High School Sports

I don't know whether this is a good thing or not, but I feel like part of the city boy in me may have died Sunday. I was at the Talladega Superspeedway, along with my cohorts Bran Strickland, Joe Medley and Al Muzkewitz covering the Amp Energy 500 for the paper.

Strickland thought covering the race would broaden my horizons and expand a brother's portfolio. You know, you want to look all well-rounded and whatnot when you're applying for such exclusive gigs as Nick Cenegy's personal assistant executive vice president of chillin' at some hip future Fortune 500 spot.

It's either that, or he figured if everyone else was going to be grinding away, the last one hired around these parts had better get his hands oily as well. That and Strickland writes better when he's sitting next to me. At least that's the line he fed me somewhere around Lap 155.

But this is the killer.

I think I might have possibly in some form or fashion gotten into NASCAR, at least for the time being. No, I'm not about to get Jimmie Johnson's No. 48 tatted on my ankle. But, I can now hold a five-minute conversation about drafting, bump-drafting, restrictor plates and the rumored "anything goes" rule that caused quite the brouhaha in the race's final lap. It's like they let me in the club for a day.

I wouldn't chalk it up with the greatest experiences of my life, but I did learn something new. And for a guy who prefers reading a book over watching TV, that's all right with me.

Hopefully, you'll learn something from this week's notes.

• STRAIGHT FROM THE DESK OF RIP DONOVAN: Wellborn's Latoya Ellington made the all-tournament team at the Calhoun County Volleyball tournament team this past weekend for the fourth consecutive year, placing the junior in fairly elite company.

The only other players to be named to the team four times are: Donoho's Allison Black (1991-1994), Alexandria's Brooke McCarley (92-95), Saks' Mandy Burford (99-02) and Lauren Davis (03-06). Burford took home MVP honors all four seasons.

• I DID MY JOB, COACH: Only one of them came away with a win, but neither Woodland coach Larry Strain or Wellborn coach Ricky Weems could have asked anything more out of running backs Justin Heard and Delrickus Rhoden.

Heard rushed for 204 yards and three touchdowns on 16 carries to go along with 11 tackles on defense in the Bobcats' 27-14 win over Ranburne in Week 6. Rhoden contributed all 188 of the Panthers' rushing yards and a pair of scores in their 34-14 loss to Glencoe.

• SCHEDULING CHANGE: There will be another blockbuster matchup to contend with Oxford's tilt with second-ranked Tuscaloosa County on Oct. 30.

Lincoln, ranked No. 2 in Class 4A, will host Clay County, which holds the same ranking in Class 2A, on the same Thursday night. Somebody's 0 might have to go that night, if both are still undefeated.