Week 8 football preview: Red Bay on cusp of first region title since 2019, PCHS hosts ranked Gordo, RHS holds Homecoming
Belgreen (5-1) — BYE
Last time out: The Bulldogs grabbed a 34-12 home win against Class 1A Pickens Academy.
Next week: Belgreen will face Victory Christian at home on Friday, October 24.
Phil Campbell (4-3, 3-2) vs. Gordo (6-1, 4-1)
Date: Friday, October 17, 2025
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Parrish Stadium
Last time out: Phil Campbell won in its regular season road finale, blowing out Carbon Hill 56-12.
Series history: PCHS is 0-2 vs. Gordo all-time, having lost to the Green Wave 48-12 last season and 56-6 in 2023.
What to expect: On a three-game winning streak for the first time since 2022, Phil Campbell will be confident heading into a home contest against a good, top 10 Gordo team that, however, showed it can be beaten last Friday. The team that beat the Green Wave last week was Vinemont, a team that PCHS head coach Jacob Hamilton feels the Bobcats should’ve beaten back in week two; that fact will also give PCHS more belief that they can get a big home win against Gordo. Phil Campbell has really hit its stride the last three weeks, and if the Bobcats can continue to successful execute their balanced attack and keep playing well on defense, who says they can’t pull off an upset and improve their standing in the race for the AHSAA playoffs?
Next week: The Bobcats host Hanceville in Class 3A Region 5 play next Friday.
Red Bay (6-1, 3-0) at Decatur Heritage (1-6, 1-2)
Date: Friday, October 17, 2025
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Rebels Stadium (Decatur, Ala.)
Last time out: Red Bay dominated Tharptown 53-0 to get a big Homecoming and region win.
Series history: RBHS is 0-1 against Decatur Heritage, losing 35-6 in the first meeting last season.
What to expect: A Red Bay win. A victory against the Eagles will give the Tigers their first region title since 2019; that should be all the motivation any team needs to come out and play well against an opponent that is very down from last season.
Seniors Jaxon Vinson and Jeremiah Thorne, along with junior Jaxon Swann and sophomore Davien Colburn have contributed heavily to the RBHS offense and opposing defenses have not been able to stop them over the last six games. The Tigers are averaging over 32 points per game during this run. On the defensive side of the ball, RBHS has allowed just eight points over the last two games and allowed an average of just 13 points during the winning streak.
First-year Red Bay head coach Tyler Jeffreys has downplayed talk of a potential region title ever since beating defending region champ Winston County and other region favorite Lexington a few weeks ago, but there’s no denying it now: The Tigers are banging on the door. A Class 2A Region 8 title in his first campaign in charge would no doubt be a nice feather in Jeffreys’ cap. I believe RBHS wins this game convincingly.
Next week: The Tigers travel to the Tanner Rattlers for their final region contest of the campaign.
Russellville (4-3, 3-1) vs. West Point (4-3, 2-2)
Date: Friday, October 17, 2025
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Golden Tiger Stadium
Last time out: Russellville used a good second-half performance to beat Hatton 35-26.
Series history: The Golden Tigers have never lost to West Point. The two teams have met intermittently as region mates 11 times since 2006. Last season, RHS beat the Warriors 44-13.
What to expect: West Point has gotten better in year two under head coach Kevin McCravy, having already surpassed the two-win mark of last year with four wins (including two regions win) this season. That said, this is a game that Russellville should win without too much issue, especially if its offense continues to play the way it has for a majority of the season. The Golden Tigers should also have one or two key players on the defensive side of the ball returning from injury, which is always welcome.
Keep in mind: It is Homecoming for RHS so there will be the typical distractions that come along with HoCo week, but this young Golden Tiger team has—at least on the field—shown growing maturity beyond its years this season. I expect Russellville to take care of business back at home and clinch a berth in the postseason.
Next week: The Golden Tigers host Priceville in a game that will almost certainly determine the region runner-up.
Tharptown (1-6, 0-3) at Winston County (3-4, 1-2)
Date: Friday, October 17, 2025
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Malcolm Blake Stadium (Double Springs, Ala.)
Last time out: Tharptown fell at region foe Red Bay 53-0.
Series history: THS is 0-1 vs. Winston County after losing to the Yellow Jackets 72-20 in 2024.
What to expect: After earning its first win of the season a few weeks ago against Vina, the Wildcats have suffered blowouts at the hands of region opponents Tanner and Red Bay. Winston County is having a down year but is still more than capable of scoring a lot of points; the Yellow Jackets are averaging 29 points per game and 40 points in their wins. First of all, THS will have to tackle much, much better than they did against Red Bay and limit long, explosive plays. It will be a tough road test for Tharptown, but maybe the Wildcats can put some scoring drives together and show more of the offensive potential we saw from them against Decatur Heritage and Vina.
Next week: The Wildcats host Lexington in Class 2A Region 8 play.
Vina (0-7, 0-5) vs. Addison (7-1, 5-0)
Date: Friday, October 17, 2025
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Franklin-Hester Stadium
Last time out: Vina dropped its road game at Waterloo 38-8.
Series history: The Red Devils are 3-18-1 in this series against Addison. Last year, Vina fell to the Bulldogs 41-14. The last time VHS beat Addison was way back in 1963.
What to expect: This is a region matchup between the top team and the bottom team in the standings. Vina has yet to break out and score more than 12 points in a game this season, which is not good enough to win very many games no matter who you’re playing, much less against a top 10 team in Class 1A. The Vina defense is also allowing an average of 33 points per game, which doesn’t bode well against the team with the 13th best scoring offense in Alabama. And yes, I mean the whole state, regardless of classification. It could be a long night at Franklin-Hester Stadium…
Next week: The Red Devils continue their region schedule traveling to Meek.