By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Sports Editor

Now that one week of high school football in the state is officially complete, Briarwood, Spain Park and Thompson all still remain in the top 10 of their respective classifications ASWA football poll.

With some teams having a chance to prove their worth in the poll during the first week of the 2018 season, the Briarwood Lions didn’t play a regular-season contest during the opening weekend, yet remained at No. 1 in the Class 5A poll.

They were the highest ranked team in the county for the second consecutive poll after starting the season in the same position thanks to their dominant run to the state championship game last season, where the Lions eventually lost to St. Paul’s—now in Class 6A.

Briarwood did lose a jamboree game by a final of 13-0 on Friday, Aug. 24, but showed a lot of promise defensively. If the offense can match the defense’s intensity this season, it could be another special season for the Lions.

The next highest ranked team in the county came just one spot lower and in the 7A classification, thanks to the second ranked Thompson Warriors, who got off to a dominant start.

In their first game of the season, the Warriors handled James Clemens by a final score of 38-7 thanks to a balanced effort on both sides of the ball.

Quarterback Tualia Tagovailoa threw for 380 yards and four touchdowns, most of which occurred in the first half, while the defense’s only score given up came just at the end of the first half.

With No. 1 Hoover on the agenda for Friday, Sept. 7, we are inching closer to a matchup between No. 1 and No. 2, and another monumental showdown between the two.

That being said, there is still a lot this Thompson team needs to improve on moving forward with close to 15 new faces getting serious playing time.

The only other ranked team in the county is also on Thompson’s schedule, as the Spain Park Jaguars found the No. 8 spot in the Class 7A rankings for the second poll in a row.

It was a momentous start for the Jaguars during the first week of the season thanks to a 24-14 win against Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa, and while the score looked close at just 10 points of separation, it was a game controlled by Spain Park.

The Jags jumped up 17-0 in the game thanks to a strong ground attack from running back Jalen Henderson, as well as dominant defense from several players.

Hillcrest, the No. 9 ranked 6A team, clawed back into the game slightly thanks to a trick-play flea flicker and a kickoff return for a touchdown, but they were never any closer than 10 points the rest of the way with both scores coming on fluke plays.

The Jags have an important stretch of must-win games coming up with Vestavia Hills and Mountain Brook following a matchup with Bessemer City on Friday, Aug. 31. 

Other teams receiving votes for spots in the standings were Oak Mountain in Class 7A, Pelham and Calera in Class 6A, Montevallo in Class 4A and Coosa Valley and Kingwood in the AISA.

Oak Mountain got off to a dominant 1-0 start with a 42-9 win over Chelsea, while Pelham took down Calera 45-24 in a strong comeback. Montevallo started the season 1-0 with a 36-27 win against 5A Marbury. Coosa Valley just evened its record up at 1-1 in the AISA, while Kingwood is off and flying with a 2-0 start.

The full list of rankings can be found below:

CLASS 7A

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. Hoover (27); 1-0; 360
2. Thompson (3); 1-0; 274
3. Central-Phenix City (1); 1-0; 243
4. McGill-Toolen; 1-0; 228
5. Bob Jones; 1-0; 161
6. Auburn; 1-0; 142
7. Hewitt-Trussville; 0-1; 129
8. Spain Park; 1-0; 120
9. Lee-Montgomery; 1-0; 47
10. James Clemens; 0-1; 11

Others receiving votes: Austin (0-1) 9, Mountain Brook (1-0) 9, Sparkman (0-0) 8, Theodore (0-1) 8, Enterprise (1-0) 7, Prattville (1-0) 7, Oak Mountain (1-0) 3, Vestavia Hills (0-0) 1.

CLASS 6A

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. Wetumpka (23); 1-0; 336
2. Oxford (2); 1-0; 259
3. Pinson Valley (4); 0-1; 255
4. Clay-Chalkville (2); 1-0; 234
5. Spanish Fort; 0-1; 170
6. Saraland; 1-0; 166
7. Homewood; 1-0; 114
8. Opelika; 0-1; 72
9. Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa; 0-1; 54
10. Muscle Shoals; 1-0; 42

Others receiving votes: Hartselle (1-0) 14, Eufaula (0-1) 11, Benjamin Russell (1-0) 8, Pelham (1-0) 8, Daphne (1-0) 6, Jackson-Olin (1-0) 6, Calera (0-1) 3, Gardendale (1-0) 3, St. Paul’s (0-1) 3, Decatur (1-0) 2, Baldwin Co. (1-0) 1.

