Alabama football coach wins No. 300 by beating son's team

Waldon Tucker sits three wins away from the Alabama all-time lead; Alaska kicker boots 52-yard field goal, thought to be state record; Arlington Country Day withdraws from FHSAA.

By Dave Krider

Aug 30, 2010, 2:00pm

According to both coaches, the rest of the football season will be a "piece of cake" following Friday night's opener, won by Fayette County (Fayette, Ala.), 28-6, over Sipsey Valley (Buhl, Ala.) before an overflow crowd estimated at 4,500.

Cameron Poe-Mitchell, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound junior, scored four first-half touchdowns, two running and two receiving. Following an hour break due to lightning and rain there was no scoring in the second half.

"That was probably the toughest situation I've ever been in," Waldon Tucker told MaxPreps after notching his historic 300th victory as a head coach. "It wasn't any fun to me. I got real emotional."

He was referring to the fact that he had to face his oldest son, Lance Tucker, who was coaching his first varsity game at a brand new high school with a young and totally inexperienced team.

Fayette Valley coach Waldon Tucker.

Photo by Charles Yerby

Lance, who assisted his father the previous four years, said he really did not feel as much pressure because there was so much to do just to open a new school. For example, he had just 50 varsity uniforms for 63 players and 36 middle school uniforms for 45 players.

Facing a team with a veteran offense, Lance conceded, "I knew we would have to play a perfect game and have a lot of luck just to be in the game. I'm not the first one (to lose to his father). I'm on a long distinguished list."

The neatest thing about the game, Lance added: "I got to hug his neck and be the first to tell him congratulations. It was awesome that I could be there. I'd like him to be there for my first win."

Lance set a bundle of passing records while playing quarterback for his father from 1987-1992. Younger brother Luke, who is in his fifth year assisting his father, led the Tigers to the Class 4A state title and its lone unbeaten season (15-0) in 1996.

Luke, who handles quarterbacks and defensive backs, insists that he felt very little pressure as an assistant coach.

He noted, "He (Waldon) pretty much takes care of everything. I just get them out there and make sure they're lined up right. It was big for this town because everyone likes Lance. It felt weird being on the sideline all night and playing against him."

The greatest pressure in the family, however, probably fell on the wife/mother, Sue Tucker.

"It was very nerve wracking," she confessed. "Three weeks before the game everybody was asking me, 'Who are you going to yell for and what side are you going to sit on?'"

Lance's 8-year-old son, Walt, has grown up as Fayette County's ballboy and Grandpa Tucker chose to take him to his pre-game pep session. He was wearing a Sipsey Valley shirt and – to even things up – he had to wear a Fayette County hat.

The Fayette County players love Walt so much that they asked him to lead the team out to start the pep rally. It was a Kodak Moment.

Sue was asked to flip the coin in pregame ceremonies and Lance won. She then sat in her regular seat, but in the second quarter went to the Sipsey side to sit with Lance's wife, Amy. She also spent some time helping to sell concessions.

"It was the biggest relief for the game to be over," Sue said. "We've been in state championship games, but It was the most stressful of anything I've ever been involved with."

Now Walden can "relax" and look forward to winning three more games, which will make him the winningest football coach in Alabama history. The record of 302 is held by Glenn Daniel.

"That would be great, but those things are played on the field. Hopefully, we will get it and it will be a great achievement," Waldon acknowledged.

* Buckhorn (New Market, Ala.) outlasted Oak Mountain (Birmingham, Ala.) 34-28 in four overtimes. In three-overtime games, South Grand Prairie (Grand Prairie, Texas) defeated Lamar (Arlington, Texas) 38-30, and Heritage (Colleyville, Texas) defeated Duncanville (Texas), 58-52. Heritage overcame a 38-24 deficit with 49 seconds left – on a 92-yard kick-off return and a successful onside kick - to force the first overtime.

* Bryan Maley kicked a 52-yard field goal – believed to be a state record – as Chugiak (Eagle River, Alaska) edged Dimond (Anchorage, Alaska), 13-7. Ryan Adams also kicked a 52-yard field goal as Carroll (Dayton, Ohio) blanked Xenia (Ohio), 28-0. Maxwell Brusveen booted field goals of 50, 45 and 31 yards to spark Yorkville (Ill.) past Streator (Ill.), 41-6.

