Wetumpka:
Wetumpka punched its ticket to the playoffs last week with a win over Stanhope Elmore, which puts the team as the No. 3 seed behind Russell County and Pike Road. They have been able to string together five straight wins, after falling to both region foes in back-to-back weeks. Currently, the matchup for the Indians looks to be a road game at McAdory, a team that sits at 6-2 on the year and No. 2 in the 6A Region 4 bracket. Wetumpka still has one final challenge to end the season against non-region opponent Demopolis, but a win on Friday would extend the win streak to six straight and carry momentum into the playoffs.
Tallassee:
Talk about a turnaround for the Tallassee football team. After finishing the 2023 season at 1-9, there was no place to go but up. After hiring Lawrence “L.A.” O’Neal, he quickly turned Tallassee into a winning football team and the record to 6-2. Tallassee sits comfortably as the No. 1 seed in the 4A Region 3 with a region record of 6-1, allowing the Tigers to host a playoff game for the first time since 2017. The team has been dominated on both sides of the ball all season en route to this playoff berth in O’Neal’s first year as head coach. The first-round matchup looks to be Mobile Christian, who sits at 3-6 on the year.
Elmore County:
Elmore County is another team that punched its ticket to the playoffs this year in a win over Marbury, two weeks back. The team’s 4-2 Class 5A Region 4 record secured the No. 3 seed, with Clay Central and Beauregard ahead of them. The first-round matchup looks to be against Charles Henderson on the road, who sits at 6-3 on the year and secured the No. 2 seed with a win over Eufaula last week. Elmore County has accrued three straight region wins and has to face Chilton County this week to extend its win streak heading into the playoffs.
Stanhope:
Stanhope’s best shot to remain in the playoffs came last week against Wetumpka, but after suffering a loss, the window closed. It was tough sledding for Stanhope, after losing players on both sides of the ball during a bulk of its region games and also being without star Arthur McQueen last week. Currently, the region record sits at 2-4 with Percy Julian taking the spot as the No. 4 seed in the region at 3-3. Unfortunately for Stanhope, there is one last game against Calera which is a non-region game. Although it seems that the season is to end on Friday, there is still plenty of young talent littered through the roster that could turn things around next year.
Holtville:
Holtville squeaked into the playoffs after a massive round win against Marbury last week. Currently, the team locked down the No. 4 seed in 5A Region 4, with Elmore County, Beauregard and Clay Central above them. Holtville’s first-round matchup pits it up against Montgomery Catholic, an undefeated squad that sits ranked as the No. 1 team in all of 5A football. Although the team faces a formidable foe in the first round this is the eighth consecutive season Hotlville has made the playoffs.
Edgewood:
The Edgewood football team was unable to reach the playoffs this year after going 0-4 in region play in 2024. The team struggled to get things done on both sides of the ball this year averaging only a little over 16 points per game on offense and allowing 26.8 points per game on defense. Edgewood has one final game to end the regular season on a high note against For Dale Academy which sits at 7-2 on the year.
Reeltown:
Reeltown was crowned region champs for the third consecutive year after going perfect in region play. After dropping the first game of the season against T.R. Miller, Reeltown has won the past eight games by significant margins. The defense pitched four shutouts and the offense scored over 40 points in five of its games. Reeltown’s opponent has not been determined yet, but more than likely it will extend its season to another possible state championship berth as one of the best teams in all of Class 2A.
