Tim Goodwin, who has turned Marion Local High School into a small-school Ohio football power with seven state championships in 15 years, took home the 2013 Paul Brown Excellence in Coaching Award at Tuesday's training camp media luncheon.
The award has been given annually by the Bengals at the Paul Brown Stadium East Club Lounge event since 2002. It honors high school football coaches in the region and comes with a $5,000 donation from the Bengals to the winning school's athletic department.
Goodwin has a 169-40 record at Marion Local, which is in Maria Stein, Ohio, in Mercer County, 115 miles north of Cincinnati. His Flyers have three straight state titles, and last season went 15-0 en route to the Division VII crown while winning 12 games by 28 or more points.
"Coaches at larger schools have somewhat naturally led the way in winning this award, but we are pleased this year to honor a smaller program," said Bengals president Mike Brown in a news release. "Tim's accomplishments have been remarkable, and the team is a great source of pride for the community. Tim also fits the profile of past winners in that he has outstandingly served the school beyond the football field. He's been a math teacher as well as serving some years as the school principal, and the school as a whole has excelled academically."
Marion Local is rated a "Great School" by Ohio for its number of high achieving students and percentage of students who go on to pursue post-high school education.
Goodwin is a native of Lafayette, Ohio, and a graduate of the University of Findlay, where he played football on an NAIA national championship team. He coached for five years at Bluffton High School before coming to Marion Local. His wife Dawn accompanied him to the ceremony as part of their 19th wedding anniversary trip. The couple has three children.
Goodwin is the 13th coach to get the award. Previous winners are Tom Crosby of Mariemont after the 2012 season, Bruce Kozerski of Holy Cross (2011), Steve Klonne of Moeller (2010), Troy Everhart of Winton Woods (2009), Dale Mueller of Highlands (2008), Jeff Giesting of Anderson (2007), Scott Datillo of Sycamore (2006), Steve Specht of St. Xavier (2005), Charles "Doc" Gamble of Withrow (2004), Doug Ramsey of Elder (2003), and co-winners Vince Suriano of Anderson and Mike Martin of Taft (2002).
