Perhaps it is fitting that Monsignor Laurence Higgins, an ever-charming Irishman, will posthumously receive this honor at his St. Lawrence Catholic Church parish — in a hall that bears his name. There are many athletes and coaches who became synonymous with Tampa Bay sports, of course, but Higgins had a special place in the group as a longtime confidant and spiritual advisor for the professional sports crowd. He had a particular affection for soccer. Born on a Derry County farm in Northern Ireland, Higgins first learned soccer using a tennis ball (because he didn’t have a soccer ball). He grew into an All-Ireland forward on two teams that won national championships in Irish football (a mix of soccer and rugby). A self-described slacker as a young man, Higgins was told by a bishop to “quit school and play professional football … because that’s all I was good for.’’ Instead, Higgins matured and gravitated toward the priesthood. He founded St. Lawrence in 1958 and remained at the parish until his death on Aug. 24, 2016 at age 87, an almost unprecedented run of loyalty and stability at one church. Even as a man of the cloth, during his younger days, you’d occasionally find Higgins out on the pitch with the schoolchildren, kicking a soccer ball, stoking the fire from his original passion. The road constantly rose to meet him. The wind was always at his back.