Work is taking place inside and outside of the field house that sits next to Herbert Barnes Stadium at Escambia County High School. Hard work.

Inside, metal can be heard clanging against metal as weights are lifted and set back down, while outside the taps of feet are audible hitting each step of the stadium.

Aside from the sounds, what is visible to visitors are the student-athletes giving their all to become stronger and faster.

Escambia County athletic director and head football coach Mark Heaton has expanded on summer workouts for football players and now has the head coaches of other Blue Devils sports also working out there with players.

On any given day more than 100 male and female athletes are attending workouts for their respective sports, according to Heaton, and signs only point to future success for ECHS athletics.

While the Blue Devils boys basketball and football programs advanced to deep rounds of the AHSAA playoffs, the girls basketball and softball teams did not fare as well.

Bu summer workouts could help the girls teams because they do not currently have an athletics course where they are able to work out.

Not having that chance may have hurt the girls teams because the only work they get is during practice, so they may not be as conditioned as other programs at schools that offer girls weight lifting classes.

The summer workouts allow not just the football team, but all other athletes involved in winter and spring sports to build their strength and conditioning, which allows for a more competitive drive.

With these athletes getting more and more work, their chance for more success increases because they will slowly move to the level of talent that their competitors have.

This is a smart move by Heaton and his coaching staff as they know what it will take to build a respectable athletic program at ECHS.

As these workouts progress, the athletes at ECHS will not only begin to see their hard work pay off, they will also earn a better work ethic that will benefit them in the classroom as well as the Atmore community.

The workouts can bring unity among all of the Blue Devils and their coaches, which can spread inside the school to students, faculty and administrators making Atmore’s high school stronger and stronger.

Good things can only come from this strength and conditioning program, and I look forward to the results on and off the field.

Chandler Myers is sports editor of the Atmore Advance. He can be reached at 368-2123 or by e-mail at sports@atmoreadvance.com