Columbia HSFB Team Snaps 101-Game Losing Streak, Longest in History, Led by Former NFL WR as HC

A losing streak that stretched to 101 games is finally over for Columbia High School in Huntsville, Alabama.

Columbia beat Greensboro High School 41-14 on Saturday.

"All the glory to God," Columbia coach Sammie Coates said, per AL.com's Thomas Ashworth. "God has blessed me to be in this situation to bring this to this school, to this community. I want to say thank you to the administration, to the school supporting me, having my back the whole time, and the players showing up and fighting every single day throughout the spring, throughout the summer, everything they have done.

"They deserve every moment of this. They stuck it out. Guys came out and helped support. We built the program, and it's coming. We ain't there yet, but we are coming."

Coates, who starred at Auburn as a wide receiver before playing four years in the NFL, is in his second season at the helm. According to Kaleigh Tingelstad and Mike Brown of 48 News in Huntsville, he had just 28 players on the roster by the time the 2025 campaign concluded.

Now, Columbia is 1-0 to kick off 2026, and the Eagles prevailed in emphatic fashion. They reeled off 41 unanswered points after going behind 14-0.

Running back Christian Richey was a standout performer, eclipsing 200 yards from scrimmage and scoring four touchdowns.

Having a coach with an NFL pedigree certainly helped to build Columbia's profile, and the school began working with Gatorade in August 2025 to give its players an added boost.

That might finally be paying dividends.