He also played basketball, baseball, and Newcomb ball for Irondale Middle School.. The two teams played for 22 straight years between 1968 and 1989, with the Mounties going 17-5. The rushing attack was once again lead by junior Jordan Pearson with 184 yards. We had some bumps in the road, but overall these guys never gave up on this coaching staff and each other. It only took three plays before the Mounties found the end zone again. The thought of helping people in need is what inspired Hunter to pursue that particular career path. The Rockets scored 26 points in the second half to pull away from the Mounties. A change in the school administration at Shades Valley got Higginbotham thinking about exploring other coaching opportunities. Shades Valley had not qualified more than three runners in a season since 1997. We are certainly getting better by the day, though, said offensive line coach Tyler Braden. The past two or three games, weve gotten off to slow starts, and it is starting to catch up with us.. approves new pay rates for some substitutes, Jefferson County Schools announces Districts Teachers of the Year, 2023-2024 Jefferson County International Baccalaureate Applications, 2023-2024 Pre-K Registration for JEFCOED schools, JCVAL 23-24 Fall Semester Applications will open on June 1, 2023. He is one of the best defensive backs in the statea hidden gem, said Hannah. Bruce scored on a 2-yard run, and after a successful PAT, Center Point pushed their lead to 22-0 with 2:27 remaining in the first quarter. Shades Valley, missing two players due to injury and illness, then dropped a tight game to Jackson-Olin, 36-37, in the consolation bracket Tuesday morning. The Mounties are looking to bounce back from last years 3-7 season. The Mounties finish the season with a 5-4 record and the first winning season in five years. The guys have done everything we have asked them to, and weve had some tough, rigorous practice to try to end this losing streak, said Mountie head coach Audwin Howard. These post-graduate prep programs act as a substitute for junior college football. Thomas started on both sides of the ball for the Mounties. The game will be televised this Friday, October 15, on the NFHS Network at 7 PM. Sean Crawford had 8 points and 3 assists for the Mounties. Tamburello grew an inch over the summer after graduation and enrolled in Tennessee Military Institute (TMI) in the fall of 1982 at 63, 245 lbs. The Shades Valley Mounties head to Cullman tonight for their first-round playoff game against the 8-2 Cullman Bearcats. Additionally, Harley will coach the quarterbacks, and Jackson will coach the defensive backs. Mahand thought hed be watching his son from the stands. At that moment, the kid from El Salvador was living the American dream in Irondale, Alabama. Our offensive rule schemes are fairly complicated for high school. Copyright 2002-2023 Blackboard, Inc. All rights reserved. Moore will celebrate his 25th wedding anniversary to Tara this August. I cant say enough about Marlon Compton. Justin Hannah is the new defensive coordinator. The 2022 Shades Valley Mounties open their season Friday night on the road at Stanhope Elmore. If you arent cherishing your talents and not doing right by them, God can take those in various ways., I am so proud of the young man hes become, said his mom. The Mounties took over on their 35-yard line and moved down the field on two completions to Thomas and two to Daniel. Both have shown a great deal of improvement and have had good fall camps to date. The Mounties will have a talented backfield with experience in senior Jordan Pearson and sophomore Bralen Hart. He was so good at teaching us that, he said. Sophomore quarterback Earl Woods added 62 yards and two scores on the ground. He has always clicked with older people.. He rebounded from the early injury and hasnt looked back. JiQuez Daniel converted the two-point conversion on a sweep, and the Mounties led 20-13. Shades Valley drove to the Rebels eleven-yard line, but Vestavia blocked Wuilman Guerreros field goal attempt with 8:50 remaining in the first half. The Tigers converted the two-point conversion and tied the game. Backup quarterback Marlon Compton threw three touchdown passes and rushed for 112 yards and scored once on the ground. Coach Robert Higginbotham, on Mounties Gaining Valuable Experience This Summer, on 2022 Mounties Find Success At Spain Park, on Mounties Close Spring Camp With Win Over Springville, on Where Are They Now? The defensive staff is entirely new. He had other choices in the Birmingham area but ultimately chose Shades Valley because of the schools potential and history. If you are a fan of Shades Valley athletics, you are probably not a stranger to the Shades Valley Mounties Athletic News page on Facebook or svmounties on Twitter. (Photo courtesy of John Goolsby). Wide receiver coach Martee Pope was happy to have Wedgeworth join his receiving corp. He may not have had the breakout season he anticipated, but he never let that deter his hard work and determination to get better, Pope said. He joined the staff at Shades Valley High School for George Millers final year as head coach. Character counts. The 6A #4 ranked Spartans rolled up 366 yards of total offense. Mitchell replaces coach David Partridge who led Shades