•DYNAMITE DOZEN, SUPER SIX LOADED WITH FBS COMMITMENTS
BUCCANEER BOUNTY
•ALLATOONA CELEBRATES 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF WINNING
COBB COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT’S FIRST STATE FOOTBALL TITLE
TETER READY TO SET NEW STANDARD
•LONGTIME COACH TO BECOME WINNINGEST IN SEQUOYAH HISTORY
INSIDE
•DYNAMITE DOZEN
•SUPER SIX
•TEAM PREVIEWS
•FEATURES
•SCHEDULES
•PREDICTIONS
Experience the difference at East Cobb’s premier independent school
Academic Excellence
We offer award-winning academics for students in JK-12 grade taught through a Biblical worldview. From STEM to World Languages and The Film Academy, there is something for everyone to pursue and explore. th
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Our students are taught to be servant leaders and are given opportunities at every grade level to live out their faith through chapel, Bible curriculum, community projects, and mission trips. MBCA students and graduates are impacting the world for Christ!
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Editors:
Kickoff ’25
John Bednarowski, Griffin Callaghan Designer: John Bednarowski Graphic Designers: Jennifer Hall, Beth Poirier
Correspondents: Adam Carrington, Sports Writer; Anthony Stalcup, Photographer Sports Interns: Devyn Hlavek, Bryce Holder, Paul Holm, Kai Millette, Faith Stokes, Jack Martin, Owen McDaniel, Trey Perry, Grant Turnage, Lance Warren
MDJ Dynamite Dozen 9
Allatoona’s Finest Moment 23
Cherokee Super Six 91
Teter’s Milestone 89
fleming
Flooring & Design Center
2025 COBB/CHEROKEE MASTER SCHEDULE
8/13
South Paulding at Kell
8/15
Adairsville at Allatoona
Asheville Christian at Mount Bethel
Campbell at Chapel Hill
Cherokee at River Ridge
Creekview at Calhoun
Denmark at Sequoyah
Harrison at Kennesaw Mountain
Mountain View at Hillgrove
Lassiter at Midtown
Lake Oconee Acad. at Mount Paran
Marietta at Gainesville
Archer at North Cobb
NCC at Providence Christian
Banneker at Osborne
Locust Grove at Pebblebrook
Pope at Cambridge
Savannah Chr. at Whitefield Acad.
Sprayberry at Alexander
South Forsyth at South Cobb
Walker at Kendrick
Wheeler at North Forsyth
Woodstock at Etowah
8/16
McEachern vs Walton
8/22
Allatoona at South Paulding
Alpharetta at Kell
Creekview at North Forsyth
Darlington at North Cobb Christian
Wheeler at Harrison
Lassiter at Alexander
Marietta at West Forsyth
Mount Bethel at Creekside Christian
Mount Pisgah at Mount Paran
Pope at Dunwoody
River Ridge at Denmark
North Cobb at McEachern
Osborne at Chapel Hill
Etowah at Sprayberry
South Cobb at Banneker
South Forsyth at Campbell
Sequoyah at Cherokee
Utopian Academy at Walker
Walton at Lambert
Whitefield Academy at Mount Vernon
Woodland at Woodstock
8/29
Campbell at Etowah
Cambridge at Creekview
Cherokee at Pope
Copper Basin at Mount Bethel
North Paulding at Harrison
Hillgrove at McIntosh
Kennesaw Mountain at Sprayberry
Kell at Sequoyah
Northview at Lassiter
McEachern at Marietta
North Atlanta at Wheeler
North Cobb at East Coweta
NCC at Coahulla Creek
North Springs at Woodstock
Pebblebrook at Lithia Springs
River Ridge at Allatoona
Roswell at Walton
Savannah Christian at Mount Paran
South Cobb at Drew
Walker at Dominion Christian
9/4
Allatoona at Holy Innocents
Mount Bethel at IMG Academy State
9/5
Cass at North Cobb
Creekview at Lassiter
Lambert at Cherokee
Etowah at Chapel Hill
Hillgrove at Marietta
John’s Creek at Kennesaw Mountain
Osborne at Fellowship Christian
Meadowcreek at Pebblebrook
Kell at Wheeler
Kings Ridge at Walker
Pope at Sprayberry
River Ridge at Woodstock
Sequoyah at Riverwood
Sonoraville at North Cobb Christian
Walton at Norcross
Whitefield Academy at Social Circle
9/12
Campbell at McEachern
Cedartown at Allatoona
Cedar Grove at Mount Paran
Darlington at Whitefield Academy
Greenville at Mount Bethel Christian
Harrison at Pebblebrook
Osborne at Hillgrove
New Manchester at Kennesaw Mtn.
North Paulding at Cherokee
Kell at Lowndes
Riverwood at Creekview
River Ridge at Pope
Woodstock at Lassiter
Marietta at Wheeler
North Cobb at North Paulding
North Cobb Christian at Ringgold
Sprayberry at Sequoyah
South Cobb at Paulding County
Walker at Heritage
9/19
Allatoona at Dalton
Creekview at Woodstock
Columbia at Kell
Harrison at Campbell
Paulding County at McEachern
Pebblebrook at Hillgrove
Kennesaw Mtn. at Lithia Springs
Lassiter at Pope
Etowah at Marietta
Walton at North Cobb
South Cobb at Osborne
Sequoyah at River Ridge
St. Anne Pacelli at Whitefield Acad.
Sprayberry at Riverwood
Mount Paran at Washington-Wilkes
9/20
Palm Beach Christian at Mount Bethel
9/25
Walker at BEST Academy
9/26
Cherokee at Etowah
Whitefield Academy at Mount Paran
10/3
Campbell at South Cobb
Eagle’s View at Mount Bethel
Etowah at North Paulding
McEachern at Harrison
Hillgrove at Paulding County
Kell at Blessed Trinity
Alexander at Kennesaw Mountain
Lassiter at Sequoyah
Marietta at Walton
Mount Paran Christian at Walker
NCC at Murray County
Osborne at Pebblebrook
River Ridge at Riverwood
Sprayberry at Creekview
Wheeler at Cherokee
Woodland at Allatoona
Woodstock at Pope
10/10
Allatoona at Cartersville
BEST Academy at Whitefield Acad.
Cherokee at Walton
Harrison at South Cobb
Hillgrove at Campbell
Kennesaw Mtn. at South Paulding
Lanier Christian at Mount Bethel
Riverwood at Lassiter
North Cobb at Marietta
Paulding County at Osborne
Pebblebrook at McEachern
Pope at Creekview
Rockmart at North Cobb Christian
Sequoyah at Woodstock
Sprayberry at River Ridge
Walker at Landmark Christian
Westminster at Kell
Wheeler at Etowah
10/16
Mount Paran at BEST Academy
10/17
Campbell at Paulding County
Dominion Christian at Mount Bethel
Hiram at Allatoona
Osborne at Harrison
McEachern at Hillgrove
Kell at Centennial
Kennesaw Mtn. at East Paulding
Landmark at Whitefield Academy
NCC at North Murray
North Paulding at Wheeler
Cherokee at North Cobb
Pebblebrook at South Cobb
Walton at Etowah
10/23
Etowah at North Cobb
10/24
Allatoona at Cass
Cambridge at Kell
Creekview at River Ridge
Harrison at Hillgrove
Villa Rica at Kennesaw Mountain
Lassiter at Sprayberry
Landmark Christian at Mount Paran
Lakeview-FO at North Cobb Christian
Marietta at Cherokee
Osborne at Campbell
Pope at Sequoyah
Paulding County at Pebblebrook
South Cobb at McEachern
Walton at North Paulding
Whitefield Academy at Walker
Woodstock at Riverwood
10/30
Paulding County at Harrison
10/31
Hillgrove at South Cobb
Kennesaw Mountain at Rome
River Ridge at Lassiter
Riverwood at Pope
North Paulding at Marietta
North Cobb at Wheeler
McEachern at Osborne
Pebblebrook at Campbell
Sprayberry at Woodstock
Sequoyah at Creekview
Union County at North Cobb Christian
Mount Paran Christian vs TBD
Walker vs TBD
Whitefield Academy vs TBD
Allatoona
8/15 Adairsville
8/22 At South Paulding
8/29 River Ridge
9/4 At Holy Innocents
9/12 Cedartown
9/19 At Dalton
10/3 Woodland
10/10 At Cartersville
10/17 Hiram
10/24 At Cass
Campbell
8/15 At Chapel Hill
8/22 South Forsyth
8/29 At Etowah
9/12 At McEachern
9/19 Harrison
10/3 At South Cobb
10/10 Hillgrove
10/17 At Paulding County
10/24 Osborne
10/31 Pebblebrook
Cherokee
8/15 At River Ridge
8/22 Sequoyah
8/29 At Pope
9/5 Lambert
9/12 North Paulding
9/26 At Etowah
10/3 Wheeler
10/10 At Walton
10/17 At North Cobb
10/24 Marietta
Creekview
8/15 At Calhoun
8/22 at North Forsyth
8/29 Cambridge
9/5 At Lassiter
9/12 Riverwood
9/19 At Woodstock
10/3 Sprayberry
10/10 Pope
10/24 At River Ridge
10/31 Sequoyah
Etowah
8/15 Woodstock
8/22 At Sprayberry
8/29 Campbell
9/5 At Chapel Hill
9/19 At Marietta
9/26 Cherokee
10/3 At North Paulding
10/10 Wheeler
10/17 Walton
10/23 At North Cobb
Harrison
8/15 At Kennesaw Mountain
8/22 Wheeler
8/29 North Paulding
9/12 At Pebblebrook
9/19 At Campbell
2025 TEAM-BY-TEAM SCHEDULE
10/10 At South Cobb
10/17 Osborne
10/24 At Hillgrove
10/30 Paulding County
Hillgrove
8/15 Mountain View
8/29 At McIntosh
9/5 At Marietta
9/12 Osborne
9/19 Pebblebrook
10/3 At Paulding County
10/10 At Campbell
10/17 McEachern
10/24 Harrison
10/31 At South Cobb
Kell
8/13 South Paulding
8/22 Alpharetta
8/29 At Sequoyah
9/5 At Wheeler
9/12 At Lowndes
9/19 Columbia
10/3 At Blessed Trinity
10/10 Westminster
10/17 At Centennial
10/24 Cambridge
Kennesaw Mountain
8/15 Harrison
8/29 At Sprayberry
9/5 John’s Creek
9/12 New Manchester
9/19 At Lithia Springs
10/3 Alexander
10/10 At South Paulding
10/17 At East Paulding
10/24 Villa Rica
10/31 At Rome
Lassiter
8/15 At Midtown
8/22 At Alexander
8/29 Northview
9/5 Creekview
9/12 Woodstock
9/19 At Pope
10/3 At Sequoyah
10/10 Riverwood
10/24 At Sprayberry
10/31 River Ridge
Marietta
8/15 At Gainesville
8/22 At West Forsyth
8/29 McEachern
9/5 Hillgrove
9/12 At Wheeler
9/19 Etowah
10/3 At Walton
10/10 North Cobb
10/24 At Cherokee
10/31 North Paulding
8/22 North Cobb
8/29 At Marietta
9/12 Campbell
9/19 Paulding County
10/3 At Harrison
10/10 Pebblebrook
10/17 At Hillgrove
10/24 South Cobb
10/31 At Osborne
Mount Bethel Christian
8/15 Ashville Christian Acad.
