Rebels finish up second half of season in October

After an eventful start to the 2020 season in which the Vestavia Hills High School football team was forced to cancel its first two games of the season because of COVID-19, the hope is that the month of October brings with it the final five games of the regular season for the Rebels.

For Vestavia Hills, those final games include four region contests and a regular season finale.

The Rebels begin the month Oct. 2 with a trip to defending state champion Thompson. After dominating the series over the years, Vestavia Hills has dropped its last four meetings against the Warriors, including a 35-21 loss last fall. Despite the Warriors’ rise in recent years, Vestavia still leads the all-time series 14-10.

The following Friday, Vestavia hosts a Hewitt-Trussville team that had high expectations entering the season. Vestavia won the first 12 meetings between the two schools before the Huskies notched victories in 2015 and 2018. The Rebels got back on the right side of the series last fall with a 19-14 win.

On Oct. 16, the Rebels head to Spain Park for another region matchup. Vestavia routed Spain Park last fall, running away with a 45-7 victory. The series has been relatively even over the last several years, but Vestavia has an 11-6 edge all-time.

Vestavia Hills finishes up region play Oct. 23, when they go on the road to play Gadsden City. The game will be the first meeting between the two schools, since it is the first time the teams have ever been in the same region.

The final regular season game of head coach Buddy Anderson’s career will be Oct. 30 against Shades Valley. The Rebels and Mounties have played every year of Anderson’s 43-year tenure at Vestavia. After Vestavia dominated the series, winning every game from 2000-2013, the teams have split the last six meetings.