It’s trite, but “survive and advance” is the goal for the 24 remaining Alabama High School Athletic Association football teams in this week’s playoff semifinals.

The coaches in the North Class 6A showdown on Friday at Cougar Stadium expect a fight for survival as Parker plays Clay-Chalkville for just the second time ever – based on the quality of the athletes that will be on the field and the history of what could become quite a rivalry.

Last season, a Parker squad limped into the opening round of the playoffs at Clay with a 6-4 record as the fourth seed in Region 5. The Thundering Herd was giving up 20.1 points a game. The Cougars were riding high at 8-1 as Region 6′s top seed, with their lone loss coming 17-14 at then-three time 7A champion Thompson. Coach Drew Gilmer’s offense was producing 41.2 points a game.

Clay-Chalkville’s bid to repeat as 6A champion ended with a thud as Parker edged the Cougars 7-6.

“It was just one of those things,” Gilmer said. “It went back and forth, a defensive battle. Both of us had a hard time moving the football. For us, we were coming off a bye week and the week before that we had two quarterbacks who were out with injuries. We had a lot of rust and just weren’t clicking, firing on all cylinders. It was them being real, real good defensively.”

Clay scored with 4 seconds left in the first half, but the 2-point conversion try failed. “We didn’t have a kicker last year,” Gilmer said. “We always went for two. This year, we got one. We’re going to kick.”

Parker struck for a 50-yard touchdown when Malik Muhammad connected with senior Carl Pitts in the third period. Jamicah Moss made what proved to be the winning point-after.

“It was an old-school type football game, man,” Parker head coach Frank Warren remembered. “For us, it was 3 yards and a cloud of dust. We knew Clay lived on big plays and we tried to limit what they did. We let them drive, but just stopped the big plays. It helped us that they had some injuries in that game. (Jaylen) Mbakwe didn’t play. They will be a different type team this year.”

Mbakwe is a 5-star recruit, committed to the University of Alabama as a defensive back. The recruiting website 247sports says he’s the No. 28 prospect in the country and ranks second at his position as an “athlete.” The 5-foot-11, 170-pounder has played quarterback all season for Clay.

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It’s safe to say that everyone connected with Clay football, past and present, remembers the stunning result from last year. Parker players and supporters haven’t forgotten, either.

This Friday, the Herd comes into the game at 12-1 and ranked fifth in Class 6A. Clay-Chalkville is 12-0 and has been ranked No. 2 to defending champion Saraland since the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s preseason poll.

To help the Cougars stay focused all season – and during winter workouts – the coaches concocted a graphic presentation of a watch word that is prominently displayed on Clay-Chalkville’s X (formerly Twitter) account: 23DEMPTION.

“Starting back in December, or maybe January, coach Jake Helveston, who is also one of our ADs, came up with that,” Gilmer said. “We had a sour taste in our mouths from last year. We didn’t finish and it wasn’t up to our standards. We wanted to start from scratch and said, ‘Let’s re-identify who we are and what we’re about.’

“The kids love it. We wrote down each letter of the word redemption and did a character education class, taking what each letter could represent. Those things carry over in day-to-day life and in the field.”

Parker’s Warren said his players have seen Clay’s motivational device.

“We understand they want a little redemption,” he said. “It’s probably a mixture of both that they lost in the first round and that they lost to Parker. I can tell you, it’s been a motivator for Parker, too. I imagine it’s even worse on social media. I told the guys to stay off of it, but it’s hard with all these phones. They really want us and we’re going to accept the challenge.”

Gilmer said from the Clay side, the 23DEMPTION is all about the Cougars. “It’s just that we lost in the first round. Parker was a good football team last year and they are really, really good this year. It has nothing to do with them, it’s just us being the best we can be. I don’t think we lived up to that last year.”

