Steelers move Friday's night practice to Saint Vincent College

PITTSBURGH — The Steelers annual "Friday Night Lights" practice scheduled for Friday at Latrobe Memorial Stadium will be moved to Saint Vincent College, the team announced Wednesday. The event will be free to the public.

"Unfortunately, the grass surface at Latrobe Memorial Stadium suffered an unexpected disease and we do not want to jeopardize the surface for the 2013 Latrobe High School games," Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert said. "We still want to provide the great Steelers fans of Westmoreland County the opportunity to still enjoy our team practice as well as enjoy the many fan-friendly activities that go along with our annual night practice, but we felt it was better to move the event to campus for this year. We look forward to returning to Latrobe Memorial Stadium next year."

The festivities will still take place as originally scheduled, but will now take place completely on the campus of Saint Vincent College.

“With the new CBS and guys getting hurt for some reason, it’s kind of tough. You’ve got injuries all around the NFL so it’s precautionary for us, which is a good thing. It doesn’t matter where we play at,” Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor said. “Saint Vincent is such a great atmosphere. You’ve got the bleachers, and the hills, and you can sit on the grass. Whatever you want to do, you can do it."

Linebacker LaMarr Woodley told Channel 11’s Bill Phillips that he’s not overly-concerned about the field conditions.

“I never actually really paid attention to the field. I just go out there and play because sometimes throughout the year Heinz Field even gets messy. We have to go out and play no matter what,” Woodley said.

The following is a list of what fans will enjoy on Friday:

Noon - campus open to the public

12-5 p.m. - Latrobe/Steelers Fan Fest

12-9 p.m. - Steelers Merchandise Tent; Steelers Social Media Tent; FedEx Traveling Great Hall; Steelers Cruise Booth

3-5 p.m. - Gatorade Junior Training Camp

5-5:20 p.m. - All Steelers to sign autographs for fans around the fields

5:25 p.m. - Steelers practice

7:45-8:45 p.m. - Latrobe's own Saddle Up to perform live on Saint Vincent College softball field

9:15 p.m. - Zambelli fireworks display (on campus of Saint Vincent College)

Additionally, the Steelers will host a food drive to benefit the Westmoreland County Food Bank, collecting non-perishable food donations.

For fans that previously purchased tickets, please contact the Latrobe Area High School at (724) 539-4236 for more information regarding Friday night's practice.

WPXI