Where Eagles Dare

East Lawrence football team seeks redemption

By Wes Tomlinson

Coach Mac Hampton was a sophomore when his East Lawrence Eagles only won two football games, but after a new head coach, the next season saw them headed to the playoffs. History has a way of repeating itself, but this time Hampton is the new head coach and he's determined to take his eagles to new heights.

Hampton smiles when he talks about the team he once played defensive tackle for.

“Up until I played at Alabama A&M, all I had ever worn was black and gold,” Hampton said. “All my games were played up here on this mountain.”

After almost 20 years of coaching high school football, Hampton came to East Lawrence last year as an assistant coach and served as the head football coach of the former R.A. Hubbard High School in Courtland for six seasons prior to that, leading the Chiefs to three playoff appearances.

Last season, East Lawrence welcomed 17 players from R.A. Hubbard High

School after the school closed in May of 2022 as a result of declining enrollment and economic factors.

At first, it was a struggle to acclimate the two groups.

“It was a slow start but we started to get to know people and work with them better,” said junior wide receiver Keshaun Kingston.

Kingston is one of the 17 who came to East Lawrence and one of two former R.A. Hubbard players left this season.

“I was glad knowing I was going to get my old coach back,” Kingston said. “At Hubbard, he was real high-energy and always one of the best coaches.”

Hampton takes the reins of a team who did not win a single game last season. He said the approach to this team is to first build relationships with each player on an individual basis.

“I went to a new teachers orientation one year before school started and they said, ‘They’ll never care how much you know until they know how much you care,” Hampton said. “Kids really don’t care how much you know, just as long as they know that you’re for them. It’s having a kid that will run through a brick wall for me because he understands I would do the same for him.”

With the praise they give Hampton and the work ethic they are developing, these players act like they will run through a brick house for him.

“I was pretty excited when I found out about him being head coach,” said senior defensive lineman Tim Carter. “Coach Mac brings a consistency to the game and he’s tough.”

Coach Hampton said his players have got to be willing to do more than just show up at practice and suit up on Friday nights.

“The main thing is to challenge these guys mentally to understand that when you suit up you’re supposed to win, you don’t suit up to go through the motions,” Hampton said.

Playing with a “championship” mentality is what Hampton says will ultimately motivate the team. All seven of Coach Nick Saban’s championship teams at the University of Alabama had a mentality that Hampton wants his players to develop and pass down for generations to come.

“Those guys at Alabama play for championships, they don’t play to just make it to a bowl game,” Hampton said. “It’s a mentality that’s passed on after the upperclassmen have graduated, then it becomes culture.”

Hampton graduated from East Lawrence in 1997, which was the school’s last winning season until 2020 when they went 9-2. He said the addition of head promising players in youth leagues, so he plans to meet with coaches from every level before the season starts and discuss their progress and where he wants their players to be by the time they reach the ninth grade. coach Jack Steele his junior year made a huge impact on the team.

East Lawrence will play their jamboree against St. John Paul II Catholic High School on Aug. 18 where it is up to them to set the tone and become the team to fear in 4A Region 7.

“My sophomore year we went 2-8,” Hampton said. “Coach came in with that same team next year and went 8-3. It was the drive and motivation that Coach Steele brought and he wouldn’t settle for anything less.”

Steele, a member of the Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame, came to East Lawrence in 1996 after amassing five state football championships as a defensive coordinator at the former Hazlewood High School, one state championship as a basketball coach, and eight state championships as a track coach at the same school.

Losing was an adjective Coach Steele was unfamiliar with.

“We wanted some of that because he was a proven winner,” Hampton said. “We knew he could make it happen.”

Hampton said it’s important for high school coaches to keep an eye on

Take us along!

We’ve enjoyed seeing photos from our readers on their travels with Alabama Living! Please send us a photo of you with a copy of the magazine on your travels to: mytravels@alabamaliving. coop. Be sure to include your name, hometown and electric cooperative, and the location of your photo.We’ll draw a winner for the $25 prize each month. Make sure your photo is clear, in focus and not in shadow.

Alabama Living contributors win national awards

Two contributors to Alabama Living were recognized for their outstanding work during the Cooperative Communicators Association’s (CCA) annual awards ceremony in June.

Dennis Auth won a first place award in illustrations for his artwork, “Alabama A to Z,” for the cover of the January 2023 issue. Auth is best known to readers for his illustrations for “Hardy Jackson’s Alabama.”

Writer Emmett Burnett took two awards, a second place in technical writing for “James Webb telescope: the Alabama connection” which appeared in the April 2022 magazine; and a third place for his personality feature, “Eyes on the sky,” on weatherman James Spann in September 2022.

CCA, an organization of 300 professionals who communicate for cooperatives, is the only communications organization dedicated to serving those associated with member-owned businesses.

Becoming an Outdoors-Woman program continues to grow

Learning outdoors skills – such as rock climbing, camp cooking, shooting sports (including gun safety), fishing, hunting, canoeing, archery and many more – can seem intimidating, especially for women who didn’t grow up exposed to such activities.

Becoming an Outdoors-Woman, or BOW, is a three-day workshop designed to acquaint women 18 and older with the outdoors in a fun, non-threatening environment.

This year’s event will be Oct. 6-8, but registration opens on Aug. 1 for first-time participants and Aug. 7 for returning participants. Slots always fill fairly quickly.

For more information, including cost and registration, visit outdooralabama.com and click on “activities,” then scroll down to Becoming an Outdoors-Woman or call 800-245-2740.

Support Alabama eateries during Restaurant Week

Alabama Restaurant Week, Aug. 18-27, is a way for locals and visitors to show their appreciation for the state’s restaurants and their staffs. This culinary event unites Alabama’s diverse range of cuisine during the two-week celebration.

The week is marketed by the Alabama Tourism Department, which also produces the popular “100 Dishes to Eat in Alabama” listings. The department encourages patrons to dine out and support their local restaurants and offers some other ideas to show their support: buying gift cards, purchasing merchandise, asking small, family-owned places how they can help, and leaving good reviews online and on social media.

Learn more at alabama.travel.