2023 Russellville High School football schedule features highly anticipated matchups
With the calendar now in July, it means that the 2023 high school football season is just around the corner. The Russellville Golden Tigers went 7-5 a year ago, making it to the second round of the AHSAA Class 5A playoffs. Coach John Ritter’s RHS team has won the region for three-consecutive seasons.
Here’s a look at the 2023 varsity schedule.
Aug. 25 Grissom Tigers at RHS
The regular season opens with the second-ever meeting between the two schools. Grissom took last year’s non-region contest played in Huntsville. Coach Rich Dutton’s Grissom team went 3-7 a year ago in Class 7A.
Sept. 1 Deshler Tigers at RHS
Deshler visits Russellville to continue one of the state’s longest rivalries. The two successful programs have played each other 96 times with the series split at 46-46-4. Coach Patrick Malone’s 4A Deshler team took last year’s game by a 14-7 score on the way to a 12-1 season.
Sept. 8 RHS at Lawrence Co. Red Devils
Class 5A Region 8 play begins for RHS with a trip to Moulton to take on LCHS. Russellville took last season’s contest by a 49-0 score over Coach Trent Walker’s team that went3-7. RHS leads the all-time series by a 25-5 total.
Sept. 15 West Point Warriors at RHS
The Warriors pay a visit to Russellville for another region matchup. West Point went 3-7 in 2022 under Coach Don Farley. RHS took last season’s game by a 27-0 score, and the Golden Tigers lead the all-time series 9-0, outscoring West Point 386-82.
Sept. 22 RHS at East Limestone Indians
Russellville takes a trip to ELHS for a region game to continue a series led by the Golden Tigers 11-2. Coach Clint Woodfin took the Indians to the playoffs in his first season that finished 5-6. RHS won last year’s game 52-7.
Sept. 29 RHS at Mars Hill Panthers
The two schools met for the first time a year ago with the Panthers getting a 31-30 win in a non-region game. Coach Darrell Higgins’ squad went 10-2 in 2022 and advanced to the second-round of the Class 3A playoffs.
Oct. 6 RHS at Brewer Patriots
Russellville takes a road trip for the third-straight week as the Golden Tigers go to Brewer for a region game. RHS won 58-0 last season and improved their record in the series to 9-0 with Golden Tigers outscoring the Patriots 453-46 during those contests. Coach Matt Plunkett’s team went 5-6 last season, losing in the first round of the playoffs.
Oct. 20 Ardmore Tigers at RHS
After a week off, Russellville continues region play with a homecoming game against Ardmore. AHS went 3-7 a year ago under Coach Jonathan Snider. The Golden Tigers took the win last season by a 49-7 score and RHS leads the all-time series 7-1.
Oct. 27 Fairview Aggies at RHS
Fairview visits Russellville for a rematch of last season’s game in which the Golden Tigers got a big region win by a 41-14 score at FHS. Coach George Redding Jr.’s Fairview team went 7-4 in 2022 and lost in the opening round of the 5A playoffs. The two schools have met only twice before with the series split 1-1.
Nov. 3 RHS at Athens Golden Eagles
The 2023 regular season finishes with a trip to Athens for a non-region game. The all-time series is led by Russellville 20-9. Coach Cody Gross led AHS to a 5-5 record a year ago in Class 6A. The Golden Eagles took a close win last season at Russellville by a 32-31 score.