8/22 at Creekside Christian
8/29 Copper Basin
9/4 at IMG Academy State
9/12 Greenville
9/20 Palm Beach Christian
10/3 Eagle’s View
10/10 Lanier Christian Acad.
10/17 Dominion Christian
11/1 Mentoring Christian
Mount Paran Christian
8/15 Lake Oconee Academy
8/22 Mt. Pisgah Christian
8/29 Savannah Christian
9/12 Cedar Grove
9/19 At Washington-Wilkes
9/26 Whitefield Academy
10/3 At Walker
10/16 At BEST Academy
10/24 Landmark Christian
10/31 Region Crossover
North Cobb
8/15 Archer
8/22 At McEachern
8/29 At East Coweta
9/5 Cass
9/12 At North Paulding
9/19 Walton
10/10 At Marietta
10/17 Cherokee
10/23 Etowah
10/31 At Wheeler
North Cobb Christian
8/15 At Providence Chr.
8/22 Darlington
8/29 At Coahulla Creek
9/5 Sonoraville
9/12 At Ringgold
10/3 At Murray County
10/10 Rockmart
10/17 At North Murray
10/24 Lakeview-FO
10/31 Union County
Osborne
8/15 Banneker
8/22 At Chapel Hill
9/5 At Fellowship Christian
9/12 At Hillgrove
9/19 South Cobb
10/3 At Pebblebrook
10/24 At Campbell
10/31 McEachern
Pebblebrook
8/15 Locust Grove
8/29 At Lithia Springs
9/5 Meadowcreek
9/12 Harrison
9/19 At Hillgrove
10/3 Osborne
10/10 At McEachern
10/17 At South Cobb
10/24 Paulding County
10/31 At Campbell
Pope
8/15 At Cambridge
8/22 At Dunwoody
8/29 Cherokee
9/5 At Sprayberry
9/12 River Ridge
9/19 Lassiter
10/3 Woodstock
10/10 At Creekview
10/24 At Sequoyah
10/31 Riverwood
River Ridge
8/15 Cherokee
8/22 At Denmark
8/29 At Allatoona
9/5 At Woodstock
9/12 At Pope
9/19 Sequoyah
10/3 At Riverwood
10/10 Sprayberry
10/24 Creekview
10/31 At Lassiter
Sequoyah
8/15 Denmark
8/22 At Cherokee
8/29 Kell
9/5 At Riverwood
9/12 Sprayberry
9/19 At River Ridge
10/3 Lassiter
10/10 At Woodstock
10/24 Pope
10/31 At Creekview
South Cobb
8/15 South Forsyth
8/22 At Banneker
8/29 At Drew
9/12 At Paulding County
9/19 At Osborne
10/3 Campbell
10/10 Harrison
10/17 Pebblebrook
10/24 At McEachern
10/31 Hillgrove
Sprayberry
8/15 At Alexander
9/5 Pope
9/12 At Sequoyah
9/19 At Riverwood
10/3 At Creekview
10/10 At River Ridge
10/24 Lassiter
10/31 At Woodstock
Walker
8/15 At Kendrick
8/22 Utopian Academy
8/29 At Dominion Christian
9/5 Kings Ridge Christian
9/12 At The Heritage School
9/25 At BEST Academy
10/3 Mount Paran 10/10 At Landmark
10/24 Whitefield Academy 10/31 Region Crossover
Walton
8/16 Vs McEachern
8/22 At Lambert
8/29 Roswell
9/5 At Norcross
9/12 Wheeler
9/19 At North Cobb
10/3 Marietta
10/10 Cherokee 10/17 At Etowah 10/24 At North Paulding
Wheeler
8/15 At North Forsyth
8/22 At Harrison
8/29 North Atlanta
9/5 Kell
9/12 At Walton
9/19 Marietta
10/3 At Cherokee
10/10 At Etowah
10/17 North Paulding 10/31 North Cobb
Whitefield Academy
8/15 Savannah Christian
8/22 At Mount Vernon
9/5 At Social Circle
9/12 Darlington
9/19 St. Anne Pacelli
9/26 At Mount Paran 10/10 BEST Academy 10/17 Landmark
10/24 At Walker 10/31 Region Crossover
Woodstock
8/15 At Etowah
8/22 Woodland
8/29 North Springs
9/5 River Ridge
9/12 At Lassiter
9/19 Creekview
10/3 At Pope
10/10 Sequoyah
McEachern
10/10 Paulding County
8/22 Etowah
10/24 At Riverwood
10/3 McEachern
8/16 Vs Walton
10/17 At Harrison
8/29 Kennesaw Mountain
10/31 Sprayberry
MDJ DYNAMITE DOZEN
Cobb’s golden age of talent continues
When we try to narrow the impressive list of Dynamite Dozen candidates down to the final baker’s dozen of 13, it seems to get harder and harder to determine the final cuts.
This year was no exception.
However, in the end, we feel like this year’s class can be stacked up against any of those in the past, including the start-studded Class of 2019, which included Myles Murphy (Cincinnati), B.J. Ojulari (Arizona), Javon Baker (New England) — all eventual NFL Draft picks.
That class featured two five-star recruits in Murphy, the former Hillgrove star defensive lineman who went to Clemson, and Arik Gilbert, the tight end from Marietta, who originally went to LSU, and who will get a final shot to fulfill his college and potential NFL dreams by playing for Savannah State this fall.
This year’s Dynamite Dozen class features our first five-star recruit since Murphy and Gilbert in Sprayberry defensive back Jorden Edmonds, who is committed to Alabama.
In addition to our five-star, the class includs nine four-stars and three threestars for an average player rating of 3.9 stars. It is the highest rated class other than 2019, and there are players like Kell linebacker Brayden Rouse and running back Moonie Gibson who could work their way into a potential fifth star before the year is over.
Again this year we have QR codes again on not only the Dynamite Dozen class, but also the Cherokee Super Six players. By hovering your smart phone over the code, it will offer a link to a video of each player on YouTube. There you will hear the dulcet tones of longtime Atlanta TV and radio veteran Sam Crenshaw who came to help us out this year.
See DOZEN, Page 76
Bednarowski
For highlights and more information on Zakir
Zakir Abdul-Salaam McEachern
6-foot-3, 240-pounds
Defensive Line
Senior 4-Star
National Rating: N/A
State: 42 Position: 27
College Offers:
Georgia Tech, Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Charlotte, UConn, East Carolina, Florida Atlantic, Indiana, Kentucky, Marshall, Memphis, Miami (Ohio), South Carolina, South Florida, Temple, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Toledo, Troy, Tulane, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Western Kentucky
For highlights and more information on MJ
MJ Burnett Walton
6-foot-2, 185-pounds
Defensive Back
Junior 3-Star
National Rating: N/A
State: N/A Position: N/A
College Offers:
Georgia Tech, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Buffalo, Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, Indiana, Miami (Ohio), Mississippi State, NC State, South Carolina, Toledo, USC, Virginia Tech, Western Michigan
Georgia, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Arkansas, Auburn, Boston College, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Duke, Florida State, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Miami (FL), Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Missouri, North Carolina, NC State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, South Florida, Syracuse, UNLV, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Wisconsin
For highlights and more information on
6-foot-1, 195-pounds
Defensive Back
Senior 4-Star
National Rating: 477
State: 41 Position: 58
LaVallee Walton
National Rating: 1,190
State: 119 Position: 111
State: 60 Position: 29
6-foot-3, 205-pounds Wide Receiver Senior 4-Star
National Rating: 375
State: 46 Position: 56 Committed To:
BUCCANEER BOUNTY
Allatoona set to celebrate 10-year anniversary of Cobb County School District’s first football title
By John Bednarowski sportseditor@mdjonline.com
Prior to the beginning of the 2015 Class AAAAA state semifinals, Allatoona quarterback Brandon Rainey made a bold but prophetic statement.
