[CougarBabe]

I am a biased LCC fan so I think that the entire Cougar coaching staff should be Coach of the Year.

NOT because they finished up with an 11-2 record and NOT because they were the champions from the Big Sandy Conference.

It is because of the life lessons they taught the boys/young men that they coached. They were great role models for the boys teaching them that there is more to life than just playing football and winnning. The coaching staff that Coach Terry Howard put together was Tom Sayers, Chad Bates, Marvin Boggs, Tim Kiser, CB Hall, Jimmy Parrott and these guys worked their butts off this season. Coach Sayers started the off-season weightlifing program on January 1st and worked it through May. Coach Bates/Coach Sayers/Coach Boggs stepped in and took the team through the entire summer with the conditioning and agilities. The entire coaching staff stepped in and started working with the kids in July. They taught the boys how to lose with as much class as it takes to win with. They taught these young men how to MEN. Coach Howard and his staff taught the boys the meaning of FRIENDSHIP and LOYALTY by making sure that when one of the players had someone in their family pass away they showed up at the funerals in jersey's to show their respect to the player and their families, this is a lesson that many of the boys had never experienced but it will go with them the rest of their life. It was apparent to everyone in Letcher County that these coaches were not there to use the boys for wins and wins alone. It was obvious that the coaches meant more to these boys than just a normal coach. You could see the level of respect that these young men had for their coaches and the good words that they had to say about each one of them was heard daily. Our County is lucky to have these seven men working with our young men. I've heard Coach Howard say it several times over the years that his job is to make sure that the boys he coaches turns into good productive citizens in Letcher County. He tries to teach respect, humility, character, self respect, and develop good work ethics in his boys. I"ve seen him and the other coaches dig deep in their pockets and buy jersey's, cleats, coats and food for the kids that could not afford to buy it for themselves. These are the things that go unseen by some fans and parents.

This year was the first year for consolidation for our County and I for one was more than pleased with the way it turned out. GO LCC COUGARS we are proud of all of our coaches and players.