The 2023 season is underway. Most teams begin region
play next week. Here are a few tidbits
from the first week of football action.
* Wow!
Upsets and blowouts were the key words this weekend in Alabama high school
football. Be sure to catch our podcast
this Sunday night as we will be posting a new episode. Also follow the Barber
Shop Gurus on Wednesday morning for their latest game analysis and predictions.
* Where
to begin? Let's start with the upsets. The Enterprise Wildcats pulled off a huge
one by knocking off Auburn 17-16. Great win for the team. Their reward? They get
to host Central Phenix City next Friday night. Three #1 teams fell as St. James
lost to Handley 55-27, Ramsay lost to Parker 20-17 Thursday and Fyffe lost to
Geraldine 17-6.
* Not sure everyone would call this an upset but Hoover fell in overtime to
Oak Grove MS 28-21. While Oak Grove is a very good program to the west I did not
see that one coming. Dora defeating Oneonta 27-13 raised some eyebrows I think.
Several other top ten teams lost but most were playing up a classification or
two so we do not really consider them upsets.
* A few games Thursday
saw Jackson totally dismantle Demopolis from the opening gun by a score of 35-7.
Mary Montgomery beat a tough Charles Henderson squad 19-7 and Leroy held off
Clarke County 26-13. Excellent games for a Thursday night.
* Davidson set a team record by defeating Hillcrest Evergreen 59-46 breaking the previous record set when they defeated Jackson 50-49 on 10/14/2016.
* Minor
was shutout 13-0 by Paul Bryant. It was the first time since 2012 they had not
scored some 112 games ago.
* Hackleburg defeated #4 Meek by a score of 24-8.
They last defeated a ranked team in week 4 of the 2014 season. Big win for the
Panthers.
* Central Clay County with their trademark wishbone
offense handled Benjamin Russell from the opening whistle by a score of 30-13.
Millry defeated Linden 40-12 in a good matchup in 1A.
* Cherokee County was simply too much for Piedmont
by a score of 26-7. Here is a piece of trivia for you. The last time Piedmont
and Fyffe lost on the same day during the regular season was the opening week of
2009. Two excellent programs.
* Sumter Central knocked off R.C. Hatch 18-12 to start the season 1-0 for
the first time in school history and their first win since 2019.
* Maplesville fell for the second week in a row to Isabella 34-14. It is the
second year in a row they have started the season 0-2.
* If we missed anything I will try to include it in our podcast tomorrow.
* Hoover has been ranked by the ASWA for an amazing
261 consecutive polls dating back to the 2000 season. The Bucs are currently 0-2
for the first time since the 2014 football season. Is the streak in jeopardy
this week? I do not think so but they play Spain Park next week.
*
Fyffe began the 2023 football season riding the state's longest
winning streak at fifteen games but fell to Geraldine 17-6. The longest winning
streak now belongs to Saraland who has won their last eight games. Lee-Scott
Academy has a 14 games winning streak in the AISA.
* Columbia now
holds onto the longest losing streak at 73 straight contests. The Eagles fell to
Hatton Friday night 26-7. They hold the
all-time record for consecutive losses.
* American Christian has a streak of 35 consecutive region wins.
The Patriots open region play this week against Holt then play a very good Bibb
County team the following week.
Mars Hill (32) and Catholic Montgomery (27)
are the next two schools with long region winning streaks.
* Barbour County has lost
58 consecutive region games
but did manage to defeat Calhoun 12-6 for their first on the field victory since
2013 when they surprisingly defeated Catholic Montgomery by a score of 51-8.
Wow!
* The #3 ranked Catholic Montgomery Knights have won 26 straight regular season games.
They beat Alabama Christian 49-12 this week.
* Saraland has won 17 consecutive home games
and the Spartans thrashed Murphy 54-6 this week on the road.
* Catholic Montgomery also holds onto the longest road winning streak
having won 17 consecutive road games.
* Jackson has won their
last 16 season openers since losing to Leroy to start the 2007 football season.
They opened the 2023 football season with a 35-7 win over Demopolis to continue
the streak.
* Fyffe almost saw their
streak of consecutive games scoring come to an end except for a late touchdown
against Geraldine. They are currently sitting on a string of
307 games without being shutout.
