Dave Gingrich's birthday isn't until Friday.
But Cocalico's football boss had reason to celebrate Wednesday night.
So, too, did the Wilson Bulldogs.
Gingrich was named Section Two Coach of the Year by his peers at the annual Lancaster-Lebanon League Football Coaches' All-Star banquet at the Timbers Restaurant.
Penn Manor's Todd Mealy and Elco's Mark Evans were honored as Section One and Section Three Coach of the Year, respectively.
"Like Todd and Mark said a few minutes ago (in their acceptance speeches), this award is all about the kids and the assistant coaches," said Gingrich, who also earned coaching honors in 2005.
"You look at our team, and we had 57 kids, and they were great kids, National Honor Society kids, kids who did special projects like working with the American Cancer Society," Gingrich said. "It wasn't just about what went on on the field. It was off-the-field (commitments) as well."
Cocalico was picked to finish second to section favorite Manheim Central in assorted preseason polls, and that's precisely how the regular season shook out. The Eagles dropped a pair of decisions to the Barons — 56-33 in the regular season and 26-7 in the quarterfinals of the District Three Class AAA playoffs.
They were the only losses in a season that saw Cocalico finish 6-1 in the section and 10-2 overall.
"I'd give this back," Gingrich said of his Coach of the Year hardware, "for a win over Central."
The Comets were picked to finish last in one preseason poll and next-to-last in another, but Mealy guided them to a 5-2 record in Section One and 9-3 overall. In the process, Penn Manor claimed its first district playoff win.
Elco, which was expected to finish middle-of-the-pack in Section Three, instead went 5-2 in league play and 6-5 overall.
The powerhouse Bulldogs, 14-0 and fresh off a Section One title and a 35-7 thumping of Mid-Penn Conference power Cumberland Valley in the District Three Class AAAA title game, placed a league-high 11 players on the First Team.
Two-way lineman Pat Zerbe and WR-DB Alex Fegley both earned first team honors on offense and defense. Zerbe also shared Section One's Lineman of the Year award with teammate Rodney Hill, and Fegley was named Outstanding Back of the Year.
Kyle Fisher headlined Section Two's all-star selections. The Eagles' senior was named Offensive Back of the Year and shared Outstanding Back of the Year honors with Lebanon QB James Capello.
Cocalico, Garden Spot and Solanco each placed five starters on the first team.
Manheim Central's Dakota Royer was named Defensive Lineman of the Year and earned first team honors on offense and defense.
Two-way lineman Alex Kirchner of Elizabethtown also earned first team selections on both offense and defense.
Solanco's Bryan Boulden and Lebanon's Charles Lee earned first team honors to the offensive and defensive lines. Lee was also named Offensive Lineman of the Year.
In Section Three, Lancaster Catholic QB Kyle Smith, who has thrown a school-record 41 TDs this season, and claimed a share of Offensive Back of the Year honors.
Teammate and two-way lineman Nick Schmalhofer earned five honors — first team offense and defense; Offensive Lineman of the Year; Defensive Lineman of the year and Outstanding Lineman of the Year.
Lampeter-Strasburg RB/LB Joe Good was named to the first team on offense and defense and was named Linebacker of the Year. Pioneers' lineman Zach Halpin was honored with first team selections to the offense and defense.
Columbia RB/DB Dakotah Lightfoot earned first team honors on both sides of the ball and shared Offensive Back of the Year honors with Smith.
Annville-Cleona lineman Ken Inman was also a selection to the first team offense and defense.
The Crusaders, who will play in the PIAA Class AA Eastern Final Friday night against West Philadelphia Catholic, had a section-high eight starters on the first team.
E-mail: egruver@lnpnews.com