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

Best Program to Never Win a Championship

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          Most avid football fans readily know the teams that regularly win state championships. But which schools have never won a state playoff title? Our list will be ranked according to all time wins for teams that have fallen short of winning a playoff state championship over the past fifty seasons.

     10. The Auburn Tigers (534 wins) have come very close to claiming a playoff championship but came up short in 2013 against the Hoover Bucs when they lost 20-3 in the Super Six Championship game in Tuscaloosa. It is the only title game the Tigers have appeared in since the playoffs began. The only other time they reached the semi-finals was in 2009.

      9. The Fort Payne Wildcats (537 wins) have compiled a 8-17 record in the playoffs since their first appearance in 1984. Only once, in 2010 have they advanced past the second round. The Wildcats can lay claim to a mythical championship the team earned in 1964. They were a unanimous selection after a 9-1 season.

      8. The Dothan Tigers (538 wins) came very close to winning a championship in back-to-back seasons, 1974 & 1975, but came up a little short. In 1974 they lost a thrilling title matchup with Homewood 10-7. A year later, the Tigers fell to Mountain Brook 29-23. Dothan has won only two other playoff games and has not won a post season contest since 1997. The Tigers were a powerhouse in southeast Alabama prior to 1966 but could never manage to win a mythical state championship.

      7. The Winfield Pirates (539 wins) reached the Super Six championship game in 2004 but came up short against Oneonta 28-21. It was their shot at a title. The Pirates lost in the semi-finals on three occasions and have won twenty-two playoff games during the school's history. They also could never wrap up a mythical title.

      6. The Opelika Bulldogs (539 wins) have amassed a playoff record of 31-25 but have come up shy of winning a state championship. In 2012, the Bulldogs had their best opportunity but fell to Hoover 31-0 in the championship game. Nine times the team reached the third round of the playoffs before losing.

      5. The Foley Lions (559 wins) can claim two mythical championships in 1961-62 but have not come close to a playoff championship. The Lions have only gotten as far as the semi-finals on one occasion in 2014 before falling to Prattville.

      4. The Cullman Bearcats (571 wins) finished the 1962 season with a perfect 10-0 record and were selected mythical champions by several sources. In 1972 the Bearcats fell to a great Colbert County team in the Class 3A state championship game. It is their only title game appearance. They reached the semi-finals of the playoffs in 2007-08 but fell short of a championship.

      3. The Lineville Aggies (575 wins) have won the most playoff games of any team on our list without bringing home a title. The Aggies went 51-27 in the post season but never managed to finish the deal. They did make it to the title game three times in 1996, 1998 and 1999 but each time came up short. The Aggies brought home a trophy following the 1961 season as awarded by the Post-Herald and the ASWA. They were also named state champions in 1962 by the Birmingham News.

      2. The Walker Vikings (578 wins) won mythical championships in 1930 and 1957 but have never claimed a blue map trophy. The 1977 team lost to Berry 21-0 in the title game on the only occasion the team advanced past the third round of the playoffs.

      1. The Hamilton Aggies (600 wins) have won the most football games without managing to bring a championship trophy to their hometown. The Aggies have reached a title game only once in their storied history. In 2010 they came up short in Auburn against Leeds, losing 42-32. It is also the only time they have gone further than the third round in the playoffs.

No State Playoff Championships
Team	Won	Lost	Tied
Hamilton	600	347	36
Walker	578	361	33
Lineville	575	322	25
Cullman	571	375	33
Foley	559	309	27
Opelika	539	384	18
Winfield	539	352	46
Dothan	538	383	31
Fort Payne	537	371	29
Auburn	534	373	34

David Parker
AHSFHS.org
dparker@ahsfhs.org

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