Then and now

In February 2010, Smiths Stations students, players and coaches got the news they had been dreading: Ensminger had been hired as LSU’s tight ends coach.

The news was hard to swallow for Nolin, who had hoped to keep his mentor around for his senior season, but was equally as hard on Amy, who had lost a companion among her father’s co-workers.

“I do remember him telling me when I was in my dad’s office. I was pretty upset,” Amy said. “I was excited for him to go back to LSU because I knew that was where he played ball, but I was sad. We didn’t get him for very long, but I was glad we got him for the year we had him.”

Ensminger may have been in Baton Rouge, but his influence was evident in the Panthers’ 2010 season. Led by Nolin, Smiths Station won seven games, the team’s highest win total since joining what was then Alabama’s highest classification back in 1998.

Those on the 2010 team credit Ensminger for setting a standard that fueled Smiths Station to greater heights. Even with those triumphs, both sides couldn’t help but wonder what might have been had Ensminger stuck around.