Valley to a 5-7 record last season. Thomas wants to leave his mark on the Shades Valley program. Micah Thomas decided to lace up the football cleats and snap on the chin strap one more time. The Offensive Cuff em Player of the Week award goes to Christian Thomas. Despite the loss last week, the Mounties showed improvement. Boys V . Jair Aguilar converted the PAT, and the game was knotted at 7-7 with 7:40 remaining in the half. Coach Robert Higginbotham, Mounties Gaining Valuable Experience This Summer, Mounties Close Spring Camp With Win Over Springville, Mounties Eye Playoffs After Critical Region Win, https://svmounties.com/2021/10/13/from-el-salvador-to-irondale-a-kickers-journey/, From El Salvador To Irondale: A Kickers Journey, http://www.ahsfhs.org/teams2/teampage.asp?Team=Shades%20Valley, Mounties Look To Lions After Loss To Gardendale, Mounties Fall To Mountain Brook In Region Game, Mounties Face Tough Challenge In Spartans. The kids were not spread out so much, and the community was great and really supported us, he said. The sky is beyond the limit for him, said Harley. 18 Thompson (NFSH) got the party began by defeating Central (Phenix City) 38-22 at Protective Stadium on Friday to capture its third consecutive NFSH 7A title (Birmingham). Ogilvie would later team up with Higginbothams former quarterback at Banks, Jeff Rutledge, in the backfield of Alabamas 1978 national Championship team. They have a very good offensive linethey have some good guys up there. Smith, who punted for coach Bill Curry at Alabama, led the program from a 1-9 record on the field in 2011 to a playoff spot in 2012. John Kelley was from Cahaba Heights, Glenn Sisk and Bobby McDanal were from Irondale. A history ofShades ValleyMountiesfootball book is now available. Ben and Katy have three children: Ben, Anna, and Julia. The PAT was successful, and Stanhope Elmore held a 7-6 lead with 11:24 remaining in the half. A lot went right for us Friday night finally, said Mitchell. We lost our starting right tackle right before the game Friday night and went into it with one lineman that had any real playing experience., Although the Mounties were unable to score, they had opportunities in the red zone multiple times. Briarwood, capitalizing on costly Mountie mistakes, scored two touchdowns in the span of 82 seconds. While Coach Chris Yeagers Spartans played extremely well, they were aided by four Mountie turnovers. He is the all-time winningest coach in Alabama high school football with a 345-160 record. Offensive Coordinator Kyle Dickerson has faith in Moore. Center Point was the better team tonight, he said. The Mounties held Cullmans option running attack in check for most of the night. The Mounties held a 28-12 lead with 10:40 remaining in the game. The Shades Valley girls defeated the Clay-Chalkville girls 54-51 earlier in the evening. He then served as a Marine Corp Officer for five years after graduating from Annapolis. This senior class has played under three different head coaches. Rueben Nelson was named the head coach on April 22, three weeks before the spring game. Valley tied the score at 14-14 on a one-yard touchdown run by Johnson and a successful PAT with ten seconds remaining before the half. From the opening tip, it was apparent this was going to be a different game than the Cougars 73-49 win last month. Pinson Valley gave the ball back to the Mounties with their second fumble of the night on their opening drive. Mahand, who had a 100-yard interception return for a touchdown against Huffman, wants to be remembered as being humble and for having the most picks in one season.. Damian Gonzalez kicked a 23-yard field goal as the half expired, and the Indians took a 16-0 lead to the locker room. Gone is the spread and in its place is a run-heavy pro-I-formation offense. The Valley lead was cut to 35-20 on a five-yard quarterback keeper and successful two-point conversion with 3:13 remaining. I gave him about a week and a half at quarterback before I moved him to running back, said Higginbotham. For Jacob Mahand, his senior football season is extra special. His weight was up to 260 pounds, almost 60 pounds heavier than his playing weight as a Mountie. The Mounties host Anniston next Thursday at Frank Nix Stadium. The Mustangs then turned the ball over on downs after driving into Shades Valley territory. They were standouts on the Rams 2016 State Championship team. I have seen those things and believe this staff can replicate the previous success. Irondale-The Shades Valley Mounties (8-8, 1-0) got a 58-47 win at home over region opponent Woodlawn (3-8, 0-1) Friday night. Moore changed career directions after the ad agency he worked for was bought out. Geordan Clarke played exceptionally well in place of Thomas. The line is anchored by Dylan Daring, a 6-foot-4, 310-pound tackle who is expected to play in college next year. Weathers had 204 receiving yards on 10 receptions with one touchdown. The other coaches, Jackie Clayton, Owen Butts, and Jim King. Flash forward to April 2014. Mitchell still believes he has a good team and they are very close to turning the corner. He left Cal to coach at Berkeley High School in 1997 and 1998. That breakdown allowed the Spartan offense to gain valuable field position for the majority of the first half. Against