UMS-Wright completed an unbeaten regular season with a 17-8 victory over Williamson on Friday night. It was the 346th career win for head coach Terry Curtis, who moves into a tie with former Vestavia Hills head coach Buddy Anderson for all-time AHSAA wins.

The Bulldogs used defense and special teams, blocking three punts, to pull out the record-tying victory. Curtis, who is 346-92 in his 34-year career, can break the record with a win over Headland in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs.

*The Class 7A Region 2 champion is Central-Phenix City, which clinched the title with a hard-fought 27-7 victory over Prattville. The Red Devils were far from flawless but found a way to beat a Prattville team that had won four of the past five games coming into Friday.

Central-Phenix City enters the Class 7A playoffs as one of the state’s favorites. The Red Devils have a difficult first-round test against visiting Mary G. Montgomery, which won six consecutive games after dropping the first four contests of the season.

Prattville finishes a game out of a playoff spot in the difficult region. Enterprise and Dothan clinched the final two playoff spots in Region 2 with victories this week. Enterprise beat Lee-Montgomery, 36-18, on Friday, and Dothan topped Jeff Davis, 41-12, on Thursday.

*How about Hartselle? The Class 6A Tigers completed a second consecutive unbeaten regular season with a 38-31 win over Class 7A Bob Jones. The win extends Hartselle’s regular season winning streak to 23 games.

Hartselle quarterback Jack Smith accounted for three touchdowns and running back Azariah Fletcher ran for two more scores.

Now, it’s on to the Class 6A playoffs. Hartselle plays host to Buckhorn in the first round. The Tigers have not won a playoff game since 2018 and haven’t been past the second round since 2012. Last season, after an unbeaten regular season, Hartselle lost 35-28 to Gardendale.

*Meek finished a special regular season with a 48-22 non-region win over Oakman. Meek completed an unbeaten, untied season for the first time in school history. The 1958 team finished 9-0-1 in the regular season with a tie in the opening game.

This year’s Meek team is one win away from tying the school record with 11 wins in a season. The 1986 team finished 11-2 with a loss in the third round of the playoffs. Meek already has a school record in points scored in a season after winning by a combined 450-115 thus far. Three seasons ago, Meek was 0-10, and two seasons ago, the Tigers finished 1-9.

Meek, the Class 1A Region 8 champion, opens the Class 1A playoffs against Cedar Bluff (4-6).

*Look out for Madison Academy in the Class 3A playoffs. The Mustangs extended their winning streak to eight games by shutting down Westminster Christian’s dynamic offense en route to a 49-14 victory over the Wildcats.

Westminster Christian came into the game averaging 50 points per game behind quarterback Brandon Musch, who is the only player in AHSAA history to account for nine touchdowns in a game twice. Musch and his offense were no match for a Madison Academy defense that allowed just over 200 yards in offense. Running back Ken Cherry and quarterback Carson Creehan led the Madison Academy offense.

Madison Academy dropped the first two games of the season, allowing more than 40 points in each game, but have been dominant since. The Mustangs allowed just 48 points in the last eight games with 20 of it coming in a 22-point win over Madison County. The Mustangs have three shutouts during that stretch.

To connect with the author of this story, or to comment, email steve.irvine@1819news.com.

Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.

JH Outback NCF Fishers Farm730