Friday night problems: Alabama high school football coach banned for season after recruiting violation

Alabama State has become the latest state to crack down on high school football recruiting, with Mary G. Montgomery head coach Zach Golson suspended for next season.

When accusations start flying, you may be wondering what kind of recruiting violations would lead to the expulsion of a coach placed on administrative leave.

It’s actually a rite of passage in Alabama’s Semmes forest to keep a secret or not rush to social media to spread the latest gossip.

Located just outside Mobile, home to legends such as Hank Aaron, Ozzie Smith, Jake Peavy, JaMarcus Russell, Tee Martin, Satchel Paige and many more. Mary G. Montgomery He’s made a splash over the last four years under coach Zach Golson.

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During his tenure as head coach, Golson compiled a 37-10 record at the Division 7A level of Alabama high school football, which drew a crosshairs from opposing coaches in the region and state.

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Honestly, during my time at Davidson High School, MGM was one of those games where you knew you were going to have an easy night on the field, but I’m not going to pretend I played it.

You could catch me on the football field, and even then I wouldn’t go out until I was up by at least three points.

Okay, let’s get back to the reason why Mary G. Montgomery won’t get a head coach next season.

When they returned home last month to visit family and trekked down I-10 to an unnamed college (future story), the MGM Vikings have been brought up many times as the latest in a string of strange improprieties in high school recruiting.

Think ‘Friday Night Lights’ and ‘Buddy Garrity’

According to a few people who couldn’t resist the opportunity to spread some gossip about what I missed, MGM head coach Zach Golson It is claimed that he organized an event for eighth graders who plan to play in high school next season.

FOX10 News In Mobile, Alabama, a principal from an opposing school reportedly applied to the MGM football program.

The problem is that MGM’s location also overlaps with schools like Blount High, Baker, and even Vigor, which leads to some interesting recruiting tactics if you’re not within a specific zoning area. If you’re in the Blount residential area, that’s the school to go to.

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So, you can see how upset opposing coaches would be if a coach made a few maneuvers to get a player into his zone, which I’m not implying Zach Golson did.

Consider the scene in “Friday Night Lights” where “Buddy” puts up a fake mailbox to allow some talented players to use the “house” as their home address so they can play for the Dillon Panthers. If you remember, that’s why Luke Cafferty had to play at East Dillon, and that turned out to be a blessing for coach Eric Taylor.

In the 12th episode of Friday Night Lights’ “Texas What” series, Brad Leland plays Buddy Garrity and Kyle Chandler plays Coach Eric Taylor. (Bill Records/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank)

So MGM had to openly capitulate for hiring violations.

In head coach Zach Golson’s case, a signing day ceremony that included youth not in his district and went viral on social media cost him a year of coaching.

This turned out to be all the evidence the opposing schools needed to turn Golson over, which led to Golson being placed on administrative leave and told to leave school grounds. He was subsequently suspended for the entire 2026-2027 season.

I know what you’re probably thinking, and yes, this seems a bit extreme. But it’s obvious that high school football is very competitive, to say the least.

After the school learned there was evidence that the ceremony was poorly conducted, Alabama High School Athletic Association Mary G. Montgomery officials, who were notified of the incident in advance, admitted to hiring violations.

Not only has the school been put on probation for next season, but they also won’t be allowed to participate in the postseason due to a ridiculous ritual aimed at eighth graders. And if the opposing team loses to MGM, that game will not count towards their overall record in the Division 6A, Region 1 standings.

Students who attend the ceremony and are not in MGM’s district will have to play at the school located in their residential district.

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So, due to the actions of the now-suspended head coach, who is known to be a great guy, MGM players are essentially playing exhibition games for a season. This is the worst part of the whole thing.

What a lie for the players who fall for this nonsense.

But this means recruiting in an era that is essentially a transfer portal for high school athletes.