CONNECTED TO OUR PAST
Bobcat Field Forever Special contribution by Marc Rylander
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s the crash of shoulder pads and the crack of helmets signal the coming of another fall for the Celina community, a rich piece of the heritage of this City also emerges yet again. High school football, for decades, has been a beacon of light that has drawn the eyes of all of Texas to this place, and it has been one of the most important elements of life here that has bonded generations of Bobcats while shaping the lives of those who played for and supported the teams. Faith and football have long been inextricably linked to the heart and spirit of this community. For fans of the game and for others who just loved the town, football season has always been a ritual. And at the heart of that ritual was a shrine—the old Bobcat Field downtown. In a booming city like Celina, growth is inevitable, and change is something that long-time residents and pioneer families have faced with grit and grace. However, just a few years back when residents passed a bond issue that would include a new high school football stadium, a measure of sadness veiled the community’s excitement. After all, the downtown stadium was not only a place where
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Life Connected. Magazine | September-October 2022
hard-fought high school football games had been won and lost, it was a sacred place. Little league championship trophies were lifted high over a victorious huddle; homecoming queens were adorned with their crowns. Country singer Kenny Chesney filmed his Boys of Fall music video there. The field hosted games across seasons that would end with eight state championships, and it hosted a memorial service that celebrated the life of one who had won those rings. The grandstands were small. The parking was terrible. The bathrooms were even worse. But the complex was—and still is—hallowed ground to many, and it all began with the generosity of one family. “Maxine Ousley, who was born here in 1915 and called Celina home for most of her life, wanted the people of Celina to have a public place to gather and celebrate life and the culture that makes our community so special,” the Ousley family said in a recent statement to the City. “Maxine originally donated property around 1950 for a park, but it quickly became Bobcat Field for Celina ISD.” In the middle of the last century, Celina was a farming community, not yet known for