Under the Lights football gameday.
Friday means gameday for the Briarwood, Spain Park 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.
Chelsea has its open date this week. On Friday night, the local teams have home region games. Briarwood takes on Carver-Birmingham, Oak Mountain plays Thompson and Spain Park takes on Helena. This link will take you to the preview of all the local games this week.
Briarwood (1-2) vs. Carver-Birmingham (1-0)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 12
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Lions Pride Stadium
Last week: Briarwood defeated Ramsay 14-13; Carver got past John Carroll 32-19.
What to watch: This is an opportunity for Briarwood to get some positive momentum going after its thrilling first win of the season last week. The Lions are finding themselves, with solid defense, good special teams work and an offense that found a spark in sophomore quarterback Jamison Barnes. A win in this one will put Briarwood in great position for a playoff berth down the road. Carver has only played one game so far, so it remains to be seen how competitive the Rams will be this fall.
Last meeting: Carver defeated Briarwood 20-7 on Sept. 13, 2024. Briarwood won two previous meetings in the 1990s, before Carver won for the first time last fall.
Next week: Briarwood heads to Wenonah, while Carver hosts Hayden.
Oak Mountain (2-1) at Thompson (2-1)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 12
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Warrior Stadium – Thompson High
Last week: Oak Mountain fell to Prattville 27-6; Thompson blew out Tuscaloosa County 69-0.
What to watch: Oak Mountain will look to rebound after a tough game last week against a much-improved Prattville squad. Thompson is going to be the superior team on paper against most teams it plays this fall, so the Eagles will need to play a perfect game to be in it in the second half.
Last meeting: Thompson beat Oak Mountain 42-7 on Sept. 13, 2024. Thompson has won nine straight in the series.
Next week: Oak Mountain travels to Tuscaloosa County, while Thompson hosts Vestavia Hills.
Spain Park (1-1) vs. Helena (1-1)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 12
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Jaguar Stadium
Last week: Spain Park took an open date; Helena beat Chilton County 23-6.
What to watch: Spain Park is coming off an early open week, but the Jags probably appreciated it coming off a physical Hoover game. The Jags will hit the meat of their schedule now as they begin Class 6A, Region 3 play with a strong Helena program. Spain Park has a track record of learning its strengths and leaning into them as a season progresses, and the start of region play is a good chance to begin that process.
Last meeting: Spain Park beat Helena 28-26 on Sept. 13, 2024, in the first meeting between the two teams.
Next week: Spain Park travels to Benjamin Russell, while Helena plays at Moody in a non-region game.
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.
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