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   The best of the best in Alabama High   
  School Football over the past 100 seasons.






2024 Team Previews 

  


Plainview Bears

Head Coach: Dale Pruitt (twenty-ninth season)
Career Record: Total (314-165)
                           37 seasons, Alabama (282-142)
                           Out-of-State (32-23)
At Plainview: 28 seasons, (221-107)
Stadium: Plainview Stadium
2024 Enrollment:  284
Rank:  208th in the AHSAA, 59th in Class 4A

 History 
Overall Record:   428-285-9   (60.0%)
Last 25 years:   175-106   (62.0%)  (Rank: 77th in the AHSAA, 15th in Class 4A)
Since 2010:   88-65  (57.5%)  (Rank: 124th in the AHSAA, 17th in Class 4A)
Last Playoff Appearance:   2021
Last Region Championship:   2017
Last Winning Season:   2021
Last Losing Season:   2023

 2023 
Class:  3A              Region:   6
Record:  3-7
Region Record:   2-5, (seventh)
Playoff Record:   Did not qualify.
Final ASWA Poll:   Not Ranked
Scoring:  203 (20.3)
Defense:  287 (28.7)


 2024 
Class: 4A              Region:   8
Strength of Schedule: 67-51 (57%) (63rd in the AHSAA, 5th in Class 4A)
Region Strength:  45-46 (50%)
Non-Region Strength:  22-5 (82%)



 2023 Results 
 8/25  vs. Priceville  (4A)   21-14   W  
 9/1   OPEN 
 9/8  @ Geraldine  (3A)  *  3-35   L  
 9/15  vs. Piedmont  (3A)  *  13-24   L  
 9/22  @ Glencoe  (3A)  *  35-7   W  
 9/29  @ Fyffe  (2A)   14-49   L  
 10/6  vs. Hokes Bluff  (3A)  *  14-28   L  
 10/13  @ Sylvania  (3A)  *  8-42   L  
 10/20  vs. Westbrook Christian  (3A)  *  35-42   L  
 10/27  vs. Ohatchee  (3A)  *  34-18   W  
 11/2  @ New Hope  (4A)   26-28   L  

 2024 Schedule 
 8/23   OPEN 
 8/30  vs. Westminster Christian  (4A)  *      
 9/6  @ Randolph  (4A)  *      
 9/13  @ D.A.R.  (4A)  *      
 9/20  @ Pisgah  (2A)       
 9/27  vs. Sylvania  (3A)       
 10/4  vs. Madison County  (4A)  *      
 10/11  @ North Jackson  (4A)  *      
 10/18  vs. New Hope  (4A)  *      
 10/25  @ Madison Academy  (4A)  *      
 11/1  vs. St. John Paul II  (4A)  *      


Class  4A Region  8
Team 2023 Record Region Scoring                            
Madison Academy (3A) 14-1 6-0719-247
Westminster Christian (4A) 11-3 7-0586-445
Randolph (4A) 6-5 6-1382-296
North Jackson (4A) 4-7 4-3319-383
St. John Paul II (4A) 4-6 3-4342-337
New Hope (4A) 4-6 2-5280-331
Madison County (4A) 2-8 2-5237-413
Plainview (3A) 3-7 2-5203-287
D.A.R. (4A) 0-10 0-7101-625

 2024 Preview 


       Plainview finished the 2023 season with a disappointing 3-7 record. Last year Plainview finished seventh in Class 3A region six with a 2-5 region record and failed to qualify for the playoffs.

       Since 2010, Plainview has gone a combined 88-65. Their 57.5% winning percentage ranks 17th in Class 4A over the past fourteen seasons.

       Over the past 25 seasons, Plainview has managed to compile a record of 175-106. Their 62.0% winning percentage ranks 15th in Class 4A and 77th in the AHSAA.

Head Coach:
       The Bears are led by head coach Dale Pruitt who is entering his twenty-ninth season at the helm. He has compiled a record of 221-107 over the past twenty-eight seasons at Plainview. Under his direction the Bears have qualified for the playoffs a total of twenty times. They have won twelve region crowns with Coach Pruitt. His 314 wins rank 5th among active coaches in the AHSAA. The win total includes 282 wins in Alabama and 32 victories from outside the state. Over the course of his career, Coach Pruitt's teams have qualified for the playoffs a total of twenty-five times and won thirteen region championships. He has a 32-25 record in the playoffs during his career. The playoff victories rank with the best among active coaches.

Season Outlook:

       The Plainview Bears will play in Class 4A region eight during the 2024 season. The Bears move up in classification to Class 4A. They may find the going slightly tougher with the move.

       The Bears have one of the toughest overall schedules in Class 4A. Their opponents had a combined record of 67-51 last season. That ranks 5th in Class 4A and 63rd in the AHSAA.

       Dale Pruitt enters his 38th season as a head coach in Alabama. He has 296 victories under his belt and even though he would not admit it he would really like to get to that 300 win mark this year.

       The Bears have missed the playoffs the past two seasons. It marked the first time they have not reach the playoffs in consecutive seasons since 1988.

    The Bears will need to win a few more games this fall if they hope to grab one of the four playoff slots in region eight this season.

Returning Starters:
ALL-COUNTY PLAYERS: Trey Rutledge, junior; Brody Hodges, sophomore; and Owen Hope, sophomore, Tristan Thurmond, junior; Gage Brown, sophomore OTHERS: RB/SS Kristopher Sandlin

Season Opener:
       The Bears open the 2024 season at home against region opponent Westminster Christian on Friday, August 30 at Plainview Stadium. Last year the Westminster Christian Wildcats finished with an overall record of 11-3 and in first place in Class 4A region eight. The Wildcats lost in the semi-finals round of the Class 4A playoffs to Cherokee County by a score of 50-6.

       This will be the second meeting between Plainview and Westminster Christian on the football field. The Bears have a 0-1-0 record against the Wildcats. They last met in with

  


Great Moments in Alabama High School Football History

Morris Higginbotham coached three different teams to divisional state championships in the 1950s. He won titles at Walnut Grove in 1952, West Blocton in 1955 and Enterprise in 1960.