Madison teams headed to playoffs
Bob Jones coach Kevin Rose, who reach the 100-win mark with his team’s last victory. Rose, along with James Clemens coach Wade Waldrop and Madison Academy coach Eric Cohu lead their respective teams into the playoffs tonight. (Record Photo/Lindsay Vaught)
By Nick Sellers | Staff Writer
When the dust settled on the 2014 football regular season on Halloween, the Bob Jones Patriots and Madison Academy Mustangs found themselves in familiar territory and the James Clemens Jets were preparing for something new.
It was the playoffs, and it kicks off Nov. 7 across the state.
After Bob Jones’ win and Gadsden City’s loss Oct. 24, the Patriots gained a share of the Class 7A, Region 4 title.
“With eight teams in your region, to do that six years in a row, that’s a pretty special accomplishment for us,” Bob Jones coach Kevin Rose said.
Less than a week later, Bob Jones (8-2, 6-1) defeated Austin 62-45 to give Rose his 100th win. The Patriots finished No. 2 in the region behind Gadsden City and host Tuscaloosa County Friday.
The Tuscaloosa County Wildcats finished third in 7A’s crowded Region 3. Senior quarterback Seth Franks holds an offer from Jacksonville State and the Wildcat defense holds opponents to an average of 22 points-per-game, skewed by the program’s 66-27 loss to Hoover.
“[Franks] is a very talented young man in a tradition rich program,” Rose said. ”Tuscaloosa County is always good, have been good for a long time.
James Clemens (7-3, 4-3) will travel to face the team that finished just ahead of Tuscaloosa County in Region 3 – Oak Mountain.
The matchup is full of firsts: first playoff game ever for James Clemens, first time Oak Mountain has hosted a playoff game, first time Oak Mountain has finished a season 9-1, and many others.
The Eagles are led by the Shader brothers on offense. Warren Shader is a mobile quarterback who often hands off to his brother, Harold Shader.
“We have seen Oak Mountain and they are very good,” James Clemens head coach Wade Waldrop said. “[They have the] best offensive line we’ve seen all year long and their offense is one of the best and most unique we’ve seen so it’ll be a very tough game.”
Madison Academy (9-1, 7-0) hosts Winston County Nov. 7 in coach Eric Cohu’s quest to win three straight state titles. The 3A Mustangs’ only loss was to 4A Leeds 27-24 on Aug. 22 – the team Madison Academy defeated in the 2013 state championship game.
Madison Academy is currently scoring 46.7 points per game behind senior quarterback Blake Coward and the cohorts in the backfield, namely Kerryon Johnson and Malik Miller.
Should Bob Jones defeat Tuscaloosa County, the Patriots will face the Hoover-Buckhorn winner. The victor between James Clemens and Oak Mountain will go on to play Gadsden City, and Madison Academy will prepare for the winner of Pisgah-Piedmont if the Mustangs prevail over Winston County.
