Valhalla and Richards Field House

Excitement. Achievement. Involvement. Opportunity. The addition of Valhalla stadium for football, lacrosse, and track and field and the associated renovation of Roy Richards Memorial Gymnasium as a field house targeted all four for Berry students and the greater college community – and all have been on full display in the years since the stadium opened to tremendous fanfare with the first-ever football game played on the Williams Field turf, a 2015 overtime thriller won by Berry before a standing-room only crowd of 4,500.

“I just want to say thank you. I know a lot of people put a lot of hard work and a lot of thought into it.”

Bernard Granville Jr. Berry football alumnus

The stadium and field house support the addition of intercollegiate football at Berry, a program that has exceeded every expectation for attendance, excitement and the generation of school spirit during its five seasons of existence. The new sport triggered the beat of the energizing Viking Drumline and is helping to balance the male/female ratio of Berry’s student population. It is also providing wonderful opportunities for parents and alumni to participate in the life of the college – opportunities that have been amplified by the completion of Valhalla. The result has been a formidable home-field advantage for the football team, which has posted a sparkling 21-1 record in its first four seasons at the facility, including two NCAA Division III playoff wins.

But it isn’t all about football. The eight-lane synthetic running surface, Clark Track, and associated throws venue, Dickey Field, expanded opportunities in intercollegiate athletics by making possible the spring 2016 resumption of full competition in track and field for Berry’s student-athletes. Since that time, Valhalla has hosted championship events for the Southern Athletic Association and the Georgia High School Association.

Men's and women's lacrosse also have a home in the new facility.

The renovated Richards Gymnasium features a training/weight room for all students, new dance-lab floor, refinished gym floor, and locker rooms and office space for football, lacrosse and tennis. All totaled, the Valhalla/Richards project offers something for just about everyone associated with Berry.