Future strength and conditioning building to honor longtime coach

A nonprofit has been formed to create a future strength and conditioning building for all Vestavia Hills athletes and students, and to do so while honoring a longtime Rebels assistant coach.

Rusty Weaver, a former Vestavia football player and current City Council member, said discussion has been going on for years but never took shape.

The right time has come, Weaver said, and a nonprofit to oversee the project has been created. 

The only part of the project paid for by the school is the design drawings, which the board of education has committed to pay for, Weaver said. The rest will be paid with private funds. Athletic Director Jeff Segars has given his approval, though.

The move, Segars said, will offer an ability to integrate the strength and conditioning program at both the middle school and high school levels, as well as freeing up space for otherneeds.

“If we can raise funds privately to help with [the] strength and conditioning facility, it will free up funds to improve fine arts facilities, which are in desperate need,” Segars said.

At an October meeting, the board voted to approve naming the building after Peter Braasch, who worked for 40 years as an assistant coach for multiple sports.

“He was hard to please on the football field, but if he asked you to run through a brick wall, not only would you do it, you would believe you could do it,” Weaver said.

Segars said there would be no strength and conditioning program without Braasch.

“He is what’s good and what’s still good about high school athletics,” Segars said.

Braasch said the recognition was surprising.

“It’s a great honor,” Braasch said.“It’s fantastic.”

Kevin Ulch sits on the committee and said the building will help attract families to Vestavia.

“As part of what you want to do to attract the best people into your community, you not only have to have academic success, you have to have adequate programs at your high school,” Ulch said. “... When people are moving in, they’re looking at that.”

Jeff Looney also sits on the committee and, like Weaver, played football for Braasch.

“I think it’d be good for our athletes, top to bottom, to have a first-class strength and conditioning facility along with the program and coaches,” Looney said. “... “I’d loved to have had something like [the new facility] when I was playing.”

University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletic Director Mark Ingram, who has children in the schools, said high-quality facilities sends a message to athletes.

“You’re telling [athletes] that what they do matters,” Ingram said.

Keith Trotman was hired in 2008 and has taken over the strength and conditioning program, and he said it’s the “foundation” of any sports program. However, the school’s equipment has fallen out of date and there’s a serious space issue, with multiple sports teams sharing the space at one time.

“For a 7A school, we’re grossly undersized,” Trotman said.

The last real update to equipment, as far as Trotman can tell, was made more than 14 years ago. Having a new facility will inspire involvement from students and athletes. Already, Trotman said, students are asking about taking classes and showingexcitement.

Rick Lathan architects made drawings of what the building will look like, Weaver said. A timeline has not been set yet, but the campaign is expected to begin soon.

Based on preliminary conversations, the initial goal for the project is to raise $3 million, with $2 million paying for the building of the facility and $1 million for an endowment to maintain the building and keep it up to date, Weaver said.

“We’re trying to build what we’ll need 20 years from now, not what we need today,” Weaver said.

This story is part of our Year in Preview. See more here.