By Lee Davis
Any advocates of the idea that the Hoover Bucs’ longtime domination of high school football in Alabama is waning will have to come up with some fresh arguments this winter.
The Bucs’ 17-7 win over defending Class 7A champion McGill-Toolen last December gave Coach Josh Niblett’s team its fourth state crown in five years and the school its 10th title in the 21st century. Hoover went 13-2, with both losses coming to out-of-state powers.
Hoover’s team was imposing overall, but its forte may have been defense. The Buc defenders allowed only three touchdowns against Over the Mountain opponents and only 76 points against in-state competitors.
With those kinds of numbers, it’s no surprise that Hoover dominates the 2016 Over the Mountain Journal All- Over the Mountain team. No fewer than 13 Bucs qualified for the squad, which was chosen by the Over the Mountain head coaches. In addition, Hoover defensive lineman Christon Taylor was named as the 2016 Over the Mountain Player of the Year. The coaches also named Briarwood’s Fred Yancey, who led the Lions to a 12-2 mark in their first season in Class 5A, as the Over the Mountain Coach of the Year.
Taylor, a senior, was a dominant force for the state’s best defensive unit, making 85 tackles with 61 assists for the 2016 season. He sacked opposing quarterbacks for losses 14 times and was credited with 10 quarterback pressures. Taylor recovered three fumbles in 2016 while causing six others.
“Christon Taylor was a force,” said one opposing coach. “He was one of those players who had a knack for being wherever the ball was going.”
Yancey, the dean of head coaches in Shelby County, guided Briarwood to one of its finest seasons in years, advancing to the third round of the Class 5A playoffs.
“When you look at the great coaches in this area, it’s truly an honor to be named Coach of the Year,” Yancey said. “But it really isn’t about me. An award like this is a tribute to our young men and the hard work they did to put together a great season. They deserve the praise, not me.”
Three quarterbacks were chosen for the squad: Garrett Farquhar of Hoover, William Gray of Briarwood and Hamp Sisson of Mountain Brook.
The running backs were C.J. Sturdivant of Hoover, Larry Wooden of Spain Park, and Daniel Salchert of Oak Mountain. Salchert’s dad, Danny, was an all-Over the Mountain selection as a Vestavia Hills quarterback in 1980.
Chosen for the offensive line were Jacob Bodden of Hoover, Hunter Whatley of Briarwood, Price Delk of Mountain Brook, Ben Wilke of Oak Mountain, Brent Stover of Spain Park, and Patrick Nuss of Vestavia Hills.
Barrett Tindall of Briarwood was chosen as the tight end.
The wide receivers on the team were the Hoover duo of Cortez Hall and Shedrick Jackson, along with Sims Herron of Mountain Brook.
Barrett Pickering of Hoover and Mason Dillard of Mountain Brook share placekicking duties on the squad.
Hoover’s Taylor leads the way on the defensive front along with Ricky Palao of Hoover, Champ Stewart of Briarwood, James Edwards of Vestavia Hills and Douglas Henze of Spain Park.
The linebacker corps is composed of Will Wetzler and Connor Bussman of Mountain Brook, Antarius Mitchell of Homewood, Mark Hand of Briarwood, Jackson Murphy of Oak Mountain, Kholbe Coleman and K.J. Vault of Hoover and Houston Hollis of Spain Park.
Members of the all-Over the Mountain secondary are Ben Abercrombie, Jayden Jordan and Will Singleton of Hoover, Tucker Queen of Vestavia Hills and C.D. Daniels of Homewood.
The punter is Nick Carney of Oak Mountain.
