FYFFE – It would be easy to assume the Fyffe football team would have the advantage of championship game experience heading into the Class 2A state title clash against Reeltown at the Super 7 in Tuscaloosa.
But the Red Devils, the defending 2A champions who won it all against B.B. Comer in Auburn last year, have returned only four players who played in that game.
“What normally would be an advantage won’t be,” Fyffe legendary head coach Paul Benefield said. “I mean, I start four freshmen and a 10th-grader. We’re a year ahead of schedule. I thought next year we might be good enough to make it back, but we made it back this year.
“So I’m really, really proud of them and the progress they’ve made.”
Fyffe (13-1) will take on unbeaten Reeltown (13-0) at Bryant-Denny Stadium at 3 p.m. Friday.
The Red Devils, ranked No. 2 in the final regular season poll by the Alabama Sports Writers Association, advanced with a 32-14 win over Pisgah in the semifinals. The Rebels from Reeltown, which is in Notasulga, advanced by knocking off top-ranked B.B. Comer 31-28.
“They’ve got a lot of speed, big guys up front and just a really good team that beat a really, really good team last week,” Benefield said. “So, you know what, that speaks for itself. B.B. Comer is really good. We know about them. So, it’s gonna be a tough, tough thing for us.
“We just hope we settle down, not get blown out before we settle down and quit looking at the Jumbotron.”
Benefield knows about the trappings of the Super 7 State Championships, which rotate each year between Bryant-Denny and Jordan-Hare stadiums. Playing in either 2A or 3A, his Red Devils have won six state championships while finishing runner-up twice since 2007.
Fyffe does have the benefit of Benefield’s experience. He is in his 27th season with the Red Devils, spent five prior seasons at Sylvania and has a career record of 350-56. He’s one of only six coaches in Alabama High School Athletic Association history to have 300 or more victories.
The coach and his staff will try to warn the players about not getting caught up in the atmosphere, but added “that’s easier said than done. We just try to always tell our kids about TV timeouts and things, you know, they’re a little bit longer. We have more breaks. If you get something going sometimes you have the TV breaks, but that’s part of it.”
Reeltown is coached by Matt Johnson, who took over in 2016 from another legend in Jackie O’Neal. He went 241-110 over 28 seasons, all with the Rebels. The program won state titles in 1987, 2001 and 2009.
At Fyffe, Benefield said there’s a balance between not letting the championship game environment affect performance and embracing the moment.
“It’s a great experience for them and a once in a lifetime thing,” he said. “We’ve been so blessed. The good Lord has really blessed us, well, for a lifetime as far as that goes. But yeah, it’s been a great experience for like 11 years or 10 years. Really. It’s been incredible.
“We just hope they go and perform and do the very best they can. That’s all you can ever do.”
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