Franklin County preps for kick-off

By Bart Moss for the FCT

Week Zero

The 2017 high school football season kicks off this week as the Friday night lights will come on for the first time across the state of Alabama.

In Alabama High School Athletic Association parlance this is Week Zero – and, yes it counts. Each team has 11 weeks to get their ten regular season games in. If they are playing this week, Week Zero, they will have an off week sometime before the playoffs begin. If a team is not playing a regular season game this week, like Russellville, they will start next week with ten straight games.

What to watch for:

Cramps! It’s late August. It’s hot, and it’s humid. Game speed is totally different than practice speed – and cramps are going to happen. It’s just part of the first couple of weeks of high school football. Teams that are not well-conditioned will typically see a greater incidence of cramps.

What’s it going to cost me?

Admission to high school football games is usually $6 at the gate. Many schools either charge for parking or ask for a donation. Local schools do not take up parking for intra-county games, such as Phil Campbell versus Tharptown this week. Concessions vary by the school, but there is usually pretty good food from school to school at reasonable prices. Programs will be on sale at different prices, and usually there is a table set up selling T-shirts or other school paraphernalia. So, a high school football game could cost a family of four in around $50 on a given Friday night.

The slate of games this week:

• Phil Campbell at Tharptown

2016 Result: Phil Campbell 21, Tharptown 0

Phil Campbell Coach Ryan Swinney: “Practice has been good. We have a lot of new changes in places. We are getting settled down to who will be at what position. We will be dressing out 25, so our numbers are down a bit from last year. That means people are going to have to play a lot, and they will have to play both ways. It also means there are a lot of unknowns with several new starters. We will find out game night how we react to game situations. That is always the most unpredictable factor.

“The first game is always important for a number of reasons. I think Tharptown will be a lot better this year. They have some good athletes. Both teams are different. We hope things run smoothly and that we compete for four quarters. Our goal is to be the best we can be that night and be prepared.”

Tharptown Coach Kevin Lacey: “Our last two weeks of preparation have been really good. We have been putting guys in different spots to see how they will respond. We have been cleaning up some stuff from a position and execution standpoint. Really, we couldn’t have asked for anything better out of our guys in the first two weeks of practice. We are ready to start game preparation.

“Phil Campbell is always a tough game for us. This year will be no different. They are well-coached and have a good, physical quarterback we will have to contain. They always play physical, and we will have to match that physicality. We didn’t get to play them a full game last year because of the weather. We look forward to matching up with them, but we have really been focused on us and getting better each day as a team.”

• Red Bay at Colbert Heights

2016 Result: Red Bay 31, Colbert Heights 26

Red Bay Coach Michael Jackson: “I think our team has practiced extremely well these first two weeks. Being a much younger team, we have been trying to get more guys on the field. They have been getting some good reps, and I think they have progressed well. Really, you just never know till you play that first game. We have nine first-time starters, and you just never know how they will react until they get hit.”

“It will be especially important for our young guys to respond well to a team like Colbert Heights. We know they have a dynamic quarterback. He can run it and throw it well. They have a solid running back, too. So that will present us some challenges. Colbert Heights has a good group of seniors who have been in program for a while; they will have an older team.”

• Vina at Mars Hill

2016 Result: Mars Hill 22, Vina 6

Vina Coach Jason Harris: “Our guys have caught onto our system quicker than I thought they would. They have worked really hard. We are a week further ahead than where I thought we would be at this point. We just can’t wait to get the season started.

“Our quarterback play has really picked up. He is doing things we didn’t know he could, and he’s evolved as a leader as well, along with three or four more kids. They are ready to bust out of the gate Friday night.

“We worked around the stadium and fieldhouse Saturday, and they worked for ten hours. They have really bought into what we are trying to do.

“I expect to see a lot of the Wing-T out of Mars Hill. We have been preaching to our team about being disciplined with their assignments. If we get caught up looking at all the misdirection in the backfield, then it we could be in trouble. We have to be disciplined and strong up front.

“Mars Hill is returning most of the offensive and defensive front. They will be strong. We have to counter that with good line play and good linebacker play.”