Gavin Marsh kicks a 39-yard field goal against Briarwood Christian Friday night. | Richard Hollingsworth (http://nikonrick.smugmug.com/)

No. 2 Hartselle vs. No. 6 Vigor

Series: First Ever Meeting

Stadium: Bryant-Denny Stadium, Tuscaloosa

Game Time: Thursday at 7 p.m.

Radio: 99.9 FM (Hartselle broadcast), 103.9 FM (AHSAA Radio Network)

TV: My 8, Huntsville

Internet broadcast: http://www.cbs42.com/, http://www.hartselleqbclub.com/ and http://www.ahsaaradionetwork.com

Tickets: $12 + service fee for general admission

Hartselle Schedule

at Athens – W, 23-0

Brewer – W, 54-0

at Hayden – W, 57-0

Walker – W, 17-3

Decatur (6A) – W, 28-21

West Point – W, 44-10

Curry – W, 55-7

at Mortimer Jordan – W, 49-13

at Cullman – W, 20-13

Austin (6A) – W, 42-14

Boaz – W, 52-13

at Pinson Valley – W, 22-21

at Center Point – W, 17-7

Briarwood Christian – W, 16-14

Vigor Schedule

at Williamson (6A) – W, 28-0

at Davidson (6A) – L, 13-14

at Citronelle – W, 47-0

Gulf Shores – W, 36-0

Murphy (6A) – W, 24-21

at St. Paul’s – L, 8-10

Faith Academy – W, 54-13

at Spanish Fort – W, 7-0

LeFlore Magnet – W, 35-7

at Blount – W, 13-6

McAdory – W 6-0

at Greenville – W, 48-27

Spanish Fort – W, 12-9

at Hueytown – W, 20-7

Playoff history:

Appearances: Hartselle 30, Vigor 27

Overall record: Hartselle 33-29, Vigor 55-23

Last time in Finals: Hartselle 1981 (L, Eufaula 20-39), Vigor 2008 (W, Russellville 50-30)

Record in Finals: Hartselle 0-2, Vigor 3-1

Hartselle’s Team Statistics

Scoring: 496, 35.4 per game

Points Allowed: 136, 9.7 per game

Opponents Record: 83-74

Home Record: 7-0

Road Record: 7-0

Vigor Team Statistics

Scoring: 354, 25.3 per game

Points Allowed: 104, 7.4 per game

Opponents Record: 98-64

Home Record: 6-0

Road Record: 6-2

Defense is the key to success

Hartselle and Vigor feature two of the best defenses among all classifications. Both were ranked near the top at the end of the regular season and have continued to improve those numbers in the playoffs.

Vigor holds the slight edge holding teams to 7.4 points per game and 8.25 points in the playoffs. Hueytown scored at least 34 points in its first 13 games, but against Vigor, top college prospect Jaboo Winston and the Golden Gophers only managed a touchdown.

The Tigers are averaging 9.7 points allowed per game and 13.75 in the playoffs. They also held Briarwood Christian to 14 points, matching its lowest output of the season.

Record setting year for Tigers continues

Hartselle continues to break school records this season.

This season was only the third undefeated regular season for the Tigers. It’s the first time the Tigers reached 13 and 14 wins for a season. The 14 wins is also the longest winning streak in its history.

It is also the first time in nearly three decades that the Tigers have been to the semifinals in consecutive years.

Now, the Tigers are playing in their first state championship game since 1981 and the first appearance in the AHSAA Super Six with championship games at a neutral site.

In addition to that, the Tigers can break the 500-point mark for the first time with anything more than a field goal.

What to expect

With both teams having excellent defense, there won’t be much scoring at all in this game.

Footing could also become a problem since this is the third football game to played on the field in a day. However, the surface at Bryant-Denny has held up much better than in previous years.

Expect this game to come down to a critical turnover or one big offensive play because they will be few and far between.

This will be the toughest test for the Tigers this season, but they have shown they will not back down from any challenge.