Sipsey and Northside Also Changing AHSAA Status
According to a report by the Tuscaloosa Patch, Hillcrest to 7A is not the only classification change the AHSAA has in store for Tuscaloosa County schools.
Ryan Phillips of the Patch reports, "The Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) next week is set to announce its high school reclassifications for 2024-2025, with the proposed changes seeing Northside High School and Sipsey Valley High School moving from AHSAA Class 4A to Class 5A.
According to a copy of the proposed changes obtained by Patch, Northside and Sipsey Valley football would compete in AHSAA Class 5A, Region 3, joining Demopolis, Jemison, Marbury and Selma."
As Phillips, a Northside alum, points out, the Rams have competed in Class 4A since 2014, after alternating for years prior between 3A and 4A.
Meanwhile, in the Western part of the county, Sipsey Valley was briefly a 5A school from 2020 through 2021, before the Bears went down to 4A for the last two years.
The most recent reclassification for 2022-2024 shows Class 5A schools reporting average daily enrollments ranging from just short of 600 students to 400 students.
https://patch.com/alabama/tuscaloosa/northside-sipsey-valley-poised-move-ahsaa-class-5a?utm_source=alert-breakingnews&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=alert&user_email=74309dc5454cb751f354a1209b8cd2720e1c60aea1093f18371a8b8a55d29119
Counting only enrollment, Northside was the seventh biggest 4A school the last time the AHSAA announced reclassifications, with 382 students, while Sipsey Valley came in at 13th with 368 students.
Northside Rams Defeat the Berry Wildcats in Week 1 2021