Decatur High School (Alabama)

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Decatur High School
City Decatur, Alabama
School District Decatur City Schools
Established 1913
Student Population
 - Regular
 - Developmental
986
40
Mascott Red Raider
School Colors Red and Black
Principal Mike Ward
Official Website [1]

Decatur High School, located in Decatur, Alabama, United States, under the Decatur City Schools, across Prospect Dr. from Delano Park, is ranked as one of the top academic schools in the state, as well as the nation, with strong Advanced Placement programs and high ACT & SAT test scores that exceed both State and National averages.

Decatur High, along with western Decatur's Austin High School, are the only International Baccalaureate schools north of Birmingham, Alabama.

Contents

[edit] Athletics

Decatur High is represented each year in the State Playoffs, and has won many state championships in Basketball, Football, Golf, and Cross Country.

Decatur's athletic teams consistently compete with those of schools two, three, and four times its own size, each year ranking among the top teams in the state.

Decatur High's football, and soccer programs play at the 9,000 seat Ogle Stadium on the southern end of the campus.

Due to the AHSAA Class Re-Alignments, Decatur has been moved to class 5A. The drop in class is due to a the new rules of the AHSAA Class Alignments, the Decatur High Developmental Program was not counted as part of the regular student population, therefore making Decatur fall short of the 6A Class Rating by only 14 students. Decatur will be the second largest 5A school in the state in the 2006 athletic season.

[edit] Football

The Decatur High football team is considered among the elite teams in North Alabama. Rated even among some of the largest schools in the state.

The team has defeated cross-town rival Austin High School, a school twice the size of DHS, many times, with the leading number of wins in the rivalry.

Most opponents have lack luster performances during a game at Ogle Stadium on Decatur's campus. This is due to the sheer enormity of the stadium, which dwarfs many other high school facilities. Though, the size of the stadium is not the only thing that forces opposing teams to work harder, the large fan base of the school is always present and tends to create a large amount of distraction for the players on the field.

[edit] Basketball

Decatur's basketball teams continually have great teams, even when a high ranked opponent stands in their way. action.

On February 23, 2007, #11 Rico Pickett broke the 5A state regional tournament record for the amount of points scored by a single player. Pickett scored 42 points in the Northwest Regional Tournament, a record that had previously been set by Albertville's Alex Beason.

[edit] Rivalries

[edit] Football

The Cross Town Rivalry

Nothing in the central Tennessee Valley matches the annual "Decatur - Austin" game on a late season friday in November. Nearly 11,000 fans pack into Ogle Stadium to watch one fo the most heated rivalries in Alabama high school football. The series dates back to 1965 when Decatur defeated Austin in the first meeting 27-7. This marked the beginning of a rivalry that fans schedule and plan events around, since no one in town isn't, in some form, keeping track of the football game in southeast Decatur.

Decatur high leads the series 29-14.

This rivalry has eclipsed the oldest Decatur High rivalry with Athens High.

The Cross River Rivalry

This is Decatur High's oldest rivalry, dating back to before the creation of Austin High. This rivalry is one of the most intense among North Alabama high schools. This is because in the years that the two high schools began playing each other, they were the largest in North Alabama, as the city of Huntsville, Alabama was still near the bottom when compared to the cities of Decatur, Florence, and Athens. Both schools in their time were considered among the elite of the region and the main athletic focus of North Central Alabama. Up until 1965 no other game came close to comparing in the minds of the Decatur fans. This rivalry was soon eclipsed in the mid 1970s by the Decatur - Austin game. As the area grew larger and soon left the city of Athens in its wake, the cross town rivalry soon took the top spot. But, to this day, there is still debate about which game is more intense.

Since Decatur High's recent drop in AHSAA classifications into 5A, this rivalry has taken on a new meaning, and has brought the intensity that the game had lost in years past. Both schools are in the same region, and fight for the same title each year, in one of the most competitive regions in AHSAA football.

