Haskell's Brian Hodnett sits down with Evan to talk great school year

HASKELL, Texas — The athletics teams at Haskell High School had one of the best all-around years in the Big Country. The football team earned its first playoff victory since 2009. The boys basketball, baseball and softball teams each reached the third round of the playoffs, while girls basketball was ranked in the top 5 in Class 2A all season. Girls golf, boys golf and girls track were also all represented at state competitions.

KTXS Sports Director Evan Nemec sat down with Haskell head football coach and athletic director Brian Hodnett to talk about the Indians' and Maidens' success.

Below is a transcript of the interview.

Evan Nemec: What was this school year like?

Brian Hodnett: It was busy. It was a good busy. Last year every sport advanced past the first round of the playoffs. I'm about to start my 16th year of my coaching career and I've never been a part of a school that had success across the board in all sports. A lot of our younger underclassmen got the taste of post-season play in multiple sports. They loved it. Hopefully they developed a hunger for that so that's the norm. We want that to be the norm -- that everyone goes two or three rounds, and even farther if we can.

Evan: We'll talk about football. Earning the first playoff win since 2009. That accomplishment brought a lot of eyes to Haskell of hey, they're doing something special over there. What do you think what went into y'all being successful on the football field?

Brian: I was really proud of this team. Going into the year we had a lot of questions in terms of where guys would play and how everything would fit in. We played Cross Plains and Albany really close, and I don't like the term 'moral victory' but a lot came from that to see we're close. We are so close. We're just a few plays away from being really competitive. As we got in as the fourth seed, most people don't give that four a chance. There's the gripes that we take too many teams to the playoffs, and none of the four seeds ever win. To come back and win that one in the end was so exciting to see the kids buy in to trust us and trust one another. It was super special. We want to keep taking it a step farther each year as we go.

Evan: One of the things I noticed with you with our high school football show the pep talks you give before the game. Where do you get that energy and that motivation?

Brian: I am a very loud personality. I don't know where it comes from. I pour my heart out in hopes the kids and other coaches get inspired. Sometimes I can honestly say when I talk to the team and as we walk to the field, I ask an assistant, 'Was that good? Did that make sense?' I really don't know what I said. I just said it really loud with a lot of excitement hoping that they'll take off with it.

Evan: I guess what Haskell was known for has been girls basketball, winning five straight district titles. Coach Blake Eddlemen has left the program. What does it look like now for the Maiden basketball team?

Brian: We have a different look not just in terms of our coaching situation, but we graduated two girls that played all four years and won more than 100 games for coach Eddleman. That's a phenomenal feat for them to accomplish. But we're not planning on changing the outcome of the season. It may look a little different how we get there, but that's the fun part as a coach -- the challenge. People may not have the same expectations for Haskell that they did. I kind of like that. I like the challenge and I think our girls do, too.