“I will not be the second best quarterback on this field tonight,” he either yelled or said.
Ask Buccaneers’ defensive coordinator Xarvia Smith, and he said Rainey screamed it at the top of his lungs from the middle of the field. Ask Rainey, and he admits he said
it, but maybe not quite as loud as Smith remembers.
The reason was Rainey knew he had his work cut out for him. He was about to match wits with future Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm, who had led Houston County to an 11-1 record heading into the game.
Behind Fromm, the Bears had been held to fewer than 34 points only once that year.
“I said it,” Rainey said. “I was the leader and I wanted to show confidence that regardless of who we played, we were going to win the game.”
Whether he truly meant it or not, Rainey certainly played like it. He scored seven rushing touchdowns as Allatoona downed Houston County 59-47, and it took the next step toward winning its first football state championship two weeks later. The victory was the first football title for the Cobb County School District, and it completed a comeback story a year in the making.
Which team was better?
Ask former head coach Gary Varner which team was better, the 2014
squad or the one from 2015, and his answer may surprise some Buccaneers fans. He said 2014.
Allatoona started that season 13-0. Offensively it averaged 39 points per game and allowed 17. Russell Halimon, who was supposed to be the backup heading into the year, took advantage of an opportunity when starter Josh Bettistea was suspended the first three games. Halimon ran for 2,274 yards and 24 touchdowns. When Bettistea returned, he played well, running for 813 yards
See BOUNTY, Page 24
BOUNTY
From Page 23
and 13 touchdowns of his own.
Along the way, the Bucs downed their opponents by an average of 22 points per game, a pattern which continued in the playoffs. Allatoona beat Carver 35-7, Coffee 45-14 and Gainesville 24-17.
Everything changed on the first play on offense in the semifinals against Northside-Warner Robins. Halimon got the ball, and as he was being tackled, his leg was stretched in an awkward position. Somebody fell on it and he broke his fibula.
The offense never really got going, and Smith said he made some calls that put his defense in a bad spot. Northside won 30-21 and went on to win the title the next week. It didn’t take long for the leadership of the 2015 squad to take over to make sure things like that didn’t happen again.
Tough start
Things were in place heading into the 2015 season. Much of the defense was back, and it was determined not to let anyone score, let alone figure out how to beat it.
Halimon, who committed to the University of Arizona, was back and ready to be the workhorse again, and the offensive line was ready to lead the way.
All the team had to do was take care of business, but it got a stinging wake-up call as soon as the regular season started.
“East Paulding completely whipped us,” said Varner, now the assistant head coach and offensive coordinator at North Cobb Christian. “We got physically beat, which just didn’t happen. Everything went wrong.”
One of the few new cogs in the lineup took the blame. Rainey, who finally had taken over as the starter, did not play well in the 17-10 loss, but he also learned a valuable lesson.
“The biggest takeaway from that game is we knew it was our team,” he said. “And I knew we lost this game because of me.”
If there was any kind of hangover from the season opener, Allatoona didn’t show it. The Bucs beat Villa Rica 35-7 the next week. They followed that with a 57-29 win over backyard rival North Paulding and then a 49-0 shutout over Lithia Springs
and the team was off and running.
Halimon would go on to have another big season, going for 1,543 yards and 13 touchdowns, but the key was getting to know what Rainey could do well.
“It took a little time to figure out how to function with his skill set,” Varner said.
The senior went on to throw for 1,366 yards and 15 touchdowns, and Varner said he could see Rainey’s confidence grow with each game.
“He was a tough competitor and a leader,” Varner said. “No matter what the situation, the kids were going to follow him.”
The team closed the regular season on a nine-game winning streak outscoring opponents by an average of 41.1-13.4 along the way. It collected its second straight region championship and were guaranteed to play at least the first two playoff games at home as long as they won.
Everything was set up for success, until deja vu struck.
Next man up
On the second play of the playoff opener against Winder-Barrow, Halimon tore his ACL and threw a wrench into the Bucs playoff plans.
However, with Halimon out, the offense turned to backups Brandon Archibald and Charles Anderson. Both would play key roles throughout the postseason and Archibald answered against Winder-Barrow. He ran for 184 yards to lead the offense, and when he needed a breather, Anderson added another 92 yards.
Allatoona led 38-3 at the half, and went on to a 52-3 win.
Halimon’s injury was foreshadowing what would happen the rest of the way in the playoffs. In each round, the Bucs offense would lose another starter, including future Vanderbilt tight end Turner Cockrell. Receiver Michael Pynes sprained an ankle and missed time as well as lineman Brooks Walper.
The injuries forced some inexperienced players to step up in big spots, and former athletic director Benji Morrell said it was this situation where Varner showed why he was such a good head coach.
“He had to watch those kids getting hurt,” said Morrell, now the principal at Pickett’s Mill Elementary. “He and his staff did a great job of
See BOUNTY, Page 25
Top: Allatoona quarterback Brandon Rainey leaps into the end zone for one of his seven rushing touchdowns against Houston County in the 2015 Class AAAAA state quarterfinals. Above: Casey Smith makes the tackle on Houston County’s Christopher Brinson.
Staff - file
BOUNTY
From Page 24
mentally getting the reserves to play. He was talking to guys who may not have been ready to play and convincing them they could go out there and do it.”
A bonus
Heading into the second round of the playoffs against Starr’s Mill, and then again in the state semifinals against Northgate, Allatoona would have to face teams which ran the Wing-T offense.
Under normal circumstances, teams do not face the old-time runbased offense. And if they don’t, it often doesn’t go very well.
Defenses have to play a very disciplined game, and one mistake on any play could lead to an opponent breaking a long run for a touchdown. However, Allatoona had a secret weapon in its defensive coordinator, who was still wanting to make up for a poor performance in last year’s final four.
“I worked for (former McEachern coach) Jimmy Dorsey and (former Walton, Wheeler and Camden County coach) Jeff Herron,” said Smith, currently a defensive line coach at East Paulding. “I worked for the best Wing-T coaches in the state of Georgia.”
In each game, Smith had the members of the Bucs defense ready to play. In fact, the defense played the Wing-T so well it had the opponents so flustered they weren’t sure exactly what to do next.
“Our players were at the line presnap and they were calling out the plays,” Smith said. “The offense finally yelled to the sideline, ‘They are calling out our plays, can we try something else?’”
Allatoona downed Starr’s Mill 30-14 and Northgate 28-7.
The ultimate challenge came in the matchup against Houston County.
The Bears are going to get theirs
While Glynn County coach Rocky Hidalgo may disagree, the state championship was decided in the state quarterfinals at Buccaneer Stadium.
the road. All four games leading up to the state title game were played at home, and it proved to be a huge benefit against Houston County.
“We caught a break with the coin flip,” Morrell said. “I would not have wanted to have to play down there. Those guys looked like the Dallas Cowboys getting off the bus.”
The Cowboys helped to bring pro football into the modern age with computerized scouting and intricate film study. Houston County tried to use those concepts to prepare for Allatoona, too. Only Varner found a way to use all their preparation against them.
“All year long we worked on the trap-option and we never used it,” Rainey said. “Every practice we would run it and I was getting frustrated asking why do we keep wasting our time if we aren’t going to use it?”
The element of surprise worked perfectly. In fact, it almost worked too well.
“When you play Houston, you know they are going to score,” Varner said. “So we have to find a way to shorten the game and make our defense better. To do that, you have to go against tendencies.
“The mindset from the beginning is they are scoring 30, so we have to do things to make sure we hang on to the ball. So, early in the game, we’re looking at second-and-5 and we called Rainey’s first bootleg. I figured it would work well enough to get the first down and it pops for 50-plus.”
Rainey consistently broke free for big gains and finished the game with 115 yards on 20 carries, in addition to 9-of-17 through the air for 170 yards.
“Give all the credit to Gary,” said Rainey, now a strategic accounts manager for Prime Power Services. “It was his strategic mind. He knew we would need the trap-option at some point and it was fun to see things work out.”
