Under the Lights football gameday.
Friday means gameday for the Briarwood, Chelsea and Spain Parkl 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.
Non-region games take place this week, with Briarwood on the road, and Chelsea and Spain Park at home. This link will take you to the preview of all the local games this week.
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.
Briarwood (3-2) at Leeds (4-1)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 26
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Homer Smiles Field – Leeds Middle
Last week: Briarwood beat Wenonah 40-22; Leeds lost to Jacksonville 30-7.
What to watch: Two really solid Class 5A teams match up this week, as the Lions pays a visit to Leeds to take on their old friend, Jerry Hood. Hood spent a couple years on staff at Briarwood before building Leeds’ program into a perennial contender. Briarwood has peaked over the last three weeks, with three straight impressive region wins. The Lions have gotten great play out of both quarterbacks, Charles Dedmon and Jamison Barnes. This will be another good test to gauge just how good the Lions can be entering the second half of the season.
Last meeting: Briarwood defeated Leeds 31-14 on Sept. 27, 2024, in the first meeting between the programs.
Next week: Briarwood hosts Corner, while Leeds heads across town to play St. Clair County.
Chelsea (3-2) vs. Paul Bryant (0-4)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 26
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Chelsea High School
Last week: Chelsea beat Calera 42-25; Paul Bryant took an open date.
What to watch: Chelsea got back on the winning side of things last week with a region win, and this should be another opportunity to build some momentum heading into the back half of the schedule. Paul Bryant is a struggling team without a win so far this season. The two-headed rushing attack of Chase Malone and Morgan Barnes behind a strong offensive line has been as advertised so far for the Hornets. They have gotten off to quick starts in a couple games, but have allowed opponents to come back. Chelsea will look to start fast and keep that lead this week.
Last meeting: Chelsea blew out Paul Bryant 49-12 on Sept. 27, 2024, in the first meeting between the programs.
Next week: Chelsea travels to Chilton County, while Paul Bryant hosts Bessemer City.
Spain Park (2-2) vs. James Clemens (2-2)
- Date: Friday, Sept. 26
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Location: Jaguar Stadium
Last week: Spain Park fell to Benjamin Russell 35-34; James Clemens beat Grissom 40-6.
What to watch: Spain Park will take on its third Class 7A team of the year when it hosts James Clemens this Friday. The Jags showed plenty of progress in a loss last week, with that game coming down to just a couple plays. This is a good opportunity to build upon that, as they take on a head coach quite familiar with the Spain Park program over the years. James Clemens is coached by Juan Johnson, who spent many years as the offensive coordinator at Hewitt-Trussville.
Last meeting: Spain Park beat James Clemens 34-24 on Sept. 27, 2024. The Jags have won two of three meetings between the teams.
Next week: Spain Park stays home to host Pelham, while James Clemens hosts Florence.
