While many high school football coaches are constantly seeking ways to climb the coaching ranks, Bart Snyder has landed his dream job.

Snyder is the new interim head football coach and athletic director at Goshen High School, something he is very proud of.

“I’ve always had a dream to be back right here,” Snyder said. “I’m just blessed enough to have it laid on my plate. I’ve spent a lot of time playing here on this ball field. I’ve been here all my life and I wouldn’t want to be any other place.”

Snyder is a lifelong Goshen resident, having graduated from Goshen in 1986 and from Troy University in 1992.

Snyder said his experience as a part of the Goshen community helps him to understand what the people of Goshen expect.

“The good ol’ boy system is not what these people expect,” Snyder said. “They expect the good job system. They want you to come here and do a good job and teach these kids the right things so they can be successful in life. That’s what the good ol’ system here is.”

Snyder said he feels the community is glad to have him as the head football coach, and that adds pressure to the job.

“I think that the community is excited about someone from the community having the job,” Snyder said. “There’s going to be a lot of pressure that I put on myself because I want to represent those people and do the best I can for them because they’re what Goshen football is all about.”

Snyder also recognizes the important role that the community has taken in establishing the football program at Goshen.

“This community is so strong,” Snyder said. “I remember coming out here as a little bitty kid and watching my parents and other parents pour the cement for the bleachers here. There’s a lot of hard work that’s been put in over the years by the community.”

As far as football goes, fans can expect his teams to feature a balanced offensive attack.

“We’re hoping to mix it up the best we can,” Snyder said. “Marcus Jackson is an outstanding back, so people will be expecting us to run. But, we’ve got three kids who have been working very hard at quarterback and an outstanding group of receivers, so we hope to mix it up the best we can.”

The team has been hard at work for over a week now trying to learn Snyder’s offensive and defensive schemes.

“We’re going to work extremely hard, and that’s what these guys have been doing,” Snyder said. “We have an intense practice. We’re going all the time. We push them to their max and then two steps past that, so work ethic is what we’re looking at. We’re just hoping to develop their attitude.”

While Snyder said he hopes to make his players better football players, he also hopes to prepare them for things more important than football.

“We also try to tell these kids that its just not about football, its about life,” Snyder said. “Most of these kids may never get to play college football, but they get to come back here and carry on these memories. We want them to build a lifetime of memories. There’s nothing better than what they get to build right here.”

While both Snyder and the Goshen community are happy with him being the head coach, the hiring was not without controversy.

The Pike County Board of Education had originally intended to hire Mike McCombs as the new head football coach, but a group of Goshen citizens filed an injunction to prevent the hire.

The group wanted Robin Snyder, Bart’s brother and head coach at Charles Henderson Middle School, to be named head coach.

Eventually, however, the interim position was offered to Bart, who accepted.

Snyder said the players have not shown any adverse effects of the coaching controversy.

“I don’t think it affected them,” Snyder said.

“The kids were wanting somebody local. They’ve seen so much change over the last several years that I think they were looking for a little consistency. I think that with Coach Deveridge and myself still being here, they’re fine with it.

“I’ve never seen a group in my 18 years of coaching that works as hard as this group, and that goes for both players and coaches.”

That group of hard working coaches includes several new faces.

Pate Harrison and Sam Dean come from Samson and Kinston, respectively, and will lead the Eagle defense.

Michael Wilcoxson, a former Goshen graduate, will also lend a hand on defense, as will Major Rick Wilson.

On offense, Nick Daniel arrives from Luverne and will work with the offensive line and help with the play calling on offense.

Trey Pike, a former player at Huntingdon College, will help coach the offense, while Robert Kinsaul moves over from Banks to coach wide receivers.

“I couldn’t do it without these coaches,” Snyder said. “These guys are the ones that are doing everything.”

Snyder and his staff have been pleased with the work ethic of the team thus far, something Snyder attributes to an atmosphere of togetherness.

“It’s been a blessing for me,” Snyder said. “We’re Goshen and we come together as a family like this, this kind of hard work is what happens.”