By Shannon Fagan, WEIS Sports Director

CENTRE – A year ago when he was the head football coach at Glencoe, Bayley Blanchard wanted to do something to honor the memory of his father James.

James Blanchard passed away in July of 2024 at the age of 59 following a battle with cancer.

Bayley knew his father loved football. The two even shared a state championship at Piedmont in 2015, when Bayley was a senior and James was the Bulldogs’ defensive coordinator.

After brainstorming with his former head coach Steve Smith, the idea came up of hosting a 7-on-7 passing tournament to honor Bayley’s father called the Coach B. Memorial 7-on-7 Tournament.

“We always had a good one when I was at Piedmont. I thought it was always a fun day, a really good community day, so that’s kind of how the idea came about,” Bayley said.

Last year’s inaugural Coach B. Memorial had five teams. This year – Bayley’s first as the head coach of the Warriors – will feature 12. It will be held on Thursday morning at Warrior Stadium.

Joining the Warriors in this year’s Coach B. Memorial is Sand Rock, Westbrook Christian, Cleburne County, Weaver, Jacksonville, Lincoln, Winterboro, Etowah, Gaston, Southside, and Fort Payne.

“It’s a big thing for me, for dad and his legacy, but it’s also big for Cherokee County, to build the community, get out there and compete and get better,” Bayley said. “I’m excited.”

The action begins at 9 a.m., with the Warriors taking on Lincoln, Westbrook Christian facing Weaver, and Gaston against Fort Payne. The 9:30 a.m. session includes Sand Rock competing with Cleburne County, Jacksonville against Winterboro, and Etowah facing Southside. Pool play continues the afternoon.

Following a break for lunch, First Baptist Church youth minister Tucker Bryson will deliver a team prayer. Adam Griffith and Ed Miller will then have an inspirational message at 12:45 p.m. Play will resume around 1:30 p.m.

The tournament semifinals are scheduled for 3:45 p.m., with the tournament championship at approximately 4:30 p.m.

Bayley said there is no admission to the event, which will also have food trucks on site from Decks and Docks and N.K.’s Cafe.

“We want to make this a big community event,” he said. “Anyone who wants to come out we’d appreciate the support.”

This will be the second 7-on-7 the Warriors have competed in within the past two weeks. Last week, they participated in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes 7-on-7 Passing Camp at McClellan in Anniston. The Warriors reached the tournament semifinals before getting beat by St. Clair County.

“It’s always good to compete,” Bayley said. “This one is more of a pride thing, with it being at your house. You treat it like a home game. We’ve got a lot of good teams coming in, a lot of great coaches. We want to go out and have pride on that field. This is our home turf, and we don’t want to lose. We’re kind of getting in that mindset for the season.”

When asked what advice his father would give if he were speaking to the kids, Bayley said it would be “Just do your job.”

“One of his famous lines from 7-on-7 is ‘Man is man. Quit looking at the quarterback,’” Bayley said. “This is a good time for us to get on the DBs (defensive backs) about doing your job and what you’re supposed to do.”

James Blanchard spent 17 years at Piedmont, where the Bulldogs won 198 games before he followed head coach Steve Smith to Westbrook Christian in 2023. His defenses also helped Piedmont win five Class 3A state championships, earn two state runners-up, and claim 10 region championships.

That success also carried over onto the baseball diamond. He was also Piedmont’s head baseball coach for eight seasons (2009-16), in which he guided the Bulldogs to new heights in that sport, including a Class 3A state runner-up in 2012.

In 2011, James Blanchard was diagnosed with tonsil cancer. He underwent chemo and radiation treatments during that season, which forced him to turn the coaching reigns over to then-assistant coach Matt Deerman.

But James battled back to coach the Bulldogs again in 2012. Piedmont posted a 29-11-1 record and finished as state runner-up to Trinity for the first time in the school’s baseball history.

Prior to his arrival in Piedmont, James Blanchard was the offensive coordinator at Cherokee County High School from 2003-06. He helped lead the Warriors to the 2005 Class 3A state championship game.