At the 49ers preseason home opener on August 14 against the Denver Broncos, a special display honoring Northern California high school football programs will be unveiled at Candlestick Park.
COO Andy Dolich came up with the idea last season, in which the 49ers sent a letter to every high school football coach in the Bay Area requesting a helmet donation to be a part of the display. The project when finished will feature a three-dimensional photograph of a football field covered with the donated helmets.
Over 400 letters were sent in the mail when the project was initiated and as of June 1, close to 150 helmets have been collected.
"All high school sports are one of the last vestiges of town squares," Dolich said of the thinking behind the project. "They are a connection within the communities where everyone gets together. This is a real simple idea where every team gives us one of their football helmets and we're going to put it in a location at Candlestick Park that everyone is going to be able to see it as they walk into the games. We want every high school represented."
The display will be located by Gate F, also known as "The GOLDMINE."
In addition to having the display for fans to see as they enter and exit ballgames, a special unveiling ceremony will be shown on the stadium's Jumbotron.
"It's a salute to all Northern California high school football programs," said Ryan Myers, the team's former youth football representative who has since moved into a new role as a pro personnel scout. "It's a very unique opportunity to show the importance of high school football and the life skills that it teaches young people. We're very excited to be able to put this together."
For the unveiling, the 49ers will invite a number of high school football teams to the first preseason game to participate in the unveiling ceremony.
"The 49ers are very strong supporters of youth football and high school football," Myers said. "We're here to stand by Northern California football programs and this display is just one piece of our support."
With less than two months before the helmet display unveiling, the 49ers are still accepting helmet donations.
Please send your helmets to:
49ers High School Helmet Display San Francisco 49ers 4949 Centennial Blvd. Santa Clara, CA 95054
