Pre-season Power Poll #13
#13 – Plainview Bears
Head Coach: Dale Pruitt [3rd Year]
2007 Record: 9-3 [2nd round loss to Leeds 31-34]
Key Dates in ’08: Fort Payne – Week 1, Priceville – Week 4, Guntersville – Week 6, North Jackson – Week 8, Fyffe – Week 10.
Star to Watch: Ryan Rutledge LB - Senior
From 1989 through 2000, Plainview head coach Dale Pruitt led the Bears to the 3rd round or better 9 times and claimed 10 region or area titles. While he never claimed a state championship on the mountain, he did place the program on a pedestal not achieved by many schools.
It’s that type of consistency Pruitt hopes to achieve again.
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After Pruitt left Plainview following the 2000 campaign, neither the program nor Pruitt were able to taste the same level of success. Plainview never reached the third round of the post-season and Pruitt made the playoffs only once during his three year stint with the Wildcats.
Upon his return to Plainview things have steadily gotten back to normal. The Bears won a region title last season and was close to making the third round. They eventually lost to a powerful Leeds team 34-31.
Despite a loss to Boaz in their spring jamboree [6-17], momentum has picked up during the off-season. The loss to Boaz can’t be looked at as too bad. Most of the key players for Plainview missed out on nearly all of spring camp because the baseball team was making a deep run in the playoffs.
Returning for the Bears is quarterback Gabe Graham who threw for more than 1,300 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2007. Alongside Graham will be the team’s leading rusher in Jordan Fee [1,154 yards and 17 touchdowns] and 2-time All-State Honorable Mention wide receiver Josh Kidd. On defense, another honorable mention headlines the squad as Ryan Rutledge returns to his spot at linebacker.
The playmakers are a plenty at Plainview. The main question is whether or not they can make the leap to Class 4A and compete with their new region counterparts North Jackson, Guntersville and Priceville. If their playoff performance against Leeds last season was any indication, the Bears will be capable of making a post-season run in Class 4A North, which should be wide open.
Another question will not be answered until Week 10. Plainview has been disappointing to say the least against arch-rival Fyffe during the last two years. They’ve lose both games by a combined 89 points. And they weren’t games that got away from them late. Fyffe has dominated them from beginning to end. With Fyffe losing a lot of talent after their state championship runner-up finish in 2007, maybe this is the year Plainview can get revenge on the Red Devils.
2008 Schedule:
8/28 – Fort Payne [H]
9/5 – Columbia [A]
9/12 – Douglas [H]
9/19 – Priceville [A]
9/26 – Sylvania [A]
10/3 – Guntersville [H]
10/9 – Fairview [H]
10/17 – North Jackson [A]
10/24 – DAR [H]
10/31 – Fyffe [A]