On paper, a near dead heat

The 2023 versions of both teams are in near statistical dead heats. According to Alabama High School Football Historical Society (ahsfhs.org) research, Clay-Chalkville scores 40.2 points a game, third-best in 6A behind Saraland (52.3) and Muscle Shoals (42.5) – the team that the Cougars eliminated 44-27 last week. Parker is fourth in scoring at 39.6 points a game.

Clay is second in scoring defense, allowing 10.4 points per game (behind Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa’s 8.9). The Cougars held seven opponents to a single touchdown on less with three shutouts. Parker is third, giving up 12.9 a game. The Herd had two shutouts and three other opponents scored 8 points or fewer.

“Our defense is one of a kind,” Warren said. “We have some of the greatest athletes on the defensive side. They are physical and can hit you. From our secondary to the D-line to linebackers, we feel we can be one of the best defenses in the state. It’s not just a single guy, the whole group is special.”

University of Alabama commitment senior Jeremiah Beaman and junior Auburn commit Jourdin Crawford are both 4-star recruits according to 247sports. Beaman is 6-4, 250 pounds, while Crawford is 6-3, 285. Beaman has 11 sacks and 9 tackles for a loss among his 53 total stops.

“He’s the best defensive lineman in the state,” Warren said of Beaman. “He works hard and has a high motor. He’s one of a kind with his strength and speed. He’s a cerebral, special type of player. He plays both inside and outside on the line. He’s so versatile that we try to find the best matchup for him. He’s hard to account for when we move him around. He can do it all.”

Crawford is third on the team with 67 total tackles with 17 sacks – the Herd’s leader – and 9 tackles behind the line of scrimmage. “He’s just a grown man still in high school,” Warren said. “He’s one of a kind. A quiet kid, but get him on the football field and he turns into a special talent.

“We also have the No. 1 defensive back in the Class of ‘25 in Na’eem Offord,” Warren said, although 247sports’ latest ranking lists the uncommitted 6-2, 174-pounder as the No. 2 DB in the class. “He’s dangerous on both sides of the ball. Every game he wows you with what he can do with the ball in his hands, then we ask him to cover the best receiver on the other team. I think he has three punt returns for touchdowns in the playoffs. A lot of teams didn’t kick to him in the regular season. Thank God they kick to him in the playoffs.”

Senior linebacker Carlton Duncan leads Parker with 95 total tackles, 67 solo. He also has 3 interceptions. End Phillip Davison Jr. has 83 total stops. Freshman lineman Robert Taylor has 13 tackles for loss.

The Herd also has plenty of athletes on offense with running backs Amari Brundidge (6-0, 214) and Martavius Purnell (5-8, 160). “I call them Thunder and Lightning,” Warren said. Brundidge has 932 yards and 8 touchdowns on 113 carries while Purnell has 832 on 102 attempts with 13 scores. “We have a 10th-grader in the mix with Chancellor Sparks, the fastest freshman in the state. We have a great running game by committee.”

Sparks has 593 yards on 71 carries and 7 TDs. Senior Malik Muhammad has 565 yards rushing with 5 scores and 247 yards on pass receptions with 2 TDs now that he’s moving around on offense. “After our loss to Pleasant Grove (22-21 in Week 6), we made a change at quarterback,” Warren said. “Malik didn’t play bad, we just wanted to utilize our best on the field. Malik then got injured, but he came back in the second round of the playoffs and didn’t miss a beat. We can play him at outside receiver, back at quarterback, anywhere. He’s one of our best players.

“It was a blessing that we have Cam Jennings to be one of those quarterbacks that nothing bothers him. How he carries himself, he jokes a lot, but in a good way, and that makes him what he is at quarterback.”

Jennings, a 6-0, 200-pound senior, has thrown for 926 yards in seven games with 9 touchdowns and no interceptions. He’s completed 47-of-78 passes. Muhammad has 830 yards passing in nine games, also with 9 TDs, with 1 interception.

Jeremiah Jelks has caught 27 passes for 522 yards and 5 scores and Kentrell Davis has 312 yards on 16 catches with 4 TDs.