* Some head coaches will be reaching milestone wins in 2023. Mark
Freeman has amassed 248 victories and will in search of number 250 in the
upcoming weeks.
Mike Battles Jr. can join his father in the 200 win club with just six more wins
at Tallassee this season.
* No less than
six different coaches will be in search of
their 100th win as a head football coach once the season opens. All have over 90
victories during their careers.
Team approaching the 700 win club
694 -
Deshler (694-371-35)
Team approaching the 600 win club
596 -
Anniston (596-401-27)
Team approaching the 500 win club
496 - Southern Choctaw (496-371-24)
496 -
Randolph County (496-408-25)
495 - Greensboro (495-433-37)
494 - Minor (494-480-22)
493 - Hale County (493-436-24)
492 - Hackleburg (492-438-29)
Coaches approaching the 250 win club
248 - Mark Freeman (Thompson) (248-55)
Coaches approaching the 200 win club
194 - Mike Battles Jr. (Tallassee) (194-102)
Coaches approaching the 100 win club
99 - Patrick Plott (Carroll) (99-48)
99 -
Patrick Nix (Central Phenix City) (99-31)
96 -
Adam Fossett (B.B. Comer) (96-76)
94 -
Jason Massey (Leroy) (94-52)
92 -
Jeremy Perkins (Austin) (92-57)
91 -
David Smothers (Addison) (91-39)
Points scored in a game
* Davidson set a team record in a win 59-46 over Hillcrest Evergreen breaking the previous record set in a victory over Baker 56-0 on 10/15/1999.
* Washington County set a team record in a win 77-6 over A.L. Johnson breaking the previous record set in a victory over St. Lukes 75-54 on 10/14/2016.
* St. Michael set a team record in a win 49-18 over Chickasaw tying the previous record set when they defeated Orange Beach 49-41 on 9/29/2022.
Margin of Victory in a game
* Decatur Heritage Christian set a team record by defeating Tharptown 55-0 tying the previous record set when they defeated Carbon Hill 55-0 on 11/3/2017. * South Choctaw Academy set a team record by defeating Snook Christian 62-0 breaking the previous record set when they defeated Open Door Christian 58-0 on 10/6/2006.
* Washington County set a team record by defeating A.L. Johnson 77-6 breaking the previous record set when they defeated Choctaw County 61-0 on 10/24/2014.
Points Scored by Both Teams in a Game
* Davidson set a team record in a 59-46 victory over Hillcrest Evergreen breaking the previous record set when they defeated Jackson 50-49 on 10/14/2016.
* Hillcrest Evergreen set a team record in a loss 59-46 to Davidson breaking the previous record set when they defeated Monroe County 64-30 on 10/25/2013.
Teams with current school record winning streaks
* Lee-Scott Academy has won a team record 14 consecutive games since 8/18/2022. Teams with current school record losing streaks
* Columbia has lost a team record 73 consecutive games since 10/23/2015. * Meadowview Christian has lost a team record 54 consecutive games since 10/6/2017. * A.L. Johnson has lost a team record 40 consecutive games since 10/19/2018. * Talladega County Central has lost a team record 26 consecutive games since 9/25/2020. * Crossville has lost a team record 20 consecutive games since 8/21/2021. * Fultondale has lost a team record 17 consecutive games since 9/10/2021. * Robertsdale has lost a team record 15 consecutive games since 10/1/2021. * Sparta Academy has lost a team record 14 consecutive games since 11/12/2021. Teams that set a record for most wins in a season
* University Charter School set a team record with a 2-0 record. That ties the previous mark of 2-8-0 in 2022.
Teams off to great starts in 2022
* B.B. Comer last started a season 2-0 in 2000. * Sumter Central has never started 1-0 in a season. * University Charter School has never started 2-0 in a season.
Teams off to slow starts in 2022
* Aliceville last started a season 0-2 in 1989.
Great Moments in Alabama High School Football History
Bart Starr received coaching from Kentucky great Babe Parilli his senior season at Sidney Lanier in hopes of joining Bear Bryant at Kentucky. He had to settle for Alabama.
