By Rubin E. Grant Legendary Briarwood Christian football coach Fred Yancey wasn’t expecting to win his first Alabama High School Athletic Association championship in 1998. He figured 1999 would be the year the Lions would bring home the blue map AHSAA championship trophy. But in 1998, the Lions shocked him by going 15-0 to win their first AHSAA title, claiming the Class 3A … [Read more...]

By Rubin E. Grant Robby Ashford is an emotional guy. In his first season as Hoover’s starting quarterback, in 2018, Ashford admits he let his emotions get the best of him at times. When you’re the quarterback, that could be problematic because of the effect it has on your teammates. “I wasn’t the leader I needed to be,” Ashford said matter-of-factly. During the offseason, … [Read more...]

Welcome to OTMJ's annual Over the Mountain High School Football Preview, where you will find team profiles, schedules, rosters, key players to watch and more.  Follow the links to check out your favorite local team, or size up the competition:Briarwood Christian School Homewood High School Hoover High School John Carroll Catholic High School … [Read more...]

By Rubin E. Grant Don’t get Matthew Forrester wrong. He’s not too pressured taking over as Briarwood Christian’s head football coach following the retirement of legendary coach Fred Yancey after 29 years at the helm. “That’s a little thing for me,” Forrester said. “I’m grateful for all coach Yancey did for Briarwood. I played for him (in the late 1990s) and he mentored me as … [Read more...]

By Rubin E. Grant After two consecutive 10-win seasons and a trip to the quarterfinals of the state playoffs for the first time in 13 years in 2018, the Homewood Patriots are rebuilding in 2019. The Patriots have to replace 16 starters, including 10 on defense. In addition, most of their reserves last year were seniors, so they’re gone, too. “We lost a lot of three-year … [Read more...]