Changes are afoot at the Alabama Independent School Association.

The football coaches met in Montgomery Friday, and they saw AISA executive director John Faircloth for the final time in an official capacity. Faircloth will retire Aug. 31 after 32 years of working with the association.

"There are going to be some changes, because there are always changes in these situations," incoming executive director Don Oswald said. "But the AISA is built on tradition, so we will not change a whole bunch."

Faircloth worked with South Montgomery County Academy in 1971 and started working with the AISA since then. He is from Brundidge and was instrumental in moving the AISA championship games from schools' home fields to Troy.

"I want to leave things better than when I found them, and I think we did that here," Faircloth said.

Oswald said he has not seen Movie Gallery Stadium since the championship tripleheader in 2002, but he said he plans to keep the title games in Troy.

"Before we moved the games to Troy, they were in home stadiums of different schools," Oswald said. "A lot of people were left standing, but under this arrangement, it is possible for people from all over the state to see several championship games and have room to sit down."

Although there is not a change in venue in the foreseeable future, some changes will be evident in the championship game. Overtime tie-breakers will be used in the title games this year.

Playoff and regular-season games have used overtimes for several years, but an obscure rule allowed for co-champions allowing for a tie in the championship game.

The 2002 3A championship game almost ended in a tie, but Bessemer defeated Monroe 9-6 on a last-second field goal.

"I was working the gate at that game, and we were all hoping someone would win the game," Oswald said. "We would have had to enforce the rule and declare co-champions, but the crowd would not have understood that."