Preview: Spartans head to Auburn looking for state title

AUBURN -- The Spartans are simply treating this game as round five.

That’s not totally realistic, as the Mountain Brook High School football team’s game this week is anything but normal. The Spartans are playing in the Class 6A state championship game Friday evening. 

But that mentality does give some insight into how the team has thrived throughout this playoff run, one that has gotten the program to the state title game for the first time since 1996.

“We’re not thinking about the other things that a lot of other people are thinking about,” Mountain Brook head coach Chris Yeager said Tuesday afternoon. “It’s round five, week 15, and we get to play football again. We’re very thankful for that.”

Mountain Brook has two state championships to its name, back-to-back crowns in 1975 and 1976 when future Alabama running back Major Ogilvie was the star of the show.

Winning a third would mean getting past Saraland on Friday night at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, the final game of this year’s Super 7 Alabama high school championships.

“We’ve all dreamed of this moment since we were in third grade,” quarterback John Colvin said. “We just want to win.”

Last week, Mountain Brook (12-2) knocked off Muscle Shoals 28-7 in the semifinals. After a slow start on both sides of the ball, the Spartans dominated the final three quarters and pulled away.

“We have so much trust in each other, we never had a doubt,” linebacker Vaughn Frost said. “Even though the offense started slow and the defense started a little slow, we knew, at the end of the day, everything was going to come out right. We work too hard for it not to.”

Mountain Brook lost to Gardendale 29-28 on Oct. 21 in a game that allowed the Rockets to win the Region 5 title. But things have been different for the Spartans since that night, and they have won their last five games by an average of 29 points.

“We had a lot of guys that played very uptight in that game,” Yeager said. “After having conversation with them, I felt like we were trying to win a region championship instead of playing our best football.”

Over the last month, the Spartans have gotten back to the basics and that has fueled their success.

“After that game, we just decided we’re going to try to reach mastery level at blocking, tackling, securing the football and finishing,” Yeager said. “We quit trying to focus on outcomes and focused on just getting better. That was a turning point of the season.”

One of the facets that has surged in the latter part of this season is the Spartans’ rushing attack, which has turned into one of the most dominant in the state. Cole Gamble ran for over 200 yards in three straight playoff games, and went for 189 yards and three touchdowns last week.

“We’ve got great coaches that put me in a great position with the game plan,” Gamble said. “And obviously, our O-line [offensive line], they’ve been awesome. Something that gets overlooked is our other two running backs, Jack [King] and Will [Waldrop]. If I need a blow, they can come in.”

Colvin said Gamble’s ability makes his job a lot easier, commanding the Mountain Brook passing attack. Frost also noted the offense, which is averaging 40 points per game in the playoffs, performing at such a high level takes pressure off the defense.

That defense has allowed a shade under 13 points per game under first-year coordinator Shane Stearns. The Spartans have pitched one shutout and held eight opponents to single digits. Linebacker Trent Wright said the defense has gotten more comfortable as the year has gone on and lauded Stearns’ weekly game plans.

“We had all the faith in him and knew he would get us the calls,” Wright said. “Over time, we began to trust and communicate.”

On Friday night, Mountain Brook will face a different set of Spartans, from south Alabama. Saraland has advanced to the state championship game twice in recent years, falling to Clay-Chalkville in 2015 and to Pinson Valley in 2018. This year’s team is arguably the best in program history, with its only loss a one-point defeat at Theodore. The Spartans avenged that loss last week, posting a dominant defensive effort to beat Theodore 21-6 in the semifinals.

Two weeks ago, Saraland survived a 57-56 shootout in overtime to get past Homewood, but won a completely different type of game in the semifinals last week. Saraland boasts some of the top young playmakers in the state, led by Alabama commit sophomore wide receiver Ryan Williams. Williams has over 2,000 total yards and 35 touchdowns just this season. 

The defense is no slouch either, with Gamble and Colvin singing the praises of what their unit will be going up against.

“The challenge for us is playing great competition, but it’s what level can we play at? We want to have championship caliber play,” Yeager said.

Mountain Brook will arrive at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Friday at 4:45 p.m., with a Spartan Walk leading into the stadium. The game is set for a 7 p.m. kick, and viewers can watch the game on Alabama Public Television (APT) over the air or through the NFHS Network online.

“I think back to when I was a little kid, sitting in those bleachers watching games, I couldn’t wait to be down here on Friday nights and be under the lights,” Frost said.

“Now, to be a part of it, it’s everything you dream of.”

Village Living will be on hand to cover Mountain Brook's game Friday evening. Follow sports editor Kyle Parmley (@KyleParmley) on Twitter for live updates if you can't make it to the game. Check back here following the game for a full recap.