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What makes this run for the Sweet Water Bulldogs stand out is not the fact they won five state championships in seven years but that they crushed each opponent in the Super Six title game. In the five championship games over a seven year span (2004-10), the Bulldogs outscored their opponents 203-14.            In a town of only 235 residents, the Bulldogs can lay claim to being the smallest title town in the state. And to think, it almost never happened. After making seven consecutive playoff appearances from 1974-79 and winning championships in 1978 and 1979, the school was closed in 1980 and the students were transferred to Thomasville High School. Coach Nolan Atkins took over at Thomasville and the community lost their favorite Friday night entertainment.            Almost immediately the community was in an uproar and it did not settle down until everyone agreed to reopen the school the following fall. The Bulldogs picked up right where they left off when Coach Atkins returned to lead them. They finished 8-2 in 1981 and won their third state championship in 1982 by defeating Akron 35-6.            After winning titles in 1978, 1979, 1982 and 1986 the program slipped back a little over the next decade. Through the 1990s, there was a lot of turnover at the head coaching position for the Bulldogs, and along with that came no consistent success like the school and fans were accustomed to.            Following the 2001 season, Stacy Luker returned to his alma mater as the head coach. All the inconsistency changed in 2002 as Coach Luker returned the Bulldogs to the top of the football mountain in Alabama. In his first season, he led the Bulldogs to 7-3 regular season and a region title before losing in the first round of the playoffs.            The next year the Bulldogs returned to the playoffs, and made it to the second round before losing. Beginning in 2004, the Bulldogs won five of the next seven Class 1A State Championships.
2004 State Champion Sweet Water Football Team
The 2004 team finished 13-2 and won the Class 1A State Championship, their first since 1986. The two regular season losses came to 4A Thomasville and American Christian.            In the championship game, Anthony Landrum scored four touchdowns to break up a 7-7 halftime tie and lead the Bulldogs to a 35-7 win over R.A. Hubbard. Although the Bulldogs did not complete a pass in the game they ran for 332 yards which was more than enough to ensure the victory.            As a freshman, Anthony Landrum, led the offense all season as a running back. He was joined on the All-State team by teammates Deon Williams, Tony Johnson, Travion Lockett, Dominic Holt and Phillipp Scheide.	Antonio Landrum, Tate Luker and Deon Williams
In 2005, the Bulldogs fell to 9-3 losing to rival Thomasville and region foe American Christian before losing to state runner-up Brantley in the 2nd round of the playoffs.            In 2006, Sweet Water returned to the championship game with a 13-1 record. The only loss was to 4A Thomasville to open the season. The remaining schedule proved to be nothing more than a cake-walk as the Bulldogs rolled over every opponent including 2A title winner Leroy 35-6 midseason. The Bulldogs were untested against 1A competition going into the championship game against Cedar Bluff.             Sweet Water scored in every quarter and dominated Cedar Bluff 48-0 in the title game. They were led by MVP Anthony Landrum who propelled them to the Class 1A state championship by scoring three touchdowns. He ran the ball 25 times for 142 yards, collected eight tackles on defense with a sack and an interception. The defense held Cedar Bluff to minus twenty-four yards rushing and 54 yards of total offense.            As a junior, Landrum ran for 1,691 yards on 186 carries and scored 25 touchdowns during the 2006 season. The defense was led by Dominic Holt at linebacker, Jacques Lockett and Nakia Dennis along the line and Drew Luker at defensive back. Tate Luker and Wes Burnett anchored the offensive line for the Bulldogs. Quarterback Drew Luker passed for 1,258 yards and 26 touchdowns to lead the Bulldogs.            