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| Smith, right, receives game ball after 2017 title game. |
I call Hillcrest head football coach Clinton Smith the
“Miracle Worker” because he and his talented staff have worked a miracle with
the Hillcrest football program over the past five seasons. Prior to his arrival
as head coach in 2015, I had serious doubts about whether Hillcrest would ever
win a state title in football. He made a believer out of me in 2017 when the
Jags captured the 3A state title, the first in school history, and the sky has
been the limit for the program ever since.
Like a lot of people in the community, I was thrilled to
learn that he changed his mind about leaving Hillcrest for another head
coaching job at Shades Valley. The people of Conecuh County, especially those
with sons of football-playing age, should thank their lucky stars that Smith is
staying at Hillcrest. His remaining at Hillcrest will be life changing for this
group of young men, especially when you consider his track record.
Coach Smith became the head football coach at Hillcrest in
2015, and he has had a remarkable five-year run at the school. Just how good have
the past five year’s been for Hillcrest football? In short, it’s been the best
in school history. Not knocking any of the other coaches the school has had,
but the numbers bear this out.
Including Smith, Hillcrest has had seven head coaches since
1989. Smith has a 42-24 overall record at the school, and he’s the only coach in
Hillcrest history to sport a winning overall record, with the exception of former
Auburn University head football coach Doug Barfield who went 8-1 in one season
as the school’s first football coach in 1989. Smith’s 42 wins are also the most
of any coach in school history, and his record in playoff games, 12-4, is also
far and away better than any coach in the history of the school.
Speaking of playoffs, Smith has gone to the playoffs in each
of his five seasons at Hillcrest, and he’s taken the school to at least the
quarterfinals three times, the semi-finals twice and the state championship
game once (which he won). Many of these playoff games were among the greatest
games in school history. Memorable games that come immediately to mind include
Hillcrest’s 25-22 rematch road win over T.R. Miller in the quarterfinals of the
state playoffs in 2015; the huge semi-final round win over Clarke County in
2017; and Hillcrest’s state championship victory over Randolph County in 2017
at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Smith and his staff accomplished all of this while competing
in arguably the toughest 3A and 4A regions in the state. When you have success
against competition like UMS-Wright, T.R. Miller, Flomaton, Clarke County,
Mobile Christian and Andalusia, you’ve have done something. These people aren’t
pushovers, and they don’t lay down for anybody.
In the end, I want to thank Coach Smith for what he’s done
for Hillcrest’s football program and his players. He has taken the program to
new heights by winning more total games than any other coach in the history of
the school, by turning Hillcrest into a team that you dread to play because
they’re so tough to beat, and he’s had a huge impact on the lives of his
players. No doubt he’s a future Hall of Famer and best of luck to him in his
years to come at Hillcrest.
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