One definition of the word record is something that represents the greatest attainment so far, especially in sports. Another definition says a body of information or statistics, gathered over a period of time about a particular subject, and individually, a person&8221;s accomplishments or performance to date.

With that said, we have some teams or schools in our area that have established great traditions. Traditions that we seen season after season, whether it&8221;s football, basketball of baseball. I&8221;ve had a chance to see some of these teams in action, even before my emergence at The Times.

Some of the records may have gone unnoticed or haven&8221;t been mentioned recently. Let&8221;s start with football. The newly crowned AHSAA 2006 1A champs, Sweet Water Bulldogs, are second in the most undefeated seasons with five. The last time they went undefeated was in 1979. Sweet Water rushed for over 4,600 yards in 1997 to put them in the top ten.

Demopolis, in its undefeated championship season (2004) holds the record for the most points scored in a season with 761. 2004 was the year to watch Demopolis play football. I didn&8221;t see every game, but I was able to catch them on the radio on a regular basis. They also scored 50 points in a quarter against Greene County, which puts them second in the record books. The Marengo County team was just as awesome on the offensive end in their championship run. The total offense for that year was 6,249 yards and they passed for 3,211 yards of a second and third ranking respectfully. Add on 416 yards per game and you have a heck of a football team. And they threw a total of 314 passes and completed 190 in the season. Another record held by the 2004 Tigers is the most touchdown passes in a season. They topped everyone with 51. The Tigers averaged more than 50 points a game that year, fifth in the AHSAA. There is only one team that has scored more than the 110 touchdowns Demopolis have scored in 2004.

The Tigers did play some defense in that great 2004 season. They are fourth in the record books with eight shutouts in a season, and giving up only an average of 115 yards a game. The defense was successful in holding Trinity to minus 32 yards in a game that year. They swiped 29 passes in the year for a sixth ranking.

Uniontown&8221;s R.C. Hatch football team hasn&8221;t reached the elite status of their basketball team. They have the record for most consecutive losses with 70. It may be hard to top that one, as the number two team lost 56 straight. Hatch ended that losing streak in the 2005 season. They also hold the record for the fewest yards in a game with minus 67.

Great football teams will always produce great football players, thus we have some area individuals that have put their marks in the record books. Linden&8221;s Courtney Aldridge is ranked among the top rushers, plowing 2,317 yards in 2002. Marvin Lockett, of Sweet Water, is ranked amongst the top career rushers with 5,472 yards (1980-84). Again in that year of 2004, Demopolis&8221; Devin Goodwin, who is now making his mark at Delta State University, ranks number five in extra points kicked with 69. He is third in all-purpose yards in a season with 3,392. He is also up there with 3,215 yards passing, completing 188 of 309 and 51 touchdowns. He passed for a career 5,264 yards (2001-04). His brother, Dusty, a quarterback at the University of North Alabama, has a career 5,675 yards passing from 1999 to 2002. University of Tennessee-Martin&8221;s Dontrell Miller returned three interceptions for a touchdown with the Demopolis 2004 team. Chad Schroeder, also of Delta State, ran five punts back for touchdowns in 2004 for Demopolis.

Demetrius Wolf of the 1990 A.L. Johnson team passed for 2,490 yards, completing 155 of 225 passes and 14 touchdowns. James Bryant ran 99 yards for a touchdown for John Essex three years ago. Ta&8221;Mar Scott, who has just completed is football career at Alabama A&M, returned a kickoff for a touchdown for John Essex in 2001. The 1993 Greensboro team&8221;s Teremy Banks intercepted four passes in one game.

It has been said repeatedly that records are made to be broken. In an area that&8221;s filled with great teams with great traditions, the few records listed will fall to future teams and future individuals. As mentioned last week football is alive and well in the area.

Continue to support amateur sports. I&8221;ll see you on the hardwood.