Mary G. Montgomery, Barred From the Postseason, Finishes 7-3 on a Six-Game Win Streak and Earns Team of the Week
First-year coach Alex Page's Vikings closed with a 35-15 win over Theodore in what he called possibly their best game, despite AHSAA sanctions that kept them out of the playoffs.
MOBILE, Ala. — The Mary G. Montgomery football team knew from the start of the year that the postseason was not in its future. So the Vikings played the entire season with a different kind of focus, and they finished it on a high.
Head coach Alex Page said last Friday’s 35-15 win over Theodore may have been his team’s best performance of the year. The Vikings finished 7-3. Their Class 6A, Region 1 games did not count in the standings because of Alabama High School Athletic Association sanctions for recruiting violations, but they won six of the seven games against region opponents, which would have tied them for first place.
The Vikings do pick up one award: They are this week’s Team of the Week, sponsored by the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office.
A season of adversity
Page, in his first season as head coach, took over after Zach Golson was suspended from coaching at any AHSAA school for a year. He guided the team to a 7-3 finish after an 0-2 start, with early losses to highly ranked Saraland and Vigor. The Vikings beat Robertsdale, then lost to Fairhope, the only region opponent to beat them. A win over Alma Bryant began the closing streak.
“Early on it was tough because we started off 0-2,” Page said. “Early on it was difficult because we just needed to get a win to get everything rolling. But it’s been very adverse throughout the year. So, to finish on a six-game win streak, it just goes back to what we stand for as a program and our commitment to the process.”
He said the team had to change a lot along the way.
“When everybody was kind of doubting us and counting us out, our guys just kept showing up, and we had to make some big changes in our schemes. Our defense had to learn how to play, and our offense had to really change up what they did,” Page said. “It’s just been a crazy year, but a memorable year, a lot of fun.”
An emotional final week
The players felt the weight of the final game, knowing no playoffs would follow.
“They were really going through it this past week, knowing that this was their last game with no playoffs,” Page said. “They were really, really struggling with the emotions of the week. So it was nice to finish out with a win versus Theodore. And they can feel proud about what they did here at school.”
Page said he had told a reporter before the game that the goal was to keep improving every week.
“It was arguably one of our best games, if not our best game,” he said. “They just kept getting better and kept working. And even with the odds stacked against them, they just kept showing up and kept doing things the right way.”