In 2007, Sweet Water outscored their opponents 712-133 and finished with a perfect 14-0 record. The Bulldogs opened the season by defeating rival 4A Thomasville for the first time in ten years by a score of 27-13. They also defeated 2A championship winner Leroy 35-14 during the season.            The Class 1A championship game was another blowout as the Bulldogs defeated Talladega County Central 42-7 for Coach Stacy Luker's third title in four years. The Bulldogs scored at least 39 points in each of their playoff wins and averaged 49 points a game during the post-season.            Once again the Bulldogs scored in every quarter and rolled up 383 yards of offense while holding TCC to just 103 yards. Anthony Landrum ran for 212 yards and scored three touchdowns giving him a total of ten scores in his career at Sweet Water in three title games.            Landrum finished his 14-game senior year by rushing for 2,104 yards and 39 touchdowns, earning him runner-up honors for Alabama's Mr. Football in 2007. He was named to the ASWA all-state team for the fourth time as a first-teamer.            He was joined by teammates Tate Luker, Drew Luker, Nakia Dennis and Wes Burnett as first team all-state players. Quarterback Drew Luker threw for 1,087 yards and tossed twelve touchdown passes. He rushed for 452 yards and another six scores. On defense Luker collected over 90 tackles and had five interceptions as a senior.            The Bulldogs dominated their opponents again in 2008 by outscoring them 730-101 in 15 games. The Bulldogs again defeated a strong 4A Thomasville team 30-14 to open the season. They did lose to Leroy 28-21 who would win a third straight Class 2A championship.            The loss to Leroy ended their 36 game winning streak but did little to stop the process of reaching the title game. The Bulldogs cruised through the playoffs and demolished Speake 42-0 in the championship game.            Sweet Water once again dominated the title game by building a 28-0 halftime lead before coasting to their third consecutive title and fourth in five years. They racked up 411 of total offense while holding Speake to only 91 yards. MVP Johnny Lockett ran for 171 yards on only 17 carries and scored two touchdowns to pace the Bulldogs.            The Bulldogs' defense dominated opponents with Antonio Landrum at defensive back and Devin Wolfe as a standout at the linebacker position. The line of scrimmage was anchored by Tate Luker, Eric Hackworth and Tyrice Lockett.            The 2009 Bulldogs opened the season with a 21-19 loss to Thomasville before getting untracked with four straight shutouts. Sweet Water finished 11-2 and came up short in their quest for a fourth consecutive title when they fell to Loachapoka 19-17 in the 3rd round of the playoffs.            Chris Barnes and Chris Landrum anchored the line for Sweet Water. The defense was led by linebacker Delano Brewer and Jul Gaines.            The 2010 season saw the Bulldogs finish 7-3 during the regular season with losses to 4A Thomasville, 3A Handley and 2A champion Leroy. Once the playoffs began, Sweet Water got rolling. They outscored five foes by a combined total of 199-21 in a near flawless performance.            In the championship game, the Bulldogs opened up a 14-0 halftime lead and coasted past R.A. Hubbard 36-0 for Coach Luker's fifth state title and the ninth in school history. Chris Landrum was named the MVP of the game for his efforts. Six different players scored for the Bulldogs.            During the season the defense was led by linebacker Devan White and lineman Treyun Jones while lineman Tyler Luke and tight end Ty Morgan were standouts along the offensive line.            During this seven year run the Sweet Water Bulldogs went 86-12 winning five state championships along the way. Of the twelve losses, eight came against teams from higher classifications. A total of thirty-one players were named to the ASWA All-State teams over the seven years. The Bulldog offense averaged 45 points a game and compiled a playoff record of 28-2.            