By Staff
Glenn Jackson
Franklin County Times
Week 10 is the final week of regular-season games, with two of the five teams in Franklin County playing on the road tonight and two others hosting games. (Phil Campbell played at Hackleburg last night, and results will be .)
No. 5 Red Bay will take its perfect 9-0 record on the road to Class 4A Wilson. Vina will close out its season at Hubbertville, and Phil Campbell will play Class 1A Hackleburg.
No. 9 Russellville will host No. 10 Florence, which clinched the Class 6A, Region 8 championship last week, while Tharptown will look for its eighth victory this season against visiting Akron.
Below is a look back at last Friday's games and a look ahead at tonight's matchups.
Red Bay Tigers
The Red Bay Tigers, ranked No. 5 in Class 2A, battled muddy conditions last Friday night and moved to 9-0 overall and 7-0 in Region 8 by beating Hatton 30-8.
The Tigers overcame 12 penalties and two first quarter turnovers in the win. Due to the conditions, the Tigers turned to their powerful ground attack and defense in the second half.
Senior Josh Senkbeil led the attack with 100 yards and three touchdowns, and Cody Armstrong turned in a solid night with big plays on defense as well as a 26-yard touchdown run.
The Red Bay defense played very well on the night and held the Hornets to just one touchdown and a two-point conversion, and gave the offense excellent field position.
The Tigers will travel to 4A Wilson tonight to close out their regular season and will host Pleasant Valley of Region 6 in the first round of the state playoffs.
Tharptown Wildcats
The Tharptown Wildcats football program has become one of the hottest topics in Franklin County this year. The Wildcats have exceeded many people's expecatations in 2007, and last Friday night was no different as they downed the Alabama School for the Deaf 34-26 to move to 7-2 this season.
Tharptown recorded 335 yards of total offense, with Tyler Cagle leading the charge with 167 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Daniel Scott finished the night with 108 yards rushing and three scores.
The Wildcats trailed 14-6 at halftime, but used a combination of Scott and Cagle in the second half en route to the victory over the Silent Warriors.
Tharptown will close their second season of football at home tonight against Akron.
Vina Red Devils
The Vina Red Devils outscored Hackleburg 29-7 in the second half and finished with 416 yards of total offense but couldn't overcome a 33-0 first-half Friday night against the Panthers.
After a slow start, the Red Devils benefited from big plays by Brent Townsend, Nash Creekmore, Morgan McCarley and Blake Thorn. Townsend finished 8-of-12 passing for 158 yards and two touchdowns, and also had a 70-yard score called back due to the play being whistled dead prematurely. McCarley had three receptions for 104 yards and two scores.
Vina will close out its season at Hubbertville tonight.
Russellville Golden Tigers
The ninth-ranked Golden Tigers celebrated homecoming in grand fashion last Friday as they dominated the Muscle Shoals Trojans 51-14.
Russellville used a relentless ground attack for all six touchdowns, and senior Caleb Mitchell led the way with 265 all-purpose yards. Senior MIke Abernathy added 150 yards rushing on only 19 carries, and fullback Mario Roman had two touchdowns on the ground.
The Golden Tigers have been gearing up this week to play a very tough 6A opponent, the Florence Falcons, who are ranked No. 10 this week after knocking off Huntsville last Friday.
Russellville has won two straight since losing to Decatur in Week 7, and will host Erwin Nov. 9 in the first round of the 5A state playoffs.
Glen Jackson is a guest columnist for The Franklin County Times. Jackson is president and CEO of Southeastern Athletics, Inc. He can be reached at (256) 332-5513.