Top: Allatoona’s Tate Tatum brings down Northgate running back Kamari Ray for a loss in the 2015 Class AAAAA state semifinals. Middle: The Bucs Brady Eeles breaks away from a defender after catching a pass. Bottom: Coach Gary Varner addresses the team after it defeated Northgate 28-7 to advance to the state championship game against Glynn Academy in the Georgia Dome. See BOUNTY, Page 26
While Allatoona did have to overcome injuries during the title run, one thing it didn’t have to do was play on
Rainey scored on a 2-yard run late in the third quarter to put the Bucs up 31-27. His fifth touchdown allowed them to build an 11-point lead, and shortly thereafter Danny Tesler blocked a punt, which was picked up and run in for a touchdown. It was the only Bucs touchdown not scored by Rainey, and it gave them what they thought was a comfortable 45-27 lead with 8 minutes to play. Houston County’s MO over the
Staff - file
Where To Find
Cobb Life Magazine
Pick up your copy of Cobb Life Magazine at these convenient locations:
MARIETTA
h MARIETTA WELCOME CENTER
4 Depot St NE, Marietta, GA 30060His
h MARIETTA WINE MARKET
18 Powder Springs St SW, Marietta, GA 30064
h SHELL
556 Roswell St NE, Marietta, GA 30060
h MARIETTA DINER
306 Cobb Pkwy S, Marietta, GA 30060
h BERNHARD’S GERMAN BAKERY & DELI
1592 Atlanta Rd SE #110, Marietta, GA 30060
h J. CHRISTOPHER’S 1275 Powers Ferry Rd, Marietta, GA 30067
h GABRIEL’S RESTAURANT AND BAKERY
800 Whitlock Ave NW #135, Marietta, GA 30064
h WOMENS CENTER KENNESTONE
330 Kennestone Hospital Blvd, Marietta, GA 30060
h WILLIAMS BROTHERS BAR-BQMARIETTA
1425 Roswell Rd, Marietta, GA 30062
h J. CHRISTOPHER’S
2100 Roswell Rd STE 2116, Marietta, GA 30062
h HEYWOODS PROVISION COMPANY
2145 Roswell Rd #140, Marietta, GA 30062
h MCCLESKEY-EAST COBB FAMILY YMCA
1055 E Piedmont Rd, Marietta, GA 30062
h CACTUS CAR WASH MARIETTA
4216 Roswell Rd, Marietta, GA 30062
h FABRIC & FRINGE WAREHOUSE
h 2440 Canton Rd, Marietta, GA 30066
h MARIETTA FISH MARKET
3185 Canton Rd, Marietta, GA 30066
h TIM D LEE SENIOR CENTER
3332 SANDY PLAINS RD, MARIETTA, GA 30066
h PARC
999 HOOD RD, MARIETTA
h ACORN HOME & GARDEN
3870 Due West Rd NW, Marietta, GA 30064
h OKINAWA STEAK & SUSHI – MARIETTA
3718 Dallas Hwy, Marietta, GA 30064
h OTTER’S CHICKEN
3625 Dallas Hwy #690, Marietta, GA 30064
h THE WING CAFÉ & TAP HOUSE
2145 Roswell Rd, Marietta, GA 30062
h COBB HARDWARE
380 ROSWELL ST, MARIETTA
h DOUGH IN THE BOX
3184 Austell Rd SW, Marietta, GA 3000
h AQUARAMA
565 Powder Springs St., Marietta, Ga
h HOBOKEN CAFÉ
688 Whitlock Ave, Marietta, Ga
h FOOD DEPOT
250 Windy Hill Rd SE Marietta
h WHOLE FOODS - MERCHANTS WALK 1311 Johnson Ferry Rd #580, Marietta, GA 30068
h MOUNTAIN VIEW REGIONAL LIBRARY
3320 Sandy Plains Rd., Marietta, GA 30066
SMYRNA
h THE SMYRNA TEAM @ KELLER WILLIAMS
3350 Atlanta Rd, Smyrna, GA 30080
h ADVENTURE OUTDOORS
2500 S Cobb Dr SE, Smyrna, GA 30080
h SMYRNA COMMUNITY CENTER
200 Village Green Cir SE, Smyrna, GA
30080
h SMYRNA CITY HALL
2800 King St SE, Smyrna, GA 30080
h ATKINS PARK TAVERN
2840 Atlanta Rd SE, Smyrna, GA 30080
h THOMPSON BROTHERS BARBEQUE
2445 Cobb Pkwy SE, Smyrna, GA 30080
h VICKERS ACE HARDWARE
881 CONCORD RD, SMYRNA
h Food Depot
3205 South Cobb Dr SE Smyrna
h Smyrna Public Library
100 Village Green Cir SE, Smyrna, GA 30080
ATLANTA
h JACK’S NEW YORKER DELI
4691 S Atlanta Rd SE #150, Atlanta, GA 30339
POWDER SPRINGS
h CITY OF POWDER SPRINGS 1114 RICHARD D SAILORS PKWY, POWDER SPRINGS, 30127
h POWDER SPRINGS LIBRARY
4181 Atlanta St., Powder Springs, GA 30127
KENNESAW
h J. CHRISTOPHER’S
2700 Town Center Dr, Kennesaw, GA 30144
h HONEYSUCKLE BAKERY
2825 S. MAIN STREET, KENNESAW GA, 30144
h CITY OF KENNESAW
2529 J O STEPHENSON AVE, KENNESAW, GA 30144
h Whole Foods
h 1300 Ernest W Barrett Pkwy NW, Kennesaw, GA 30144
ACWORTH
h NORTH COBB SENIOR CENTER
3900 S. Main Street, Acworth, GA 30101
h FUSCO’S VIA ROMO I TALIAN TRATTORIA
4815A S Main St, Acworth, GA 30101
h ACWORTH CITY HALL
4415 Senator Russell Avenue, Acworth, GA 30101
h ACWORTH COMMUNITY CENTER
4361 Cherokee St, Acworth, GA 30101
h 1885 GRILL ACWORTH
4438 CHEROKEE ST, ACWORTH, GA 30101
h DADDY’S COUNTRY KITCHEN
3485 Acworth Due West Rd #200, Acworth, GA 30101
h HENRY’S 4835 N. Main St, Acworth, Ga 30101
MABLETON
h FOOD DEPOT
5345 Floyd Rd SW Mableton
AUSTELL
h FOOD DEPOT
1355 EAST WEST CONNECTOR, AUSTELL
BOUNTY
From Page 25
course of the season was being able to score quickly, and that’s exactly what it did against the usually stingy Allatoona defense.
Fromm, who threw for 351 yards in the game, engineered three touchdown drives in just more than 5 minutes. It cut the Bucs lead to 52-47 with 3:19 to play, but it also set Rainey up for his best and worst play of the night.
“They never seemed to catch on to what we were trying to do,” Rainey said of Houston’s defense.
The Bears were out of timeouts with just over a minute to play. Needing one more first down to seal the game, Varner called one final trap-option. Rainey broke free for a 33-yard touchdown, and while he was celebrating, he said Tesler came up to him and slapped him back to reality.
“He grabbed me and said, ‘What are you doing? Just take a knee.’”
While Rainey doesn’t remember his coach saying anything to him, Varner said he passed on a
similar message in the moments after his touchdown.
“Scoring was the only way we could lose the game at that point,” Varner said. “If he goes down, we can run out the clock.”
Completing the job
While the offense was a walking M*A*S*H unit when the team arrived at the Georgia Dome for the state championship game against Glynn Academy, the defense was still healthy, with one exception.
An injury forced backup linebacker Kalen Wilkerson into a starting role, and he would be one of the players who would have to key on quarterback DeeJay Dallas.
Dallas would go on to play at the University of Miami and is now in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals, but he was an athlete forced into the role of playing quarterback.
Dallas also had a habit of tipping what he was going to do. Whenever Glynn Academy was forced into a big situation, the quarterback was not going to give up the ball. He was going to try to make
See BOUNTY, Page 102
Staff - file
Glynn Academy, and former Walton coach, Rocky Hidalgo, left, congratulates Bucs coach Gary Varner after Allatoona won the 2015 Class AAAAA state championship 10-6 in the Georgia Dome.
REGION 3AAAAAA
Hoyas, Indians, Hawks make for good race
By Devyn Hlavek MDJ Sports Writer
Harrison is looking to defend its Region 3AAAAAA title, but it will not prove to be an easy task.
Cobb County is home to seven of eight teams in Region 3AAAAAA, allowing for more upsets and games that matter more.
Campbell coach Jeff Phillips said having a region made up of all Cobb County teams, besides Paulding County, pushes the players to compete harder.
“The kids know each other, so it creates that rivalry. When kids can play teams that they’re familiar with because they grow up around the area,” Phillips said. “It makes the kids play a little bit tougher because it’s a little different playing teams that the kids really don’t know.”
Harrison went 7-0 in the region last season, defeating all of its region opponents by 10 or more points. The program will be returning players on both sides of the ball, including running back TC Washington who averaged 51.9 rushing yards per game. Quarterback Xavier Hill graduated, but the team picked up Nathaniel Davis from its region rival Campbell. The 5-foot-11, 160 pounder threw for 142 yards and one touchdown last season.
McEachern claimed third place in the region despite having a roster made up of many first year starters. However, that will not prove to be a problem this season. The program will have 17 out of 22 starters returning for the 2025 season. Among these starters is Indiana
PREDICTED FINISH
1. Hillgrove
2.
McEachern
3. Harrison
4. Pebblebrook
5. Campbell
6. Paulding Co.
7. Osborne
8. South Cobb
commit Jayreon Campbell. Last season, he rushed for 930 yards and 18 touchdowns. The Indians are looking to win their second region title in three seasons after finishing 5-2 in the region last season.
Hillgrove won six region games last season after only winning seven games combined in the three prior seasons. The Hawks finished the season 11-2, earning them second place in the region. This was their first season with a winning region record since 2018. The program is going to rely on its strong defense to continue this success, along with its improved offense.
Campbell is looking to make a big jump this season. The program has struggled in the past, but it has made huge strides under Phillips. The team found its new starting quarterback, Davin Lemere, who will be a key part of its success.
The 6-foot,165-pounder threw for
and McEachern
555 yards and four touchdown passes last season. After losing pieces of its offense and defense, it will rely on the returning seniors to step up.
Pebblebrook finished 6-5 last season and made a return to the playoffs after missing them for the first time since 2019 the season prior. The program will be under new leadership with veteran coach Rodney Hackney. The team will have a fresh defense this season after losing key tacklers and pash rushers. However, the offense will be led by starting quarterback Jayden Adams. Last season he threw for 987 yards along with seven touchdown passes.
Osborne finished seventh in the region in its first season under coach Derek Cook. The Cardinals struggled, finishing 1-9 with their sole win being against South Cobb. The team will have D’Herelle Herrin, who
led the team in receiving yards per game, and Alex Soto-Williams, who led the team in rushing yards per game, returning for their senior seasons.
South Cobb has gone winless the past three seasons. The Eagles will be led by second-year coach Marcus Wsahington, who will try to help the team pick up its first win since 2021. The program gained McEachern transfer quarterback Freedom Jones. He will be key to helping the Eagles offense and defense succeed this season.