* MaxPreps’ 2009-10 National Athlete of the Year Dorial Green-Beckham turned a short pass into a 66-yard touchdown with 1:02 remaining to give Hillcrest (Springfield, Mo.) a 20-15 victory over Seneca (Mo.).

* Rockwall Christian (Rowlett, Texas) standout Aaron Eastin intercepted four passes and caught two touchdown passes during a 32-7 victory over Dallas HSAA North (Plano, Texas).

* Carver (Birmingham, Ala.) defeated Washington (Tuskegee, Ala.), 20-6, to snap a 28-game losing streak.

* Jackson County (Jefferson, Ga.) was credited with a 14-6 victory over Johnson (Gainesville, Ga.) following a two-hour halftime delay because of lightning.

*Milestone coaching victories were notched last week by Sam Harp, No. 300 at Danville (Ky.), and by Lewis Lineberger, No. 200 at Johnsonville (S.C.).

Basketball: Country Day withdraws
Arlington Country Day (Jacksonville, Fla.) has withdrawn from the Florida High School Athletic Association, according to athletic director/boys basketball coach Rex Morgan. Country Day, which shares the state record of five consecutive boys basketball state titles, plans to play more of a national schedule in the future.

* C.J. Blackwell, a 6-5 senior who averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds last year for Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee, Ga.), has transferred to Taft (Woodland Hills, Calif.), according to the Los Angeles Times.

* Highly-ranked Kyle Wiltjer, a 6-9, 225-pound senior from Jesuit (Portland, Ore.), has made a commitment to the University of Kentucky, according to the Oregonian.

* The Baltimore Sun reports that one of the city's best sophomore basketball players, Daquan McNeil, is transferring to Vermont Academy (Saxtons River, Vt.). The 6-3 point guard averaged 25 points last year as a freshman at Carver Vo-Tech (Baltimore).

Volleyball: U.S. wins silver
The U.S. Youth Olympic girls volleyball team had to settle for a silver medal after losing the championship game to Belgium, 25-17, 20-25, 18-25, 12-25, in Singapore. The Americans played without leading scorer Liz McMahon, a 6-6 standout who broke her arm in a freak off-court accident.

* Ashley Hall (Charleston, S.C.) volleyball coach Franny Slay notched her 500th victory during a 25-8, 25-18, 25-7 victory over Hilton Head Prep (Hilton Head Island, S.C.).

Golf: Every shot counts
Princeton (Cincinnati) senior Ben Young fired a hole-in-one on the 188-yard, par-3 fifth hole and it was crucial as Princeton wound up edging Middletown Christian (Franklin, Ohio), by one stroke, 165-166.

*A brilliant 30-foot birdie putt on No. 17 enabled Tyler Wingo of Fairfax, Va., to win his first AJGA title. He finished with 5-under-par 208 to win the AJGA Junior at Kingsmill in Williamsburg, Va., by one shot over Evan Russell of Essex Junction, Vt.

Swimming: National champions
Swimming World Magazine has named the Carondelet (Concord, Calif.) girls and Bolles (Jacksonville, Fla.) boys as national swim team champions. Earlier the magazine named Vlad Morozov (Torrance, Calif.) and Dagny Knutson (Minot, N.D.) as National Swimmer of the Year for boys and girls, respectively.

* Tatnall (Wilmington, Del.) sophomore Kaitlin Jones won a gold medal in the 200-meter individual medley and a silver medal in the 200-meter backstroke while representing the USA during the Youth Olympic Games in Singapore.

Potpourri
* Keep an eye on 13-year-old Chelsea Baker from Plant City, Fla. She compiled a 12-0 pitching record this summer pitching in a boys baseball league, striking out 127 in 60 innings and batting .604. She mixes a 60 mph fastball with a knuckleball and has not lost a sanctioned Little League game in four years, according to the Memphis Commercial-Appeal.

* Enumclaw (Wash.) wrestling coach Lee Reichert has retired after coaching 16 individual state champions and back-to-back Class 3A state team champions in 2008-09.

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