Last week’s scores

(5A) Saint Clair Co. 56(5A) Shelby Co.22  

(4A) Leeds 41 (4A) Elmore Co.14

(1A) Victory Chr. 26 (1A) Donoho 14

(6A) Gardendale 53 (6A) Pell City 7

(5A) Briarwood Chr. 35 (5A) Moody 14

(5A) Mortimer Jordan 41 (5A) Springville 14  

(4A) Anniston 26 (4A) Ashville 6

(1A) Talladega C.C. 27 (1A) Ragland 13   

Ashville (1-1) @ Oneonta (1-1)                                    

Ashville goes on the road to face an Oneonta squad that is struggling to find its offense. The Indians were held to only six points last week against Guntersville, while their defense is surrendering 34 points per game thus far.

The Bulldogs should not be intimidated when they look at their opponents during pregame warmups. Oneonta does have some sizable players on their roster like 320-pound defensive tackle (#68) Kaleb Wilson and 300-pound offensive tackle (#70) Matthew Wilson. A closer look at game film will reveal that these big guys struggle to get low to find leverage, which will allow the Bulldogs running attack to find holes in the middle and Ashville’s defense to fly by the edge and get into the backfield.

When on offense Ashville should be concerned about the Indians’ defensive ends and second level of linebackers. Oneonta’s defense is loaded with senior leadership – Defensive Ends (#50) Mike Brooks and (#54) Andrew Bean are backed up by Senior linebackers (#24) Landon Bothwell and (#8) Kevin Crim. All four are athletic guys who move laterally very well and will disrupt an outside running attack. These defenders are backed up by strong safety (#2) Sincere Baker who can roll down in run support and protect against the deep pass.

Offensively the Indians are trying to find their stride. Sophomore quarterback (#10) Taveris Hill is a bit raw and lacks velocity on his passes. Hill relies on Wide Receiver/Free Safety (#2) Jaden Kent for much of the offense. Kent is Hill’s go-to target, is integrated in the running game, and is the returner for the Indians on special teams. Rattling Hill and containing Kent should be Ashville’s priority on defense.  

Leeds (3-0) vs. Dadeville (2-1)                                     

Leeds’ should remain undefeated after hosting Dadeville this week. After starting the season 2-0, Dadeville received a wakeup call last week when Munford beat them by three touchdowns, 50-15. Taking on a Leeds that can score pretty much at will does not play into any of the Tigers’ strengths. The Green Wave’s plan this week is to score early and often on Dadeville, and put the game away by halftime – as they did last season.

Offensively Dadeville does have a good stable of receivers, including seniors (#6) Jalen Sullivan and (#5) Qua Tucker. Unfortunately for them, they will be facing a Leeds’ defensive secondary that is arguably the best in 4A football.  The Tigers will balance out their offensive attack with their running game led by senior (#3)  Kadore Glenn, who is a reliable runner on first down and an effective short-range target out of playaction on third down.

Many of the featured offensive players also play defense, which is anchored by junior defensive end (#16) Slade McCullers and defensive tackle (#55) Max McClendon. The interior is young and has shown inconsistency. Leeds can take advantage and establish an interior run game that will wear down Dadeville.

Moody (1-1)@ Shelby County (1-1)

Lost to St. Clair 56-21                                      

Moody hits the road this week for a game against Shelby County in an important regional matchup – this game could easily be a tiebreaker at the end of the season with playoff ramifications.

Shelby County’s running attack has averaged nearly 400 yards per game this season and poses a huge challenge for the Blue Devils’ rushing defense. The Tigers backfield is led by (#18) Lamont Bush, who is explosive between the tackles and very fast when he gets to the outside, as St. Clair County learned last week when the Saints were gashed for 208 yards and two touchdowns by the Wildcat playmaker.  Bush gets relief on running duties from (#25) Jeremiah Crenshaw and (#2) Tyrese Goodman. Shelby County quarterback (#12) Chadwyn Russ is a ‘game manager’ not known for passing the ball.

The Blue Devils’ defense will have to win this game with mental and physical toughness. The Wildcats want to wear down their opponent with a steady diet of time-consuming drives. The Wildcats do have trouble responding to quick leads from their opponents. If Moody is able to have some big plays happen early on in special teams and on offense, they could jump out to an early lead, which is kryptonite to Shelby County.

Pell City (1-1) @ Southside Gadsden (0-3) 24-75                                

The Panthers go on the road after a stinging defeat at the hands of Gardendale last week. Pell City will be facing a team that usually has a strong, balanced and dynamic offensive presence that leans on your defense until you shatter.

Not this year. Not this team.

