Expansion to the Llano ISD indoor facility will propel athletes to better results
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the first of a two-part series.
New additions to campus life at Llano High School are being constructed, including one that will benefit the athletic department.
The indoor facility is receiving renovations to create a boys locker room, weight room and coaches offices. Projected completion is in the next few months.
Athletic director Matt Green said the weight room will be used by high school athletes in every sport. He strongly believes one big reason why the Lady Jackets captured the District 5-3A championships in volleyball and basketball — where head coaches Claire Head and Jay Parker share the same athletes — is because the players committed to challenging themselves during the offseason to get stronger, faster and more agile. The football team won the District 13-3A Division I championship and three playoff games.
That work began and ended in the weight room, the athletic director said.
“They’re aggressive and intense,” he said. “The girls program has benefitted from the weight room. Our girls do the exact same things our boys do. There will be some things different (in the new weight room) that coaches want for the athletes that maximize their weight usage. It’s integral. It’s the most important piece when you look at the whole program.”
The current weight room, which is located at the end of the hallway of the athletic department, allows the athletes to lift weights and some agility drills. But when it comes to using jump boxes other plyometric activities, stations must be set up outside. In addition, it is 250 yards away from the indoor facility where athletes go for the conditioning and agility portion of their summer program.
The new weight room will allow athletes to get stronger and more agile without having to battle Mother Nature during summer strength and conditioning sessions, Green said.
“We’re able to add things simply by shape and attachments in a matter of 10 seconds,” he said. “We’ll be able to put some new apparatuses. Some of the things will be identical. We’ll have racks of weights and dumb bells. We’ll get more weight equipment in that weight room.”
Green said the weight room’s versatility — to ensure the Yellow Jackets and Lady Jackets’ explosion, no matter the sport — is one of its most important aspects.
He is known for implementing stretches that loosen the body in order to make it harder for opponents to stop the Jackets. These stretches are in every athletic department he has worked in or been in charge of because very few sports allow athletes to run in a straight line. This work gives a layer of protection, especially those who play sports that involve a lot of stopping, planting, turning and going. He admits “it’s not always fun.”
“We incorporate tons of hip work and flexibility work in our weight room as we’re lifting,” he said. “We incorporate that as part of our lifts. (In our current weight room), we find ways to get it done. It’s work that’s always the most effective. This (new) weight room will offer us flexibility. We’ll be able to get a lot of things done. It makes things more efficient. It will have the ability to do every single thing you want. We’ve been very blessed that we’ve had very limited and severe injuries that are long term. Our weight room does so much. We always try to be creative and find better ways to do things.”
