Pigskin Roundup 2015 | Page 20

KICKOFF Leader KICKOFF KICKOFF Tribe Munford Head Coach Bill Smith MUNFORD LOOKING AHEAD, NOT BACK Before Will Wagnon took over as Munford’s head coach in 2010, the decision on who became the Lion’s new coach wouldn’t have been the headline for New Faces, New Places. However, following Munford’s recent success, this change has attracted a lot of attention. The Munford Lions have won 29 games over the past three seasons, which includes six playoff victories. And, although they graduated a lot of talent over the past few years, they return a solid group of starters in 2015. Bill Smith is the man charged with the task of continuing the Lion resurgence. The faithful on the north-end of Talladega County feel they may have hired the perfect person to not only continue, but also build on the success. Smith, a former punter at the University of Alabama, has built quite a reputation for building winning programs. He stepped down at Shades Valley after four seasons and two playoff runs in Class 6A. The last two years he compiled 19 wins that included arguably the best win of any Alabama team in 2014 when the Mounties defeated the top-ranked team out of Louisiana’s top classification, Acadiana High School. Munford wasn’t the only school interested in Smith for their head coaching job. He had a number of opportunities and decided to settle down some roots along the Highway 21 corridor. Smith was clear on his motives when he talked with TV24 back in the spring. “We’ll try to build on the success that Coach Wagnon had here. And we’ll try to bring the high-powered offense that we had at Shades Valley. I look forward to the challenges.” By Chad Barnett Faces Places 18 | 2015 Pigskin Roundup the Magazine KICKOFF TOP TEN Super 7 Picks Jon Holder’s of the By Chad Barnett KICKOFF and CLASS 1A CLASS 2A CLASS 3A 1. Maplesville 2. Wadley 3. Brantley 4. Cedar Bluff 5. Linden 6. Hubbertville 7. Billingsley 8. Marion County 9. Notasulga 10. Donoho 1. Fyffe 2. Sweet Water 3. Tanner 4. Elba 5. Randolph County 6. Washington County 7. Reeltown 8. Cottonwood 9. Gaston 10. G.W Long 1. Madison Academy 2. T. R. Miller 3. Piedmont 4. Gordo 5. Walter Wellborn 6. Pike County 7. Colbert County 8. Dale County 9. Glencoe 10. Montgomery Academy S7P: Maplesville vs Wadley S7P: Fyffe vs Sweet Water S7P: Madison Academy vs T.R. Miller CLASS 4A CLASS 5A CLASS 6A 1. Leeds 2. Saks 3. UMS-Wright 4. Cleburne County 5. Cordova 6. Deshler 7. Oneonta 8. Straughn 9. Jacksonville 10. Thomasville 1. St. Paul’s Episcopal 2. Pleasant Grove 3. Jackson 4. J.O. Johnson 5. C.F. Vigor 6. East Limestone 7. Central-Clay County 8. Etowah 9. Guntersville 10. Alexandria 1. Clay-Chalkville 2. Spanish Fort 3. Muscle Shoals 4. Saraland 5. McAdory 6. Benjamin Russell 7. Opelika 8. Florence 9. Daphne 10. Homewood S7P: Leeds vs Saks S7P: St. Paul’s vs Pleasant Grove S7P: Clay-Chalkville vs Spanish Fort CLASS 7A Saks Picture from Chad HERE The Jacksonville Golden Eagles make the pre-season Top Ten at number nine. Pleasant Valley - Jonathan Nix It’s the end of an era in Pleasant Valley. Jeff Davis stepped down following one of the best tenures in school history. Jonathan Nix moved to Pleasant Valley from Ragland, where he led the Purple Devils to a 30-5 record over the last three years. This is his third head-coaching job. 1. Gadsden City 2. Central-Phenix City 3. Hoover 4. Foley 5. Hewitt-Trussville 6. Oak Mountain 7. Fairhope 8. Prattville 9. Bob Jones 10. James Clemens S7P: Gadsden City vs Central-Phenix City White Plains - Chris White The long-time White Plains assistant coach, who stood in the background when Larry Strain was hired in 2014, finally got his shot to become head football coach. Despite not getting the head coaching job during the last search, White stayed patient and became the defensive coordinator under Strain. His persistence paid off when Strain left after one year on the job.