Training Center Tour: Part 2

In this second part of our training center tour of the Miami Dolphins practice facility, we take you beyond the front foyer and media rooms and get you to the life of the facility. Team and position rooms.

We left off last week heading to the left corridor as we exited the front foyer. The hall ahead is adorned with more Miami Dolphin images from the past to present. At the end of the hall is a large room. A theater if you will. Immediately before the double glass doors is another hall to the right…we will get to that in a moment.

Theater room: Moving forward and through the double glass doors, the room ahead opens into a large room with leather seats behind long tables. Lower in the front and higher in the back, the seating rises from below forcing you to walk down the carpeted steps to the front. This is the team meeting room. In the picture to the right, these seats are normally filled with the players. Ted Ginn sits in the area of the 2nd row to the left of Cam Cameron. In this photo, Cameron is addressing the Miami Dolphin webmasters. On the front wall is a large projection screen and the projector hangs from the ceiling. Game film can be watched in here. At the front of the room is a small stage fixture just below the screen. Along the far wall is the “Alumni Player of the week award” plaques.

As we leave the team meeting room, we enter a hall that is lined with murals and photographs capturing the history of the Dolphins as well as moments in time of the game itself. From small photos to large team unity murals, the hall is a vibrant wash of colors well blended to form a unique experience. In the picture at the right, David Cross, the teams official photographer, stands next to one such photo. A Chris Chambers touchdown that he took. The original photo is on display at the NFL Hall of Fame.

Player meeting rooms: Along each wall a door opens into various position rooms. The running backs, the linebackers, the defensive ends, and so on. The rooms are small and confined.  Some so small that you wonder how many players can fit into each.  Most tables have two chairs per and most rooms have a at least 2 tables on each side.

The hall ends with a large vending machine type fridge filled with Gatorade. No coins necessary and what appeared to be an elevator to the second floor.

The position rooms are filled with a wipe off board along the front wall, small tables and chairs and in most rooms an overhead projector or film projector. Different sayings adorn various rooms to make them their own. The pictures to the right show both the rooms and one board that belongs to the linebackers. The LB board has a list of “nicknames” that the players call each other.

At the end of the hall you make a quick right and follow the next hall. A few assistant coaches offices and the QB meeting room. (pictured at the right). By far the nicest of the positional rooms, the QB room has an elongated oblong table with room for 4 QBs’ and 2 coaches.

The hall ends into the player locker rooms, weight rooms, and training rooms.

Join us next time as we continue the Miami Dolphins practice facility tour.