmore, the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year in 2019, is a South Pointe graduate; Mason Rudolph, a Northwestern alum, started the majority of the year for the Steelers last season; and Benjamin Watson, another Northwestern graduate, retired this past spring after 16 years in the league.
Since the beginning of professional football, in fact, The Herald found that 45 pro players have substantial ties to York County, Chester County and Lancaster County. Most have come from Rock Hill.
The name also points to the area’s team success: South Pointe’s 2017 high school football state championship became Rock Hill’s 13th since 1972 and 16th overall.
Although the name highlights the area’s football talent, Roddey said the name also is one that resonates with all Rock Hill residents.
“This isn’t just a tagline for those who made it to the NFL,” Roddey said. “This goes all the way down to our high school level, the many state championships that have been won in Rock Hill and York County, all the way down to the Pee-Wee football leagues.
“And Football City USA, as I described it several years ago when I spoke before the Rock Hill City Council, includes the trainers, the band members, the teachers, the counselors — it incorporates everybody.”
This story was originally published August 18, 2020 at 8:05 AM.
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