Paulding County is the only non-Cobb County team in Region 3AAAAAA. The Patriots picked up two non-region wins last season and finished sixth in the region. Justin Pressley will return as the coach and he will face a difficult task as their quarterback, top receiver and top defensive lineman all graduated.
Hillgrove
CAMPBELL SPARTANS
Campbell focusing on small details this season
By Devyn Hlavek MDJ Sports Writer
Campbell is looking to make a return to the playoffs and begin its push for a region title. Last season the program posted six wins, its most since 2007.
This will be the Spartans third year under coach Jeff Phillips and they are hungry for postseason play after missing the playoffs by one game last season. They are two seasons removed from a playoff appearance which was the program’s first since 2017.
The Spartans finished fifth in Region 3AAAAAA with a 3-4 record. Last season was their
first season in the region and Phillips said he is expecting to finish near the top this season.
“We’re expecting to finish in the top four and we want to get to a top two finish, so that we can get a playoff game at home,” Phillips said. “We’re expecting great competition.”
Phillips said the key to success this season is focusing on the small details and avoiding injuries on both sides of the ball.
“We have to stay healthy. That’s a big part of everything. Other than the cliché things of working hard and practicing, those are key for us, but we need to really focus on the little things that the great teams do,” Phillips said. “It’s so much more than
running plays. It’s all the details into how you warm up, sleep, eat, recover and practice.”
The program is expected to return four starters on offense and seven on defense.
Davin Lemire is projected to take over as the starting quarterback after having his first varsity start last season. The 6-foot,165-pound sophomore threw for 555 yards and completed 4 touchdown passes. He also rushed for 160 yards and had one touchdown.
After losing Owen Summers, who led the team in receiving yards per game, and Henry Pullen, who led the team in rushing yards per game, Phillips is expecting the three year starters
to step up.
Wide receiver Nick Buggs will be one of Campbell’s third-year starters returning. Buggs had 241 yards receiving and two touchdowns along with 187 rushing yards and two scores.
Phillips said the team has added new dynamics to its offense for the upcoming season.
“We have had a lot of changes that have happened to try to get better. We didn’t make drastic changes, but small changes,” hesaid. We’ve added some more coaches to our staff to give us better quality of things. We are focusing a lot more on explosive power and speed throughout
See SPARTANS, Page 30
CAMPBELL SPARTANS
Chapel Hill ............................27-0 ..........W
South Forsyth ......................48-7 ..........W
Campbell’s defense will be key for its success. The Spartans have been working on improving their line size, power and speed. Kosh Fort will be one of the defensive players returning for his
senior season. The 5-10, 160pound safety had 34 total tackles and one fumble recovery last season. Phillips is also expecting Maddox West to step up as a defensive leader.
“We have a good crop of kids who have really been staying there,” Phillips said. “We really need those guys to step up and be huge players for us and great leaders.”
Buggs, West hope to shape culture
By Devyn Hlavek MDJ Sports Writer
Seniors Maddox West and Nick Buggs have stayed loyal to Campbell for their entire football careers.
They have been with the program since middle school, staying through all of the ups and downs as it rebuilds and sets higher standards.
“When I took over we named those guys starters to try to get them to the level they are today,” Coach Jeff Phillips said. “This year is a big year for them being seniors and my expectation of them is to really step into their own and become dominant leaders.”
West, who lines up at safety and cornerback, and Buggs, a wide receiver and slotback, play on opposite sides of the ball, but are committed to working together to improve their game.
“Even on days we don’t have practice, we come in and get some work done together,” Buggs said.
See CULTURE, Page 55
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Nick Buggs, left, and Maddox West hope to leave a legacy behind with the Campbell program.
HARRISON HOYAS
Harrison looks to remain on top of Region 3AAAAAA
By Trey Perry MDJ Sports Writer
Harrison aims to build on its success from the previous season.
The Hoyas have high expectations going into the new year, following a 9-2 campaign under first year coach Luqman Salam including a 7-0 record in Region 3AAAAAA. Harrison’s postseason, however, came to an early end in a 46-42 loss to Archer in the opening round of the state playoffs.
With the graduation of quarterback Xavier Hill who threw for 2,216
yards and 20 touchdowns last season, Nathaniel Davis, a senior transfer from Campbell High School, is expected to take over the offense. Davis saw limited time at Campbell last season, throwing for 142 yards and one touchdown in his four appearances.
A number of important players are expected to return on both sides of the ball. Beyond the stats, their experience and guidance will be important as the team looks to build on last year’s success.
One of the Hoyas’ leaders, senior running back TC Washington, returns after averaging 5.7 yards
per rush without fumbling once. He finished with 101 carries for 571 yards. Knowing his production is important, he also emphasized his leadership.
“I have to hold myself accountable because I am one of the leaders,” Washington said. “People are looking at me, so there’s a lot of pressure, but it helps me grow quickly.”
Returners include wide receiver Donovan Martin and running back Corbin Trice, who are also expected to be contributors on offense. Martin had 27 catches for 624 yards, averaging 23.1 yards per catch, while Trice rushed 11 times for 161 yards,
averaging 14.6 yards per carry.
Linebackers David Rudd and Reece Bentley return and are expected to lead the front seven, and defensive back Eric Geralds has secondary experience. Rudd recorded 29 total tackles with three sacks over 11 games, Bentley contributed 44 tackles in seven games and Geralds added 15 tackles in eight games.
With returning experience, the coaching staff has worked to build a stronger and more connected team.
“Before coach Salam got here, it wasn’t like this,” he said. “Now, we play for each other. There’s
brotherhood in this team.”
Now in his second season at Harrison, Salam has already made a significant impact. Over his four years of coaching, he has found success at different Cobb County schools. Before joining Harrison, he was the head coach at Osborne,
where he won the 2023 Region 5AAAAAAA Coach of the Year after leading the Cardinals to their first state playoff berth in school history and their best season since 1994.
“I believe that the most important part of accountability is
consistency,” Salam said. “Players can rise to the challenge when expectations are clearly communicated. We’re aiming for a state championship, but more than anything, it’s about helping these young men grow and become better every day.”
Washington feels a leader’s responsibility
By Trey Perry MDJ Sports Writer
TC Washington heads into his final season at Harrison looking to build on a strong junior year.
Washington, who stands at 5-foot11, 210-pounds, brings strength, balance and vision to the backfield.
Harrison coach Luqman Salam said those traits helped Washington average 5.7 yards per carry last season and rush for 571 yards, scoring eight touchdowns without a turnover along the way.
Salam said Washington’s ball security and reliability made him a go-to player when the team needed it most, and Washington said he needs to take on an even bigger leadership role heading into his senior year.
“I have to hold myself
accountable,” he said. “Being one of the key players, a lot comes with it. There’s pressure, but it makes you grow faster than everyone else.”
Washington gives Salam credit for building a culture in which players are held to high standards, while also feeling a strong sense of brotherhood.
“Before coach Salam got here, it wasn’t like this,” Washington said. “Now we play for each other. That brotherhood changed everything.”
The growth in team culture, according to Salam, is also what has made Washington effective and versatile.
“TC is a powerful runner. He brings a lot of experience, a lot of capability in various different ways.”
Salam said. “He contributes to our team in almost every facet of the game, has the ability to play some defense, and will play on special
teams. He catches the ball out of the backfield, he’s a good blocker and obviously he’s a really good running back. So you know, his versatility, his leadership, his toughness are all very important factors to our success this year.
“This summer, Washington’s goals have gone beyond just the physical. He’s been locked in mentally, spending time each week learning defenses and studying film.”
Washington said his offseason has been productive as he works to improve parts of his game.
“My offseason has been great,” he said. “I’ve been training daily and putting in a lot of work for this upcoming season. I’ve been working on footwork and getting better at my cuts.”
Washington’s recruiting process is starting to ramp up. He said he’s
visited Georgia State and Tennessee, and both experiences left a strong impression. He mentioned the programs treated him with kindness and respect, which made the visits stand out. While he doesn’t yet hold offers from those schools, he does have one on the table from Warner University. Looking ahead, Salam said he’s confident Washington has what it takes to succeed at the next level.
“I think wherever he goes, he’s gonna stick. He’s got the work ethic. He has integrity. He has the character and he has the ability,” Salam said. “When you have all those factors, wherever you go and whatever you do, you’re going to have the ability to have a certain level of success. So I think wherever he goes, wherever he lands, he’s gonna do a great job just because he has all the right stuff.”
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Harrison’s TC Washington is ready to help lead his team, both vocally and by example this season.
HILLGROVE HAWKS
Experienced Hawks ready for another deep playoff ride
By Paul Holm MDJ Sports Writer
After an 11-2 season and a trip to the Class AAAAAA quarterfinals in 2024, Hillgrove head coach Justin DeShon isn’t looking for a reset, he’s looking for refinement.
The Hawks return a large senior class and a core group of experienced players on both sides of the ball. DeShon said the offseason focus has been on elevating the offense to match an already dependable defense.
“We’re not looking to overhaul
anything,” DeShon said. “We have a strong foundation. We just want to keep improving and find ways to be more balanced offensively.”
DeShon said Hillgrove’s defense helped the team throughout last season, finishing with 493 solo tackles and 42 sacks.
“Our defense was strong last fall,” DeShon said. “But we’re focusing on some offensive work this summer.”
The team is aiming to improve its passing game behind two quarterbacks, senior Donovan Mack, who threw for 407 yards and four touchdowns, and junior Jabari Green,
who added 471 yards and three touchdowns. While DeShon hasn’t named a starter, he said both were progressing well through the summer and will be key to the offense’s success this fall.
