If Sulligent High School Athletic Director Craig Weeks had a choice, he”d much rather have his Blue Devils battle Cherokee on paper.
In the Alabama High School Activities Association Class 2A, Region 8 standings, Sulligent (5-2 overall) is first at 4-1. Cherokee (1-6, 0-5 region) is on the bottom.
In average points per game, Sulligent leads 18.6 to 8. Sulligent allows an average of 18 points per game; Cherokee, 39.7.
Statistics, however, don”t tell the story, Weeks said.
“I don”t deal with that a whole lot,” he said. “I let my coaches do their jobs. If you go by just the numbers, you have a tendency to look at that and lay down.”
On more than one occasion, the underdog has prevailed, so Weeks said the Blue Devils have to stay tough for Cherokee the same way they did last week in a 13-7 victory against Red Bay.
“They”re a good, solid team,” he said. “They had a good night and held them back.”
That”s why the Blue Devils will stick with the type of performance that put them on top of the regional standings.
“It”s hard to change in the middle of a string of wins,” he said.
n Pickens County (4-3, 3-2) at Sunshine (1-6, 1-4): The Tornadoes have never played Sunshine, so Pickens County coach Scott Marchant has been forced to rely on scouting reports.
Pickens County gave unbeaten Maplesville a lot to handle last week in the 39-27 loss in AHSAA Class 1A, Region 4 action. Marchant said his squad had chances to score.
“We missed a lot of opportunities and again we had turnovers,” he said. “Two times, Maplesville went for it on fourth-and-long for touchdowns, and another pass was tipped, intercepted, and returned for a touchdown.”
Although Marchant — like Weeks — wouldn”t mind using the statistics to determine Friday”s winner, he said the Tornadoes will have to be prepared.
“The only consolation we got from the Maplesville game is we know what things we need to correct,” he said.
n Pickens Academy (4-3, 2-3) at Lakeside (4-3, 2-2): The Pirates travel to Eufala, Ala., on Friday for a crucial Alabama Independent School Association Class 2A, Region 1 matchup after blanking Flint Hill”s first-year football program 47-0.
Lakeside will be different and much more experienced, Pickens Academy coach John Gartman said.
“We have got to win to get in the playoffs,” he said. “They run more formations than any other team we play this year.”
With this type of opponent, Gartman said instinct will plays a big role.
“You have to be careful you don”t coach too much, you don”t overthink the formations,” he said. “Ninety percent of the formation is the alignment, and the rest is what you do out of the alignment.”
n Lamar County (3-4, 3-2) at Lexington (4-3, 3-2): The Bulldogs will take almost a three-hour bus ride to Lexington for their key Class 2A, Region 8 faceoff.
Lamar County and Lexington have never met. Bulldogs coach Ken Adams said he has video on Lexington, but that”s not his main concern.
“We know what they do as team, but that”s not what we need to be worried about from week to week,” he said. “We have to as a team get better and better each week and try to improve. But we just gave up in the last game.”
The Bulldogs dropped a 19-14 decision to region leader Colbert Heights (6-1, 4-1 region).
“We played great for 23 minutes and 50 seconds,” Adams said. “We”ve got kids who won”t buy into what it takes to win a game.”
He said players need to step up and be responsible.
“We need each player believing all the other guys want to win just as bad as they do,” Adams said. “If one person doesn”t believe it, then we”re only playing with 10 men out there.”
n Parrish (4-3, 3-2) at South Lamar (3-4, 2-3): After last week”s 47-24 loss to unbeaten Lynn, the Stallions will play host to Parrish in a crucial AHSAA Class 1A, Region 5 matchup in Millport.
A South Lamar victory would give both teams identical regional records, and the Stallions would have the winner”s advantage.
“Everything”s tough for us, especially the schedule,” South Lamar coach Josh Harper said. “We played four quarters last week, but we just couldn”t hold on. We stayed close to the end.”
Lynn, which leads the Class 1A, Region 5 at 7-0 and 5-0, got the upper hand last week. Things won”t be easier against Parrish for South Lamar.
“They”re a fast team that runs basically out of the I formation,” Harper said, praising his players. “No matter what, we”re resilient. The biggest thing is we”re growing together.”
n Greensboro (4-3, 3-2) at Aliceville (4-3, 3-2): Greensboro and Aliceville enter Friday”s Class 3A, Region 4 contest with identical records, and the winner will virtually lock up a playoff spot.
Aliceville will try to rebound from a 20-8 loss to Hale County last week. The last time the teams met, Aliceville won 27-7 in 2007.
Aliceville will have an advantage because of an open date the week before the playoffs.
Aliceville coach Eddie Hill, who is directing the squad without pay this year, was away from school this week and was unavailable for comment.
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