Holly Pond Broncos (5-2, 2-2) @ Fultondale Wildcats (6-1, 4-0)
3A, Region 6
Wildcats Stadium – Fultondale
Thursday 7 p.m.
SERIES: 1st meeting
LAST WEEK: Holly Pond defeated Hanceville 40-16, Fultondale defeated Susan Moore 62-14.
Broncos are coming off a big victory in the region against county rival Hanceville that eliminated Bulldogs from the playoffs. Now the Broncos meet the team that is on top of the region and has outscored the opposition 336-125 after seven games.
Speed will be a concern for Mike Bates' squad with Fultondale noted for fast personnel in backfield and at receivers.
Broncos have played well, winning 3 of 4 on the road. The two losses for the Broncos have been by a combined margin of eight points. Broncos currently fourth in the region standings with two games left to play.
Southside-Gadsden Panthers (5-2, 2-2) @ Cullman Bearcats (4-3, 2-2)
6A, Region 7
Oliver Woodard Stadium – Cullman
Friday 7 p.m.
SERIES: Southside leads 1-0.
LAST TIME: Southside defeated Cullman 28-21 in 2013 playoffs.
LAST WEEK: Cullman was idle, Southside defeated Brewer 42-7.
These two along with Albertville are fighting for the final two berths in the playoffs from this region with Oxford on top at 5-0 and Pell City 3-1. They play each other Friday in Pell City.
Cullman must win against Southside and will be a favorite to defeat Brewer in final region game on the 21st. Southside has Albertville still to play after they visit the Bearcats this week.
Bearcats have won three in a row coming in with the Panthers only on the road two games thus far in the season according to reports. This is Southside's first ever trip to Woodard Stadium. Bearcats are 2-8 all-time vs. schools from the Gadsden area.
Good Hope Raiders (0-7) @ West Point Warriors (3-4)
Non-regional game
West Point Stadium
Friday 7 p.m.
SERIES: West Point leads 21-16-1.
LAST TIME: West Point defeated Good Hope 12-8 in 2011.
LAST WEEK: Good Hope lost to Haleyville 56-21, West Point lost to Mortimer Jordan 42-20.
Both teams take off from regional play for the first time they have battled on the gridiron in five years.
Since 2000, the series has been about even as the Warriors have won seven meetings to five for the Raiders. The last time Good Hope won at West Point was in 2006 when the final score was Raiders 28, Warriors 14.
Warriors want to use this game as a tune-up before resuming 5A, Region 6 play next week at home against Curry. West Point is currently third in the regional standings.
Good Hope has lost two county games in the final moments this season to Vinemont 14-7 in the opener and Cold Springs 42-39 in the fifth game.
Don Farley is 4-2 against teams from Cullman County in his fourth season with West Point. Alan Scott of the Raiders is coaching against West Point officially for the first time.
Cold Springs Eagles (5-2, 4-0) @ Tanner Rattlers (4-3, 4-0)
2A, Region 7
Rip Swanner Stadium – Tanner
Friday 7 p.m.
SERIES: Tanner leads 6-0.
LAST TIME: Tanner defeated Cold Springs 52-15 in 2015
LAST WEEK: Cold Springs defeated Winston County 57-20, Tanner defeated Tarrant 49-26.
The late stretch of the season has the Eagles meeting the elite of the region. Tanner is 46-0 in regional play since 2010. The Rattlers have been one of the most successful 2A programs this decade with back-to-back state championships in 2012 and 2013.
Cold Springs has no pressure with the Eagles in the playoffs after their win last week. But the Eagles get Tanner and Cleveland on the road the next two Fridays with Rod Elliott needing to win one of them to have his squad at home in round one of the state playoffs.
Eagles are playoff bound under Elliott for the third consecutive season.
Locust Fork Hornets (6-2, 3-1) @ Hanceville Bulldogs (2-6, 2-3)
3A, Region 6
Ray Talley Stadium – Hanceville
Friday 7 p.m.
SERIES: Hanceville leads 14-3.
LAST TIME: Locust Fork defeated Hanceville 28-16 in 2003.
LAST WEEK: Hanceville lost to Holly Pond 40-16, Locust Fork defeated Cleveland 30-27.
Locust Fork knows they can't afford a loss to the Bulldogs if they plan to finish strong in the region with Fultondale waiting to face them the following week. The Hornets stand third in the region behind Fultondale (4-0) and J.B. Pennington (4-1).
The last four weeks has been a nightmare for Hanceville. Momentum Craig Flanigan's team had after a 28-22 comeback win over Vinemont Sept. 9 slipped through the cracks with losses to Pennington, Clements, Susan Moore and Holly Pond.
This is the final game for the Bulldogs under their rookie coach at Ray Talley Stadium. Hanceville is 1-3 on the home turf so far with the last one a painful 10-7 loss to Clements Sept. 23.
Susan Moore Bulldogs (1-6, 1-3) @ Vinemont Eagles (2-5, 0-4)
3A, Region 6
Mark Smothers Stadium – Vinemont
Friday 7 p.m.
SERIES: Susan Moore leads 11-5.
LAST TIME: Vinemont defeated Susan Moore 40-14 in 2014.
LAST WEEK: Vinemont lost to J.B. Pennington 41-0, Susan Moore lost to Fultondale 62-14.
With both teams getting toppled by the leader and runner-up from Region 6, they will have a chance to break through some frustration on the second Friday in October.
This is the third straight game for Vinemont at Smothers Stadium as Susan Moore journeys into Cullman County for the first time this year.
The Bulldogs have outscored two county foes 84-55, but lost to Holly Pond 34-28 and defeated Hanceville 56-21.
Vinemont is trying to avoid a winless season in region play with two games left in that segment of the schedule.
Fairview Aggies (3-4, 1-3) @ Hayden Wildcats (6-1, 4-0)
5A, Region 6
Robert W. Reid Stadium – Hayden
Friday 7 p.m.
SERIES: Fairview leads 5-3.
LAST TIME: Fairview defeated Hayden 14-12 in 1993.
LAST WEEK: Fairview defeated Curry 42-14, Hayden defeated Corner 34-0.
A win over Curry removed the Aggies from the basement of the region standings. Now with nothing to lose, the pressure is on Hayden to try and stay unbeaten in Region 6 with a game next week at Mortimer Jordan, who is also 4-0.
Fairview visits Blount County for the first time since 2013 when they played at Oneonta in week seven.
The Aggies are in search of a late season run that will give them their first winning season in four years. George Redding is four wins behind Dafford Smith (65 to 61) in all-time victories at Fairview High School.
Addison Bulldogs (8-0, 5-0) @ R.A. Hubbard Chiefs (2-5, 0-4)
1A, Region 7
Hubbard Stadium – Courtland
Friday 7 p.m.
SERIES: R.A. Hubbard leads 9-5.
LAST TIME: Addison defeated R.A. Hubbard 21-20 in 2011.
LAST WEEK: Addison defeated Meek 50-14, R.A. Hubbard was idle.
Sweeping the opposition in 1A, Region 7 is what the No. 4 ranked Bulldogs are looking to do this week. They stormed past Meek last Friday, outscoring the Tigers 36-0 in the second half.
Addison has put 325 points on the scoreboard through eight games, an average of 40.6 per contest.
Bulldogs have had five games producing 40 points or better. The Bulldogs have wins in Cullman County over Hanceville, in Walker County over Sumiton Christian, in Morgan County over Decatur Heritage and are now looking to take down R.A. Hubbard in Lawrence County.
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