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It was a matchup of the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in Class 2A for the state championship. Clay County vs. Hazlewood. In a driving rain storm in Ashland, Hazlewood saw their chances for a record eleventh state championship washed away with the rain.            Both teams entered the game with perfect 14-0 records and Clay County left riding a 29-game winning streak. The Panthers' streak reached a state record 55 consecutive games without a defeat before they lost again in 1997.            Shannon Glenn ran for a touchdown and Stanford Simmons kicked the extra point as Clay County won its second consecutive state title. The point after the touchdown gave the Panthers all the points they needed for the win with 2:33 remaining in the third quarter. The score ended Hazlewood's streak of 26 quarters without allowing a point score dating back to the regular season.            Following a scoreless first half, Hazlewood got its only points from their defense when Courtney Rose picked up a fumble and returned it 38 yards for a touchdown. The try for the extra point was no good but it gave the Bears a 6-0 lead early in the third quarter.            An unlikely hero in this game was Ashland's senior linebacker Jesse Wood, who ran down O'Shaughnessy Jones on the kickoff following Clay County's only touchdown. Jones broke loose and appeared headed for the end zone, but Wood dove and tripped him up at the Panthers 19. Wood recovered a Hazlewood fumble just three plays later to halt the drive.            Hazlewood mounted a drive in the fourth quarter that reached the 9-yard line of the Panthers before stalling. With the sloppy conditions, a 26-yard field goal attempt was wide left. On the Bear's last possession, they reached the 45-yard line before a sack and a fumble recovery ended any hope of winning the game.            The difference in the game came down to three lost fumbles by the Golden Bears on a rain-soaked field. The teams came into the game having shutout nine opponents each so the 7-6 score was not surprising. It is likely a record for two teams that played a game to have eighteen shutouts between them in the same season.            Clay County attempted just one pass which fell incomplete while the Bears completed just one of two attempts for 23 yards.             The Panthers returned in 1996 to win a third consecutive championship. They also won titles in 2000, 2002 and 2005 before the school was closed and consolidate with Lineville following the 2012 school year. Hazlewood won one more championship in 2000 before the school closed after the 2008 season. Hazlewood .................................   0   0   6   0 - 6 Clay County ..............................   0   0   7   0 - 7   Hazlewood - Rose 38-yard fumble return (kick failed) Clay County- Glenn 7-yard run (Glen kick)
Clay County 1995 8/31 25 Cleburne County . . . . 0 9/8 56 Elmore County . . . . . 0 9/15 40 Central Coosa . . . . . 0 9/22 54 Randolph County . . . . 0 9/29 44 Vincent . . . . . . . . . . . 6 10/6 61 Bibb Graves . . . . . . . 7 10/13 47 Winterboro . . . . . . . . 3 10/20 44 Talladega County Central . 0 10/27 41 Horseshoe Bend . . . . . 0 11/3 26 Lineville . . . . . . . . . 6 11/10 35 Highland Home * . . . . 0 11/17 44 Reeltown * . . . . . . . . 14 11/24 28 Lineville * . . . . . . . 0 12/1 49 Georgiana * . . . . . . . 0 12/8 7 Hazlewood # . . . . . . . 6 601 15-0 42 * Playoff game # State championship game	Hazlewood 1995 9/1 28 Courtland . . . . . . . . . 8 9/8 42 Danville . . . . . . . . . . 13 9/15 40 East Lawrence . . . . . 0 9/22 35 Red Bay . . . . . . . . . . . 0 9/29 49 West Limestone . . . . . 0 10/6 21 Colbert County . . . . . 7 10/13 21 Tanner . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 10/20 48 Phil Campbell . . . . . 6 10/27 47 Cherokee . . . . . . . . . . 0 11/3 83 Hatton . . . . . . . . . . . . 0 11/9 40 St. Clair County * . . 0 11/17 20 Gordo * . . . . . . . . . . . 0 11/24 31 Tanner * . . . . . . . . . . 0 12/1 38 Pickens County * . . . 0 12/8 6 Clay County # . . . . . 7 549 14-1 47 * Playoff game # State championship game

  The Memorable Games, a series on the important and memorable games in high school football history

David Parker
  AHSFHS.org
  dparker@ahsfhs.org

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