The Packers have announced that Jeff Goettl of Cadott High School in Cadott, Wis., has been named the Green Bay Packers High School Coach of the Week.
Goettl, in his fourth year as head coach of the Hornets, has his team heading to the WIAA Football Playoffs for the first time in 17 years. Going into their final game of the regular season against conference leader Spring Valley High School, the Hornets were faced with a win-and-get-in scenario. Goettl got his team out to an early lead in the first quarter and never looked back, winning 28-6. Under Goettl, the Hornets have continued to increase their win total each year, which has brought them to this point. In addition to the team improving on the field, the Cadott community has also felt the team's impact off the field.
"Last year was a big moment," Goettl said. "Our town had a big tornado that went through. We spent that contact day the next day going around town and cleaning up yards. It was just a real fun time; we even had kids from neighboring towns come over and help out as well. It was a neat bonding experience in a downtime to make something positive out it. Since then, our booster club has been just unbelievable. This year they've been working hard with tailgate parties and making the fan experience at our place better. It's a totally different atmosphere than when we took over, there's no question about it."
Goettl graduated from Cadott High School in 1993. Throughout high school, he participated in football, basketball and baseball. He played middle linebacker and offensive guard under Coach Ed Lenard. Following high school, Goettl played football at UW-Eau Claire as a linebacker under Coach Jim Lind. Goettl went on to peruse his Wisconsin Master Plumbers License, which he received from Chippewa Valley Technical College in 2002. Goettl's coaching career began in his hometown as a youth football coach in 2004. He coached at the youth level until 2013 when he took over as offensive coordinator for the his alma mater and he was named head coach of the team entering the 2018 season.
For Goettl, the Coach of the Week Award is a reflection of all the time and effort the coaching staff and players put into the program.
"It was a heck of a shock to get the news yesterday; it means everything," he said. "We work so hard in the offseason and all year round and to be able to get recognized like that, especially being a big Packers and Badgers fan, it hits the heart pretty hard."
Goettl and his staff oversee a program of 37 players. His assistant staff includes Jeff Trunkel, Chris McConnville, Bobby Woodford, Jason Poehls, Austin Goettl, Shan Mathison, Coy Bowe, Warren Dohms, Dave Goodman, and Steve Roth. In addition to coaching, Goettl is also a territory sales representative for Headwater Wholesale.
About the Green Bay Packers High School Coach of the Week Program:
The Green Bay Packers Coach of the Week program supports football outreach efforts by giving high school coaches the recognition they deserve. Nominations can be submitted by 10 a.m. every Monday to Ryan Fencl, Packers football outreach specialist, at coachoftheweek@packers.com. All nominations should include the nominee's name, address, school, phone number and reason he/she is deserving of the award. Continuing with last year's format, the Packers are seeking coaches to be nominated regardless of their teams' on-field performance. Rather, the nominee could be honored for how they have turned programs around, how the team has impacted the community, or how the coach impacts the players and their families.
