Coates is the coach at Columbia High in Huntsville, AL, and the team just snapped a 101 game losing streak that began in 2015. Coates became head coach there last year, and nearly won a game in his first season.

I love seeing examples of how high school sports can teach kids to overcome obstacles, trust each other, and believe in themselves.

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Entering Saturday night's game against Greensboro (AL), the Columbia (AL) Eagles carried the unfortunate tag of having the nation's longest losing streak.

Not since 2015 had the Eagles found themselves on the left side of the win column. The streak sat at 101 games, but that's as long as it would get.

With a dominant 41-14 win over the Raiders, the Eagles snapped that losing streak, and the celebration was on.

To understand Saturday night, you have to go back to October 2015. The Eagles finished that season 2-8, but their two wins came in back-to-back weeks: they beat St. John Paul II 62-21 on October 8 and Ardmore 34-16 on October 16.

They closed out the year with back-to-back losses, and for the next decade, that's all the team experienced. Between 2016 and 2025, the Eagles went 0-10 eight times, 0-11 once, and then had one season where they went 0-9.

Last season, they came close to snapping that streak before it reached 100 games but ultimately lost to East Lawrence on Sept. 26 by a score of 28-24.

All of that was forgotten on Saturday night, though.

The Eagles are led by head coach Sammie Coates Jr. Coates has been at the school since last season but is known for him as a standout receiver at Auburn from 2011-2014 before being taken in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft and spending the next four seasons in the NFL.