Alabama
NFL Monday night: Former Alabama prep star helps Falcons stun Eagles
In his second NFL season, former Gadsden City High School standout Darnell Mooney was a 1,000-yard receiver in 2021. But in the past two seasons combined, Mooney didn’t have 1,000 receiving yards as injuries and spotty quarterback play depressed his production.
That didn’t keep the Atlanta Falcons from signing Mooney to a three-year, $39 million contract in the offseason as a free agent. In his first game for Atlanta, Mooney had one reception for 15 yards in an 18-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 8.
But on Monday night, Mooney’s signing paid off for the Falcons as Atlanta rallied to beat the Philadelphia Eagles 22-21.
Mooney’s first reception of the game was a 41-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Kirk Cousins as the Falcons took a 15-10 lead with 1:21 left in the third quarter.
After Philadelphia drove 70 yards on 17 plays for a touchdown and, after stopping Atlanta on downs at the Falcons 39-yard line, added a field goal, Atlanta got the football at its 30-yard line trailing by six with 1:39 to play. Mooney had back-to-back receptions of 21 and 26 yards, setting up a 7-yard touchdown pass from Cousins to wide receiver Drake London with 34 seconds to play.
After an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty against London, Younghoe Koo made a 48-yard extra point to give the Falcons a one-point lead.
Atlanta safety Jessie Bates III ended the game when he intercepted Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts at the Falcons 32 with 19 seconds to play.
Mooney had three receptions for 88 yards and one touchdown. He hadn’t had that many receiving yards in a game since Oct. 2, 2022, when he had four receptions for 94 yards in the Chicago Bears’ 20-12 loss to the New York Giants.
Six other players from Alabama high schools and colleges got on the field during the Atlanta-Philadelphia game:
· Reed Blankenship (West Limestone) started at safety for the Eagles. Blankenship led Philadelphia with 10 tackles.
· Eagles defensive back James Bradberry (Pleasant Grove, Samford) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Landon Dickerson (Alabama) started at left guard for the Eagles.
· Eagles offensive lineman Jack Driscoll (Auburn) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Falcons safety DeMarcco Hellams (Alabama) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
· Bryce Huff (St. Paul’s Episcopal) started at defensive end for the Eagles. Huff did not record any stats.
· Jalen Hurts (Alabama) started at quarterback for the Eagles. Hurts completed 23-of-30 passes for 183 yards with one touchdown and one interception and ran 13 times for 85 yards and one touchdown. Hurts threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver DeVonta Smith as Philadelphia took a 7-3 lead with 5:15 left in the first half and scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak as the Eagles went in front 18-15 with 6:47 remaining in the game.
· Falcons running back Jase McClellan (Alabama) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· Falcons linebacker Monty Rice (James Clemens) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
· Eagles cornerback Eli Ricks (Alabama) was designated as a game-day inactive.
· DeVonta Smith (Alabama) started at wide receiver for the Eagles. Smith had seven receptions for 76 yards and one touchdown. Smith caught a 7-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jalen Hurts as Philadelphia took a 7-3 lead with 5:15 left in the first half.
· Eagles offensive lineman Tyler Steen (Alabama) did not record any stats.
· Eagles defensive tackle Byron Young (Alabama) was designated as a game-day inactive.
Atlanta (1-1) plays the Kansas City Chiefs at 7:20 p.m. CDT Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Philadelphia (1-1) plays the New Orleans Saints at noon Sunday at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver DeVonta Smith catches a touchdown pass during an NFL game against the Atlanta Falcons on Monday, Sept. 16, 2024, at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.(AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
FOR MORE OF AL.COM’S COVERAGE OF THE NFL, GO TO OUR NFL PAGE
Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
SPANISH FORT, Ala. (WALA) – The YMCA of South Alabama held a Healthy Kids Day at Spanish Fort Town Center Park.
Saturday’s event featured games and demonstrations, along with interactive activities featuring police and fire vehicles.
“I think just seeing so many organizations come together that serve kids, and just seeing kids have fun,” said Gwen Summer, CEO of the YMCA of South Alabama.
Marissa Rennaker, director of development for the YMCA of South Alabama, said the event exposed children to new activities.
“I think it’s been seeing all the kids laugh and try different things that they probably haven’t tried before,” Rennaker said. “There was a big group doing pickleball and yoga. We had ballet earlier, so just getting them out and exposed to things, I think it’s been great.”
The event was designed to kick off a healthy, active summer.
The YMCA of South Alabama is located at 27080 Pollard Road in Daphne.
Copyright 2026 WALA. All rights reserved.
Former Alabama star Will Anderson Jr. has reportedly signed a three-year, $150 million extension with the Houston Texans, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Anderson instantly solidified himself as one of the top defensive players in football throughout his rookie campaign in 2023. The star defensive end was named as the Rookie of the Year in 2023, as Anderson’s extension will officially keep him in Houston long-term, as well as make him the highest paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
Anderson recorded an impressive 12 sacks on the Texans’ defensive line in 2025, as the former Alabama star has made history following his head turning extension with Houston.
Anderson was nothing short of a superstar throughout his time at Alabama. Houston drafted the talented lineman with the third overall pick of the 2023 NFL draft, as Anderson was widely regarded as one of the top overall selections from his class.
The former Crimson Tide superstar has officially inked a massive extension with the Texans, as Anderson will undoubtedly continue playing a critical role on Houston’s defensive line over the coming seasons.
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Alabama head coach Rob Vaughn said that No. 4 Texas would be “hungry” against the No. 11Crimson Tide coming off its first series loss of the season to Texas A&M.
The Longhorns certainly were, as they pounced all over Vaughn’s team, striking out 17 Alabama batters en route to a 10-2 win.
“The story of the game was they just kind of kicked our tail in every phase tonight,” Vaughn said.
Alabama starter Tyler Fay had been elite over his past four starts, dating back to his complete-game no-hitter against Florida, allowing just six earned runs over the 26.0 innings pitched in those games. That changed instantly on Friday evening, as leadoff batter Aiden Robbins opened the game with a double and catcher Carson Tinney took him deep for a two-run blast moments later.
Texas added a third run in the first off an Ethan Mendoza RBI double, setting the tone for a dominant day. Alabama did not record a hit until the fourth inning as Longhorn ace Dylan Volantis tore through batters, striking out 12 over six innings.
Fay ended up going 5.1 innings, just the second time he did not make it through the sixth. The other, against Auburn, was only due to Vaughn wanting to keep his pitch count down in the wake of the no-hitter. He allowed season-highs of seven earned runs and 12 hits in the loss.
The Longhorns added a run each in the third and the fifth, before Alabama put the slightest amount of pressure on Texas in the top of the sixth. Bryce Fowler and Justin Lebron scored on the basepaths off an error and a wild pitch, respectively, to cut the Texas lead to three runs.
“You’ve got to find ways to score,” Vaughn said. “Those two guys just created two runs for us, and did a great job creating those runs and we crawl back in at 5-2, and it’s like, ‘Let’s go back to work…’ So thought we had that chance in those middle innings.”
The Longhorns effectively put the game to bed in the next frame, responding with three runs as Fay was relieved by Connor Lehman. Texas would add two more runs on the day, with the only silver lining coming in the fact that Alabama avoided a run-rule.
The Crimson Tide has now lost four straight SEC games after winning three consecutive series. Zane Adams takes the mound with the series on the line on Saturday, in a game that has been moved up to 12 p.m. CT due to anticipated rain in Austin.
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