This week in HS Sports: Can Hoover still be Hoover in 2024 through it all?

This is an opinion piece.

It’s been a whirlwind of a week for the Hoover football team.

Actually, more like a whirlwind three days.

Head football coach Drew Gilmer – hired away from reigning Class 6A state champ Clay-Chalkville in January – and defensive coordinator Adam Helms were put on administrative leave Tuesday as videos from a Bucs’ practice session circulated on social media appearing to show controversial behavior by two of the team’s coaches.

On Thursday, the Hoover City Board of Education accepted both of their resignations. This comes just two weeks before the Bucs open the 2024 season against Western of Davie, Fla., on Aug. 24. Former Albertville and Grissom head coach Chip English has been named interim coach and will serve in that role for the remainder of the season.

Counting English, Hoover has now had four head coaches in the last four years. This after Rush Propst and Josh Niblett spent a combined 23 years at the school, winning 11 state titles along the way and building Hoover football into a national brand.

That’s stunning.

I really feel for all involved.

I feel for Gilmer and Helms, who are now without jobs. I don’t know coach Helms. I do know Gilmer, and I like him. We’ve always had a good relationship. I can’t defend the actions we all saw on the video and wouldn’t try, but I also haven’t talked to either coach to hear if they have a different side to offer.

Maybe I’ll get that chance.

I certainly feel for the players – the ones seen in the controversial videos and the remaining players on the team who now must pick up the pieces, adjust to a new coach and get ready for an always tough Class 7A schedule.

After opening at Western, Fla., on a Saturday, the Bucs come back home the next Friday (Aug. 30) to play rival Spain Park, which dropped to 6A this season. They then open the 7A, Region 3 schedule with road games at Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa and at Hewitt-Trussville.

The remainder of the schedule includes traditional 7A power Prattville, Class 6A playoff contender Parker and the rest of the Region 3 rivals, including Thompson and Vestavia Hills.

It’s tough.

This Hoover team is not without talent, though.

Quarterback Mac Beason transferred in from Gardendale. Jonah Winston – the younger brother of NFL QB Jameis Winston – will play multiple positions. Both of those guys and many others took to social media this week in defense of Gilmer and Helms and what they were trying to build at the school.

Winston said Gilmer and Helms had a “different style and that’s why they win.” He said, “Our culture is broke. 5-7 shows it!” He was referring, of course, to the 2023 season in which the Bucs lost five of their first six games but did ultimately make the playoffs. Hoover hasn’t missed the playoffs since Propst’s first year in 1999.

The challenges for the 2024 team are dauting in the wake of what has happened this week.

Can Beason, Winston and the team keep the playoff streak alive, return Hoover to the top of the 7A mountain and make sure the Bucs are still one of the nation’s most recognized programs? Can English and the remaining staff members unify the squad going forward in a common goal?

It’s been a tough week, but it can still be a memorable season. How many times have we seen a sports team galvanized by an off-the-field or court incident or tragedy leading to an impressive run?

I’m hoping for that for this team.

Can Hoover still be Hoover through it all?

We’re all about to find out.

Transfer timing

A lot has been made recently – and in this column particularly – about the increase in the amount of high school student-athletes transferring from one school to another.

I’m honestly not sure on Friday night who I will see on what team anymore. That troubles me.

When I sent emails this summer in order to do previews on each class, I asked coaches who their top newcomers were. I’ve always asked this in reference to younger players who might make an impact in the coming season. Now it also has to refer to players who transferred into the school.

It’s hard to blame parents for trying to make the best decisions for their kids, but what has become glaring — and unfortunate recently — is the timing of a lot of these transfers.

Many players have gone through spring and summer workouts with their previous teams before announcing transfers even as school starts in many districts this week. I’ve heard multiple stories this summer of student-athletes transferring out and not even talking to their former coaches about the decision.

I’m not sure what the answer is, but I hope new AHSAA executive director Heath Harmon has some ideas. Certainly, the trend has grown with the popularity of the NCAA Transfer Portal, but that doesn’t mean it is a good thing on either level.

Maybe, I’m old school but I couldn’t have imagined playing for any high school other than the green and gold of the Clarkston High Angoras. I certainly couldn’t have imagined playing for 2 or 3 other schools.

A positive ending

Even with the Hoover situation this week and the rampant transfers, I’m still excited about another high school sports season on the horizon.

The ASWA preseason football rankings have been published. At AL.com, we’ve started rolling out our A-List features on the top senior football recruits in the state. We’ll also publish our A-List of top volleyball players later this month.

We also are starting a high school newsletter, which you will hear much more about in the coming week. I hope you’ll join us for the ride.

Thought for the Week

“If there is a grace beyond compare,

To even the ones who nailed Him there,

Then even your guilt and shame, your worst mistakes can be restored.” – Forgivable, Mercy Me

Ben Thomas is the high school sportswriter at AL.com. He has been named one of the 50 legends of the Alabama Sports Writers Association. Follow him on twitter at @BenThomasPreps or email him at bthomas@al.com. He can be heard weekly on “Inside High School Sports” on SportsTalk 99.5 FM in Mobile or on the free IHeart Radio App at 2 p.m. Wednesdays.