Spain Park head football coach Shawn Raney will be the head coach for the Alabama football squad for the 33rd annual Alabama-Mississippi All-Star game.
The game will be played on the University of Southern Mississippi campus in Hattiesburg on Dec. 14.
Jamie Lee, director of the Alabama High School Athletic Directors & Coaches Association, made the announcement at the 2019 Kickoff Classic press conference. The association, in conjunction with the Mississippi Association of Coaches, administers the all-star game each year.
Alabama lost to Mississippi 24-20 last year at Cramton Bowl but still holds a 22-10 edge in the series heading into this year’s game.
“I am excited and humbled to be selected to serve as head coach of the Alabama all-stars,” Raney said in an association press release. He served as defensive coordinator on the 2018 Alabama All-Star coaching staff.
“Not growing up in Alabama, I was truly humbled when I was asked to coach in the game for the first time in 2013 and even more humbled when coach (Josh) Niblett asked me to be his defensive coordinator in the game last year,” he said. “But to be chosen as the head coach is even more humbling.”
Raney has been head coach at Spain Park for the past six years. He has a a 44-23 record with the Jaguars. He guided Spain Park to the 2015 Class 7A state finals before falling to McGill-Toolen 14-12. His team won the Region 3 title in that year with a 7-0 record. Previously, he was an assistant coach at Hoover.
The annual game All-Star game, which pits the top high school senior players from Alabama and Mississippi, has been played yearly since 1988. Mississippi has won both games played in Mississippi, in 2015 and 2017.
Alabama lost 42-7 in Hattiesburg in 2017 and won 25-14 at Cramton Bowl in 2016.
“Coach Raney is one of our state’s most outstanding high school head coaches,” Lee said in the release. He also announced the other coaches for the game. Assistant coaches include Ben Berguson, Homewood; Brian Maner, scout coach, from Spain Park;Jamey DuBose, Central-Phenix City; Darrell Higgins, Mars Hill Bible; Jon Clements, Corner; Adrian Abrams, Minor; Doug Vickery, Flomaton; and Tim Vakakes, Jackson-Olin.
