Hartselle senior Will Lang isn’t your typical high school quarterback.
He’s quiet – almost reserved – and he goes almost unnoticed except the fact that he helms one of the state’s top offenses.
Lang, who helped the Tigers set a school record for points in a season with 438 was recently honored by the Alabama Sports Writers Association as the top quarterback in Class 5A, completed 180 of 256 attempts for 2,224 yards with 26 touchdowns.
“I’m honored to be named to the all-state team, but that award goes back to the guys around me,” Lang said. “I think our offensive line had a whole lot to do with our success this season.
The Tigers’ quarterback went through off-season shoulder surgery and came back stronger than he was before the injury after a long rehabilitation period. And with a stronger shoulder, Lang started to have thoughts of a state championship.
Hartselle came close, finishing 12-2 and reaching the Class 5A semifinals for the first time since 2002.
“I definitely thought a championship was definitely in the picture for us this year, but I guess getting to the semifinals isn’t too bad,” Lang said.
A two-year starter, Lang finished up his Hartselle career with a 22-5 record as a starting quarterback.
“I think his true value was probably noticed in the bigger games more than anything,” said Hartselle head coach Bob Godsey. “The bigger the games, the more he produced. He was just a model of consistency for us.
“It’s hard to pinpoint just how important he was to our offense because he was so steady. He made it look easy. It was that way with Will every day, not just on Friday night. He was just a model of consistency for us.”
Lang also ran for more than 200 yards with two touchdowns.
“Will’s eyes were always downfield and that’s something that you want in a quarterback,” Godsey said. “At the same time, he was very effective as a runner. He knew when to run it, when not to, and when he did run it he did it for good yardage whether it be for a first down or put us in a good situation for the next play.”
Lang threw 10 interceptions as a junior, but cut that number to just three his senior season. One of the interceptions came on a last chance throw on the final play of the Tigers’ loss to Decatur, while another came at the goal line in Hartselle’s overtime loss to Briarwood Christian.
He finished the year with a 70 percent completion percentage.
“His play was kind of like his personality in that he is a quiet person,” Godsey added. “There were a lot of things watching tape on Saturday that made us sit back and say wow. But after two years, you just kind of get used to it. It’s not that big of a deal when it really should be. He’s making those plays week in and week out.
“He’s quiet. He’s quiet, but he’s very competitive. He hates to lose. He was going to find a way to make a play work.”
Lang was joined on the Class 5A all-state team by fellow Tigers Malcolm Fossett, Austin Borden and Jordan Orr, all honorable mention picks.
Fossett ran for 1,488 yards with 21 touchdowns. He also had 300 receiving yards with five touchdowns.
Borden anchored the Hartselle defensive front. The senior nose guard finished with 78 total tackles this season. He had 24 tackles for loss with 12 sacks.
Orr had 125 tackles during his junior year with 21 tackles for loss. He also had a sack and an interception for the Tigers.
Danville’s Caleb Hill led the Hawks’ offense this season with nearly 2,000 yards of total offense.
Hill earned honorable mention honors as a quarterback in Class 3A.
Hill, a 5-foot-9 junior quarterback threw for 17 touchdowns and 1,767 yards for the Hawks this season.
He completed 153 of 257 attempts with an average of 11.5 yards per completion.
A solid threat on the ground as well, Hill ran for 176 yards on 99 carries with six touchdowns.