Spartans impress in 2019

The Mountain Brook High School football team capped an impressive season by clinching a playoff berth in Class 7A, Region 3.

The Spartans started 7-0 before dropping region games to region champion Thompson and runner-up Hoover in consecutive weeks. Their efforts earned them a trip to Florence on Nov. 8 in the first round of the playoffs. The Spartans fell 24-21 after Florence kicked a game-winning field goal as time expired and finished the season with an 8-3 record.

Mountain Brook head coach Chris Yeager said his team fought until the very end.

“It’s been a heck of a journey,” Yeager said. “They’ve been extremely resilient. Even at the very end of the game, I thought we had a chance to win that one. It’s been a wonderful group of kids, and I hope they take something with them they can take with them the rest of their lives.”

The Spartans began their season with two early season wins over non-region opponents Northridge and Center Point. Mountain Brook continued a great start with victories over Tuscaloosa County and Spain Park, setting up a couple of big games in the following weeks.

The Spartans won a close contest with Vestavia Hills before winning handily against Oak Mountain to stay undefeated at 6-0 overall and 4-0 in the region.

Mountain Brook pulled out a miraculous win over Hewitt-Trussville with a wild twopoint conversion to earn the win Oct. 11. The play was blown up in the backfield, but junior Paulson Wright picked up the ball and heaved it to Jake Thompson in the end zone.

After dropping the next two games against Thompson and Hoover to fall to 5-2 in the region, the Spartans finished the regular season with an overtime win at Gardendale.