AISA’s six best football teams will head to Veterans Memorial Stadium this Friday for the 2017 State Championship.

“It’s an exciting time,” said AISA Athletic Director Roddie Beck. “We are looking forward to it. Troy University is a great host and they have been for many years.”

Chambers and Patrician will begin the day in the Class A championship at noon and will be followed by Escambia and Autauga in Class AA action beginning at 3:30 p.m. Bessemer and Monroe will finish the day in Class AAA beginning at 7 p.m. Five of the six teams that make up Friday’s schedule advanced to the championship a season ago. Patrician is the only new team.

The opening matchup will feature two region champions. Chambers Academy finished the season with a 10-0 record, shutting out Marengo 43-0 in round of the playoffs 43-0 and knocking off Abbeville Christian 14-6 in the semi-finals.  Patrician finished 6-4 (5-0 in region) and defeated Lowndes Academy 28-20 before beating Crenshaw Christian 27-20 in the playoffs.

“Coach (Jason) Allen has a great run going this year,” Beck said. “He has done a great job with that program. Coach Jonathan Lindsey at Patrician has an up and coming program. I look for the 1A game to be a great game.”

The Class AA championship features two teams that went a combined 19-1 in the regular season. Defending champion Autauga Academy finished the year undefeated and outscored their opponents 520-192.

The Cougars finished with one loss this season: a 42-20 defeat at the hands of Autauga. The Cougars defeated Cornerstone Christian 55-0 in round one before beating Macon-East 50-13 in round two.

“You have Bobby Car who had the winning streak at Edgewood for many years coaching Autauga and you have Coach (Hugh) Fountain who has done a great job since leaving Charles Henderson,” Beck said. “I look for another great football game. Two quality coaches and a lot of athletes will be on the field for that game.”

The Generals defeated the Cougars 28-21 in last year’s championship.

The Class AAA game will also feature a rematch of last year’s championship game, when Bessemer beat the Volunteers 28-7.

“They have been there a number of times,” Beck said. “Last year Bessemer ended up winning, but the score didn’t dictate how close the game was. I expect a great game.”

The Rebels are coming to Troy for the fifth straight season, winning the last two championships. They finished the regular season 6-5 and defeated Fort Dale 49-6 and region rival Tuscaloosa Academy 23-20 in the playoffs.

Monroe finished the regular season 10-0, outscoring their opponents 504-137 with three shutouts. The Volunteers defeated Lee-Scott Academy 39-10 and Morgan Academy 34-7 in the playoffs.

Fans can purchase for the game through their respective schools. Local fans that would like to attend can purchase tickets at the gates for $15.

“That gets you in all three games,” Beck said. “We do want to remind the fans that with construction going on you may want to try and get there early.”