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   The best of the best in Alabama High   
  School Football over the past 100 seasons.






Coaching State Championships

    
          The high school football playoffs began in Alabama in 1966 with a single game following that season to determine the state champion. Sidney Lanier defeated Lee Montgomery 9-7 in a much anticipated rematch for the title. In 2013 champions will be crowned in six classifications for the AHSAA schools and three classes for the AISA schools.

          Every team begins the season with the state championship as their goal only to fall short somewhere along the way. It seems more and more that the same teams make their way through the season and reach the title game. The other trend is that more often that not the same teams appear in the title games over and over again.



 
Super Six State Championship
          This could be attributed to demographics, location of the school or coaching. Some teams win championships due to their location. Do you think it is a coincident that Hoover, Prattville, Daphne and Spanish Fort are all within twenty miles of the three biggest cities in the state?

        Many fans have felt for a long time the private schools have an advantage because their teams have no school districts. These could include Briarwood, UMS-Wright, and Madison Academy. Another possibility could just simply be better coaching.

          Two coaches for years dominated the ranks of the AISA when it came to winning titles. Robby James and Robert Gartman each won seven titles at their respective schools. Coach James appeared in fourteen state championship games while Coach Gartman's teams reached the title game on thirteen occasions.

          Among AHSAA coaches Danny Horn won six championships at Clay County before moving on to Benjamin Russell a few seasons ago. His Clay County teams also appeared in two other title games that they lost. Following these coaches are ten coaches with five championships under their belt.





State Playoff Championships Won    
Titles Coach Teams Playoff Record    
7 Robby James Catherine Academy, Morgan Academy 41-18    
7 Robert Gartman Morgan Academy, Wilcox Academy 36-17    
6 Danny Horn Clay County 56-15    
5 Billy Hamilton Grove Hill Academy, Clarke Prep 23-17    
5 Bob Newton Homewood 34-4    
5 Danny Powell Leroy, Jackson 27-3    
5 Jimmy Warr Thomasville Academy, Patrician Academy 16-5    
5 Mac Champion Lowndes Academy, Monroe Academy 23-9    
5 Mark Freeman Bessemer Academy, Spanish Fort 25-8    
5 Rush Propst Hoover 42-8    
5 Stacy Luker Sweet Water 37-10    
5 Terry Curtis UMS-Wright 51-16    
5 Wayne Grant Pike County 45-14    
4 Ben Harris Blount 31-9    
4 Bobby Wasden Meadowview Christian 19-7    
4 George Cochran Hooper Academy, Eufaula 21-8    
4 James Carter Autauga Academy, Billingsley 32-14    
4 Jamie Riggs T.R. Miller 64-21    
4 Jessie Little Marengo Academy 11-5    
4 John Niblett So. Mont. Academy, Demopolis Academy, Glenwood Academy 15-8    
4 Louis White Courtland 45-14    
4 Lynn Wright Pickens Academy 28-11    
4 Rickey Johnson Hazlewood 38-11    



State Championship Game Appearances    
Titles Coach    
14 Robby James      
13 Robert Gartman      
8 Nolan Atkins      
8 Danny Horn      
8 Jamie Riggs      
7 Ben Harris      
7 Josh Niblett      
7 Mac Champion      
7 Rush Propst      



David Parker
  AHSFHS.org
  dparker@ahsfhs.org






Great Moments in Alabama High School Football History

The Super 6 State Championships began in 1996. Since then all title games were played at Legion Field in Birmingham until 2009.