A dedicated ESPNHS team managed the Gatorade State Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year selection process, resulting in winners based on the program's three pillars: athletic production and impact in the 2012 season, high academic achievement and exemplary personal character.

For his 50 fellow Gatorade State Boys Track & Field Athletes of the Year winners, click here.

THE WINNER: Joseph Williams

THE BASICS

School: Spain Park (Hoover, Ala.)

Grade: Senior

Event(s): Throws

Height: 6-foot-1

THE PILLARS

Athletic achievement: Williams won the discus with a throw of 189 feet, 6.25 inches and the shot put with a mark of 58 feet, six inches at the Class 6A state championship meet this spring, leading the Jaguars to a third-place finish as a team. The state’s returning Gatorade Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year, he was also named the Birmingham Kiwanis Club Co-Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year.

Academic excellence: Williams has maintained a 4.25 GPA in the classroom.

Exemplary character: A youth leader in his church community and a student representative in his school, he has raised funds to build wells in African villages and has participated in mission trips to Costa Rica, Haiti and Uganda.

THE PRAISE

“Joe is one of the hardest working athletes I have ever coached,” said Spain Park coach Michael Zelwak. “He brings a positive and competitive energy to everything he does, in such a way that he motivates and inspires everyone he is around.”

THE FUTURE: Williams has signed a National Letter of Intent to compete in track and field on scholarship at the University of Alabama this fall.