While the offense develops, Hillgrove’s defense remains a strength.
“I think our defense is pretty good this year, better than last,” senior defensive end Chris Carbin said.
“We really don’t want the other teams moving the ball.”
Carbin is one of five returning defensive starters from a unit that helped power the Hawks’ playoff
run last season. He finished 2024 with 29 tackles, while senior linebacker Jameson McCollough led the group with 58. Together, they anchor a front seven that DeShon expects to be a major factor again this fall.
Hillgrove’s playoff success came in a highly competitive Region 3AAAAAA, which features McEachern, North Paulding, Marietta and Harrison, all potential postseason contenders. The Hawks went 6-1 in region play, with their only loss coming in a close game against eventual See HAWKS, Page 37
TE Chigoziem Okonkwo (2014-17), ..............Maryland, Tennessee Titans
DB Jaylen McCollough (2015-2018) ......................Tennessee, L.A. Rams
WR Jalen Royals (2017-2020) ...................Utah State, Kansas City Chiefs
HAWKS
From Page 36
against eventual region champion Harrison. They reached the third round of the Class AAAAAA state playoffs before falling to Carrollton.
“There are no easy games in this region,” DeShon said. “Whether it’s Harrison or Marietta, which is
RUSHING
Caleb Walters 182 car 942 yds 16 TD
PASSING
Jabari Green .............41/67
RECEIVING
Matthew Najjar 23 rec 241 yds 0 TD
Raymond Boyd 13 rec 148 yds 1 TD
TACKLES
Jameson McCollough ...108
Niko Marierose.................92
Nicholas Mathious ..........91
SACKS
Nicholas Mathious ..........14.5
INTERCEPTIONS
Niko Marierose 2
Daniel Okonkwo 2
always a great rivalry, or someone like South Cobb, you’ve got to bring your best every week, and our guys understand that.”
That’s why, despite the success last fall, DeShon said the emphasis this offseason has been on the details.
“Our focus has been on the small stuff,” he said. “It’s easy to look at last year’s success and think it was all perfect, but we’ve gone back to what
Where To Find
MARIETTA
made us successful, doing things the right way, staying sharp mentally and getting better every day.”
Hillgrove showed growth on both sides of the ball in its spring game against Central Gwinnett, and DeShon said it was a good early test for the 2025 group.
“Spring games are a good test of what we’ve been working on,” he said. “I think our offense has gotten
ATLANTA
h MARIETTA WELCOME CENTER 4 Depot St NE, Marietta, GA 30060
h MARIETTA WINE MARKET 18 Powder Springs St SW, Marietta, GA 30064
h SHELL 556 Roswell St NE, Marietta, GA 30060
SMYRNA
h SMYRNA CITY HALL 2800 King St SE, Smyrna, GA 30080
h JACK’S NEW YORKER DELI 4691 S Atlanta Rd SE #150, Atlanta, GA 30339
POWDER SPRINGS
h CITY OF POWDER SPRINGS 1114 Richard D Sailors Pkwy, Powder Springs, 30127
KENNESAW
h J. CHRISTOPHER’S 2700 Town Center Dr, Kennesaw, GA 30144
a lot better, and I’m excited to see what happens this fall.”
As the Hawks prepare for another season, DeShon said the message in the locker room remains the same.
“We’re not looking ahead,” he said. “Our focus is on today, on improving, and on taking it one week at a time. If we stay locked in, the results will take care of themselves.”
h
Carbin poised for big senior season
By Paul Holm MDJ Sports Writer
Chris Carbin brings leadership and big goals into senior season at Hillgrove.
At 6-foot-4 and 230-pounds, he stands tall as the anchor of the
Hawks’ defense.
The senior defensive end recorded 49 tackles, nine tackles for loss and six sacks last season, helping them reach the Class AAAAAA quarterfinals.
Hillgrove coach Justin Deshon said he is excited to see what Carbin
has in store for this season.
“Chris has grown into a strong leader,” DeShon said. “He shows up every day with the right mindset and brings others with him. He practices hard, prepares the right way, and that’s what we want people to believe in here.”
Carbin has spent the offseason training, studying film and refining his technique.
“I’m all in on football right now,” he said. “Every day is about getting closer to where I want to be.”
Carbin will lead Hillgrove’s See CARBIN, Page 55
, MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD! VOTE ALL SEASON LONG TO HELP PICK THE LOCAL PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK!
Special - Paul Holm
Chris Carbin is focused on having another big high school season at Hillgrove before heading to play for Georgia Tech in 2026.
MCEACHERN INDIANS
Experienced Indians ready to take on state’s best
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
McEachern may have all of the pieces in place to make a big jump this season.
In coach Kareem Reid’s first two years with the Indians, he was still working on laying the foundations for the program — the expectations, the culture, the scheme.
Reid said now all of those have been established and the players are bought in. The team is ready
to put McEachern back in the conversation of the elite high school football programs in Georgia.
The Indians went 6-5 last season, but lost to Newton in the first round of the playoffs. Reid said inexperience was one of the main handicaps on the team’s success.
“We had a bunch of guys that were inexperienced and were in starting roles playing varsity football for the first time,” Reid said. “They made some young mistakes, which is fine, that happens. I thought we did a
good job of coaching and getting the most we could out of that team.”
However, the team has 17 of last season’s 22 starters returning, and Reid said he believes this is the year the team is ready to make a run in the playoffs.
Among those returning starters is senior running back Jayreon Campbell. The 5-foot-10, 180-pound workhorse ran for 930 yards and 18 touchdowns on 168 carries last season. He has 31 scholarship offers from Division I schools, including
Alabama, Georgia, Michigan and Indiana, where he committed last month.
The Indians have another offensive weapon in four-star wideout Nalin Scott. The senior Nebraska commit hauled in 29 receptions for a team-high 541 yards last season — an average of 18.7 yards per catch.
The leader of the offense will be Calvin Pittman, who started six games in 2024 and completed 66.1% of his passes for 883 yards, See INDIANS, Page 40
McEACHERN INDIANS
2024 RESULTS
North Gwinnett ...................17-39 ............L
North Cobb ........................33-45 ............L
six touchdowns and zero interceptions. He is also a threat with his legs, as he was the Indians’ second-highest rusher behind Campbell.
McEachern also bolstered the defense with a couple highly-touted transfers.
Senior defensive end Darryl Rivers joins the Indians after racking up 14 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks at Pebblebrook last season. Douglass transfer Casey Barner, who already has offers from Georgia, Ohio State, Penn State and Tennessee as a sophomore, is expected to slide in next to Kiyante Ingram at the safety position.
“We got transfers that came in that I think are going to be guys
that basically plug and play to replace some of the guys that we lost through graduation,” Reid said. “Some are even better players than what we had, so I’m really excited for them.”
The overall continuity of the roster has fostered a tight-knit bond between the players this year. The Indians have a 40-man senior class, and most of those guys have been playing together since
middle school.
“This year, these guys played together the full year last year and are playing a full year together as seniors, so the chemistry has been great,” Reid said. “They’re bought in, they do everything we ask them to do, they strain. So, now we just have to improve on the execution from last year and we’ll see the fruits of our labor come to fruition on Friday nights.”
FAMOUS FOOTBALL ALUMNI
Darryl Rivers can play any of the positions on the defensive line and will be hard for opponents to handle this season.
Rivers offers rapid flow for Indians’ D
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
Darryl Rivers is not the prototypical high school defensive lineman. At 6-foot-5, 270-pounds, he towers over his teammates — even his counterparts in the trenches. He is also gifted enough to play everywhere on the defensive line. Though listed as an edge rusher, he can line up as a 3-technique tackle or nose guard because of his size and athleticism.
“We’ll move him around,” McEachern coach Kareem Reid said. “We’re going to try to utilize all of his strengths and things he does well and put him in position to make plays. He just has to take his training to the game. We’ll tell
him how to do it at practice, and on Friday nights, it’s his job to execute.”
No matter where Rivers is lined up, he wreaks havoc on opposing backfields. He explodes off the line of scrimmage, blows offensive tackles off the ball and wrestles ballcarriers to the ground with ease.
Rivers recorded a team-high 14 tackles for loss, including 4 1/2 sacks, last season at Pebblebrook. Now at McEachern, he believes he can be a useful addition to the team.
“I just want to help the team in any way I can,” Rivers said. “I feel like I bring more passion and aggressiveness.”
His breakout season last year earned him a three-star rating from 247Sports and had offers from 20 Division I schools, including
Georgia, Auburn, Mississippi State, Georgia Tech before choosing Tennessee in July. However, Reid said Rivers has only scratched the surface of his potential.
“He plays hard, he tries hard, he listens,” he said. “He’s actually very smart. So, it’s been fun coaching him because he’s a blank canvas, and so to take the tools that he already has from God, like his size and his length, and then teach him how to use it — it’s been real fun.”
Having NFL size as a high school senior doesn’t exempt you from all flaws, though. There are a few areas of Rivers’ approach that are unpolished, one of them being technique.
Rivers has a tendency to stand too tall when attacking, allowing blockers to get leverage and minimizing
his ability to use his strength to drive them back. This offseason, Reid and the McEachern staff have been teaching Rivers to stay low throughout his attack. He has also focused heavily on his academics. That additional attention paid off, as he earned straight A’s during the spring semester. Rivers’ transfer to McEachern could help bolster a run defense that was a major vulnerability for the Indians last season. In their five losses last season, the Indians’ opponents averaged 249.2 rushing yards. Additionally, McEachern had just eight total sacks last year, and its leading pass rusher graduated. Rivers will be a Day 1 starter for the Indians, and they will need him to have an immediate impact.
