Alabama State Tournament Previews
Coach Arick Shankles and I talk through the Alabama boys brackets
The season is nearly done and all of the tickets have been punched to Huntsville for this weekend’s state tournament. We have put in a ton of work on Fan’s Guides and Video previews and will be posting links to each of those in this post as well as subsequent posts.
Best of luck to everyone competing this weekend … A few numbers to take you into the previews:
Class 1A-4A
Tallassee and Weaver both enter with 13 qualifiers, but it is Tallassee with 6 Section Champs (vs. 2 for Weaver). Still Weaver has 9 that finished either 1st or 2nd at Sectionals a week ago. Alexandria is the only other team to have double digit qualifiers with 10 (4 of which won their section a week ago). A few others could be in the hunt … Oak Grove has 7 with Ashville and White Plains with 6 each, but in reality this will likely come down to a slugfest between Tallassee, Weaver and Alexandria.
Class 5A
Shanks and I talk Scottsboro throughout the preview show, but it is Elmore County and Corner that bring more to Huntsville than anyone else. Elmore County has 12 with Corner bringing 10. Still … Scottsboro has 9 including 5 section champs and 2 section runners-up. Teams to keep an eye on include Shelby County, Arab, and Beauregard … each bring 7 (likely not enough to win it), but each has 3 section champs which should keep them in the race.
Class 6A
No surprise that we have a close race in 6A with 4 teams with 10 qualifiers each. Mountain Brook, Athens, Gardendale, and Gulf Shores should all be in the hunt along with Mortimer Jordan and Southside Gadsden (9 qualifiers each). Hartselle and Pike Road bring fewer numbers, but some hammers including 4 that won their sectional a week ago. With 7 section champs or runners-up - Mountain Brook is the favorite, but they will need to wrestle their best to claim another title this weekend.
Class 7A
7A should feature the best team race in Huntsville. Thompson won the North and will bring 12 qualifiers (5 of which won the section). Vestavia also brings 12 (7 were either 1st or 2nd in the North). Daphne has 11, with Huntsville and Tuscaloosa County each bringing 10. Enterprise trails in terms of numbers (9 qualifiers), but they have the most section champs (tied with Thompson) with 5.