Area Sports
Tide finds grit to cut its way through The Jungle and perhaps right its season
AUBURN, Ala. — Alabama’s 96-92 victory over Auburn on Saturday after it had been shoved to the precipice of a humiliating defeat, then refused to be packed up and sent back to Tuscaloosa in a sausage casing, might be a turning point for the Crimson Tide. Or it might be…
Read MoreSuper 7 in Mobile gets five days; Class 6A playoffs expand to 24 teams
By JIMMY WIGFIELD MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Class 6A football playoffs will expand to 24 teams this year and the Super 7 in Mobile will be conducted over five days in December, the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Central Board voted on Friday. The Super 7 — which will be played in…
Read MoreTerry Curtis’ legacy is far from complete as he seeks win No. 362, which might be the biggest of all
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — When lifetime achievement awards are bestowed on coaches, there is a tendency to think they can do nothing more to make their profession and their sport better. Terry Curtis did not feel a door closing behind him Saturday upon receiving such a commendation, although his emotions leaked out when his…
Read MoreDo the math: Danny Powell is one of Alabama’s greatest coaches
____________________ “I am not trying to outsmart the other coach so much as outsmart his kids. As a coach, you may see what they’re fixing to do but you ain’t got time to tell those 11 kids in those five seconds.” Danny Powell _______________________________ By JIMMY WIGFIELD MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Danny…
Read MorePrivate schools don’t revolt against the AHSAA but feel more powerful after meeting
By JIMMY WIGFIELD The state’s private schools did not declare an open rebellion and sever ties with the Alabama High School Athletic Association at a meeting in Montgomery Friday but headmasters and coaches hope they can build enough leverage to alter some of last week’s historic changes. The AHSAA’s Central Board voted…
Read MoreSaraland, Mary Montgomery to meet in home-and-home series
By JIMMY WIGFIELD Mary G. Montgomery and Saraland — the two preeminent football teams in the Mobile area the last four years — will play each other in a two-year home-and-home series beginning this season in Semmes. The Class 6A Vikings and the Class 5A Spartans will open the season on Aug.…
Read MoreShort-handed Tide plays Tennessee tough (but not tough enough) and Oats makes no excuses
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Alabama coach Nate Oats is not one to make excuses, although he could have. He could have said a 79-73 loss to Tennessee Saturday night would have been averted if the injured Aden Holloway and Amari Allen — who average 29 points per game combined — had played. He…
Read MoreAHSAA tries compromise but it might not heal the division between public and private schools
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Friday’s pronouncement by the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Central Board was a compromise designed to keep high school athletics from completely rupturing and to keep inept politicians with misguided and possibly corrupt motives from interfering in areas they have no expertise in. But the verdict to keep public and private…
Read MoreAHSAA splits public and private schools for playoffs, gets rid of multiplier and competitive balance
By JIMMY WIGFIELD MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Central Board shook the ground under the feet of athletics on Friday and it will take two years or more to see the fallout. In an historic move, the Central Board voted 13-2 to separate public and private schools for…
Read MoreJackson’s E.J. Crowell named Mr. Football
By JIMMY WIGFIELD MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Former Jackson running back E.J. Crowell was as sure of winning the Mr. Football award as he was of winning a game and shattering any defense that tried to stop him. But when his name was called Tuesday and he secured the state’s most prestigious individual…
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