Fairhope’s Tim Carter named running back coach for 2020 Alabama team
AHSAA.com
Posted 12/11/20
MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Alabama’s All-Star football squad began preparations for Saturday’s 34rd annual Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Football Classic set for Cramton Bowl. Kickoff is set for …
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Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic set
Fairhope’s Tim Carter named running back coach for 2020 Alabama team
Courtesy of AHSAA.com
Posted
AHSAA.com
MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Alabama’s All-Star football squad began preparations for Saturday’s 34rd annual Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Football Classic set for Cramton Bowl. Kickoff is set for noon Dec. 12 with the AHSAA TV Network broadcasting the game over its network of cable affiliates in Alabama. The game will also be live-streamed over the NFHS Network’s subscriber-based platform.
Alabama All-Star head coach Steve Mask of Class 5A state champion St. Paul’s Episcopal announced two additions to the Alabama roster. Pleasant Grove wide receiver Christin Lewis is replacing Central-Phenix City’s Jackson Meeks, and Auburn defensive back Noah Warren replaces Spanish Fort DB Micah Gaffney. Both withdrew from the team late last week.
“We have an outstanding team put together, and the highlight has to start with our receivers and secondary,” Mask said, “As a coach, it is a dream come true to see this much talent on the same team.”
Mask said the addition of Lewis and Warren is a big plus for the Alabama All-Stars. Lewis, a Kentucky commitment, is a talented 6-foot-3, 180-pound big-play receiver who finished the season with 1,154 yards receiving. He had six catches for 145 yards and two scores in the Spartans’ 29-21 loss to Mask’s Saints in the Class 5A state finals last week. Warren also played in the Super 7 Class 7A state finals in Auburn’s 29-28 loss to Thompson. He had five tackles in the championship game and finished the season with 82 tackles overall.
The game is an event hosted by the AHSAA and Alabama High School Athletic Directors & Coaches Association (AHSADCA) in conjunction with the Mississippi Association of Coaches (MAC). Alabama’s All-Stars hold a 22-11 edge in the series which began in 1988 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium and moved to Cramton Bowl in 2011. It also started a rotation in 2015 with the game being hosted every other year by the Mississippi Association of Coaches (MAC).
Also on Alabama’s roster is Class 6A state championship game MVP Ga’Quincy “Koolaid” McKinstry of Pinson Valley, who helped the Indians beat Spanish Fort 23-13 in the finals. Mars Hill Bible running back/defensive back Peyton Higgins is also on the squad. He returned a kickoff for a TD in the Panthers’ 56-14 win at Bryant-Denny Stadium to become the AHSAA career leader for kickoff returns for TDs (9) with that return.
Other players on the squad who participated in the Super 7 last week include: St. Paul’s defensive lineman Devin Manigault and center Ivan Shultz; defensive lineman Dylan Brooks of Class 4A state champion Handley; wide receiver Brody Dalton of 3A state champion Fyffe; wide receiver JB Mitchell of Class 7A state champion Thompson; and defensive tackle Lee Gregg of Class 7A runner-up Auburn.
Mississippi won last year’s game 17-16 in overtime at Hattiesburg and is riding a three-game winning streak heading into this year’s contest.
Alabama and Mississippi All-Stars Getting their Game Face on as Final Practice Concludes Friday morning MONTGOMERY – The Alabama and Mississippi All-Star football squads each completed their sixth and final practice Friday morning and Alabama All-Star head coach Steve Mask said his team “has had a lot of fun and made a lot of new friends, but they are competitive. They are getting their games faces on.”
He admits he expects the Mississippi squad to be doing the same.
“Our goal is always to come down here and have fun, help our kids enjoy themselves and give them a chance to play with the best our state has to offer,” he said. “But at the end of the day, we came down here to win a football game too.”
The pressure is on Alabama’s All-Stars despite its 22-11 record in the series that began almost four decades ago at Mobile’s Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Mississippi comes in riding a three-game winning streak, including the visitors’ first-ever win at Cramton Bowl in 2018. Mississippi won 17-16 in overtime last year at Hattiesburg.
The 34th annual Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic at Cramton Bowl. Kickoff will be Saturday, Dec. 12 at noon. The game is sponsored by the AHSAA and its coaching wing, the AHSADCA, in conjunction with the Mississippi Association of Coaches (MAC).
This year’s game will be televised live by the rapidly growing AHSAA TV Network, which is managed by WOTM TV and executive producer Vince Earley. “We had a light practice (Friday morning),” said Mask. “We did our walk-through, went over our special teams lineup and gave the kids a chance to relax the rest of the afternoon. I hope to catch a nap myself if I can.”
Alabama’s offense features a strong receiving corps and big, fast running backs. The offensive line, said Mask, “is huge.” Defensively, he says it is obvious the talent is abundant. “Our defensive front has stood out all week.”
Among the defensive linemen are 6-foot-5, 250-pound defensive end Dylan Brooks of Handley, a Tennessee commit who had an outstanding season as the Tigers rolled to the Class 4A state championship. Tennessee Coach Jeremy Pruitt, who grew up in Alabama at Rainsville and attended Plainview High School, has two commits on the Alabama 40-man squad. The other is talented wide receiver Roc Taylor of Oxford.
The linebackers on the Alabama squad are also big and fast with Alabama commits Deontae Lawson of Mobile Christian and Ian Jackson of Prattville each standing 6-3 and close to 220 pounds. Ramsay’s Jeremiah Williams, 6-4, 230, has committed to Florida, Josh Rudolph of Park Crossing, 6-1, 225, is still uncommitted. Several outstanding quarterbacks have represented Alabama and Mississippi in the all-star game through the years, but the speed in the secondary has limited both teams to only one TD pass 80 yards or longer. Mississippi’s Richard Lucas completed an 80-yard TD pass to Moine Nicholson of Louisville in Mississippi’s 24-10 win in 1994. Alabama’s longest pass play came in the 1990 game when Steve Christopher of Anniston connected with his Bulldogs teammate Orlando Watters for a 61-yard TD. TICKETS: Are $12.00 through GOFAN and are now available for purchase at the following link: https://gofan.co/app/events/166698?schoolId=AHSAA
ALABAMA-MISSISSIPPI GAME ON TV: In Alabama, viewers will be able to pick up the game live over the AHSAA TV Network of cable affiliates put together by network producer Vince Earley of WOTM TV. The game will also be live-streamed over the NFHS Network. The cable affiliate list is available at: http://www.ahsaa.com/Portals/0/WOTM-Coverage-2020_1.jpg
The NFHS Network link for the contest is: https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/events/mhsaa-ms/gam52db494a27
Mississippi plans to produce its own live-stream as well over its MAC Network. ALABAMA-MISSISSIPPI GAME ON RADIO: The Alabama Radio Network will broadcast the game live over its group of affiliate as well. The broadcast can be accessed via the internet at the following link: http://mixlr.com/ahsaaradio/