Athens Golden Eagles
Head Coach: Cody Gross (eleventh season) Career Record: 14 seasons, (89-68) At Athens: 10 seasons, (62-46) Stadium: Athens Stadium 2026 Enrollment:  1,014 Rank:  34th in the AHSAA, 2nd in Class 5A

History

Overall Record:   609-435-36   (58.0%) Last 25 years:   151-132   (53.0%)  (Rank: 175th in the AHSAA, 33rd in Class 5A) Since 2010:   88-86  (50.6%)  (Rank: 192nd in the AHSAA, 31st in Class 5A) Last Playoff Appearance:   2025 Last Region Championship:   2020 Last Winning Season:   2025 Last Losing Season:   2021

2025

Class:  6A              Region:   7 Record:  6-5 Region Record:   3-3, (fourth) Playoff Record:   First round loss to Fort Payne by a score of 38-23. Final ASWA Poll:   Not Ranked Scoring:  302 (27.5) Defense:  225 (20.5)

2026

Class: 5A              Region:   7 Strength of Schedule: 67-45 (60%) (56th in the AHSAA, 4th in Class 5A) Region Strength:  44-35 (56%) Non-Region Strength:  23-10 (70%)

2025 Results   8/22   vs. Mae Jemison  (6A)   32-7   W    8/29   @ Buckhorn  (6A)   10-16   L    9/5   vs. Cullman  (6A)  *  41-38   W    9/12    OPEN    9/19   @ Jasper  (6A)  *  13-30   L    9/26   @ Hazel Green  (6A)   28-0   W    10/3   vs. Muscle Shoals  (6A)  *  0-28   L    10/10   vs. Hartselle  (6A)  *  14-28   L    10/16   @ Columbia  (6A)  *  64-14   W    10/24   @ Decatur  (6A)  *  49-14   W    10/30   vs. Russellville  (5A)   28-12   W    Playoffs   11/6   @ Fort Payne    23-38   L

2026 Schedule   8/21   vs. West Morgan  (4A)         8/28   @ Bob Jones  (6A)         9/3   @ East Limestone  (5A)  *        9/11   @ Decatur  (5A)  *        9/18   vs. Austin  (5A)  *        9/25    OPEN    10/2   @ Florence  (5A)  *        10/9   vs. Russellville  (5A)  *        10/16   @ Hartselle  (5A)  *        10/23   vs. Muscle Shoals  (5A)  *        10/30   vs. Buckhorn  (6A)

Class  5A Region  7 Team 2025 Record Region Scoring                             Muscle Shoals (6A) 12-1 6-0 430-121 Hartselle (6A) 10-2 5-1 405-127 Russellville (5A) 7-5 5-1 310-268 Austin (7A) 6-5 5-2 268-220 Athens (6A) 6-5 3-3 302-225 Florence (7A) 6-5 5-2 228-236 Decatur (6A) 2-8 1-5 144-340 East Limestone (5A) 1-9 0-6 147-277

2026 Preview

Athens completed the 2025 season with a 6-5 record. With their 3-3 region record and a fourth place finish in Class 6A region seven, the Golden Eagles earned a spot in the playoffs in 2025. Athens's season came to an end in the first round of the playoffs when they fell to Fort Payne by a score of 38-23.        Since 2010, Athens has gone a combined 88-86. Their 50.6% winning percentage ranks 31st in Class 5A over the past sixteen seasons.        Over the past 25 seasons, Athens has managed to compile a record of 151-132. Their 53.0% winning percentage ranks 33rd in Class 5A and 175th in the AHSAA. Head Coach:        The Golden Eagles are led by head coach Cody Gross who is entering his eleventh season at the helm. He has compiled a record of 62-46 over the past ten seasons at Athens. Under his direction the Golden Eagles have qualified for the playoffs a total of seven times. They have won one region crown with Coach Gross. Over the course of his career, Coach Gross' teams have qualified for the playoffs a total of ten times and won two region championships. Season Outlook:        The Athens Golden Eagles will play in Class 5A region seven during the 2026 season.        The Golden Eagles have one of the toughest overall schedules in Class 5A. Their opponents had a combined record of 67-45 last season. That ranks 4th in Class 5A and 56th in the AHSAA. Athens will face six opponents that reached the playoffs last season.        The Golden Eagles have won 38 playoff games since 1966 when the AHSAA playoffs began. But they have only won a single playoff game over the course of the past dozen seasons. While winning six to eight games in a season is great for most schools the Eagle fans will be hoping for a little more in the future.        Region Seven is joined this year by the likes of Austin, Florence and Russellville so it's a little crowded for a team like Athens with Hartselle and Muscle Shoals around too. This should be a great region to keep an eye on all throughout the fall.     The Golden Eagles have a good shot at one of the last two playoff slots in region seven this season.

Players to Watch in 2026:
  Offense:  (4) WR-Aidan Lovell, TE-James Newby, OL-Shemar Yarbrough, OL-Max Shinkunas

  Defense:  (4) LB-Austin Campbell, LB-Halston Barker, S-Kaydon Bledsoe, S-Brady Johnston

  Newcomers:  QB-Zayden Homann, CB-Labron Turner, ATH/P-Cam Carden

The Coach had this to say:
      We play in a very competitive region so we will have to show up ready to play each week to give ourselves a chance. We will depend on a lot of young guys in key spots & will need them to grow up fast.

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Season Opener:
       The Golden Eagles open the 2026 season at home against non-region opponent West Morgan on Friday, August 21 at Athens Stadium. Last year the West Morgan Rebels finished with an overall record of 11-1 and in first place in Class 4A region seven. The Rebels lost in the second round of the Class 4A playoffs to Good Hope by a score of 31-7.

       This will be the second meeting between Athens and West Morgan on the football field. The Golden Eagles have a 1-0-0 record against the Rebels. They last met in with