With remnants of the ice water that had doused him earlier still on the field, few reminders of the monumental victory that had taken place remained.

But Joe Tout will have many memories from what transpired Saturday at Lehighton’s Multipurpose Stadium.

The Northern Lehigh mentor watched his team return to the mountain top with a 64-34 victory over Palmerton in the District 11 Class 2A championship game.

Before the final seconds ticked off the clock, several of Tout’s players searched the sideline for a cooler to drench their coach.

Not only were they celebrating a championship, the win also marked the 100th of Tout’s career.

Like they have done throughout the season, the Bulldogs executed their plan perfectly to surprise their coach.

“They did,” Tout said with a laugh after the ice bath. “But I said I’ve been sitting in rain the whole day and it’s been cold, at this point it’s not as bad had it just been cold without the rain. So it was all good. You get one of those, it’s always for a good reason.”

For Tout, that reason had little to do with his milestone.

“I’m excited for our program,” he said. “That was always one of my goals when I took over, was to carry on the program that had been established. We had success, we just had lean years, and our kids always fought through those, and then now to kind of be back on top. To me it’s always been about the program, and I love the fact that it still is.”

Tout took over in 2006 for legendary head coach Jim Tkach, who had been at the helm since 1992 and won two district titles in 1999 and 2003 with the Bulldogs.

Tkach’s legacy is one that’s still felt within the program.

“I said this to our kids last week, we made a mistake with one of our blocks at practice, and I said, ‘Fellas, this play is a bread and butter play since 1992, since Coach Tkach’s been here. We’re blocking the same. That’s one we’ve got to execute,’” recalled Tout, who was an assistant with Tkach.

“So that’s what I’m most proud of, is just having that carry on. We run a program. Coaches come through our program, they have families, they leave and guys come in. But I’m just proud of that.”

The main focus Saturday was bringing the program its first district title since 2010.

The 2020 season marked another step forward for the Northern Lehigh football team, and many pillars of this championship run returned from that squad.

In 2017, the Bulldogs posted an 0-10 record.

But a dedicated group of upperclassmen kept fighting. That has led to steady improvement.

The Bulldogs posted five wins in 2018 and six in 2019. The program took a big leap in 2020 that resulted in an appearance in the district championship game.

“It’s awesome,” said Tout, who was clutching a plaque and also got a game ball from one of his assistants. “I said the most important thing is a district title for the school. That’s been our goal since last year. Losing that game at Whitehall to Palisades, we knew we had a special group coming back. These guys committed themselves to it.

“We persevered. We had a tough schedule, and I think that really has prepared us for where we’re headed. For our kids, great kids, and our coaching staff as well. We have coaches that have been college coaches, Greg Kosciolek is on our staff, he’s coached in college; Matt Davis has been a head coach, and those guys were super excited. They’ve never won a championship either, so it’s just something special for our high school.”

Tout knows how difficult wins and championships are to come by. This was his second district title with the program.

What was celebrated Saturday was more than another victory for Joe Tout.

It was a win for Northern Lehigh’s past, present and future.

“Every program is different,” he said. “You get some programs that haven’t gotten one, some teams the way it works out are in it every year, and this is the fourth (for us).

“We told our guys, they get a football in the field house now outside. They’re going to be there, they’re going to be grandparents some day and they’re going to be able to look at that and it will be up there forever. Fourth in school history, so we’re really proud of that.”