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Tuscaloosa-area high school football rankings ahead of Round 3 in Alabama playoffs

jerell rushin, the tuscaloosa news
·3 min read

The Alabama high school football playoffs have been exciting and more through the first two rounds.

Four Tuscaloosa-area teams remain in the hunt, and our No. 1 team since the preseason, Hillcrest, is not one of them. Here's where local teams stack up heading into the third round of the AHSAA and AISA playoffs:

1. Hillcrest (11-1) — Hillcrest's first loss of the season ended its campaign in the second round of the AHSAA playoffs in a 56-31 defeat to Saraland. The first dominant passing attack Hillcrest faced was too much to keep up without injured all-state quarterback Ethan Crawford. Last week: Ranked No. 1. This week: Season complete.

HILLCREST:Alabama football 5-star commit Ryan Williams accounts for six TDs, Saraland tops Hillcrest

2. Gordo (9-1) — The Green Wave led Lauderdale County by 22 points at halftime before winning 44-14 behind three touchdowns, two rushing and one receiving, from CJ Lark. Last week: Ranked No. 2. This week: at Piedmont (10-2).

3. Aliceville (11-1) — Ty'Jarian Williams accounted for 322 yards of offense and four touchdowns, three passing and one rushing, in a 38-21 win against Falkville for the Yellow Jackets, who have won 10 straight. Last week: Ranked No. 5. This week: at Pigsah (10-2).

4. Tuscaloosa Academy (10-2) — The Knights used a late 51-yard field goal by Patton Turnipseed to defeat Lexington 23-20 on the road to continue its first AHSAA season. Last week: Ranked No. 7. This week: at Fyffe (12-0).

TUSCALOOSA ACADEMY:Watch Tuscaloosa Academy kick 51-yard field goal at buzzer to beat Lexington in AHSAA playoff

FB TOP PERFORMERS:Gordo's Brax Garrison and CJ Lark account for 3 TDs apiece to lead Greenwave to playoff win

5. Pickens County (9-3) — The Tornadoes got big contributions from a handful of players in their 44-36 win over Meek: two touchdowns passing from Santonio Jones, two touchdowns rushing from Korbit Sommerville and an interception return touchdown from Kemaurion Plott. Last week: Ranked No. 8. This week: vs. Marion County (9-3).

6. Northridge (7-4) — The Jaguars scored first against Pelham but then allowed 44 straight points and lost 44-14 in the first round. Northridge falls in the first round of the playoffs for the third straight season but made improvements under first-year coach Ryan Lolley. Last week: Ranked No. 9. This week: Season complete.

7. Tuscaloosa County (6-4) — The Wildcats made progress in 2022 despite missing the playoffs because it completed its first winning season in nine years with a 20-14 victory over Brookwood. Sawyer Deerman had two rushing touchdowns, one touchdown reception and an interception. Last week: Ranked No. 10. This week: Season complete.

TOP PERFORMERS:Tuscaloosa-area high school top performers for winter sports

8. Demopolis (10-2) — Demopolis lost for the first time since August in a 36-15 second-round loss at Faith Academy despite Javien Banks' 50-yard touchdown run. Last week: Ranked No. 3. This week: Season complete.

9. American Christian (9-3) — The Patriots offense managed just one touchdown in its 31-7 second-round loss to Andalusia, a Carson Sute toss to Bubba Lester. It was American Christian's first loss to a 4A team. Last week: Ranked No. 4. This week: Season complete.

ACA FOOTBALL:American Christian falls to Andalusia but found success after losing 22 seniors from 2021

10. Linden (9-2) — The Patriots lost in the second round of the 1A playoffs 41-20 at home against Brantely, the first 1A team to knock off Linden. Last week: Ranked No. 6. This week: Season complete.

Jerell Rushin is a recruiting reporter for the Tuscaloosa News and the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at jrushin@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @JerellRushin_.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: AHSAA Football: Tuscaloosa-area rankings before Round 3 of playoffs