When Buchtel high school football players take their home field next season, mud and rocks will be a thing of the past.

The Cleveland Browns surprised the student athletes Monday afternoon by announcing the Akron school is getting a new synthetic turf field courtesy of the Browns Give Back program.

"This is unbelievable," said Marcel Boyce Jr., a wide receiver and defensive back in football and a guard in basketball. "This is a big moment in my life."

Akron Public Schools and Buchtel hosted members of the Browns on Monday for the announcement, followed by an official groundbreaking celebration for the new field. 

The turf field will be installed over what is currently a grass football field at Buchtel. 

The project at Buchtel is the Browns' 12th field installation in the past seven years and is expected to be completed before the 2022 football season.

Since May of 2016, the Haslam and Johnson families and Browns Give Back have been dedicated to providing Ohio communities with new field surfaces, focused on enhanced educational opportunities by promoting student engagement through youth and high school football, additional sports and other activities.

"This is incredible," Akron Public Schools Superintendent Christine Fowler Mack said following a surprise ceremony that started in Buchtel's auxiliary gymnasium and ended outside at Griffin Stadium. 

"I know that the Cleveland Browns have such a strong commitment to not only athletics, but to also creating scholar-athletes. I know the history of Buchtel and how much the community supports and loves its school. To be able to work on this and have this come through this year is a dream come true."

Fowler Mack is a former Buchtel girls basketball coach who graduated from East High School in 1984 and has bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Akron.

Mack said she has been in contact with the Browns for several months. She said the Browns made a commitment to a turf field about four or five weeks ago.

Buchtel football coach and Assistant Athletic Director Bryan Williams said bringing a turf field to 1040 Copley Road on the west side of Akron is "a beautiful thing."

Williams graduated from Buchtel High School in 2005 and is also a University of Akron alum. He was a standout football player for the Griffins and the Zips.

"I was always taught that the two warriors that control this world is patience and time," Williams said. "We have been waiting for a long time for this very moment. I am happy that our student-athletes got to witness this moment here and we appreciate the Cleveland Browns organization for donating this field." 

Akron Public Schools Athletic Director Joe Vassalotti called the turf football field at Buchtel "a fabulous addition to APS" that will also benefit marching bands and other athletic teams at East, Ellet, Firestone, Kenmore-Garfield and North.

"This is exciting," he said.

The Browns declined to release the price for the Buchtel project, but replacing grass high school football fields with turf can be costly. Woodridge Local Schools, for example, is spending about $987,000 on a turf field, according to the district's treasurer.

Monday's event commemorates the Browns organization’s second field donated to a high school in Akron Public Schools after Ellet in 2019 and the third to a high school in Akron. Archbishop Hoban had turf practice fields donated through the program 2021.

"I grew up on Glendora Avenue right down the street," Buchtel Principal LaCresia Beecher said. "... I could see into the field. I would come here as a child before I actually attended Buchtel and walk the track with my dad and look at the field. For this to be an opportunity for Buchtel and the community is an amazing thing. It is going to do great wonders for our community and our students."

Beecher is a Buchtel alum who played volleyball and basketball, and has bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Akron. She recently was the Griffins volleyball coach and said she enjoyed watching Buchtel football players' reaction on Monday. 

Members of the Buchtel football team took part in the festivities along with executive vice president of the Browns and partner of the Haslam Sports Group JW Johnson, Browns defensive end Chase Winovich and Browns mascot Chomps.

When Winovich spoke to Buchtel players, he said "on behalf of the Cleveland Browns, it really is an honor to present this field and present this new opportunity." 

Moments later, Winovich added: “This event was really cool. It was amazing to see just how many people came out to support it and helped make it happen. You can tell how much people love and believe in this community.”

Winovich loved how "fired up" Buchtel's players were.

"Just them talking about how cruddy the rocks and mud [can be]," Winovich said. "It’s easy to talk about progress or change, but when you have something as iconic to a community that is a staple of bringing people together such as football, when people can come and can see this new field, it creates a different resonance. It sends a different message. It’s like, ‘Listen, we matter.’”

About 50 Buchtel football players were involved in the celebration, including standouts Davian Greenlee, Tinell Edwards, Marques Turner and Vonte Jackson.

"I am thankful for this and I am really excited to be able to play on the turf," said Alise Huron-Covington, an outside linebacker and running back.

Akron Public Schools is a partner district of the Cleveland Browns Foundation’s Stay in the Game! Keep Learning, Every Day Network. The Stay in the Game Network is a statewide initiative designed to promote the importance of school attendance and put an end to chronic absenteeism.

A primary focus of the Browns’ field project is to offer youth educational tools through “outdoor classrooms,” which allow opportunities to participate in extracurricular activities that support attendance, school engagement and overall personal growth.

The site selection process prioritizes underserved communities in the inner city and other areas of need, helping promote equal access to beneficial educational resources to everyone throughout the community, no matter their race, gender or economic status.

The Browns held a groundbreaking ceremony for a synthetic turf field at East Cleveland Shaw's stadium in 2021, and Ellet and Boys Hope Girls Hope of Northeastern Ohio received multi-sport synthetic turf playing fields in 2019. Prior to that, the Browns provided new turf fields to Lorain, Toledo Start and five high schools in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (Kennedy, Rhodes, Glenville, Adams and Marshall).

"This is a great opportunity," said Brian Neugebauer, an English teacher, girls basketball coach and athletic director at Buchtel who graduated from Firestone and the University of Akron.

"Like Chase Winovich said, this project is about believing in these kids." 

Akron Beacon Journal sports writer Nate Ulrich contributed to this article. Michael Beaven can be reached at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow Beaven on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MBeavenABJ.