CLASS 5A

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. Briarwood (29); 0-0; 366
2. Etowah (2); 1-0; 277
3. Vigor; 1-0; 244
4. Carroll-Ozark; 1-0; 198
5. St. Clair Co.; 1-0; 177
6. Wenonah; 0-0; 145
7. Tallassee; 1-0; 120
8. Jackson; 0-0; 77
9. Demopolis; 0-1; 63
10. Dora; 1-0; 36

Others receiving votes: Ramsay (1-0) 19, Alexandria (1-0) 18, Greenville (1-0) 9, Charles Henderson (0-0) 6, Sylacauga (1-0) 4, Bibb Co. (1-0) 3, Madison Academy (0-1) 2, Satsuma (1-0) 2, Beauregard (0-1) 1.

CLASS 4A

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. UMS-Wright (31); 1-0; 372
2. Fayette Co.; 1-0; 278
3. Hokes Bluff; 0-0; 224
4. Brooks; 1-0; 205
5. Hillcrest-Evergreen; 0-1; 154
6. W.S. Neal; 0-0; 127
7. Andalusia; 0-1; 112
8. Clarke Co.; 0-0; 109
9. Dale Co.; 1-0; 88
10. Catholic-Montgomery; 0-1; 52

Others receiving votes: Jacksonville (1-0) 14, American Christian (1-0) 8, North Jackson (0-0) 7, Deshler (0-1) 5, Central-Florence (1-0) 4, Headland (1-0) 2, Leeds (0-1) 2, Alabama Christian (0-1) 1, Montevallo (1-0) 1, Rogers (1-0) 1, Williamson (0-0) 1.

CLASS 3A

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. Randolph Co. (19); 0-0; 329
2. Mobile Christian (9); 1-0; 301
3. Fultondale (2); 0-0; 213
4. Saks (1); 1-0; 189
5. Piedmont; 0-0; 179
6. Gordo; 0-1; 167
7. Thomasville; 0-0; 128
8. Pike Co.; 0-0; 99
9. Wicksburg; 0-0; 64
10. Oakman; 0-0; 34

Others receiving votes: T.R. Miller (0-0) 11, St. James (0-1) 9, Flomaton (1-0) 8, Sylvania (0-0) 8, Bayside Academy (1-0) 7, Montgomery Academy (1-0) 6, Weaver (1-0) 5, Lauderdale Co. (0-1) 4, Westminster-Huntsville (1-0) 3, Providence Christian (1-0) 2, Walter Wellborn (1-0) 1.

CLASS 2A

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. Leroy (25); 0-0; 354
2. Fyffe (6); 0-0; 296
3. Luverne; 0-0; 233
4. Reeltown; 1-0; 174
5. LaFayette; 0-0; 166
6. Ohatchee; 0-0; 138
7. Goshen; 0-0; 108
8. Ariton; 0-1; 99
9. Sulligent; 1-0; 88
10. Thorsby; 1-0; 34

Others receiving votes: Aliceville (0-0) 28, Addison (1-0) 12, North Sand Mountain (1-0) 11, Cedar Bluff (0-0) 7, Collinsville (1-0) 7, Daleville (0-0) 7, Abbeville (0-0) 3, Houston Co. (0-0) 2.

CLASS 1A

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. Sweet Water (15); 0-0; 318
2. Lanett (12); 0-1; 271
3. Maplesville (3); 0-0; 202
4. Linden; 0-0; 186
5. Marengo; 1-0; 163
6. Brantley; 0-0; 140
7. South Lamar; 1-0; 125
8. Georgiana (1); 1-0; 92
9. Pickens Co.; 0-1; 91
10. Elba; 0-0; 79

Others receiving votes: St. Luke’s (0-1) 47, Falkville (1-0) 20, Isabella (0-0) 10, Lynn (0-0) 6, Valley Head (0-0) 6, Mars Hill Bible (0-0) 4, Millry (0-0) 4, Holy Spirit (1-0) 1, Notasulga (1-0) 1, Wadley (0-0) 1.

AISA

Team (first-place); W-L; Pts

1. Tuscaloosa Academy (11); 1-0; 307
2. Autauga Academy (16); 1-1; 305
3. Escambia Academy (2); 1-0; 262
4. Monroe Academy (2); 2-0; 236
5. Bessemer Academy; 1-1; 170
6. Patrician; 2-0; 139
7. Chambers Academy; 2-0; 120
8. Glenwood; 1-1; 103
9. Pike Liberal Arts; 2-0; 89
10. Lakeside; 0-1; 12

Others receiving votes: Coosa Valley (1-1) 6, Springwood (2-0) 5, Kingwood (2-0) 4, Jackson Academy (1-0) 3, Fort Dale Academy (1-0) 1, Lowndes Academy (1-0) 1, Macon-East (1-0) 1, Morgan Academy (1-1) 1, Pickens Academy (0-2) 1, Wilcox Academy (1-0) 1.