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Jul 30, 2023

Prep football: B.B. Comer braces for Class 3A Dadeville

B.B. Comer football coach Adam Fossett meets with reporters at the 12th annual Talladega County Coaches Association High School Football Media Day at Talladega Superspeedway. SYLACAUGA — So much for

B.B. Comer football coach Adam Fossett meets with reporters at the 12th annual Talladega County Coaches Association High School Football Media Day at Talladega Superspeedway.

SYLACAUGA — So much for an easy opening night football game.

The No. 2-ranked B.B. Comer Tigers from Class 2A will not get one of those early-season cupcakes. What Comer and heralded senior running back and linebacker Kamore Harris will get instead is an underrated, unranked and a bludgeoning team from Dadeville.

The Comer Tigers and the 3A Dadeville Tigers will mix it up Friday at Legion Stadium (7 p.m. kickoff) in an opening week highlighter on the Alabama prep football scene. Harris is ready for anything, including a nailbiter, if necessary.

“This is going to be an in-the-box game,” the 230-pound Harris said. “This is a rivalry game. Dadeville likes to run downhill. This is going to be one-on-one. We’re going to find out who’s tougher.”

Last year the better team was Dadeville. The 3A Tigers beat the 2A Comer boys by three touchdowns. Dadeville romped past Comer 42-21.

That game does ring a bell for Comer senior center and defensive tackle Alex Cunningham, the 6-foot-0, 250-pounder.

“Dadeville is real physical, and they play hard,” Cunningham said. “They like to run the ball down your throat. We’re going to have to win up front in the trenches. We need to play four quarters of physical football.”

Cunningham and Comer are game planning for precisely that.

“I’m starting to get some goose bumps,” Cunningham said. “We’ve been working hard.”

Comer head coach Adam Fossett has been barking out the instructions, too, one ball play at a time. Fossett is all wrapped up in a workable game plan.

“It all depends on how we play up front,” Fossett said. “Dadeville has a lot of team speed and athleticism. But we have size and athletes, too.”

B.B. Comer senior quarterback and safety Devin Harvey is ready for anything that Dadeville brings. Somebody’s manhood is going to be tested at Legion Stadium.

But isn’t that what high school football is all about anyway?

“This game is very important, and we want to set the tone,” said Harvey (6-2, 206 pounds). “We’re going to get our feet in the fire. Dadeville is pretty good. They’re fast and physical.”

Harvey remembers last year’s loss to the Dadeville Tigers, who went on to win 10 games.

“We came out flat against Dadeville,” Harvey said.

B.B. Comer has something different on the football menu for this Friday night, however.

“We need to do everything right,” Harvey said. “We need to make our reads. We’re buying in.”

Fossett believes in his players. But the first game of the season always brings a little apprehension and a lot of stomach aches.

That’s commonplace, like wet grass on the bottom of your shoes.

“We’re ready to line up,” Fossett said. “We want to see where we are.”

As for right now, B.B. Comer has won 12 of its last 15 football games. That isn’t exactly cold turkey.

That’s hot taters with a generous portion of butter, the kind that melts in your mouth at supper time.

Chris Fernsler is a sports writer at The Daily Home. You can call him at (256) 299-2141.

Scenes from the opening game of the 2023 High School Football season between B.B. Comer and Dadeville on Friday night. The B.B. Comer Tigers c…