We are rapidly approaching the end of the Alabama High School Athletic Association football regular season and teams are battling for playoff spots or to improve their standing. Several standout student-athletes turned in top performances for Week 9.
Check out the nominees for the Hollis Wright Birmingham high school football Player of the Week from last week’s games.
Readers can vote until 5 p.m. on Wednesday with results posted on Thursday, so make your selection below.
Players are selected from nominations by coaches or from AL.com game reports.
If you can’t see the poll below, use this link: Player of the Week Poll. Remember to click “Finish Survey” to submit your vote.
The nominees:
Stuart Andrews, Mountain Brook: The 5-foot-8, 180-pound junior running back carried the ball 18 times for 154 yards and 3 touchdowns for the Class 6A No. 9 Spartans in a 42-0 win over Huffman.
Corey Barber, Spain Park: The junior wide receiver caught four passes for 148 yards and three touchdowns – all in the first half – as the 6A No. 4 Jaguars remained unbeaten at 8-0 and 5-0 in Class 6A, Region 3 with a 42-7 win over Calera.
CJ Durbin, Chelsea: The 5-8, 185-pound senior wide receiver caught 12 passes for 201 yards and a score in a 38-28 loss to Helena that dropped the Class 6A Hornets to 6-2 on the season.
Aiden Gasaway, Vincent: The senior running back/linebacker ran for 121 yards on 24 carries with 3 touchdowns and had 10 tackles as the ninth-ranked Class 2A Yellow Jackets beat Isabella 49-0 to improve to 7-1.
Jayden Martin, Ramsay: The 5-9, 170-pound junior ran for 185 yards on 18 attempts with a touchdown – and two that were nullified by penalties – as the Rams beat Carver 41-8 to win their fourth straight, pushing their record to 5-3 and 4-1 in Class 5A, Region 5.
Justin Murray, Fairfield: The 5-10 junior running back had 14 carries for 132 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the Tigers’ 30-28 win over Bibb County. Fairfield is 6-2 overall and 4-2 in Class 4A, Region 4.
Conner Nelson, Leeds: The 3-star college prospect quarterback ran 18 times for 161 yards and 4 touchdowns and returned an interception 25 yards for another score as the ninth-ranked Class 5A Green Wave beat Center Point 49-24.
Ryan Reese, Ramsay: The 6-2, 220-pound defensive tackle finished with 8 total stops with 6 sacks and a pass break-up as the Rams beat Carver on Thursday.
Jeremy Spratling, Helena: The senior running back had 162 yards on 16 carries and 2 TDs in the first half as the Huskies beat Chelsea 38-28 to improve to 5-3 overall and 4-1 in Class 6A, Region 3 play.
Charlie Taaffe, Vestavia Hills: The 5-11, 185-pound sophomore quarterback completed 11-of-15 passes for 235 yards with 2 touchdowns and ran six times for 89 yards and 2 more scores in a 42-0 Class 7A, Region 3 win over Tuscaloosa County.
Jordan Ward, Montevallo: The 5-11, 190-pound junior quarterback ran 16 times for 133 yards and 2 touchdowns and completed 6-of-17 passes for 141 yards and a score in a loss to Sipsey Valley.
Braxton Yocom, Oak Grove: The 5-10, 175-pound senior ran for 171 yards on 12 attempts with 3 touchdowns and recorded 7 tackles with a pass break-up as the Tigers beat American Christian 34-6 to improve to 6-2 on the year.