Junior running back Kenneth Bothwell is thebulk of Southside-Gadsden’s offense. Bothwell is capable of breaking off long runs and could breakout for 200+ rushing yards if allowed. Fortunately for Pell City the offensive line for Southside-Gadsden was diminished by graduation and quarterback Gavin Griffin has not been effective throwing the football so far this season. Pell City’s opponent has been averaging only 8 points per game this season – giving Pell City’s defense an opportunity to restore their confidence and build back up.

Southside Gadsden does have some solid defenders on the other side of the ball, like linebackers (#39) Gavin Orr and (#43) Jacob Hollingsworth. They also have a few shortcomings and gaps in their defense. The result has been an allowance of 25 points per game this season.

Ragland (0-3) @ Coosa Christian (2-1)                                     

The tables have turned this season for Ragland after thrashing Coosa Christian in 2016 with a resounding 62-33 victory. This season the Purple Devils have struggled coming out of the gate while the Conquerors enter this week’s matchup on a two game winning streak and a lot of momentum at its back. This will be a big challenge for Ragland against a solid opponent.

Coosa Christian has a very dynamic backfield led by senior running back (#3) Dartavious Britton. Listed at 5’1” and weighing 110 lbs., one would not think twice of Britton by looking at him, but defenses have learned the hard way that Britton will slice and dice you up given the chance, as Appalachian learned last week when Britton scorched them for 211 yards on 25 carries. The Conquerors are led on offense by junior quarterback Caiden Lipscomb, who has senior running back (#21) Brody Sanders and a very big sophomore tight end (#82) Jackson Justus to help balance out the offense and misdirect opponents.

As a 1A school Coosa Christian has all of their best athletes playing both ways. On defense Sanders anchors the middle of the linebacking corps in a 3-4 base defense, joined by senior (#54) Mikey Green.

Springville (0-2) vs. West Point (1-2)                           

Springville is in dire need of a win to get their season on track, and West Point is a team that gives the Tigers an opportunity to turn their year around. Having surrendered 31 points per game so far this season, the Warriors lag in defense and provide the Tigers with an opponent that could be exploited with the right game plan.

On offense West Point lost a lot of great playmakers from last year, but have managed to reload in key areas with some seasoned veterans. Senior (#15) Kolton Easterwood is the returning Warrior starter at quarterback who has proven to be a very versatile threat this year. He is supported by an effective trio of running backs in (#22) Brayden Martin, (#8) Brandon Woods and (#33) Dalton Hamby. Rotated in and out to keep fresh behind a big (average 270 lbs.) solid offensive line featuring (#69) Trey Kilpatrick, (#51) Deakon Hembree and (#76) Deven Jenkins, West Point’s offense runs similarly to Springville.

Defensively West Point had to retool. They do have a very strong and deep secondary, but their linebacking corps is in the middle of a rebuilding phase. Springville runs the ball, and it can run on the Warriors. Look for Springville to keep it physical and close going into the fourth quarter.

 

St. Clair County (2-0) @ Pleasant Grove (2-0)

This week’s most exciting matchup features a battle of two undefeated teams going for a victory that will put the victor alongside Briarwood Christian and Wenonah as the teams to beat in the region. St. Clair County coach Matt Glover has opened up the Saints offense and turned it into a scoring juggernaut – averaging 54 points per game.

Ninth-ranked Pleasant Grove has a defense that can slow the Saints’ roll. Having only surrendered 38 points in two games, the Spartans will be the best defense St. Clair County has faced. Last week’s opponent for Pleasant Grove was Fairfield – a team that is almost the mirror image of St. Clair County, and the Spartans managed to squeeze out a 33-32 victory in a double overtime nail-biter that went to the last play. That is the kind of game fans can expect between these two teams this week.

The Spartans have weapons. Lots of them.

On offense freshman phenom quarterback (#13) Zyquez Perryman has an exceptional backfield in speedsters (#7) Kobe Gunn and (#23) Donovan Minter. Once the running game is contained Perryman moves around his mobile pocket and strikes downfield. His favorite targets include fellow freshman (#2) JaMaryon Furlow and junior (#13) Caleb Jackson.

The Spartans are a young program – a project that will be shooting for a state championship around 2019. This year they can be stopped. The Saints explosive talent and ability to play four full quarters could make this one of the best games of the year.

                                        

Victory Christian (2-1) @ Appalachian (1-2)

This game comes along perfectly for Victory Christian’s schedule. Appalachian is reeling after a 62-0 beatdown last week by Wadley, one week after suffering another big loss to Coosa Christian.

Appalachian is a very young team offensively. A couple veterans like junior quarterback (#14) Japer Hutchens and wide receiver senior (#10) Andrew Whittington can provide some leadership; most of Hutchens’ targets are talented freshmen, like (#10) Gabe Smith and fullback (#80) Alex Heard.

Appalachian’s youth movement is similar to what Victory Christian is experiencing this year – except that the Lions’ core of talent is better than their opponents this week. Look for Victory Christian to use a balanced offensive attack to grab their third victory of the season.