By Loyd McIntosh
Mountain Brook has its new roundball coach.
Zach Allison, a young coach with an impressive pedigree, was named as Mountain Brook High School’s new head basketball coach on April 15, less than a month after the resignation of Tyler Davis.
Allison is only the ninth head coach in the program’s 60-year history. However, Allison already has four years of successful head coaching experience and will now lead one of the most successful 6A programs in Alabama over the last two decades. In the past almost 20 years, the Spartans won six state titles.
While just 28 at the time of the announcement—Allison says he understands the responsibility and privilege of being the Spartans head basketball coach. “Those who have come before me have raised the bar and set a high standard of excellence,” Allison says. “As a competitor, I am excited to embrace expectations and the tradition of winning that the community expects.”
Allison returns to Alabama after several years of coaching in Mississippi. He is excited about the opportunity to continue the Spartans’ tradition of excellence on the hardwood. “The way I’ve explained it, I think there are a lot of similarities between how Mountain Brook has played and how we want to play,” Allison says. “There will be a lot of pace—getting up and down the floor—and a lot of defensive pressure. We want to play a fun, exciting brand of basketball, but also one that translates to winning at a high level.”
A Pelham native, Allen played basketball under longtime coach Joe Floyd at Pelham High School before moving to play one season at Auburn early in Bruce Pearl’s tenure on the Plains. He transferred to Wallace State Community College for a single season, then finished his college career at Birmingham-Southern, playing for head coach Chris Graves, now the head coach at Albertville High School.
Allen started his coaching career in Mississippi, where he spent the past seven years developing his craft. He began as an assistant under veteran coach Tim Wise at Millsaps College before landing his first head coaching job at Heritage Academy, a private school in Columbus. He then moved on to Jackson Preparatory School, where he led the Patriots to tremendous success. In his three seasons at Jackson Prep, Allison compiled a 94-39 record, led the Patriots to the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) championship game each year, won the title in his second season (2024-25) and was named 2025 MAIS Boys Coach of the Year in Mississippi.
Allison takes over at Mountain Brook following a 21-8 season that saw the Spartans advance to the second round of the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) state tournament.
But Allison says with the support of the school system, Athletic Director Andy Urban and the community at large, the transition will be as smooth as possible. “In high school, you don’t really use the word ‘rebuild,’ but this will be a learning experience for all of us, getting to know each other and how the players operate,” says Allison. “The draw for me at Mountain Brook is the community. I know they love basketball. I know it’s a basketball school. It’s in their blood. The youth program and community support are what really stood out to me.”
Mountain Brook High School Athletics Director Andy Urban says Allison brings much more to the table than just a winning record and great basketball knowledge. “His track record is tremendous, and he drives communities forward using basketball as a vessel to foster community involvement,” Urban said in a statement released on mbhspartans.com. “Zach also thrives in developing a passion for the game with younger students. We are excited for him to join us and get started soon.”
