Sports

Take a look at Clinton Heacock Stadium upgrade project now completed

By Mike Brown
Take a look at Clinton Heacock Stadium upgrade project now completed.
Take a look at Clinton Heacock Stadium upgrade project now completed. Mike Brown

BELOIT — Phase 1 of its upgrade project is complete.

West Branch High School finished its upgrade project to 5,200-seat Clinton Heacock Stadium, pictured above, last week.

The upgrades to the facility include new FieldTurf, Musco LED stadium lights, new reserved seat chair backs, new goal posts and a new school banner in front of the press box. The Vasco Group was hired to install the FieldTurf.

West Branch will play its first varsity home football game on its new FieldTurf when it hosts New Philadelphia on Aug. 29.
West Branch will play its first varsity home football game on its new FieldTurf when it hosts New Philadelphia on Aug. 29. Mike Brown

West Branch will play its first varsity home football game on its new FieldTurf when it hosts New Philadelphia in Week II of the season on Friday night, August 29th.

The funds for the project came from anonymous donations and no school tax funds were used. Although an exact figure wasn’t disclosed, it’s believed Phase 1 of the project is in the neighborhood of $2 million.

The late Clinton Heacock was the first superintendent of West Branch Local Schools and an avid supporter of all West Branch sports. West Branch Stadium was built in 1971 and renamed Clinton Heacock Stadium on September 6, 1985 before the Warriors’ football game against Minerva (a 39-0 win).

The upgrades to the facility include new FieldTurf, Musco LED stadium lights, new reserved seat chair backs, new goal posts and a new school banner in front of the press box.
The upgrades to the facility include new FieldTurf, Musco LED stadium lights, new reserved seat chair backs, new goal posts and a new school banner in front of the press box. Mike Brown

Prior to 1971, and the construction of its own stadium, West Branch played its home football games at then Reilly Stadium (now Sebo Stadium) in Salem on Saturday nights.

In a separate project, funded through other donations and/or grants, the school plans to construct a new weight room/locker room/coaches office facility onto the back of the West Branch Fieldhouse in the next year.