Oh, the high school defenses. Teams were big on the 6-2, some ran a "wide tackle 6". Shelby County and/or Thompson High School ran a 6-1 with Arthur Johnson chasing down every play at LB.
My evening old guy story: Arthur Johnson, who eventually played strong safety at aubrun, was an incredible athlete as a youngster and is my age. He grew up in Calera and I played little league ball against him from Chelsea. As a 12 year old he was 6 feet, 18o pounds. At every ball game, his mom had his birth certificate in her purse. I was catching, and he hit home run at a little league park that cleared the light poles on the way up. As a seventh grader, his HS football coach was his Pony League baseball coach. I think he wanted to keep Arther in his sight. Arthur would get on, stealing second was a forgone conclusion and the only thing close was him stealing third. He played varsity at Calera as a seventh and eighth grader before a Columbiana booster (Shelby Co. High) found his dad a job in Columbiana and a strategically located trailer in the SCHS zone. He rang up big yards as a freshman before separating his shoulder. Lo and behold, a Thompson booster found his dad a better job in Alabaster, with a house that was coincidentally located in the Thompson school zone. He tore up his knee as a junior but recovered well enough for a full ride to aubrun as a 6-3, 215 safety.
RTR,
Tim