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He has been there through the ups and downs, through the wins and battles for Big 8 Conference championships. He was also there during the lean years.
And no matter how the Seneca Indians boys basketball team is doing, Seth Higginbotham is always there at the end of the bench. He is cheering when the team does well, and he is down when the team isn’t doing so hot.
And he is always there to hand out towels to the boys when they come out of the game for a breather.
Higginbotham, who turned 20 years old in November, has been part of the basketball program since Will King took over as head basketball coach.
Higginbotham is someone who battles a disability every day, as he was born with Down Syndrome, but it doesn’t keep him away from his basketball games.
“He started my very first year,” King said. “He started with his class and worked with the freshmen team, his peers. Then starting his sophomore year he has been on the varsity and JV, so he has spent four years with me. He is a man of few words. Always, before every game, he gives Coach (Cody) Hilburn and me a hug.
“When we watch film we always look at the crowd and then we see Seth and he is always excited. It’s fun to see a special young man be part of our program.”
Said Seneca junior Toby Roelfsema, “He is always wanting to give you a hug and he is always there with his towels. He is always enthusiastic about everything.”
Roelfsema, like King, recalls watching Higginbotham jump with excitement over big plays.
“We were watching a game from last year and it was a big play, I think Patrick (Bennett) made a big shot,” Roelfsema said. “We were watching the crowd and everybody got up and cheered and then a few seconds later you see (Seth) get up and start jumping around and going crazy. He was really into the game.”
While Higginbotham is known for his jumping and cheering for the Indians, he is always one of the first people to greet a player coming out of the game with a towel to wipe off the sweat to cool down.
Before every game, Higginbotham and his mother, Kathy, work on laundry, getting the towels ready for each game. Higginbotham hands towels out to each player when they need it.
He has been there through the ups and downs, through the wins and battles for Big 8 Conference championships. He was also there during the lean years.
And no matter how the Seneca Indians boys basketball team is doing, Seth Higginbotham is always there at the end of the bench. He is cheering when the team does well, and he is down when the team isn’t doing so hot.
And he is always there to hand out towels to the boys when they come out of the game for a breather.
Higginbotham, who turned 20 years old in November, has been part of the basketball program since Will King took over as head basketball coach.
Higginbotham is someone who battles a disability every day, as he was born with Down Syndrome, but it doesn’t keep him away from his basketball games.
“He started my very first year,” King said. “He started with his class and worked with the freshmen team, his peers. Then starting his sophomore year he has been on the varsity and JV, so he has spent four years with me. He is a man of few words. Always, before every game, he gives Coach (Cody) Hilburn and me a hug.
“When we watch film we always look at the crowd and then we see Seth and he is always excited. It’s fun to see a special young man be part of our program.”
Said Seneca junior Toby Roelfsema, “He is always wanting to give you a hug and he is always there with his towels. He is always enthusiastic about everything.”
Roelfsema, like King, recalls watching Higginbotham jump with excitement over big plays.
“We were watching a game from last year and it was a big play, I think Patrick (Bennett) made a big shot,” Roelfsema said. “We were watching the crowd and everybody got up and cheered and then a few seconds later you see (Seth) get up and start jumping around and going crazy. He was really into the game.”
While Higginbotham is known for his jumping and cheering for the Indians, he is always one of the first people to greet a player coming out of the game with a towel to wipe off the sweat to cool down.
Before every game, Higginbotham and his mother, Kathy, work on laundry, getting the towels ready for each game. Higginbotham hands towels out to each player when they need it.
Sometimes, if you watch closely, he will refold the towels to make sure they are stacked perfectly in his bag that he brings with him to each game.
Higginbotham graduated from Seneca last year and his days on the bench looked to be over, but after his father, Robert, talked with King, he was asked to come back another year. He was a three-year lettermen for the basketball team while in high school.
“It makes us proud for him to be part of the team,” said his father. “Seth likes the boys. He called them ‘his boys.’ He likes his basketball and the kids and the fans are great.
“Helping out the basketball team is a good avenue for social interacting with other kids, kids his own age. He is not only in sports, but he was in FFA and earned his state FFA degree, that is quite an honor. Seth is also working on getting his American Farmers degree and he will walk across the stage with about 3,500 other people in Indianapolis, Ind., in front of about 50,000 people soon.
He shows a lot pigs, he has done that for the last 10 years in FFA and 4-H. All of this is encouraging and builds his self-esteem.”
Not only does Seth help out for the basketball team, you could find him helping out his mother at the elementary school, where she is the head cook. Higginbotham is looking for a job and is going through vocational rehab for a job placement.
“He is trying to find a job, but it is tough for anybody to get a job, let alone children with disabilities,” Robert said.
While the job hunt goes on, Seth will keep his duties on the Seneca bench for a few more games as the season continues into tonight’s playoff game in Bolivar.
