Getting Big Results at Small Schools

What are the keys to building winning programs in schools so small that just fielding a team can be a challenge? In this, part two of AFM’s series about how some of the smallest high schools in the country have built dominant programs, we examine how Alcoa High School (TN) Coach Gary Rankin and Harlan Community High School (IA) Coach Curt Bladt have established winning traditions and taken home multiple championships. Alcoa, Tennessee, population 7,744, sits in the shadows of the Great Smoky Mountains, just north of Maryville. As its name implies, the town’s industrial heritage is in aluminum. But it is high school football that forms a stronger bond among its residents. The Alcoa High Tornadoes, who count NFL Hall of Famer Lynn Swann among their alumni, have won a total of 11 state titles overall, including the last six in a row. They are a central part of the town’s character