Special - Anthony Stalcup
McEachern’s
OSBORNE CARDINALS
Cardinals look for healthy, bounce-back season
By Adam Carrington MDJ Sports Correspondent
Recruit the halls, remain injury free and build as much depth as possible.
Those will be the keys to help Osborne rebound in 2025.
The Cardinals won just one game in 2024, one year after achieving its first winning season in nearly 30 years and making the state playoffs.
The Cardinals would rather not re-experience the agony that was the last two decades, even if their 1-9 overall record a year ago does appear misleading.
They suffered one-point losses to Banneker and Pebblebrook and took Paulding
County to double overtime before falling.
“We feel like we could have been 4-6,” Osborne coach Derek Cook said. “I think we were just inexperienced in some positions where we needed some leadership in those moments and didn’t finish games like we needed to. All that being said, our guys feel they are better than a 1-9 team.”
Heading into the new season with only 60 players, most will have to play on both sides of the ball due to a lack of depth, which means one injury can be twice as costly.
“We have to keep a lot of guys healthy. There is a balance that we’re going to have to find that is very challenging,” Cook said.
“I know we’re going to have bumps, bruises, sprains, concussions. It is what it is. We just have to minimize those as much as possible.”
Senior Leo Roussell is making the transition to being Osborne’s starting quarterback. He appeared in three games last season, throwing for 172 yards and two touchdowns.
Senior wide receivers D’Herelle Herrin and Jorden King will be two of his primary receivers as well as junior Javon May, who had a solid season on the junior varsity last season. One definite positive is the team has experience at running back, which will help Roussell get adjusted.
Senior Alex Soto-Williams was the Cardinals’ leading rusher last year with 97 carries for 475 yards and two touchdowns. Fellow senior Allen Sanders is also expected to contribute in the backfield along with junior move-in Antonio Oquendo. Sophomore Joshua Ndukwe will also help out at fullback.
On the offensive line, senior Henry Benjamin, who started at left tackle last year, has undergone knee surgery during the offseason and his return to the team is uncertain.
Meanwhile, Justin Zamora is moving from center to take his place. Senior right guard Rojean Gordon also returns. Junior Mekhi Hubbard will See CARDINALS, Page 43
OL Randy Duckworth (1964-67), .............................................Georgia Tech
WR Nyakki Height (2008-11), ..................................................Georgia State FAMOUS FOOTBALL ALUMNI
CARDINALS
From Page 42
likely end up at right tackle.
“We have rotated some guys (on the offensive line) and we’ll just see how it works itself out,” Cook said. “There are other guys behind them that are pushing them for reps.”
CL COBB LIFE
Zamora, Gordon and
Hubbard are also counted on to help man the defensive line. Osborne’s running backs — Soto, Sanders and Oquendo — will also see time at linebacker along with senior Seth Holder.
Herrin, King, May and senior Khamari Newsome will help guide the secondary.
“I don’t feel like we’re that young,” Cook said. “We’re just inexperienced.”
Cobb Life is the largest lifestyle magazine in Cobb County, celebrating the unique and colorful style of living in Cobb. With more than 15 years of production, Cobb Life is one of the most prominent and respected magazines in metro Atlanta. Featuring dining, entertainment, the arts, the latest trends, events, personalities and more, it’s easy to see why Cobb Life is so popular with both residents and visitors to the area.
Jorden King, D’Herelle Herrin and Javon May all have enough speed to make things tough on opposing defenses.
Cards have three to fly through defenses
By Adam Carrington MDJ Sports Correspondent
Osborne is going into the 2025 season with a trio of players who have the potential to keep both opposing wide receivers and defensive backs on high alert.
Seniors D’Herelle Herrin and Jorden King and junior Javon May have spent the summer getting acclimated to working together, knowing the
team’s success this fall will likely hinge on how well they perform on both sides of the ball.
“If you got three receivers that are threats, you can’t put your best DB on that guy because you still have two other guys who can cause some problems for you,” Osborne coach Derek Cook said. “For us, that’s a big deal. Hopefully, we can keep all three of those guys healthy.”
Ensuring that all three players
stay at full strength will also be key. Herrin and King have had their share of nagging injuries the last few months.
Herrin, who had 20 catches for 236 yards and two touchdowns last season, broke his collar bone last spring and re-aggravated it this summer. But, he is expecting to be ready when the season gets under way. King got sidetracked by a minor shoulder injury following a stellar
first-half performance in Osborne’s spring game against Northgate, and is also expected to be healthy as the season kicks off.
Injuries aside, Cook said he has been impressed when the three have been on the field together during 7-on-7s.
“It’s one of those deals when you have all three of them catching the ball, you’re like, ‘Oh wow, this could See CARDS, Page 76
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Special - Anthony Stalcup
PEBBLEBROOK FALCONS
Hackney begins Pebblebrook tenure full of confidence
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
The 2025 season will be all about building upon the foundation that has been laid out for Pebblebrook.
New coach Rodney Hackney has been tasked with taking over a Falcons team that went 6-5 and made the playoffs last season and helping it soar to new heights.
He said he believes the school’s administration has set him up for success with how it has invested in the football program over the last few years.
“I’m really excited about what Dr. Giles has done here so far, the foundation at Pebblebrook,” Hackney said. “The stuff that we are reaping is the stuff that
they have been constructing for three or four years, so we’re able to see the benefits of going through that.”
Hackney will have his work cut out for him, as the Falcons lost many players through graduation and transfers. However, assistant head coach Calvin Hood said he sees the young roster as an opportunity.
“My confidence level is at a 10,” Hood said. “Understanding the process of where we’re at, I like the fact that we have so many young players that are going to get the opportunity to play this year to build.”
One of Pebblebrook’s key returnees is Jayden Adams, the starting quarterback and clear-cut leader of the team.
The 6-foot-2, 160-pound senior played in nine games last season, throwing for 987 yards, seven touchdowns and six interceptions.
Having two seniors running Hackney’s new offense could make a major difference for Pebblebrook this season, as they have experience learning a high school playbook and can help the younger players through the process.
The Falcons’ biggest offseason losses came on the defensive side of the ball. They lost their top 11 tacklers and top four pass rushers. As one of the few experienced defensive players, the more responsibility will fall on senior linebacker General Samuela to lead the group.
Samuela recorded 28 tackles and two sacks last year in limited playing time.
All the turnover from last year’s roster has not affected the Falcons’ confidence. Quarterbacks RJ Graham and Adams have their sights set not only on improving from last season, but also making school history by bringing Pebblebrook its first state title.
“I want Pebblebrook to see a new light,” Gram said. “I want us to see a (state championship) in one of these years.”
“Right, a playoff run,” Adams said. “We don’t have that a lot here over the past couple years, but I’m really confident in this group and I feel like we can really make a big difference at Pebblebrook.”
PEBBLEBROOK FALCONS
991 Old Alabama Road, Mableton, GA 30126 • Falcon Stadium
RB Dwight Smith Jr. (2021-2024) .....................................................Georgia
ATH CJ Adams (2020-23), ....................................................South Carolina
LB Tre Pinkney (2015-18), ...................................................Coastal Carolina
DB Thomas Flowers (2000-03), .......................................................Georgia
RB Brent Thomas (1998-2001),.........................................................Georgia
OL Andy Cheatham, ....................Clemson, Birmingham Stallions (USFL)
CL COBB LIFE
Cobb Life is the largest lifestyle magazine in Cobb County, celebrating the unique and colorful style of living in Cobb. With more than 15 years of production, Cobb Life is one of the most prominent and respected magazines in metro Atlanta. Featuring dining, entertainment, the arts, the latest trends, events, personalities and more, it’s easy to see why Cobb Life is so popular with both residents and visitors to the area.
Adams has Pebblebrook looking up
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
Jayden Adams exudes a quiet, yet immutable confidence. Confidence in his preparation. Confidence in his ability. Confidence in the effort his teammates will give every Friday night.
One of Pebblebrook’s few returning starters, he has rapidly become a leader for both the offense, and the team as a whole. A role that he recognizes and has embraced this offseason.
His confidence is a major part of that role, as the way he carries himself often rubs off on the rest of the team.
“It’s a younger team, so they’re looking up to me,” Adams said. “I set the standard around here. How I walk around, everything I do, I know they’re looking up to me.”
A large portion of the Falcons’ experienced core either graduated or transferred after last season. Pebblebrook has just 13 seniors on the roster and very few have substantial game experience.
Adams said he tries to make himself available to the younger players and answers questions so they can “carry on the legacy” when he graduates.
That extends particularly to the quarterback room itself, where Adams has helped sophomore Cordell Hunter and freshman RJ Graham learn the ins and outs of the position.
“Since I came from eighth grade, I’m really new to high school,” Graham said. “If I don’t know a play,
Lamont Robinson, left, will be one of the players charged with keeping quarterback Jaden Adams upright.
he helps me out. If I don’t know where (a receiver) breaks out, he helps me out with stuff like that, what to do in the weight room.”
Adams’ assured leadership isn’t just an insubstantial facade — he has the on-field talent to support and reinforce it.
The 6-foot-2, 165-pound signalcaller played in nine games last season, throwing for 987 yards and seven touchdowns, while adding 308 yards and five touchdowns on the ground.
“This is my 30th year (coaching) and Jayden has the potential to be my best quarterback yet,” coach
Rodney Hackney said. “He can run, he can throw, he has all the attributes to play at the next level, and talking to his parents when I got here, one of the things I promised them is I’m going to put him in the position to be successful.”
