Burn Ban in Effect. All outdoor burning is prohibited in Franklin County.
The Ron Barker Photos appearing in this article are copyrighted and property of Ron Barker. The photos are released for this sole publication only. Any other use requires permission from Ron Barker.
"Excellent schools have excellent athletic facilities!” This was a statement made many times over by supporters of the recent 60 million dollar academic/athletic school bond election. And that dream has become a dynamic reality.
Mt. Vernon ISD can now invite visitors to an incredible sports complex featuring a state-of-the-art football stadium, track, baseball/softball fields, and tennis courts —joining the new high school gym built in 2016. The complex has and will surely continue to attract playoff games, bringing economic benefits to Mt. Vernon ISD and the local economy.
As we enjoy this season of Tiger football with enthusiastic coaches, new uniforms, instant video coverage, quickly available high-tech statistics, and a dazzling new scoreboard, many of us pause and remember “the greats” produced under much humbler circumstances at the old Tiger Field…
The old Tiger Field was indeed ~ “humble.” This 2026 football season marks the 50th anniversary of the last season played at the old Tiger Field. Sequestered in the heart of town, accessed from Oak Street and close to Highway 37 and Main, this quiet residential neighborhood became the center of the universe on Friday nights when the Tigers took to the turf. Don Meredith, Bobby Maples, mascots and cheerleaders, and the ever-proud Tiger Band wore that 100 yards of grass down to a nub, but still Tiger pride never faded. Mt. Vernon revolved around Friday night football, and the action on the field was rehashed at the Dairy Bar the next day by Saturday morning quarterbacks.
This is a great story from Texas Monthly about a football game played on Tiger Field in October 1954:
“Don Meredith’s Legend was born on a Friday night in 1954 when, as a sixteen-year old junior at Mount Vernon, he ran for two touchdowns, passed for three more, kicked three of the extra points, and intercepted a pass as the Tigers beat the Winnsboro Red Raiders 47-8 at Tiger Stadium. Meredith would go on to become a two-time all-American quarterback at Southern Methodist University and then lead the Dallas Cowboys to the 1966 and 1967 NFL Championship games before settling into a memorable stint on the broadcasting team of Monday Night Football where millions tuned in to hear him rhapsodize about his parents, Jeff and Hazel, and the town he grew up in. Up till his death, he still wore his high school class ring.” S. Hollandsworth
That Tiger Stadium where Meredith had such an outstanding performance launching his career has been torn down, relocated to the MV school’s campus — and renamed in his honor as Don Meredith Stadium.
A family residence now claims the land that was Tiger Field ~ that special plot of land that absorbed the pounding of cleats, the hard knocks of falls, the sweat, the cheers, and the history of champions and “ordinary” boys.
The dictionary defines ordinary as “with no special or distinctive features, normal, uninteresting, commonplace.” But in this article “ordinary” simply means the hundreds of young men who were not bestowed with the celebrity of a Don Meredith or Bobby Maples.
One such “ordinary boy” is Glen Slaughter. Glen was a great high school athlete who, like countless others, played on the old Tiger Field. These Tiger teams were outstanding all the way through their four years of high school. As a freshman, Glen and his teammates won regional in 1947, which was as far as football playoffs went back then.
As an adult, Glen became one of the original founders of the Catfish Smith Scholarship ~ for many years the most coveted prize awarded each year at the annual MVISD athletic banquet. The Catfish Scholarship was formed in 1980 when Glen, six other players, Coach Bo Campbell and Coach Catfish Smith met in Dallas. The first scholarship was given in 1981. Glen thinks he is one of the three “Catfish” players still living.
Again, it’s been 50 years this year since the old stadium “turned out the lights.” Half a century later, Glen can still be found in the stands cheering for the Tigers. He’s been a season ticket owner since the Tigers moved to their current location. A faithful fan, you can find him in his reserved seat at the new Don Meredith Stadium and many times at out-of-town games as well. Now, many other “ordinary boys” are in the stands too, but at 92 years of age, certainly Glen Slaughter’s seniority and loyalty deserve a hearty high five! Once a Tiger, always a Tiger!
Glen’s advice to today’s Tigers is this:
“Every play is designed to score if every player does his job. As a player, do your job and score as often as possible.” (And everybody says, “amen!”)
But there’s more to the story! Remarkably, Glen was born 2 1/2 months early, weighing only 3 pounds. Born in the family home on Daphne Prairie in December, the doctor told his parents to “stick a name on him because he won’t live through the night.” His aunts and the women of the Daphne Community all claimed to have held Glen by the fire through that first cold night of life. His daughter, Tonya Woods, stated that, to his knowledge, he is now the last living male in his class. God had a long life planned for Glen!
Be sure to look for Glen and his two daughters under the Friday night lights in the heart of the reserved section.
Back to Tiger Field ~ The night the last game was played on Tiger Field in 1976, a poem was read by a former “ordinary Tiger” who believes that Tiger Field, along with its coaches, challenges, demands, and achievements, helped make him a man. This poem is dedicated to every Tiger, past and present.
Tribute to Tiger Field
This old field is a grand old field,
She has seen many years go by.
This old field is a great old field
And tonight she will say good-bye.
She is filled with pride as she turns the tide,
Never to turn back anymore,
She will hear no more cheers, in anymore years,
As she gently shuts the door.
She has seen many bands and football fans,
That came on Friday night,
And lives were made, and futures laid,
Right under her very lights.
She always had dreams of winning teams
That would set the field ablaze,
But it was the men, and not the win,
That gave glory to her days.
She produced some greats, and some All-States,
Who went to the very top.
Meredith was greatest and Maples the latest,
Who were raised as top of the crop.
But you may never have heard one single word,
About a thousand others,
Who are just as great, as proved by fate,
And especially to dads and mothers.
But those thousand more, whose fame did not soar
Drew strength from her rugged soil,
To play at life’s game, just the same,
As here they had learned to toil.
And as she departs, we have heavy hearts,
Who remember those days gone by.
For she’s a grand old field, yes, a great old field,
And to us she will never die.
So good-bye old field, grand old field,
Who taught us to do what we dared,
Because we’re the men, who are boys again,
When we remember the joys you shared.
Lanny Ramsay
MVHS Class of 1961
Tiger Football #20
We have every confidence that the same spirit and character-building potential that resided at the Old Tiger Field resides today in the amazing Don Meredith Stadium!
Good luck Tigers! God’s speed!
In 1975 working as a college degreed professional photographer and journalist, I was involved in schools, weddings, high school seniors and commercial photography. I stood on the old Tiger field football sideline as usual, shooting action shots etc.
I realized this would be the last Homecoming at this “Tiger Field “. A field my family, friends and even I had played on and now work as a photographer. It was truly history in the making. My plan was to begin my historic photography minutes before the half and fans began moving around. Many factors had to come together to make this “” the greatest photo story ever told “.
I photographed the entire stands from one end to the other. The next week, back at my studio darkroom I carefully processed the very important film, shot with my 1964 Hasselblad and stored it in a safe place. Every time I came across the film from that night, I smiled.
I had initially learned "film developing" skill at Ft Bragg, NC in between Jungle Training, in Panama and being part of an Honor Guard (burial detail).
The photos could be made because of the configuration of the stands, (being shallow from front to back top row). I contend it's the only one of its kind, possibly, in the world. I've tried other city football stands, but none worked.
