Prep Picks Panel Unanimous on Seven First-Round AHSAA Playoff Games; Danny Corte Takes the Guest Seat
Panelists agree on Montgomery Catholic, Homewood, Gulf Shores, Opelika, Saraland, St. Michael and McGill-Toolen, but split 3-2 on four other games involving Mobile-area teams.
MOBILE, Ala. — The first round of the Alabama High School Athletic Association football playoffs is under way, and the Prep Picks Panel is in total agreement on seven games.
The unanimous picks are Montgomery Catholic over St. Paul’s, Homewood over Theodore, Gulf Shores over Ramsay, Opelika over Alma Bryant, Saraland over Pelham, St. Michael over Glenwood and McGill-Toolen over Faith Academy.
Where they split
Four of the five remaining games ended in 3-2 votes:
- Charles Henderson over Orange Beach, with Randy Kennedy and Danny Corte taking the Makos. (Orange Beach won that game 21-20 Thursday.)
- Enterprise over Baker, with Pigskin Pete and Corte favoring the Hornets.
- Helena over Spanish Fort, with Darron Patterson and Corte liking the Toros.
- Cottage Hill Christian over Trinity, with Tommy Hicks and Kennedy going with Trinity.
In the remaining game, only Patterson favored Marbury against Citronelle, with the Wildcats getting the other four votes.
The standings
Last week, Hicks and guest picker Darnell Archey, the girls basketball coach at UMS-Wright, turned in the best scores at 9-3. That put the guest pickers back in first place at 101-31, a spot they share with Kennedy, who went 8-4 and is also 101-31. Hicks is one game back at 100-32. Pigskin Pete slipped to 5-5 last week and is 93-37, and Patterson, 7-5 last week, is 89-43.
A busy guest picker
This week’s guest is Mobile Sports Authority Executive Director Danny Corte, whose picks differ from Kennedy’s on three games and from Hicks’ on four, which could shake up the race.
The panel will continue through the state championship games, which will be played in Mobile at South Alabama’s Hancock Whitney Stadium. Corte spearheaded the city’s bid to host the AHSAA title games, so he will have a busy few weeks as the playoffs unfold and the matchups are decided.
