University of Tennessee Athletics
Locker Room Project Dedicated at Neyland Stadium
September 18, 2004 | Football
Sept. 18, 2004
Former Vol offensive tackle Bo Shafer (1956-58) thought he was going to visit the new locker room under the north stands at Neyland Stadium as a guest of brother-in-law Bill Sansom, but found out otherwise once he got there.
Sansom and Andy Shafer, Bo's son, bought a locker in Bo's honor, complete with his jersey No. 75 prominently honored.
It was part of an Athletic Department initiative to honor the players and coaches who have helped build the Tennessee football tradition that currently numbers 73 former Vols. The project 70 years, from Don Austelle honoring his father, Alfred (1934), to lockers honoring more-present-day Vols Will Overstreet (1998-2001), Casey Clausen (2000-2003) and Eddie Moore (1999-2002).
Shafer, now a Knoxville businessman and civic leader, said he was "totally surprised" and recalled his days as a 220-pound tackle during the coaching tenure of Bowden Wyatt. He remembered dressing under the east stands in his days as a Vol in facilities that were not quite as sumptuous as what is in the Tennessee dressing room today.
With former head coaches Doug Dickey and Bill Battle and 2004 College Football Hall of Fame inductee Frank Emanuel looking on, Athletics Director Mike Hamilton called the locker room project part of a "landmark day" for the Vol football program.
"It's no secret what great facilities mean for a great athletic program," Hamilton said. "This locker room is befitting the status of the program. It's a facility that belongs to the Tennessee athletic family. Carmen Tegano led the project and got it done."
For his part, Dr. Tegano, the associate athletics director for administration, said that "everybody we could get in front of became part of the project," noting that he made one mistake in the whole deal.
"I didn't take a notepad or tape recorder when I called on people," he said. "There were a lot of great stories from the former players. This has been a labor of love."
There were some exceptionally special moments, such as Blake McMeans, son of former Vol defensive end Neal McMeans (1966-68), in front of the locker honoring his dad given by his mother, Cynthia Hickerson, a locker in honor of 1969 captain Bill Young by his teammate Tim Priest, and a letter from former Vol defensive back Mike Mauck (1973-76) dedicating a locker to Gary Wyant, his position coach during three of Mauck's four years at Tennessee.
