By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Sports Editor

Despite a state championship in 1982, the Thompson Warriors have never been ranked No. 1 in the ASWA football poll era, until now.

When the most recent poll was released on Tuesday, Sept. 4, the Warriors had leap frogged over last week’s No. 1 team and last year’s state champion, the Hoover Buccaneers—a bold move by voters ahead of a matchup between the two teams on Friday.

Thompson found itself with 20 first place votes and 326 overall points compared to Hoover’s eight first place votes and 269 points.

While Hoover is coming off of a loss, it’s to the No. 5 team in the country, St. Johns from Washington D.C., which doesn’t really tell us much. And while the Bucs aren’t the best team in the country, they still may very well be the best team in the state.

The highest the Warriors had ever been ranked coming into this week was No. 2, several times last year and also during that 1982 season and the following season in 1983.

Now, Thompson is the top dog and will be the hunted for the remainder of the season, starting with possibly the most dangerous team the Warriors will play in Hoover.

Last year, the Warriors won that game on Hoover’s turf, and despite the Bucs getting revenge in the semifinals of the playoffs, they don’t want any part of losing to their new rival on their home field for the second year in a row.

Thompson, however, is off to a strong start this season beating both James Clemens and Foley by a combined 85-7 thanks to a strong defense and nine touchdown passes from Taulia Tagovailoa.

It will be an interesting game to watch, but there is no doubt that Hoover won’t take kindly to having the top spot snatched away. That and losing to Thompson last year in the regular season will be plenty of motivation for the Bucs this year.

Despite losing to Class 6A Bessemer City last week, Spain Park was also still in the 7A top 10 taking the 10^th and final spot in the standings.

The Jags fell to the Tigers 16-14 a week after beating Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa with strong defense. Rain and a lightning delay played a factor in the game, but at the same time, the Jags showed the offense needs some work moving forward.

Two other teams also found a spot in the most recent rankings starting with Briarwood at No. 1 in Class 5A, where they have been in the first three polls of the season.

Briarwood kick-started its season with a 19-6 win against Chelsea to remain the top team in the classification. It was almost an identical start to last year’s team that beat the Hornets 19-7, before going on to finish 14-1 with a loss in the state championship game.

With region play looming, it’ll be interesting to see if the Lions can win a third region championship in a row this season.

The final ranked team came in the AISA, as the Kingwood Lions found the No. 9 spot in the standings thanks to their first 3-0 start since 2006.

Kingwood will now take on the No. 1 team in the AISA, Tuscaloosa Academy, on Friday, Sept. 7, with a chance to make some noise.

Other teams receiving votes for a spot in the top 10 were Oak Mountain (7A), Pelham (6A), Calera (6A) and Montevallo (4A).

Oak Mountain will have its chances in the coming weeks with three games against Hewitt-Trussville, Thompson and Hoover on the schedule.

Pelham is the 11^th ranked team in the 6A classification, making them the first team left outside of the top 10, while Calera received just one vote after a struggling 0-2 start.

Montevallo has jumped out to an impressive 2-0 start to the season, including two wins against 5A teams as the Bulldogs head into region play. They received four votes, making them 19^th overall in the standings, but a win against Dallas County would influence more people.

CLASS 7A
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. Thompson (20); 2-0; 326
2. Hoover (8); 1-1; 269
3. Central-Phenix City (2); 2-0; 252
4. McGill-Toolen; 2-0; 224
5. Bob Jones; 2-0; 169
6. Auburn; 2-0; 148
7. Hewitt-Trussville; 1-1; 134
8. Lee-Montgomery; 2-0; 88
9. Mountain Brook; 2-0; 37
10. Spain Park; 1-1; 20
Others receiving votes: Enterprise (2-0) 14, Prattville (2-0) 12, Austin (1-1) 6, Sparkman (1-0) 3, Vestavia Hills (1-0) 3, James Clemens (0-2) 2, Oak Mountain (1-0) 2, Grissom (2-0) 1.

CLASS 6A
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. Wetumpka (24); 2-0; 333
2. Oxford (2); 2-0; 254
3. Pinson Valley (2); 1-1; 240
4. Clay-Chalkville (2); 2-0; 236
5. Spanish Fort; 1-1; 178
6. Saraland; 2-0; 156
7. Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa; 1-1; 89
8. Hartselle; 2-0; 62
9. Homewood; 1-1; 31
10. Benjamin Russell; 2-0; 28
Others receiving votes: Pelham (2-0) 19, Muscle Shoals (1-1) 15, Opelika (0-2) 15, Jackson-Olin (2-0) 12, Eufaula (1-1) 10, Bessemer City (2-0) 9, Daphne (1-1) 6, Baldwin Co. (2-0) 5, St. Paul’s (1-1) 5, Selma (1-0) 4, Athens (1-0) 2, Calera (0-2) 1.

