By Gary Thomas

Football season is drawing to a close, but one area team enters the Final Four AHSAA playoff round this week. With the Iron Bowl also scheduled this week, here are my game picks for upcoming games.

Highland Home Flying Squadron vs. Reeltown Rebels

This semifinal game will mark only the fifth time Highland Home has entered into a Final Four contest, and the Flyboys have lost the previous four: 1997 – Luverne High School 20, Highland Home 12; 2018 – Luverne 30, Highland Home 12; 2021 – Clark County 42, Highland Home 21 and 2022 BB Comer 44, Highland Home 15. But there’s not a high school football program in south Alabama with more tradition than the Reeltown rebels. From 1984 to present they have played in 14 semifinal games, 10 state championship games and won three state titles: 1987 – Reeltown nine, Winston County 7, 2021 – Reeltown 48, Notasulga 6 and 2009 – Reeltown 16, Clay County. 

Reelown and Highland Home have met five times in the playoffs and the rebels won all. I believe this will be a low-scoring game in the Rebels sixth playoff bid. The Squadron has scored 616 points while giving up only 71 in 13 games. Reeltown has scored 534 points and given up only 105. They’re only common opponent was Luverne and Highland Home won that match 35 to 9 in the regular season. Reeltown won 57 to 14 in the second round of playoffs in Luverne. 

This game may be won on a turnover late. If Highland Home kicker Austin Norman can bounce back off his kicking woes, that will be the Flyboys chance. And this may be the year to snap the Rebel jinx. But it’s in Reeltown and that won’t matter.

Gooch’s winner pick: Flyboys 27, Reeltown 24

Iron Bowl 2024

This Saturday afternoon will be the 89th anniversary of the nation’s most heated rivalry: the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Auburn Tigers at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Nick Saban Field. This historic matchup has had many famous coaches and players, all SEC, All-Americans and Heisman winners. But none of that beats the most memorable games: 1967 Run in the Mud, 1972 Punt Bama Punt, 1981 Coach Bryant becoming the all-time winningest coach, 1982 Bo Over the Top, 1984 Wrong Way Bo, 1989 Bama’s first trip ever to Jordan Hare… . The list goes on and on. 

But the most memorable was last year’s fourth and 31. Alabama is coming off a devastating end to their playoff chances, losing to Oklahoma 24-3 while Auburn is coming off their biggest win of the season, a 43-41 victory over Texas A&M. Bama is 8 to 3 with nothing to play for. Auburn is 5-and-6 and a win will put them in a bowl game. Bama is not much better than the Tigers.

Gooch’s winner pick: Auburn 31, Alabama 30

Gary “Gooch” Thomas is a long-time Crenshaw County resident, football fan and freelance writer.