Defending 6A Champ Oxford to meet No. 3 Pinson Valley in AHSAA-TV Game of the Week

Montgomery, AL – Oxford and Pinson Valley high schools know what is at stake Friday night when the two Class 6A football powers clash at Willie Adams Stadium in the AHSAA TV Network/NFHS Network Game of the Week in the 6A North Quarterfinals.

Oxford (11-1), coached Keith Etheredge, comes in as the defending Class 6A state champion riding an 11-game winning streak. Pinson Valley (9-2), coached by Sam Shade,own the 2017 and 2018 Class 6A state titles and lost in the semifinals last year to the Yellow Jackets 31-28.

Etheredge took over the Yellow Jackets’ program last year and won the school’s first state title since 1993 in the process. 

Shade,the former University of Alabama standout and NFL star, is in his first year as the Indians’ boss – and would like to do the same for his program.

Oxford head coach Keith Etheredge before the Yellow Jackets’ 34-33 win over Pinson Valley in 2019. Brant Berry | PrepsNet

Both coaches agree talent is bountiful on both sides. “They have a great team with a lot of players in the skill positions that are really talented,” said Etheredge of Pinson’s lineup. “We have great players too. It should be a great game.”

Oxford, who finished 2019 at 14-1 with seven straight wins to end the season, opened its season against Class 7A defending state champion Thompson and suffered a 56-34 setback. The Jackets beat Pleasant Grove, which was the Class 5A state runner-up in 2019, in a close 29-28 game the next week and closed the regular season with a 32-31 overtime win over Central-Phenix City – the 2019 Class 7A state runner-up.

Pinson Valley lost its first game of the season as well, falling to Class 7A power Hewitt-Trussville 44-19. The Indians’ only other loss was to undefeated Class 5A power Ramsay 14-13 on September 25. Shade’s squad has won five straight games since – including playoff victories over Arab (45-0) and Shades Valley (48-16).

The Indians have one of the state’s premier receivers and defensive backs Ga’Quincy McKinstry,who is already committed to the University of Alabama. Oxford brings in standout wide receiver Roc Taylor who has committed to the Tennessee Volunteers. Jackets quarterback Trey Higgins,who signed a baseball scholarship with Mississippi State last week, has accounted for more than 3,000 yards passing this season and has passed and rushed for more than 50 touchdowns.  All three players will be teammates in December when Alabama meets Mississippi in the 34th Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic at Cramton Bowl.

Pinson’s GaQuincy McKinstry during the Indians 45-0 first round victory over Arab. Brant Berry | PrepsNet

Pinson quarterback Zach Pyron,a junior, led Fyffe High School to a 15-0 record and the 2019 Class 2A state title last year before transferring to Pinson Valley last spring.

Shademay be in his first year as the Indians head coach but he brought an impressive resume to the Pinson Valley sidelines – including 10 years in the NFL as a safety with 563 career tackles and 10 interceptions. He began his coaching career as an assistant for legendary head coach Fred Yancy at Briarwood Christian School, and also had stints at Samford University and Georgia State. He was on the Cleveland Browns coaching staff before taking over the Indians’ program.

Etheredgeis 25-2 in two seasons at Oxford and 150-51 overall in 15 seasons as a head coach. He guided Leeds to four state championships and one state-runner-up finish from 2006-2015. He also had head coaching stints at Pell City and T.R. Miller. Last week’s 35-14 playoff win over Briarwood was the 150th win of his career and his 107-34 record in 10 seasons at Leeds makes him the winningest head coach in the Green Wave’s storied history.

The NFHS Network’s AHSAA School Broadcast Program will live-stream of this week’s 26 playoff games with a total of 19 live-streams overall.  A total of 21 games will be on radio with 30 different broadcasts planned.

The AHSAA’s NFHS Network school broadcast program set a record this week producing 374 events. A total of 150 varsity and JV basketball games, one wrestling event three other special events are set to be on the NFHS Network Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Kickoff for the Oxford-Pinson contest is set for 7 p.m., and can be seen over the subscriber-based NFHS Network and the WOTM TV Network’s cable station affiliates across the state.

WOTM will also feature a playoff game of the week in the quarterfinals and semifinals and will produce all seven state finals at the 2020 Super 7 at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa in December for the AHSAA TV Network.

The NFHS Network link for the Oxford-Pinson Game of the Week can be found at:
https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/events/ahsaa/gamb9dfb5474f

AHSAA TV Network’s WOTM cable availability, go to the following link:
https://www.ahsaa.com/Portals/0/WOTM-Coverage-2019_1.jpg
 

The complete AHSAA schedule of events set to be livestreamed over the NFHS Network tonight through November 21 can be found at:
https://www.ahsaa.com/Portals/0/PDF’s/NFHS/Network/Broadcast%20log%2011.20-11.21.pdf?ver=T_Fm6AowCjTkPN5xrsIMOQ%3d%3d

A subscription allows the viewer access to any events on the NFHS Network. Monthly and yearly subscriptions are available. For more information on how to subscribe, go to the following link:
https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/subscribe/retail