“Oh, what a night!”

That lyric from the great Four Seasons tune referred to a special night in December, 1963, but it applies nicely to Alabama high school football on an early September night in 2024.

McKenzie and Elba set the AHSAA state record for the most points in a game, as McKenzie prevailed, 80-78, as McKenzie proved itself as a legitmate state championship contender.

Here are our 5 Takeaways from Friday’s high school football schedule in Alabama.

James Clemens had a tough task on Friday night. It hosted Bob Jones which had started the season red hot with an explosive offense. James Clemens, which has won 7A Region 4 four out of the last six years, had its hands full. What followed was an excellent football game with James Clemens winning, 34-31.

The Jets had a back and forth contest with the Patriots, but it all boiled down to a 44-yard field goal attempt for the Patriots to send the game to overtime. The Jets had different plans and blocked the field goal. The Jets have once again put themselves in the driver seat for another region title. 

The Rebels from Reeltown started the season on statewide television on WOTM with their matchup drawing the TR Miller Tigers. Multiple turnovers and special teams lapses later the Rebels fell 28-7 in a game that made many people wonder how good Reeltown could be. Last week they showed everyone that it was just a bad night as they played #2 Trinity in 3A and won 20-3. Then this week in a region matchup they rolled Horseshoe Bend 61-0. Reeltown will have another region test next week with Ranburne coming in, who they have not played since 2019. With a win, Reeltown will put themselves firmly in the conversation for another region title. 

Auburn had its first real test of the 2024 season with its arch-rival the Opelika Bulldogs. Opelika had already had a test and passed with a victory over Benjamin Russell in Week 1. One of the biggest rivalries in the state took place for the 99th time, at Auburn and the two teams battled throughout the whole night.

Anytime one team would score, the other team would respond. It truly was back-and-forth until Auburn finally got a stop and got the victory. These two have had some very close battles, but the Tigers have gotten the best of Opelika these last few years. The last time Opelika beat Auburn was in 2019 in a 21-13 victory in Opelika. Auburn now leads the all-time series 49-47-3. Opelika will likely have to wait till next year for another chance at their rival.

Auburn holds off Opelica, wins 99th meeting between Alabama rivals

Piedmont had a rare down season last year. After a lot of injuries and a new coach in 2023, a lot of people around the state wondered if this would be the year the Bulldogs would return to their title winning ways. While there is still a long way to go before the state title game, Piedmont has shown they have returned to being a 3A powerhouse, beating Cherokee County, a 4A power in their own right, on Friday night.

Piedmont has dominated its first two region games and, with one look at its schedule, it is very likely Piedmont rolls into the postseason with a 10-0 record. The Bulldogs will be a force come playoff time this season. 

McKenzie had flew under the radar for even some of the most well researched fans and media members before the season. It started the season off with two comfortable wins over of pair 3A teams, Wilcox Central,and Prattville Christian, but it was still hard to determine if McKenzie was that good, or if their competition was just lackluster.

That changed Friday night, going on the road to face the third-ranked in Class 1A, Elba, in a big region match-up. Elba had not lost on its home field against another 1A opponent since the 2022 AHSAA playoffs.

McKenzie proved all of the doubters wrong going on the road and playing in what is now the highest scoring game in AHSAA history with a 80-78 four overtime victory over Elba. McKenzie won’t be able to celebrate for long, as Georgiana will be coming into town next week, who finished second in the region last season and is highly respected in 1A squad. But McKenzie put the state on notice, as it certainly has the offense to play with anyone in the state.