Patriots prepping for visit from Rebels on Friday

Homewood's oldest football rival visits Waldrop Stadium on Friday.

The Vestavia Hills Rebels and the Patriots meet for the 44th time at 7 p.m. The Rebels lead the series 25-18 and have won eight straight. The Pats last won in 2006.

"I feel like the flair is missing a little bit from the rivalry and we need to win to get that back," said Homewood coach Ben Berguson.

The Patriots are 1-0 after beating Decatur 28-15. Vestavia played a jamboree game last week, so this is the Rebels' opener.

The Rebels won last year's meeting 17-7. Homewood had also lost its opener to Decatur, and Berguson stressed the importance of getting a win over Decatur this season.

"That's one thing we've got this week that we didn't have last year, beating Decatur. That gives us confidence going into this game," he said.

"They're your typical Vestavia team. They're very disciplined, very well-coached and they just do everything right."

Berguson and his staff broke down the film of the Rebels' 14-0 jamboree win over Briarwood and they were impressed by Rebels running back Walker Minor, a returning starter, and quarterback Brett Jones, who finished the 2014 season as the starter after Landon Crowder suffered a concussion.

"I’m really impressed with their D-front," the Patriots coach said. "They’ve got great ball get-off, which could give us some problems.”

Alex Robin and Clayton Farris anchor the defensive line.

Homewood's win over Decatur was marked by strong defensive play, Derrick Underwood's 282 all-purpose yards and two touchdown passes by Carson Griffis.

"I keep talking about us throwing the ball more, but I think the key against Vestavia is being able to run the ball, too."

Besides the big rivalry game, the Patriots will be welcoming back the 1995 Class 5A state championship team, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary. That was Bob Newton's first season as head coach, and the first of his five state titles at Homewood.

Activities are scheduled for both Friday and Saturday, including the team being honored on the field before the game at 6:30.

Players, coaches, trainers, and cheerleaders from the 1995 team will be admitted into the game free of charge, along with a guest. Contact Keat Litton (klitton@homewood.k12.al.us or 966-6469) for more information.