While many fans
in Hartselle believe the game against Decatur is their biggest rivalry, the
Tigers have played Cullman a dozen more times over the years. And this
series is a lot closer. Hartselle has taken a 52-47-4 lead in the series
that was tied in 2015 at forty-five win for each school in 103 meetings
since 1916. That makes it one of the closest rivalry in our series.
While Cullman dominated
the series in the early years, Hartselle has somewhat dominated recently. In 1967
Cullman lead the series 29-16 when the two teams took a couple of years off
before resuming the series in 1969. Since that time, Hartselle has won 36
and lost 18 games to the Bearcats.
Anytime these two face
off on the gridiron it is an instant classic. In 2015 Cullman scored
with 1:50 remaining in the contest to cut the lead to 14-13. Instead of
going for the tie and continuing play in overtime, Cullman went for the win.
The two teams lined up but Hartselle linebacker Connor Landers stuffed a
running play and secured the victory for Hartselle. The win tied the series.
They have met four times
during the regular season only to face off again in the playoffs. In 1978
Hartselle won the regular season contest only to lose in the first round of
the post season to the Bearcats. The next year Hartselle defeated Cullman
20-7 and finished a perfect 10-0 during the regular season only to lose on
the road to Cullman in the first round of the playoffs 36-28.
In 2007 Cullman won both
the regular season and the playoff game. Hartselle flipped the tables by
doing the same thing the very next season.
The 2024 game was
epic and ended on the last play of the game when Michael Sumners hit a
32-yard field goal as time expired to lift Hartselle to a 10-7 hard fought
victory in Oliver Woodard Stadium.
The teams first met in
1916 with Cullman coming away with a pair of victories that season. They did
not play each other in 1918, 1926-28, 1943-44 and 1967-68. Other than those
few gaps they have met every season. Total Meetings: 103 Series Record: Hartselle leads 52-47-4 Home Record: Cullman: 24-22-2
Hartselle: 26-18-1 First Meeting: 11/13/1916, Cullman 53, Hartselle 0 Last Meeting: 10/4/2024, Hartselle 10, Cullman 7 Longest Winning Streak: Cullman 6 (1949-1954), Hartselle 6 (1979-1984) Biggest Wins: Cullman 53-0 (1916), Hartselle 42-0 (2023)
Biggest Upsets: 1979 Cullman (5-5) upset Hartselle
(10-0) in the first round of the playoffs