Cougars defense stands tall

To counter Parker’s offensive attack, Clay-Chalkville will rely on DJ Barber, a middle linebacker that Gilmer said is so “overlooked that is it ridiculous. He’s the guy, the heart and soul of our team. He manages the workouts, he’s physical – a Clay-Chalkville football player through and through. He coaches those younger guys every day. He cleans up the locker room, takes out the trash. Nobody ever told him to do that.

“When you watch him, he plays sideline-to-sideline,” Gilmer said. “He’s a thumper. It sounds different when he hits you. His football IQ is out the roof. I can’t say enough about him.”

Barber leads the team with 125 tackles, 42 solo, with 2 sacks, 3 TFL, a forced fumble and an interception.

“Carlos Ivy is another inside linebacker who has been a surprise. If he’s not one of the top linebackers in the state, I don’t know what one is.”

Ivy has 106 tackles, 5 for a loss, and end Nakarius Allen has 61 tackles with 6 TFL and 7 sacks.

The interior of the defensive front includes Randell Cole and Patrick Smith. Avion Pickett is another end who has a team-best 14 tackles behind the line and 55 total tackles.

“The other Ivy, Rod Ivy, plays our Sam, that nickel position or outside linebacker,” Gilmer said. “He’s a playmaker and has a knack for the ball.”

The secondary includes safeties Tevis Metcalf, who missed some games during the middle of the season, and Deion Gunn, cornerbacks Jamarqus Jones, Jeremy Billingsley and Deon Callins and Xavier Sparks. “He’s our young kid,” Gilmer said of the sophomore Sparks. “The sky is the limit for him. He’s very versatile, too. He punts for us.”

Mbakwe has completed 113-of-173 passes this season for 1,605 yards and 18 touchdowns with 6 interceptions. He’s been sacked 7 times and has 127 rushing attempts for 789 yards – tops on the team. He has 19 TDs on the ground. Against Muscle Shoals last week, he hit on 21-of-27 passes for 316 yards and 5 touchdowns.

“He’s a great kid and an elite talent,” Gilmer said. “When you’ve got a kid like that who is willing to be unselfish and do whatever for the team, he sets the tone. He’s being the best he can be with it and that’s pretty stinking good.”

Receiver Mario Craver is a 4-star recruit, drawing interest from 11 SEC teams – 12 if you count newcomer Oklahoma. “We move him all over the place,” his coach said. “He’s a very savvy football player and probably one of the best natural pass catchers we’ve ever had. He’s got a little wiggle to him; every time he touches the ball it’s possible he’s going to put 6 on the board.”

Craver has 36 catches for 662 yards for 11 touchdowns to lead a receiving corps that also features Marlon Compton (256 yards, 2 TDs), Kumar Robinson (147 yards), Corey Barber (220 yards) and three tight ends – Jabari Staples, Jaydon Stone and Bravis Cave. “They play tight end, they can split out, they play true 3-back positions,” Gilmer said.

Making life easier for the skill players is an offensive line anchored by center 6-2, 297-pound Brady Phillips. “He’s probably the most improved player on the football team,” Gilmer said. “He plays so hard and nasty. He just loves the game and sets the tone for us. We have some really good ones around him in AJ Williams (6-2, 295), JacQawn ‘Shaq’ McRoy (a 6-9, 375-pound 4-star Oregon commitment) and Adrian Spivey (5-10, 227).”

No matter if Clay-Chalkville gets a measure of redemption or if Parker spoils the Cougars’ hopes for the second straight season, the winner of the No. 1 Saraland vs. Pike Road game awaits on Dec. 8 at 6 p.m. at Bryant-Denny Stadium to decide the championship. Besides the 2021 crown, Clay also won titles in 1999 and 2014. Parker lost its only appearance in the championship in 1980, 15-13 to Vestavia Hills. The Herd is 1-1 in semifinal games.