This is an opinion piece.

After a two-week delay due to last week’s winter weather, the Alabama Sports Writers Association finally will name its 42nd Mr. Football on Tuesday in Montgomery.

Forty-eight finalists for back and lineman of the year will be honored at the event, co-sponsored by ALFA Insurance and the Alabama High School Athletic Directors and Coaches Association.

Who are the top candidates to be Mr. Football for the 2023 season? The buzz in the last month has centered around six players, though all 48 finalists are eligible to win.

One caveat: The eventual Mr. Football has to be the back or lineman of the year for his classification.

Here’s a look at the six players widely considered to be among this year’s Mr. Football favorites:

Cam Coleman, WR, Central-Phenix City

An Auburn early signee, Coleman led the Red Devils to the Class 7A state title and was MVP of the championship game win over Thompson. He finished the season with 61 receptions for 1,372 yards and 18 TDs.

Alvin Henderson, RB, Elba

The junior is the reigning 1A Back of the Year. In 2023, he rushed for 3,523 yards and 61 touchdowns on 225 carries. He averaged 15.7 yards per carry and 251 yards rushing per game.

KJ Lacey, QB, Saraland

The junior Texas commit completed 70 percent of his passes for 3,448 yards and 42 touchdowns this season in helping the Spartans to their second straight Class 6A title game. He was intercepted 8 times. He also scored 5 rushing TDs.

Ronnie Royal, ATH, Gulf Shores

Royal, who signed with N.C. State, rushed for 1,069 yards and 17 TDs on 151 carries in helping the Dolphins to their first state title. He also caught 34 passes for 478 yards and a TD and passed for a touchdown. He returned four punts for TDs, two interceptions for scores and two kickoff returns for TDs for a total of 27 TDs. On defense, he finished with 49 tackles and five interceptions. He was the MVP of the 5A state title game.

Jaylen Mbakwe, ATH, Clay-Chalkville

The senior Alabama signee moved to quarterback for his final year and led the Cougars to a 14-0 season and the Class 6A state title. He completed 137-of-206 passes for 2,066 yards and 22 TDs and also rushed for 1,036 yards and 23 TDs on 149 carries. He was the MVP of the 6A title game.

Ryan Williams, WR, Saraland

The junior – now technically senior – wide receiver is the reigning 6A Back of the Year and Mr. Football winner. This season, he caught 71 passes for 1,320 yards and 19 TDs, rushed for 269 yards and seven scores, threw a touchdown pass and returned both a punt and kickoff for TDs. He scored 4 TDs in Saraland’s loss in the Class 6A title game.

It could be a historic day in Montgomery.

Should Henderson or Lacey win, it would be just the third time an underclassman has claimed the award following Williams last year and Beauregard running back La’Damian Webb in 2016. Should Williams win again, he would be the first two-time winner in the history of the award.

Or might there be a surprise winner? Time will tell.

Not backing down

Thompson, which had its streak of four consecutive Class 7A state titles ended by Central-Phenix City in December, certainly isn’t backing down from anyone in 2024.

In addition to a region schedule that includes Hoover, Hewitt-Trussville, Vestavia Hills and now Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa, the Warriors have added three tough non-region foes.

Mark Freeman’s team will host Georgia power Grayson on Aug. 23, travel to play Lipscomb Academy (Tenn.) in Nashville on Aug. 30 and host reigning 6A champ Clay-Chalkville on Sept. 27.

Thought for the Week

“It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow.” — 1 Corinthians 3:7

Ben Thomas is the high school sportswriter 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]. He can be heard weekly on “Inside High School Sports” on SportsTalk 99.5 FM in Mobile or on the free IHeart Radio App at 2 p.m. Wednesdays.