Two important football games will be played over the next couple of days, and there’s a lot of weight riding on each team’s shoulders.

I’m of course talking about the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Class 3A state semifinal contest between our Straughn Tigers and Leeds, and the 2013 edition of the Iron Bowl, where top-ranked Alabama visits No. 4 Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium to decide the representative from the West at the SEC Championship in Atlanta next week.

What a thrilling week of football isn’t it?

We have the Tigers making their second straight trip to the semifinals to take on a good Green Wave team, who beat out previously undefeated T.R. Miller last week.

Straughn handled Northside pretty easily in the first round, defeated Dale County in round two and beat Bayside Academy last week in the quarterfinals in a rout.

This week’s game for the Tigers will probably be a tough game. The Green Wave held TRM to only 20 points, and only trailed (20-17) once in the game last week.

Alabama has had its ups and downs throughout the season, but is still undefeated after a 49-0 rout over Chattanooga on Saturday.

The Crimson Tide — like in so many games before — got off to a slow start, but quickly gained control of the game in the first quarter to go up big and never looked back.

Auburn had a bye week after its 43-38 victory over Georgia two weeks ago, where the Tigers caught a hail mary pass on their way to a touchdown, which was the eventual game winner.

There were several War Eagle clan who spread their excitement about the outcome of the game over the Bulldogs.

For the first time in Iron Bowl history and as I mentioned earlier, the winner of the biggest game of the state will go to play in the SEC Championship on Sat., Dec. 7.

If Straughn wins tomorrow night, then this will be the first time in school history that the Tigers will play in the state championship game at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa.

If Alabama wins, then this will be the second straight trip to the conference championship game, which is one game in the way playing for its third straight BCS National Championship.

If Auburn was to win, then it will be back in the conference championship for the first time in three years when the Tigers beat South Carolina soundly in 2010.

Now, do you see how this week is shaping up to be one of the best football weeks for this sports editor?

Happy Thanksgiving!