By Bob Sutton
Special to The Alamance News
Next week’s edition of the Tony Perrou Classic will have a bit of a different twist at Southern Alamance.
The daylong basketball event Monday will include participation from Eastern Alamance.
Six games are scheduled, capped by Southern taking on Williams in a girls’ game (5:00 p.m.) followed by the schools clashing in a boys’ game (7:00).
It will be the first Tony Perrou Classic since 2020. That’s when the 12th edition was held.
Numerous schools from around the region have been involved in the event, which is used as a fundraiser for a scholarship in Perrou’s memory. Eastern was to participate last year, but the games were cancelled because of weather-related concerns. The COVID-disrupted 2020-21 season prevented a 2021 event.
Perrou died after an October 2006 traffic accident on I-40/85 at age 40. He was Southern’s football coach at the time. He was a former assistant coach and athletics director at Williams.
The day’s schedule begins with Southern vs. Chatham Central junior varsity girls at 10:00 a.m. followed by a junior varsity boys’ game between Eastern and Southern. The rest of the docket features varsity teams.
At 1:00 p.m., Eastern and Chatham Charter meet in a girls’ game followed at 3:00 by Eastern vs. Chatham Charter in a boys’ game.
The Southern-Williams games will be the only meetings of the season between the teams.
The girls’ matchup will pit two teams that entered this week with 10 victories apiece.
Beginning in August, the schools will be in the same conference again.
The event is played on Martin Luther King Day each January.
Numerous schools from around the region have been involved in the event, which is used as a fundraiser for a scholarship in Perrou’s memory. Eastern was to participate last year, but the games were cancelled because of weather-related concerns. The COVID-disrupted 2020-21 season prevented a 2021 event.
Perrou died after an October 2006 traffic accident on I-40/85 at age 40. He was Southern’s football coach at the time. He was a former assistant coach and athletics director at Williams.