CLASS 5A
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. Briarwood (28); 1-0; 354
2. Etowah (2); 2-0; 271
3. Vigor; 1-0; 235
4. Carroll-Ozark; 2-0; 201
5. Wenonah; 0-0; 163
6. Tallassee; 2-0; 155
7. Jackson; 1-0; 125
8. Demopolis; 1-1; 81
9. St. Clair Co.; 1-1; 32
10. Sylacauga; 2-0; 29
Others receiving votes: Madison Aca. (1-1) 12, Pleasant Grove (2-0) 10, Satsuma (2-0) 10, Alexandria (1-1) 9, Ramsay (1-1) 8, Charles Henderson (0-1) 3, Greenville (1-1) 3, Boaz (2-0) 2, Citronelle (2-0) 2, Dora (1-1) 2, Hamilton (1-0) 1, Parker (1-0) 1, Scottsboro (1-0) 1.

CLASS 4A
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. UMS-Wright (30); 2-0; 360
2. Hokes Bluff; 1-0; 266
3. Hillcrest-Evergreen; 1-1; 217
4. Dale Co.; 2-0; 175
5. Andalusia; 1-1; 174
6. Fayette Co.; 1-1; 112
7 (tie). Brooks; 1-1; 88
7 (tie). Catholic-Montgomery; 1-1; 88
9. Jacksonville; 2-0; 51
10. American Chr.; 2-0; 47
Others receiving votes: Cherokee Co. (1-0) 34, Clarke Co. (0-1) 25, W.S. Neal (0-1) 21, North Jackson (1-0) 15, Headland (2-0) 6, Williamson (1-0) 6, Childersburg (2-0) 5, Good Hope (2-0) 4, Montevallo (2-0) 4, Escambia Co. (1-0) 3, Rogers (2-0) 3, Deshler (0-2) 2, Leeds (1-1) 2, Northside (2-0) 2.

CLASS 3A
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. Randolph Co. (23); 1-0; 335
2. Saks (6); 2-0; 265
3. Piedmont; 1-0; 209
4. Mobile Chr.; 1-1; 190
5. Thomasville (1); 1-0; 184
6. Gordo; 1-1; 164
7. Wicksburg; 1-0; 105
8. Fultondale; 0-1; 88
9. Winfield; 2-0; 42
10. T.R. Miller; 1-0; 37
Others receiving votes: Pike Co. (0-1) 18, Bayside Aca. (2-0) 12, Oakman (0-1) 9, Flomaton (2-0) 8, Westminster-Huntsville (2-0) 7, Holly Pond (2-0) 6, Walter Wellborn (2-0) 6, Clements (2-0) 5, Providence Chr. (2-0) 5, Weaver (1-0) 4, Beulah (2-0) 3, St. James (1-1) 3, Sylvania (0-1) 3, Pike Road (2-0) 1, Pleasant Valley (1-0) 1.

CLASS 2A
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. Fyffe (29); 1-0; 357
2. Luverne; 1-0; 253
3. Reeltown; 2-0; 224
4. Ohatchee; 1-0; 193
5. Leroy (1); 0-1; 190
6. Ariton; 1-1; 143
7. Thorsby; 2-0; 118
8. LaFayette; 0-1; 80
9. Goshen; 0-1; 33
10. Cedar Bluff; 1-0; 27
Others receiving votes: North Sand Mountain (1-0) 25, Collinsville (2-0) 18, Abbeville (1-0) 9, Sulligent (1-1) 9, Addison (1-1) 8, Red Bay (2-0) 6, Westbrook Chr. (2-0) 6, Cleveland (1-0) 3, Aliceville (0-1) 2, Cold Springs (2-0) 2, Southeastern-Blount (2-0) 2, Cottage Hill (1-0) 1, Ranburne (1-0) 1.

CLASS 1A
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. Lanett (21); 1-1; 324
2. Maplesville (6); 1-0; 262
3. Sweet Water (2); 0-1; 224
4. Linden; 1-0; 191
5. Marengo; 2-0; 173
6. Brantley (1); 1-0; 154
7. South Lamar; 1-0; 117
8. Elba; 1-0; 90
9. Pickens Co.; 0-1; 54
10. Georgiana; 1-1; 38
Others receiving votes: Falkville (2-0) 24, St. Luke’s (1-1) 21, Isabella (1-0) 13, Millry (1-0) 6, Holy Spirit (2-0) 4, Marion Co. (2-0) 4, Mars Hill Bible (1-0) 4, R.A. Hubbard (2-0) 3, Wadley (1-0) 3, Lynn (1-0) 1.

AISA
Team (first-place); W-L; Pts
1. Tuscaloosa Aca. (24); 2-0; 342
2. Autauga Aca. (4); 1-1; 271
3. Monroe Aca. (2); 3-0; 253
4. Chambers Aca.; 3-0; 183
5. Escambia Aca.; 1-1; 169
6. Pike Liberal Arts; 3-0; 143
7. Bessemer Aca.; 1-2; 98
8. Lakeside; 1-1; 67
9. Kingwood; 3-0; 39
10. Springwood; 2-0; 31
Others receiving votes: Patrician (2-1) 28, Morgan Aca. (2-1) 27, Glenwood (1-2) 19, Jackson Aca. (2-0) 12, Lowndes Aca. (2-0) 12, Wilcox Aca. (2-0) 10.