Siegel softball coach Karen Green is one of the 63 statewide recipients this year of the A.F. Bridges Award. Bernard Childress, Executive Director of the TSSAA, says being recognized for one of these awards as a school or individual should be seen as one of the highest honors in high school athletics in our state. He adds those who receive the awards truly reflect what high school athletics should be about, and that’s good sportsmanship and good citizenship.

The A.F. Bridges Awards program awards are given to a School System Administrator of the Year, Principal of the Year, Athletic Director of the Year, Female Coach of the Year, Male Coach of the Year, Official of the Year, and Contributor of the Year, in each of the state's nine districts.

The A.F. Bridges Divisional Awards are given to schools that have had no reported unsportsmanlike conduct incidents during the previous school year and have displayed an overall positive effort to teach, expect, and demand a positive atmosphere of sportsmanship at their particular contests. Blackman High School is among the honorees for this prestigious award, nominated by local officials associations, other member schools, and others.

Of the 27 divisional recipients, one school in each class will receive Tennessee’s top award for overall outstanding effort in its division. One of the three schools in each classification will be presented the A.F. Bridges State Award of Excellence shortly after the divisional awards are handed out. This is the highest award that can be bestowed upon a school to honor its overall efforts to promote citizenship and sportsmanship at school, and at athletic contests.