AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) – The West Plains Wolves worked out in their weight room and indoor turf facility earlier this week, but today marked the second day of practice in their new basketball gym.
“I really like the colors of this school and I like the gym too,” said Ayden Rodriquez, West Plains junior guard and small forward. “I think it’s a really nice gym. I’m just excited to be in here. You know, the first team to play here.”
The Wolves’ gym features a huge dark and baby blue logo at center court and another behind one of the six hanging hoops.
“You walk in and it’s exciting to see something new and know that you’’re the first program in here,” said Kendall Cogburn, West Plains boys basketball head coach. “It’s a lot of fun. I love just looking at the guys and seeing their expressions when they walked through the gym yesterday. It was a blast.”
Around 35 players have participated in summer workouts starting at 6 a.m. with strength and agility training and then meeting back up for basketball.
“We’ve been at Westover Park for the last three weeks, so we’ve been together it’s just now we finally feel like we’re at home,” said Cogburn.
The inaugural roster is led by head coach Kendall Cogburn. His staff includes Canadian native Cameron Copley and Randall alum Keenan Hooker.
“I think they know a lot about the game and I think they are really good coaches for our team,” said Rodriquez. “I think they are doing a lot for our team right now.”
Seniors had the option to finish their career at their current school, but 6-foot-3 forward Jedd Phillips chose to play with his younger brother.
“He has to come over here, I wanted to play with him and also I wanted to set a new culture,” said Phillips. “Be part of a new school and you know set new things that no one else thought we could do.”
Building a strong culture starts with a team slogan.
“The strength of the pack is the wolf and the strength of the wolf is the pack,” said Cogburn. “There are a lot of things that we will contribute to that, but we are excited to get started.”
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