ROBERTSDALE — In 13 previous seasons as a head football coach in Alabama, Justin Jones has taken on several rebuilding projects including guiding teams to the playoffs in nine seasons.

As he looks ahead to his second year at Robertsdale, a team that was 2-24 in its previous 26 games before his arrival late last summer, he almost looks at 2026 as year one with the Bears.

"To me, this is kind of year one because we got there so late last year,'" Jones said. "It was more like year zero."

Year zero wasn't all bad for the Bears and Jones. Robertsdale won twice as many games in 2025 as it had in the 26 before he arrived, finishing with a 4-6 record.

"We're just excited about where we are," Jones said. "This being year one, we're excited about where we're at, the possibilities in front of us now. You got to go make the most of those opportunities and then kind of see where things lay out. After about eight or nine weeks in the season, hopefully we're fighting for a chance to do something and make a playoff game in Robertsdale."

It won't be easy as the Bears seek a playoff berth for the first time since 2004. Official student enrollment landed Robertsdale in Class 6A with the state's 32 most populus schools, including those formerly in the old Class 7A under the previous classification. For the next two years, public and private schools within the AHSAA will have separate playoffs and play in separate classifications.

Four of those schools in Region 1 are in the last five of that 32 in enrollment with Fairhope at No. 28 followed in order of enrollment by Foley at No. 29, Davidson at 30 and Robertsdale at 31. Buckhorn from Madison County is the smallest Class 6A team. Others include Baker at No. 8, Mary Montgomery at No. 14, Alma Bryant at No. 17 and No. 20 Daphne.

Jones said one thing will decide if the Bears break their no-playoff streak.

"It's consistency," Jones said. "Just figuring out the things you do on a daily basis is what in turn becomes what Friday nights become. Once that initial shock or that first series or that first whatever, it's just being really consistent in who we are. I think usually teams that are really consistent are teams that find ways to win ball games."

He'll rely on a small core of seniors to lead the way along on both sides of the ball. Four starters return on offense including the senior quarterback, Cub Jones, wide receiver senior Colton Boudreaux, senior offensive lineman Eli Rodgers and sophomore offensive lineman Jonathan Barragan.

"Offensively, of course, naturally by the position your quarterback has to kind of be that guy," Jones said. "And then Eli Rodgers does a really good job, and he kind of sets the tone for that group."

Four starters also return on defense, and Jones expects linebacker Hunter Williams to be a leader there. Jahiem Howard returns on the defensive line, and in the secondary Kyron Williams and Brandon Clayton are returning starters. All four are seniors.

Jones was at Beauregard before coming to Robertsdale. There, his teams made the playoffs his last three years. He also been the head coach at Florala, New Brockton and Cordova and served as an assistant at Enterprise and Prattville where he was the defensive coordinator in his career.