CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. β The Midlothian High School community came together to transform a storage shed into a state-of-the-art weight room honoring Wyatt Fowler, a former football and lacrosse player who died in a car crash in December 2023.
For any football team at any level of the game, practice is a necessary evil β so is lifting weights. At Midlothian High School the logistics between the two haven't always been the greatest. Head Coach Phil Gross said the Trojans' weight room is on the far side of campus, a 10 to 15 minute walk from the school.
"It was a little tiring," said team member Malik Toliver. "Sometimes we would have to pack up. We'd be in cleats, and have to take everything off just to go all the way across the school just to go to the other weight room. Sometimes there'd be people in there already lifting weights, so we'd have to wait even longer."
The answer was almost right under their noses, just steps from both their main stadium and their practice field.
"I was sitting with my linebacker coach, Bruce, and we were talking about it," Gross said. "And he goes, well, have you ever thought about using the shed in the corner? And I was like, dude, that's brilliant."
The Midlothian Boosters got to work, raising over $100,000 for not just an overhaul of a storage shed, but brand new weightlifting equipment. The results are getting rave reviews from players.
"They definitely put time into this weight room, you could tell," Toliver said. "They have the air conditioning and everything, and we have the equipment that works way better, new equipment that we didn't have before in the last weight room. And I definitely really appreciate it."
"We were really excited to have it," said Xavier Anderson. "Really excited. We had to build it. The AC is great because we didn't have that. So we were loving it."
The energy, passion and generosity created for all of this came out of love and respect for a player who will never get to use it.
Midlothian will be dedicating their new weight room to Wyatt Fowler, their former teammate who died in a car accident in December of 2023. Wyatt would have been a senior this year. After football and lacrosse, his biggest passion was lifting weights β not only to be healthy, but for the time with his friends.
"After he passed away, and I looked at this phone, there were so many weightlifting videos and the music blaring in the background with his friends, and him yelling at them to do more," said Wyatt's mother, Amy. "I mean, he would have loved this."
Teammate D.K. Chapman said Wyatt was known for giving his all.
"Before he passed, we would train together. He was like, if he's doing something, he's gonna give it his all," Chapman said. "So I feel like just based on that, if it comes to means to come together as a community, we're gonna give it at our all, like he gave his off with everything he did."
Coach Gross said the new weight room is to remember Wyatt.
"Wyatt would have wanted this for his teammates and his community," Gross said. "He just loved the weight room, and so we thought there was no better way to honor him."
There's no playbook for navigating a loss like this off the field for players, coaches or family. This is the Trojan community's way of remembering a teammate and friend who is gone too soon but continues to contribute with the example he left behind.
"If the door was unlocked, he'd be in there," Gross said. "He'd be in there lifting weights, and he'd be looking out for his buddies, and they would be in there lifting with him, I'm sure."
Wyatt's mother called the new weight room beautiful, and heartbreaking.
"I mean, I want him here. I want him here more than anything. I'd rather have him, but I'm glad that his sister will start high school next year, and her brother will still be remembered in this weight room when she's here, and I think that's a beautiful thing," Fowler said.
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