With nine state championships the Sweet Water Bulldogs trail only Hazlewood and Hoover. Since losing their first two title game appearances in 1969 and 1971, the Bulldogs have won the last nine championship games they have reached. Sweet Water Bulldogs   2004-2010 Year Record Championship Game 2004 13-2 Sweet Water 35-7 R.A. Hubbard 2005 9-3   2006 13-1 Sweet Water 48-0 Cedar Bluff 2007 14-0 Sweet Water 42-7 Talladega County Central 2008 14-1 Sweet Water 42-0 Speake 2009 11-2   2010 12-3 Sweet Water 36-0 R.A. Hubbard Sweet Water 2004 15 Thomasville . . . . . . . 33 70 Akron . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 61 Sunshine . . . . . . . . . . 16 54 Marengo . . . . . . . . . . . 0 48 A.L. Johnson . . . . . . 16 55 Carrollton . . . . . . . . 20 28 American Christian . . 33 27 John Essex . . . . . . . . 12 54 Linden . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 55 Gulf Shores . . . . . . . 28 43 Florala * . . . . . . . . . 30 44 Millry * . . . . . . . . . . 13 35 Loachapoka * . . . . . . 7 34 Brantley * . . . . . . . . 20 35 R.A. Hubbard # . . . . . 7 658 13-2 269 2005 13 Thomasville . . . . . . . 20 84 Akron . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 76 Sunshine . . . . . . . . . . 6 55 Linden . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 47 Marengo . . . . . . . . . . . 0 43 A.L. Johnson . . . . . . 0 56 Carrollton . . . . . . . . 6 40 American Christian . . 41 62 John Essex . . . . . . . . 24 46 Gulf Shores . . . . . . . 6 35 Maplesville * . . . . . 27 13 Brantley * . . . . . . . . 30 570 9-3 172 2006 14 Thomasville . . . . . . . 20 60 Akron . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 68 Sunshine . . . . . . . . . . 14 56 Linden . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 35 Leroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 27 A.L. Johnson . . . . . . 12 48 South Lamar . . . . . . . 7 72 John Essex . . . . . . . . 6 55 American Christian . . 14 48 Millry * . . . . . . . . . . 7 49 Ariton * . . . . . . . . . . 7 55 Sunshine * . . . . . . . . 0 28 Maplesville * . . . . . 6 48 Cedar Bluff # . . . . . 0 663 13-1 105 2007 27 Thomasville . . . . . . . 13 75 Akron . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 64 Sunshine . . . . . . . . . . 0 56 Linden . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 35 Leroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 59 A.L. Johnson . . . . . . 0 61 South Lamar . . . . . . . 0 48 John Essex . . . . . . . . 8 40 American Christian . . 7 68 Providence Christian * . 7 52 St. Jude * . . . . . . . . 12 39 Wadley * . . . . . . . . . . 7 46 Maplesville * . . . . . 36 42 Talladega County Central # . 7 712 14-0 133 2008 30 Thomasville . . . . . . . 14 50 Marengo . . . . . . . . . . . 8 57 Coffeeville . . . . . . . 0 65 Fruitdale . . . . . . . . . 7 78 J.F. Shields . . . . . . 0 45 Frisco City . . . . . . . 0 76 Georgiana . . . . . . . . . 24 48 McIntosh . . . . . . . . . . 6 40 J.U. Blacksher . . . . . 0 21 Leroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 49 Geneva County * . . . . 0 48 McIntosh * . . . . . . . . 0 47 Brantley * . . . . . . . . 7 34 Linden * . . . . . . . . . . 7 42 Speake # . . . . . . . . . . 0 730 14-1 101 2009 19 Thomasville . . . . . . . 21 48 Marengo . . . . . . . . . . . 0 63 Coffeeville . . . . . . . 0 8 Fruitdale . . . . . . . . . 0 56 J.F. Shields . . . . . . 0 24 Bastrop LA . . . . . . . . 12 46 Georgiana . . . . . . . . . 13 37 McIntosh . . . . . . . . . . 0 37 J.U. Blacksher . . . . . 7 28 Leroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 70 Providence Christian * . 0 42 McKenzie * . . . . . . . . 6 17 Loachapoka * . . . . . . 19 495 11-2 105 2010 6 Thomasville . . . . . . . 26 70 Coffeeville . . . . . . . 7 42 St. Lukes . . . . . . . . . 0 21 Linden . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 27 Handley . . . . . . . . . . . 41 63 A.L. Johnson . . . . . . 0 49 Marengo . . . . . . . . . . . 7 50 Fruitdale . . . . . . . . . 0 47 McIntosh . . . . . . . . . . 0 7 Leroy . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 48 Pleasant Home * . . . . 0 48 McIntosh * . . . . . . . . 0 47 St. Jude * . . . . . . . . 15 20 Linden * . . . . . . . . . . 6 36 R.A. Hubbard # . . . . . 0 581 12-3 141 * Playoff game # State championship game

          NEXT: Tallassee Tigers 1941-47
          The Dynasties, a series of articles on Alabama high school football's best teams.

David Parker
  AHSFHS.org
  dparker@ahsfhs.org

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