HHS head football coach Bob Godsey presents a certificate to senior Lane Anders during the annual Football Banquet held on January 10. | Randy Garrison

Judge Glen Thompson opened the 2015 Football Banquet on Jan. 10. The event was held in the auditorium at Hartselle High School. Thompson welcomed those in attendance and then introduced Hartselle High School cheerleader sponsors Sonie Wilson and Beth Bole. Wilson and Bole presented certificates to the JV and varsity Cheerleaders and had a special recognition for the senior cheerleaders.

Thompson then welcomed Hartselle High Head Football Coach Bob Godsey to the podium.

Godsey opened his remarks with talking about Hartselle being a sports-centered city. He spoke about how good it was to work for a good group of administrators, naming superintendent Dr. Vic Wilson, HHS principal Jeff Hyche, assistant principals Pat Smith and Bob Young, who also serves as athletic director. He also thanked the board of education for their continued support.

The support of the booster club carries over to other programs due to the involvement of parents who work hard without expecting something in return, Godsey mentioned as he thanked those members for their support. He mentioned the program was losing a great group of senior parents and encouraged the next group to step up and fill the spot left by those leaving.

Godsey also thanked Wilson and Bole for the work they do with the cheerleaders. He thanked them for decorating the players’ lockers and the school. He also challenged the upcoming varsity cheerleaders to work to make things even better.

He thanked Janice Miller for coordinating the team meals each week, Kristy Greeson for her work on the media guide and the radio crew of Bob Sittason, Kevin Corum and Will Tiffin and internet tech Mark Mizell.

Godsey went on to thank the field crew of Shannon Parker and Jared Terry for always having the playing field painted each week, Larry Hannah and Brad Myer for the work on the practice field and photographers Mark Hendrix and Tom Chappell.

He recognized the video team of Bill Evans, 55 years, Glen Thompson 35 years and Shannon Parker. He also thanked David Robinson and his media students for the sideline work and the games shown online.

David Sittason and Kevin Hamlett were thanked for handling the drink squad each week, and great team player Jonathan Bragwell for being the “voice of the Tigers” at home games. Bart Mayfield and Jeff Hillman were recognized for their computer film work.

David Wood and the parking crew were thanked for the job they do at each game with the money raised being a source of income for the booster club and for renovation of the stadium. Tammy Holmes was thanked for organizing “Meet the Tigers” and Todd Boyer and the grillers for cooking the meat for the meal.

Godsey offered his thanks to the other coaches, all of the coach’s wives and their families. He said it is easy to be happy and excited about going to work because of who you work for. “Work em hard, but live em even harder” is their motto. They want to build better men, husbands and sons.

Godsey recognized his wife Amanda as his biggest fan and biggest critic.

Coaches Oscar Glasscock, Chad Gladden, Tim Miller, Matthew Cole, Brad Bray, Jessee Perrin, Dylan Burrell, Keith Wright, Shane Alexander were also recognized. Student coaches Will Lang and Dusty Schofield and volunteer coach George Stephenson were also recognized. Trainers John Hammondtree and Blake Tapscott were thanked for their service and orthopedic surgeons Drs. Tapscott, Ellis and Layton were also recognized. The student trainers through the health occupations class were named as well.

In a recap of the season, Godsey said it was a successful one. This group of seniors played four years in the very hard competition week in and week out. This region is the toughest one in the state. The seniors were good leaders and were one of two teams who qualified for state both years.

Improvement was evident after Shades Valley. They team responded with its work ethic and love for the game and each other beating Cullman, Florence, Decatur and Athens. He felt the best performance was beating Florence at home. The team showed the most resilience in the Cullman game and the toughest and most satisfying game was with Hazel Green, with the players showing pure guts to beat the team.

In 2006, Hartselle’s Tigers moved away from giving out individual awards. The only award given is the Virgil Starks Award for highest GPA. The key to winning is hard work and unselfishness. Godsey quoted this slogan the team uses: “want it for the guy next to you more than you want it for yourself.”

Starks was a 1991 HHS graduate. Collin Blackwood and Zeth Malcolm were recognized for having a 4.0 or more GPA, with Malcolm receiving the Virgil Starks Award with a 4.29 GPA.

Each class was recognized with the seniors receiving a framed photo from their season and each other class receiving a certificate.

Godsey also recognized long-time Booster president and member Jeff Tiffin for his hard work and dedication to Hartselle Quarterback Club form 2005-2016. Tiffin was presented with a framed portrait also. Tiffin’s youngest son Jake is a senior this year.

A reception was held for the players, parents and guests after the program.