1999, Sept 27th: "Blazers Take C-USA 'By Storm'"

I'm puzzled by the summary of this game. Being UAB's first conference win, you'd think there would be more said about the players themselves and the plays they made to earn that milestone victory, but I struggled like hell to find any such thing.

Ultimately, while Estes below does a nice job of spelling out the significance of the game for the Birmingham Post-Herald, a recap as such had to be tracked down from the Galveston Daily News from September 26th. That's the last image below. The game was played on the 25th but the Post-Herald did not publish on Sundays.

1979, June 9th: A Look At The Alabama Vulcans Roster (AFA)

The images below are from the Birmingham Post-Herald from the date in the subject line. The intent was to preview an early season American Football Association contest against the Jacksonville Firebirds (Vulcans were 3-0 at the time) and in doing so, the paper listed probable starters for both teams. Alabama's seemed worth recording.

How did it go? Quite nicely, actually, as Vulcans took this one 48-00.

2023, June 12th: "Former East Ridge star JoJo Tillery leads Birmingham to second straight USFL title"

The complete version of article below can be found here. The image used about halfway was copied from Tillery's Instagram account and uncredited. 

Blitzing off the left edge, JoJo Tillery refused to be stopped as he sealed a second straight United States Football League championship for the Birmingham Stallions.

The football, held in the hands of Pittsburgh Maulers quarterback Troy Williams, reflected off Tillery's gold-plated visor before he swatted it loose for teammate Willie Yarbary to fall on top of with just more than two minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Tillery's strip-sack from behind was the closing highlight of his big night in the Stallions' 28-12 victory in the USFL title game on July 1 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound safety, a former East Ridge High School star, finished with a game-high 10 tackles and helped limit Pittsburgh to 202 total yards and zero touchdowns.

"I am a big-time trash talker," said Tillery, who also played basketball for the Pioneers during his prep days. "Last year they even deemed me the best trash talker in the league. Pittsburgh's quarterback, the first time I missed him, said something to me. I told him to not worry and that I'd be back.

"The second time, the running back and left tackle doubled me, and I was like, you got lucky this time. On that last one, I just knew I had to beat the tackle. I saw the ball was loose in his hand and had to go after it. I wanted to make sure I made a play for my team to secure the victory."

.... 

For the second straight year, Tillery ended the season with a championship-sealing play. In 2022, he batted away the final pass on fourth-and-12 in Birmingham's 33-30 win over the Philadelphia Stars, and he also punched a potential touchdown catch out of the hands of a receiver in the back right corner of the end zone earlier in that game.

....

"You can ask anybody on the defense, and they will tell you I am the emotional leader," Tillery said. "Coach (Skip) Holtz looked to me to bring the energy every week. I missed the first five games of this season because I had a fractured ankle. It was hard for me to sit on the sidelines, but one thing I made sure of was to keep my teammates encouraged and keep them up."

"When I came back, though, you could tell it was sort of a different team. Our energy was more upbeat. Our sideline was more into it, and so was the crowd. I think my teammates look for me to be like an Energizer Bunny and bring life to the team."

Without Tillery, the Stallions lost two games in a three-game span and allowed 45 points in a home loss to the New Orleans Breakers. Birmingham was down seven starters, including key leaders such as Bo Scarbrough and Tillery, after the first week of the season.

When he returned, Tillery's backflip after wins was a warm sight for the Stallions.

...

Tillery turned 26 on June 22, and he still dreams of receiving a phone call from an NFL team again.

...

Yet even as he hopes for the NFL, he is thankful for the USFL, the Stallions and the opportunity to play pro football.

"We worked for 17 straight weeks without a bye week, so to celebrate another championship with this group is so special," Tillery said. "All of our hard work paid off in the end. We play to win. Hopefully through my football career I can inspire kids and be a role model for some to look up to.

"My plan after my playing career is over is to pass along my knowledge and help those who love the game like I do make it as far as they can. I love the game of football and couldn't imagine myself not being involved in the game somehow."

2023, May 31st: "Hiers Named Preseason All-American By Athlon Sports"

Since Miles' pre-season All-Americans were posted here earlier today, it seemed to make sense to also note Samford's own Birmingham native who was also so honoured a few weeks back. 

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – With less than 100 days left until kickoff at Seibert Stadium, Samford senior quarterback Michael Hiers was named a Preseason All-American by Athlon Sports, the publication announced on Wednesday morning. 

Hiers was named an All-American by the Associated Press and Stats Perform following his debut season for the Bulldogs in 2022. This is his first preseason award heading into the 2023 season.

The reigning Southern Conference Offensive Player of the Year threw for a league-best 3,544 yards and 36 touchdowns to tie Devlin Hodges' single-season mark that he set in 2016. 

Hiers ranked top 10 nationally in completion percentage (76.6%/1st), completions per game (27.15/3rd), passing efficiency (165.2/8th), passing touchdowns (36/4th), passing yards (3,544/6th), points responsible for (2,234/6th) and points responsible per game (18/7th) for the 2022 season. 

Looking to defend its SoCon title, Samford opens the 2023 season on Thursday, Aug. 31 at Seibert Stadium against Shorter. 

2023, July 12th: "Five Golden Bears named to 2023 Preseason All-SIAC team"

As issued by College earlier this week. 

ATLANTA – Five Miles student-athletes were named to the 2023 Preseason All-SIAC football team, announced at the league's Football Media Day at the College Football Hall of Fame.

Kick returner Jaylin Peterson and offensive lineman Eric Blair were elected to the First Team while offensive lineman Tyler Lowery, defensive lineman Roosevelt Thompson, and defensive back Graderius Brown were all slotted on the Second Team. The selections were made based on voting from the conference's head football coaches and media relations professionals.

Peterson (right), a junior from Birmingham, Ala., is a speedster who is capable of breaking loose at any time. In his first season with the Golden Bears in 2022, he finished second in the conference in kickoff return yards (507) as a freshman and was the tops in average per return (23.0) among qualifiers.

Blair, a graduate senior from Miami, was the top lineman last season for the Golden Bears, forced to play multiple positions on the offensive line throughout the campaign. As the leader of the offensive line, he helmed a group to marked improvement in yards per play and total yards over the second half of the 2022 season.

Brown, a senior from Linden, Ala., played in just seven contests last season but his 25 solo tackles were fourth on the Golden Bears. Capable of playing both corner and safety, Brown had 33 tackles, three tackles for loss, an interception, four pass breakups and a fumble recovery last season. His best game was against West Alabama with seven tackles (five solo), an interception and two pass breakups. Brown is also a capable punt returner, having manned the position since the 2019 season.

Thompson, a junior from Dixon Mills, Ala., was named to the 2022 preseason First Team on the defensive line. Last season, he started in nine games on the interior line and has played in 20 games with 19 starts in his two seasons, where he has averaged 30 tackles (16 solo), 3.3 tackles for loss, a sack, forced fumble and blocked kick in his career. He also added a 30-yard scoop and score in a win over Central State in 2022.

Lowery, a senior from Evergreen, Ala., did not play last season but was named to the preseason First Team on the offensive line. He was also a First Team All-SIAC pick in 2021. In 2021, he started every game and helped Miles to a West Division title after the Golden Bears finished third in the conference in rushing yards per game while allowing the fourth-fewest sacks per game.

The preseason predicted order of finish was also announced at SIAC Media Day, where the second-year head coach Sam Shade and the Golden Bears were picked to finish eighth in the 13-team league. The conference scrapped the division format beginning this season, with the top two teams in the standing now earning the right to play in the SIAC Championship Game in November.

Let's back-pocket that 8th place prediction to revisit come December or so. 😉