The In-County Rival: The "Hartselle Hicks"

This is also an old rivalry for Decatur High. The annual game, that both schools now play in regional play, inspires the yearly Hartselle Hick Day at Decatur. Students dress up as farmers in plad, overalls, and dance to the tun of Cotton Eyed Joe during the pep rally. This rivalry has grown a lot in popularity over recent years, and has started to approach the Decatur-Athens rivalry status in the Tennessee Valley. However, after recent AHSAA classification changes, Decatur dropped to 5A, and now competes in the same region as Hartselle and Athens. The Athens game is now pulling away from the Decatur-Hartselle game and being more compared to the Decatur-Austin rivalry, since Athens continues to be one of, if not the, toughest opponents on Decatur's schedule.

This game is not considered nearly as great of a rivalry as either of the above, but, after a perfect season upset in 2004, Decatur High has always sought revenge. In that year, The Senators, upset the region leader, Decatur, and stole the regional title after the loss. This loss came after a less than average season of 2003 in which the Red Raiders had up to 5 losses. In 2005, The Raiders, took control of the region, and claimed the Region 8 title that year after the Austin game. The series was then 1-1, both schools tied for the all time record. Unfortunately, during Decatur's lack luster season of 2006, a No. 10 ranked Sparkman Senators took that year's rivalry title and ran with it, never looking back.

[edit] Basketball

This is Decatur High's biggest rivalry. The two high schools compete against each other twice annually at the 3,000-seat Carlton Kelly Gymnasium at Calhoun Community College's Main Campus in Decatur, Limestone County. The athletic rivalry with Austin surrounds all kinds sporting events from football, at the way to marching band. But, as soon as football season ends, basketball is king, and the competition on the court begins.

Decatur recently faced Austin on January 13, 2007. During the Varsity Boys game, the lead swapped back and fourth all the way to halftime. As the buzzer sounded off the game was tied at 33-33. The final half and third period began and Decatur game back as a force, ending the whole game 85-66, snapping a five game losing streak that dated back to 2004. This win comes as The Red Raiders, with an outstanding senior basketball lineup searches for a state title.

[edit] Fine arts

The Decatur High School's Chorus and Concert Bands have consistently received superior ratings in both District and State competitions.

Decatur High has the longest string of District Competition Superior Ratings in Alabama, dating back to the competition's formation in 1947, never receiving anything less than a superior rating.

Decatur High also continues to lead in number of Alabama Bandmasters State Competition Superior Ratings at 57, more than any other high school in state history.[1]

The Decatur Red Raider Marching Band won the Tennessee Valley Invitational at Muscle Shoals High School in Muscle Shoals, Alabama in 2006. This is the most important award that the band has earned since the new band director, Robbie Stout, took control of the band in 2004. Since their new band director, Decatur has creeped its way up the list to being mentioned in the same group as the Austin High Symphonic A Band, the Virgil Grissom High A Band, and other bands that are considered to be some of the few Alabama high school elites.

[edit] Alma Mater

 Hail, to thee, our Alma Mater
 By the Tennessee
 Through the years we'll oft remember 
 Days we spent with the
 -
 Here's to thee, our dear old high school
 Here's to thee a song
 May the happy memories of thee
 Linger with us long
 -
 Soon our faithful band will server
 Soon our ways will part
 Friendship ties will live forever
 Engraven in our heart
 -
 Always faithful, always loyal
 To our ensign bold;
 Hail to thee, our Alma Mater
 Decatur High, All Hail!

The second line of the lyrics is due to the location of the old "Riverside High School" built in 1921 to replace an aging Gordon Bibb. The RHS still stands on the edge of Rhodes Ferry Park in Decatur on Wilson St., and is situated about 275 ft. from the edge of the Tennessee River.

[edit] Trivia

  • The graduating class of 2006 was awarded more than 5 million dollars in scholarships out of the 8 million dollars offered to students in the Decatur City Schools.
  • 99% of the school's seniors passed the Alabama High School Graduation Exam in 2005.
  • Decatur high has a graduation rate of 98%.
  • Varsity Boys Basketball coach Jamie Lee recently, January 19, 2007, earned his 100th career victory against Decatur's Cross River Rival, Athens.
  • Decatur High School is home to the 2007 Alabama Junior Miss, Mary Catherine McAnnally.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Decatur City Schools Highlights to Cheer. Decatur Daily Newspaper (07-11-2006).

[edit] See also

[edit] External links


International Baccalaureate Schools in Alabama
Auburn High School • Austin High School • Central High School • Decatur High School • Jefferson County International Baccalaureate School • Murphy High School • Hoover High School
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