High school football enters first round of playoffs Friday
MADISON – It’s time to throw out all the statistics and past performances as the first round of the AHSAA Football Playoffs begin this week with two of the four local teams seeing action. Bob Jones will host Hoover while Madison Academy will provide hospitality second to none by hosting Lee-Scott Academy in the first post-season games.
Both James Clemens and Sparkman received first-round byes and will take to their home fields next week.
For Bob Jones (5-5, 4-3), the playoff game is a chance to make team history. The Patriots will tangle with the Hoover Buccaneers (4-6, 2-5), a team the Patriots have never beaten in eight previous tries while being outscored 271-141 in those eight matchups. The last time the two met one another was in the opening round of the playoffs in 2022 where the Bucs defeated the Pats 45-19.
“A victory against Hoover would be a big-time win for us and all of North Alabama,” said Seth Parker head coach of Bob Jones in his first year leading the Patriots. “We always have a good chance playing on our home field and I feel we’re prepared and we can hang with them if we play well. They lost a bunch of close games and have many good players.”
Bob Jones finished third in Region 4 scoring 27 points per game, but allowing 28 points to each opponent. The Patriots have been through several adversities during the 2026 campaign ranging from injuries and illness to player availability. Parker knows his team has seen what many would consider to be season-breakers, but he knows his squad has the desire and true grit to prevail.
“The receipt for our success is simply staying within the fight during games as we’ve faced a lot of adversities this season,” said Parker, as Bob Jones is 8-23 in first round playoff games in 31 appearances over the program’s history. “We have good leadership within our senior class of players and many hungry young players who have seen their growth during the season. We have one of the best running backs in the state in Jaden Rice and an outstanding quarterback with sophomore Alex Randolph. I believe in these players. I believe we can handle our next adversity in a good opponent like Hoover.”
The Bob Jones-Hoover matchup will be played at Madison City Schools Stadium on Friday with kickoff at 7:00 p.m.
For the Madison Academy Mustangs (6-4, 5-2), the sixth-ranked squad in the newly formed Private School AA Division, will face a familiar foe in round one of the playoffs in Lee-Scott Academy (2-8, 2-5) located in Auburn. The Mustangs defeated the Warriors 42-28 in game nine of the regular season. Le-Scott’s only two victories came against squads located here locally. They defeated Westminster 49-6 and John Paul II 34-16.
“Playing this team again is normal for the new division we’re playing in and of course college and pros run into this situation, too,” said Bob Godesy, head coach of Madison Academy, who fell to Class 5A Boaz 46-42 in the regular season closer. “Yes, that game stung and to come off a game like that will challenge our players, but all season long, our squad has been resilient. We just couldn’t finish against a much larger school, we have some time to get prepped for our next game.”
That next game against the Warriors, Godsey knows they have been looking at the Mustangs for three weeks and he doesn’t expect for the opponents to change much from the first time they met. He said his squad won’t change much as everything always goes back to his team doing what they supposed to do to set up a victory.
“The Warriors have a lot of talent and have many good players,” added Godsey, in his eighth season as head coach of the Mustangs’ program. “Our team has come a long way in all facets, both on and off the field. We knew going into the season we were young (7 seniors, 15 juniors, 10 sophomores, 17 freshmen), but they have grown a lot. They have been through the injury bug and discipline bug, but they have grown and know what they have to do against Lee-Scott Academy.”
Madison Academy is averaging 34.7 points per game while allowing 24 per outing. Lee-Scott Academy is sporting 20 points per game and allowing 28 points per opponent. This will be the Mustangs’ 32nd appearance in the post-season playoffs and are 19-12 in first round matchups. The game will be held at Bill Washington Stadium on the campus of Madison Academy at 7:00 p.m. Friday night.
