This is an opinion piece.

To turn the Mary G. Montgomery football program into a winner, Zach Golson had to quickly change a lot at the school.

“Everything is different,” he said this week. “Everything.”

In Golson’s three years as the head coach, MGM has moved from the bottom of 7A, Region 1 to the perennial favorite in the league. One rival coach at the Jubilee 7-on-7 tournament this week told me, “Until someone knocks off Mary G., they are the team to beat.”

Four years ago, no one would have thought that was even a remote possibility.

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It’s quite a testament to what Golson and his staff have built in a relatively short time in Semmes.

“It takes a lot,” he said. “There are a lot of moving parts in 7A football. People and processes. Players, coaches, administrators. Everyone buying into a single-minded vision. Our processes are really good – tried and proven in 20-plus years. A lot of them come from (former Prattville and UAB) coach (Bill) Clark and (former McGill coach) Caleb Ross. Everything we do from a day-to-day standpoint to a year-to-year calendar, all those things have to come together. We have really good people and good processes.”

Just how far have the Vikings come in three years? Consider these numbers.

When Golson left his job as Daphne’s offensive coordinator to take over MGM, the Vikings had won four of the last 40 region games. They had lost 18 of their last 19 games overall. The one win in that stretch? A COVID forfeit over Davidson in 2020.

“Thinking back to Media Days four years ago, we said we could win every game we played that year (2022),” Golson said. “Sure enough, every game that first year we had a chance to win. We lost three games in the last minute. The second year, we went 12-1. We always knew the talent was there. How fast would they develop and buy in? We saw it pretty quickly, and we’ve been able to maintain it, but every year is a new year. Every season a new season.”

In three years under Golson, the team is 27-8 overall, a remarkable 27-4 since losing those first four games – the first three by a combined 6 points, two in overtime. The Vikings have won 17 straight region games and a pair of region titles. They’ve been in the playoffs all three years, including a semifinal run in 2023.

“Without coach Golson, we wouldn’t be where we are today. No way,” senior safety Shondell Harris said. “He runs the show. When he is here, everyone is at 1,000 percent.”

The turnaround truly has been astonishing, but the Vikings haven’t reached their goal yet.

“State championship,” Harris said. “All the way.”

Golson’s goals with a senior-laden team in 2025 are a little more immediate.

“I want to see our guys get better every day,” he said. “That’s what we keep telling them. Focus on getting better. If we do that, we have a chance to be pretty good. If we stay healthy, which comes back to how we train and how we lift weights, we will be fine. As coaches, we will continue to challenge them in that way and try to keep getting better.”

The future beyond 2025 is also bright. Golson said there is a good freshmen class coming in and both of the school’s younger teams had winning records a year ago.

“I don’t see there being a major drop off,” he said. “We have to keep holding on to our kids at Semmes and keep getting better.”

Another key will be MGM holding on to Golson.

As the Vikings continue to be a playoff contender in 7A, Golson will continue to be a hot commodity in the coaching community and deservedly so.

For now, however, as practice starts for real in the coming weeks, he is focused on one thing: the Aug. 22 opener at home against Pace, Fla., another region title and a deep playoff run.

Returning to Jackson

It’s been a dozen years since Saraland coach Jeff Kelly has taken one of his teams back to Legion Field in Jackson.

Kelly coached the Aggies from 2008-2010, leading them to a state title game appearance in 2009, before leaving to take over Spartans’ program.

In 2013, Saraland lost 42-17 at Jackson when the two teams were both members of Class 5A, Region 1. The Aggies and Spartans played a non-region opener last year at Saraland with the Spartans winning 35-27 before a huge crowd.

The same type environment is expected on Aug. 22 when Saraland, the Class 6A runner-up a year ago, travels to face reigning 4A champ Jackson in the opener for both teams.

“It is such a great environment,” Kelly said of Jackson. “There are great people in the community up there. Every time we play, it’s always a big game. It’s such a competitive community. When we played them last year, it was a great crowd at our place. I think everyone from Clarke County showed up. I don’t know who is in charge of keeping the gates or taking up tickets, but I hope they have some extra people to work the gates this fall.”

Thursday Night Lights

It’s become a tradition in recent years for Eastern Shore rivals Spanish Fort and Fairhope to play one of the first football games of the year on the first Thursday of the season.

That will be the case again on Aug. 21 when the Pirates travel to the Hill to take on the Toros. It will make the sixth straight season-opening matchup between the schools. Fairhope holds a 3-2 edge in those games. Spanish Fort, however, won 42-6 a year ago.

“I like it because they are so well coached,” Fairhope coach Tim Carter said. “They play so hard. They get after you. It’s not a region game, so it’s always been a good measuring stick for us. Kids get excited about playing it. They know a lot of the guys. It’s been a good warmup for us getting ready for region play because we can compete at a high level.”

Thought for the Week

“There is a lot to be said for steady.” — Rev. Grant Barber.

Ben Thomas is the high school managing producer at AL.com. He has been named one of the 50 legends of the Alabama Sports Writers Association. Follow him on twitter at @BenThomasPreps or email him at [email protected].