No. 3 Indians, unbeaten Cougars to collide at Clay

By David Knox
Sports Editor

The truth of the matter is that the Pinson Valley-Clay-Chalkville football rivalry has been mostly one-sided.

The Cougars have owned it, even though the Indians battled them to some close finishes. The Cougars posted 10 straight wins, though one was a one-point affair (21-20 in 2007, a down year for CC) and one went to overtime (31-28 in 2012, over an Indians team that starred Zach Cunningham and Earnest Robinson).

But the Indians hadn’t broken through until a 21-14 overtime win last season. That game was 7-7 in regulation, and judging by the celebration afterward, it was the biggest win in Pinson Valley history. It’s debatable, but for a program in its 48th season with just a couple of region titles and no playoff wins beyond the first round, it’s way, way, way up there.
With a loaded team coming back, a new, hot coach at the helm in Patrick Nix, and now boasting a No. 3 ranking, it’s a brand-new day in the Valley.

Pinson Valley (3-0, 1-0 Class 6A, Region 5) is riding high off wins over McAdory, defending state champ Ramsay and defending region champ Minor — and they weren’t all that close. Junior quarterback Bo Nix, the coach’s son, is a four-star prospect with more offers than the prettiest girl on prom week, and he’s commanding a veteran team with playmakers everywhere.
The Cougars are now the underdogs. Clay-Chalkville is 3-0 and unranked as of Tuesday, although the Cougars might creep into the ASWA poll when it’s released Wednesday.

Coach Drew Gilmer, in his first season as head coach, piloted the Cougars to wins over Florence, Bessemer City and Jasper. But when the Indians visit Cougar Stadium at 7 p.m. on Friday, it will be the biggest test of the season for his team, by far.

The Cougars dominated Jasper last Friday 41-6, clearly proving they weren’t looking ahead to Pinson (nor impressed that we picked them to be upset last week by the Vikings. We’re still picking crow out of our teeth).

It should be noted that while the retooled Cougars offense is putting points on the board at something less than 2014-15 rates, the defense’s numbers are more along the lines of the 2015 defense than the ’16 team that gave up 33.6 points a game. Clay allowed just 145 yards of total offense and one TD to Jasper.

Can that defense hold up against Khymel Chaverst’s running and Bo Nix’s aerial assault?
As if a Top 10 marquee game needed any more storylines, here are but a few:

?Cougars head coach Gilmer is a Pinson Valley graduate.

?When former Pinson Valley coach Matt Glover was let go, much of his staff was in limbo. By the time the 2017 season arrived: Former PV offensive coordinator Jon Clements was now the Cougars’ OC; also on staff are former Pinson Valley coaches Nick Andrews, Jake Hibbs and Gene Richardson, and Whit Whitfield is the head freshman team coach.

?It won’t be Patrick Nix’s first rodeo against Clay-Chalkville. He brought his 2014 Scottsboro team to Cougar Stadium for the first round of the 6A playoffs. The Cougars put up a school-record 85 points against his Wildcats — and rolled on to the state championship later that season.

?It won’t be Bo Nix’s first rodeo against Clay-Chalkville, either, He was the quarterback of that team — as an eighth-grader. Nix was 8-of-22 passing for 186 yards and five touchdowns with two interceptions.

Make no mistake: This has become a rivalry. Pinson Valley is the hottest team this side of Hewitt-Trussville. The No. 3 ranking is the best in-season ranking ever for the Indians. Clay-Chalkville has to bring its most complete game since the 2015 season to derail them.

Tribune prediction: Pinson Valley 35, Clay-Chalkville 28