Oxford, AL –The new facility for athletics under development located at Oxford High School (OHS) is officially dubbed Oxford High School Champions Athletic Center. Oxford High School Champions Athletic Center. The project is set to be completed in September 2023. It will feature around six thousand square feet of space for indoor practice space, locker room, sports medicine and training room, weight room, multi-purpose space for meetings, offices, and office spaces for all sports teams of students. Another attraction of the facility is the rooftop terrace with views of the football field.
The new center pays tribute to a number of Hall of Famers from Oxford’s history by naming them:
- Bill Burgess and Robert Herring Indoor Training Facility
- Dr. James H. Lett Sports Medicine and Training Facility
- Jack Grizzard Team Room
The Burgess family’s reaction is touching. “Oxford is always going to be my home. Our experience as students at Oxford High School is full of cherished memories. This is an incredible privilege to everyone in the Burgess family and the amazing players and coaches who participated in this time of Oxford athletics.”
Coach Grizzard played for 11 seasons, beginning in the year 1960. He was Dr. Lett served as the team’s medical director during 33 seasons. Son of his daughter Paula Lett Hoffman, acknowledges that the family is incredibly grateful that the board has decided to name the facility for sports medicine in his memory. “Daddy enjoyed every moment of assisting the athletes of Oxford High School, his school of choice.”
It has been in construction since the beginning of September 2021 with a lot of discussions about the project as well as its advantages and use. Local bonds were issued for the construction project by Education Board in the year 2020.
“This is the last phase of our capital project that we have planned for Oxford High School which has been in development for over 10 years,” says Oxford City Schools Director Dr. Shannon Stanley. Dr. Stanley is excited the school is not just focused on athletic performance, but also the prevention of injuries through the use of sports medicine and conditioning in order to improve the health and wellbeing of the students.
Alongside student players and teams The indoor field and spaces for meetings will be open to robotics, band and other academic groups. The coordination of the scheduling will allow for that the space is used in a fair and equitable manner space for a variety of students and groups.
Coach of the Varsity Girls Basketball team Melissa Bennett is looking forward to working out at the facility, specifically the weight equipment that is new. “There will plenty of space for new equipment that will aid our athletes and, in essence, a completely new everything. We want to be the best in Oxford as well having the most efficient athletic facility is a key to achieving the objective,” says Coach Bennett.
Transferring the majority of the athletics program to the new facility frees the space for expanding the fine arts program which is an important area for expansion. The new facility for athletics will benefit the 1277-member OHS student body, as more than 700 students take part in athletics and over 300 students are in fine arts. This will provide long-term benefits to a significant portion of students in athletics as well as the arts.
Dr. Stanley echoes this sentiment. “The Oxford High School Champions Athletic Center improves the beauty of our campus by providing top-quality facilities as well as equipment and services that will aid our students for the years to in the future.”
Hall of Famer Coach Herring has won three state championships, and was just inches away from winning another at OHS. The family of his is also proud of the center as an exemplar of excellence, which is the model established for Coach Herring. “Coach Herring gave everything he could his all to Oxford High School. He was passionate about everything football. He was fascinated by watching boys grow into men. He believed that athletes of average ability could be successful in football by putting in the effort and coaching. All his work was top-quality from maintenance of the fields to cleaning the bathrooms. He bled gold and black and loved watching his teams perform with class,” says the Herring family.
