Photo by Richard Force.
Homewood defensive lineman Dennis White (91) gets past the John Carroll offensive line during a game between Homewood and John Carroll on Friday, Aug. 21, 2026, at John Carroll Catholic High School.
Homewood High School’s football team opened Class 5A, Region 4 play in September against Mountain Brook, Pelham and Helena, while John Carroll opened Private-AA, Region 2 play against American Christian, St. John Paul II and Lee-Scott. Both teams now turn to the second half of their region schedules in October.
OCT. 2
Homewood hosts Calera, a series it has swept 2-0, including a 43-21 win in 2023, the last time the teams played. John Carroll travels to Westminster Christian in the first meeting between the two programs. Both John Carroll and Homewood are entering new region alignments this season as part of the AHSAA’s move to split public and private school classifications.
OCT. 8-9
Homewood hosts Chelsea on a Thursday night, Oct. 8, a series it has swept 4-0. The teams have not met since 2021, when Homewood won 37-35. John Carroll travels to Briarwood on that Friday, a series Briarwood leads 13-3 and has won 12 straight, including a 23-7 win last season.
OCT. 16
Homewood travels to Chilton County, a series it has swept 6-0, including a 34-13 win in 2023, the last time the teams played. John Carroll hosts Madison Academy in the first meeting between the two programs.
OCT. 23
Homewood hosts Ramsay, a series it leads 4-1. The teams have not met since 2017, when Homewood won 38-0. John Carroll travels to Randolph in the first meeting between the two programs.
OCT. 30
Homewood closes the regular season at home against Oak Mountain in a non-region game. The two programs have not met since 2011, when Homewood won 14-7; Oak Mountain leads the all-time series 4-2. John Carroll closes the regular season at home against Leeds in a non-region game. John Carroll leads that series 19-10-1 and won the last meeting in 2019, 34-33 in double overtime, though the teams have not played since.
LOOKING AHEAD
Homewood finished 11-2 last season and reached the Class 6A quarterfinals under head coach Ben Berguson, extending the program’s playoff streak to 14 straight years. A strong finish in October will go a long way in determining the Patriots’ playoff future.
John Carroll finished 3-7 and missed the playoffs under head coach Will Mara. All 16 teams in the Private-AA classification will make the playoffs, but the Cavaliers will be fighting for strong positioning entering the playoffs.
