By Rubin E. Grant
Mountain Brook football coach Chris Yeager knew his team had to play near-flawless football in its Class 6A semifinal matchup at Pinson Valley to pull off a victory the Friday after Thanksgiving.
But an early Spartans’ fumble that Pinson Valley’s Alijah May returned 50 yards for a touchdown and the Indians’ Mike Sharpe’s 92-yard touchdown run put Mountain Brook in a two-touchdown deficit on the way to a 27-10 loss.
“In a game like that, you think it’s a game where you’ve been physically dominated,” Yeager said. “That wasn’t the case. We didn’t play championship-caliber football. To make a championship run, you have to play your game each week, and we didn’t. It came down to four or five plays and that was the difference.”
Pinson Valley went on to beat Spanish Fort 23-13 in the championship game at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa to win its third Class 6A title in four years.
Mountain Brook struggled offensively in its loss to the Indians. The only points the Spartans scored came on Reed Harradine’s 20-yard field goal in the second quarter and Michael Brogan’s 3-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter.
The Spartans had only 159 yards total offense. Senior quarterback Strother Gibbs had 78 yards passing and 34 rushing in the final game of his career.
Mountain Brook finished 12-2, making their first semifinal appearance since 2010. The 12 wins were the Spartans’ most since 2011, when they posted a 12-1 record, losing in the quarterfinals of the playoffs.
Despite the way it ended, Yeager was pleased with the way the Spartans responded during a season dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s been an incredible group of seniors,” Yeager said. “It’s a special group. I’m thankful we got the season in. Every week, we were hearing about the numbers spiking (of people infected with the virus) and hearing that games were being canceled. But every week we got to play and that gave us a sense of gratitude.
“We told them to play every play like it would be their last play. It was a great lesson.”
