Under the Lights football gameday.
Friday means gameday for the Chelsea and Oak Mountain high school football teams.
Under the Lights has you covered all season long from Briarwood, Chelsea, Oak Mountain, Spain Park and the other seven high school football teams across the coverage area.
Briarwood played Thursday night, while Spain Park took its open date this week. On Friday night, Chelsea hosts Pelham and Oak Mountain travels to Prattville for the start of region contests. This link will take you to the preview of all the local games this week.
Chelsea (2-0) vs. Pelham (0-2)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 5
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Chelsea High School
Last week: Chelsea outlasted Wetumpka 40-30; Pelham fell to Oak Mountain 30-29.
What to watch: Chelsea is off to a strong start for the second straight year, but the Hornets see plenty of room for improvement as Class 6A, Region 3 play gets started. Pelham is coming off a heartbreaking loss, falling to Oak Mountain on a last-second Hail Mary pass, but it is clear that the Panthers are going to improve under first-year coach Ross Newton. The Chelsea offense has clicked at a high level so far, averaging 45 points per game, but the defense will look to shore things up.
Last meeting: Chelsea beat Pelham 36-33 on Sept. 6, 2024. Pelham holds an 11-6 edge in the series that dates back to 1976.
Next week: Chelsea takes an open date, while Pelham hosts Calera.
Oak Mountain (2-0) at Prattville (1-1)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 5
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Stanley-Jensen Stadium
Last week: Oak Mountain beat Pelham 30-29; Prattville beat Stanhope Elmore 43-13.
What to watch: Oak Mountain improved to 2-0 with a dramatic win over Pelham last week, connecting on a Hail Mary pass as time expired and converting a long extra-point kick to win. The Eagles will need to play better in order to get off a strong start in Class 7A, Region 3 play this week, though. Prattville is hoping to be much improved under first-year coach Bobby Carr, and the Lions picked up a blowout win to get into the win column last week. Both these teams are hoping to be in the playoff conversation as the season progresses, which means a win in this game is almost a must.
Last meeting: Prattville beat Oak Mountain 35-28 on Sept. 6, 2024. The Lions have won two of the three meetings between the two.
Next week: Oak Mountain hosts Thompson, while Prattville travels to Tuscaloosa County.
The award-winning Under the Lights podcast is back for another season, as sports editor Kyle Parmley breaks it all down each and every week. This link will take you to the podcast channel.
To get coverage of every game the Under the Lights team covers on a weekly basis, sign up for the weekly newsletter that hits your inbox each Saturday morning during the season.
