Bob Jones, Sparkman hold own in tourney

By Todd Thompson, Madison Record
(Updated: Friday, June 27, 2008 10:38 AM CDT)

Bob Jones and Sparkman didn’t reach the finals of the North Alabama Elite 7-on-7 Passing Tournament last week at Bob Jones High School, but the two teams had plenty of highlights during the three-day event.

Bob Jones beat Sparkman 56-0 and Russellville 34-15 in pool play as team’s used the tournament to break in several new players for the upcoming season.

Sparkman beat Russellville 31-15 and Buckhorn 35-32. The Senators also dropped a 32-9 decision to Class 4A state runner-up Deshler in pool play.

North Gwinnett (Ga.) won the team title with a 35-18 victory over Olive Branch in the championship game.

North Gwinnett, who finished last season as the No. 2 ranked team in Georgia in Class AAAAA, had to knock off defending champion Byrnes (S.C.) 33-30 in the semifinals to reach the championship game.

Byrnes, a team that has won eight state championships in South Carolina since 1982, beat Bob Jones 37-9 and Sparkman 41-11 on the way to the semifinals.

The Rebels finished 7-0 in pool play before suffering their first loss of the passing tournament in the winner’s bracket.

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