Springville, he came up with a diving, highlight-worthy, over-the-shoulder catch for a touchdown. Morris Higginbotham took his Hewitt-Trussville Huskies to Mountain Brook for the seasons third game. Hes going to go pre-med wherever he decides to go, Barnfield says. Ken Odom will start at one safety spot, with Roderick Craig and Jacaryous Burrow seeing action. We have to find a way to score.. He spent many personal hours working to make sure our facilities were the best, wrote Lazenby. Junior Kendorius Turner and seniors Jamari Scott and senior Mitchell Etheridge, III had fumble recoveries for the Mounties. Steele, a hybrid defensive back-linebacker, is a long, rangy player with the athleticism to play on the offensive side of the ball as a receiver. I also want to get my commercial driving license., Rashad had the dream of becoming an entrepreneur from an early age, his mom, Carmenlita Morris, said. Brown hit Thomas with a 23-yard TD pass. I have been really happy with the kids positive attitudes and how resilient they have been, he added. On the field, they have played in the league championship game for the last four years. I have such fond memories of them. The Mounties found themselves down 17-0 in the span of 3:14 seconds after having the opportunity to tie the game. Later, the opportunistic defense had big stops with interceptions by Joe Lewis and Cameron Harris. I gave 100 percent for him every day.. The Mountie running game was solid against Huffman. Mitchell has been pleased with the teams mental state thus far. If football after high school is not in Whetstones future, he has another plan. This was an opportunity for graduates of the school to come together, said organizer John Goolsby. Thats what we are trying to do this week, Nelson said. The elder Higginbotham coached for 25 years and won multiple mythical state championships at West Blocton and Enterprise. Free & Reduced Meals Application for 2022-2023 Payments are Due by August 1, 2022! It was so much bigger than the money, Goolsby said. Mahand had three pass breakups and two tackles. Shades Valley Football Team - al.com Standings Scores & Schedules Shades Valley Football See More Scores & Schedules Latest News Power 25: Central-Phenix City stays at No. I observed a coaching staff that is working very hard and truly cares about their kids. Golf opened up a whole new perspective and thought process within him as well, said his mom. Freshman Zayvian Bolden will back Brown up. Before his stint at Ramsay, the Alabama A&M graduate coached at his alma mater, Midfield, for six years. Saxon had five tackles (one for a loss) and three sacks. Talented senior running back Luke Reebals is a hard runner with speed and good hands. The Mounties travel to Oxford and open region play next Friday. Despite all of his success at Mountain Brook, Higginbotham made a surprising career change for the 1976 season. Character and work ethic pay off. Pell City faces Huffman in another Region 6 game. Shades Valley High School is a a four-year public high school located in the Birmingham suburb of Irondale. Shades Valley. Without the confidence, encouragement, and letting me know about the TMI opportunity, none of the other things would have happened., Patrick Hampton, a standout player on the 1987 team, said, I have the utmost respect for him; he was a great coach. Hunters willingness to learn and work hard has played a big part in the Mounties having their first winning season in five years. The pair have strong ties to Rueben Nelson, having played for him at Ramsay. The Mountie defensive unit played strong against an explosive Briarwood offense for most of the night despite numerous players playing on both sides of the ball. The cost for the new stadium in the early-90s was a million dollars. These issues have contributed to the inconsistent play of the Mountie offense. Radio: None He says it is his job, and the payoff is his success; hes always looking ahead to his future beyond high school.. 278 yards came from a punishing ground attack. Until then, Thomas will continue to make the 2022 Mounties a better team on and off the field. Anna recently graduated from Appalachian State with a degree in Music Therapy and is pursuing a Masters Degree in Counseling. The 2022-23 edition of the Mounties, led by senior guard Sean Crawford, is looking to improve on last years 17-9 record. The school was established in 1948 near Homewood and moved to its present location in 1996. . He started playing football at Moody High School, but a torn ACL cost him his sophomore year. They made the playoffs twelve times, won nine region championships, played in two state championship games, and advanced to two state semi-finals. The boys showed some fight today, said Shades Valley head coach Rueben Nelson. The Tigers got the ball on their 39-yard line with 2:54 remaining. I wanted to win every game, but it didnt turn out like that, but we did win by seeing these guys grow into young men.. The Mounties and Tigers have played 26 times previously, with Bessemer holding a 14-11-1 edge in the series. When he registered for his senior year, I told Zayden to take some easy classes, his mom, Mimi Leonard, said. In 1982 DI football programs fielded junior varsity squads. 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