Though Adams has many of the intangible qualities of a quarterback, he is still learning different facets of the position as he goes. One of the main things he has been focusing on this offseason is processing his reads more quickly.
Hackney said that last season, Adams would get antsy in the pocket and either hold on to the ball for
too long or scramble when he didn’t need to because he wasn’t going through his reads correctly.
However, his leadership shows up even in his shortcomings. Though he is learning these things himself for the first time, he is still trying to pass them on to Hunter and Graham to set them up for success.
“Jayden is finding ways to help the younger guys because he knows what they’re struggling with,” Hackney said. “He’s struggling with different things, and he’s figuring out how he handles it, and he’s passing it onto those guys.”
Special - Anthony Stalcup
SOUTH COBB EAGLES
Eagles plan to end streak, surprise opponents
By Lance Warren MDJ Sports Writer
Marcus Washington said he believes South Cobb can surprise people in 2025.
“It’s not just one of those things where I’m just saying we can surprise people because I’m the coach of the team and have to say that,” Washington said. “We’ve been working real hard this summer and got a lot of guys doing some really good things for us, so I do think we have an opportunity to jump out and be a surprise to our community and our region as well.”
The Eagles have lost 31 straight games dating back to November 5,
2021 and haven’t made the Class AAAAAA playoffs since the 2011 season.
Entering his second year as South Cobb’s coach, Washington said he doesn’t try to let the losing ways put too much pressure on his team.
“I try to keep away from putting pressure on myself or the kids and I just focus on us getting better everyday,” he said. “As we get better each day the wins will take care of themselves, so I always just tell my guys to just win the day. If we come in and win Monday, win Tuesday, win Wednesday, win Thursday and just keep stacking those days and eventually we’ll see success.”
Washington said that the culture
of toughness and hard work he started trying to build last year is finally going in the right direction. “We’re definitely starting to turn the corner with that,” he said. “We have some young guys coming into the fold this year and some seniors that graduated, so we’re doing a much better job of doing that culture shift I talked about last year and now the goal is to make it internal. The guys hear it from the coaches to be tough and push and work through adversity, but now the goal is to get it where the players are driving that culture into each other and it’s not just us coaches preaching it.”
Washington said the offseason
has been productive.
“We’ve been working hard and just been here four days per week lifting, conditioning and just trying to get bigger, stronger, and faster for the upcoming season,” he said. “A lot of the progress we’re going to make in the season starts now in terms of being tougher which I believe starts in the weight room and then during the season we’ll get the chance to show all the progress we’ve made.”
Rising junior and McEachern transfer Freedom Jones will be the Eagles quarterback. Washington said he has already been important to the team.
See EAGLES, Page 49
South Forsyth ....................14-40 ............L
Coach: Marcus Washington Sr. • 2nd Season • Record: 0-10 • Career: 0-10
EAGLES
From Page 48
“He’s a spark plug for us both on offense and defense,” he said. “He plays quarterback and free safety for us, so your quarterback on offense is obviously like the leader on offense, and then in our system, the free safety on defense is the quarterback of our defense. So, he’s always making sure everyone is lined up correctly and everything looks good on both sides of the ball. He’s a
special player.”
Washington said he’s preaching competence to his team.
“We just have to compete hard every time we take the field, regardless of who the opponent is,” he said. “We just have to put ourselves in position to win football games by making the plays we have to make, and I always tell my guys that those plays don’t need to be spectacular. We just have to do everything within the confines of our playbook on both sides of the ball.”
The second-year coach said he
thinks chemistry can be something the Eagles lean on this coming season.
“We have a team this year that I feel is very, very tightly knit,” he said. “When you have guys that play extra hard for each other and are tightknit it’s hard to beat a team like that when they have that type of closeness. We’ve developed that type of bond this year, and I’m excited for how that shows during the season.”
Washington said he wants to put the losing ways in the past and wants to leave a lasting imprint on South
Cobb football going forward.
“I want this to be a marquee program, and a staple program in our region,” he said. “When people think about South Cobb football, I want them to think toughness, physicality and discipline. That’s my whole goal, and what I’m trying to set here. It’s going to take a whole lot of hard work, effort, a lot of people to lock in and really believe in what you’re doing and pulling in the right direction. I believe we’ll get there and this will be that marquee program.”
Jones ready to make Eagles take flight
By Lance Warren MDJ Sports Writer
Freedom Jones said he wants to bring a new feel to South Cobb football.
“At (McEachern) everything was intense and we were all bonded tightly,” Jones said. “When I got here, the guys on this team were a little loose and not as tight, so I wanted to bring that bond here and I think now everyone is more together and things are going smoothly.”
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound junior, who is transfered during the offseason, will be the starting quarterback for an Eagles team that has lost 31 straight games dating back to the 2021 season, and hasn’t made the state playoffs since 2011.
Second-year coach Marcus Washington said Jones has already had an impact on the team.
“The kid is an unbelievable competitor and a great leader,” he said. “When I look for a guy who needs to pick us up or give us a little kick to get going, he’s always that guy.
He’s just been huge for us.” Jones said his experience with the Eagles has been good so
Special - Paul Holm
Freedom Jones takes over as the South Cobb quarterback with the goal of getting in the win column.
REGION 5AAAAAA
North Cobb, Walton leaders for top spot
By Faith Stokes MDJ Sports Writer
Walton and North Cobb have been passing off the title as Region 5AAAAAA champion for the past three years, and the competition will likely continue.
“We’ve kind of got a little rivalry going on with those guys,” Walton coach Daniel Brunner said.
Last season, North Cobb won the region based on the 42-14 win over Walton. But Brunner said the season goals haven’t changed – win the opener, win the region and win the state championship.
The Raiders have been rotating sophomore quarterbacks Christion Peacock, who transferred from North Cobb, and Pierson Degala. Brunner said they have both been excellent in the offseason and right now the plan is to play both of them.
Although the Raiders offense lost brothers Alex and Christian Ward in the offseason, standout tight end Jude Cascone and running back Noriega Thompson are returning for their senior season. Defensively, the Raiders should match up strongly against North Cobb in this year’s game. Florida State commit Noah LaValle is returning for his senior season at linebacker, alongside junior defensive back MJ Burnett.
Shane Queen is the longest-tenured head coach in Cobb County, going on his 20th season with North Cobb. Queen has led the Warriors to win six region championships and is looking to do it again.
Incoming North Cobb Christian
North Cobb
transfer Teddy Jarrard, who has more than 30 college offers, will be filling the Warriors quarterback position. Queen said Jarrard is a generational player. Offensively, the Warriors are loaded with all of their leading receivers returning –Steele Ingram, Micah Billingsley and Sebastian Easley. Both of their star running backs are also returning, sophomore Zach Belyeu and senior Arquevious Echols.
Marietta will be led by new coach Cameron Duke, coming in from Edgewater, Florida, hoping to bring some energy to the Blue Devils after a 2-4 region record last season.
“He’s brought some life to that program, that’s for sure,” Brunner said.
Junior Jayden Whiteside is on pace to be the Blue Devils starting quarterback, mixing senior Carson Snipes in at times. The offensive line will be key, led by seniors Trey Hudgens-Tucker and Jordan Adams. Defensively, Duke said their goal
North Cobb and Walton are the region favorites heading into the
is to stop the run. Some of the leaders on defense include sophomore Merrick Ham on the line, senior Alec Huff at middle linebacker and senior Jamine Soloman in the secondary.
North Paulding finished third in region last year, but lost some of its strong receiving core. Senior quarterback Tyler Niehr and senior running back James Skelly are two of the Wolfpack’s returning offensive starters to look out for.
Wheeler finished with two region wins last season, tying for fourth with Marietta and Cherokee. Senior running back Greg Kendrick and junior quarterback Patrick McCollough will be key starters on offense. Although the Wildcats are losing some notable players on the opposite side of the ball, strong defensive players DaKari Moore and Jemar Mitchell are returning for their senior year.
Coach Adam Holley is entering
his second season at Cherokee after a 2-4 region record and a 4-5 overall record. The Warriors have a lot of shoes to fill this year, making for a young team. Sophomore Sawyer Ray is stepping into the quarterback position, and will be throwing to a younger receiving core. Standout sophomore left tackle Nation Farmer will play a big role for the new offensive core.
Etowah finished last in the region in the 2023-2024 season, with the only win being against Wheeler. Former Sprayberry coach Brett Vavra is taking over the Eagles this year as head coach, eager to make a post-season run after an 11-year drought. Vavra said junior Zeke Douglass returns as the starting quarterback for the third year. Junior Walker Hughes is another key starter returning, this time as receiver with some time at running back.
CHEROKEE WARRIORS
New faces at key positions try to lead Cherokee back
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Cherokee coach Adam Holley inherited a veteran football team when he took over in 2024, but now in Year 2, it’s quite the opposite.
The Warriors, after finishing 4-6 last year, have missed the playoffs twice between coach Josh Shaw’s final season and Holley’s inaugural campaign, coming down off the school-record five consecutive postseason appearances.
With new faces at key positions, Cherokee aims to reload as it gears
up for a 70th season.
“After graduating that big senior class last year, we had a lot of holes to fill,” Holley said. “We know we are a young team, and with that, we knew this season would be a little bit different. It will be demanding, and we need to get these young guys caught up and in a position where they could be successful this fall.”
The youth movement starts at quarterback, where sophomore Sawyer Ray steps into the spotlight. The 5-foot-11 signal-caller replaces a productive senior in Tanner Savasir, who led Cherokee County in
passing yards last year with 2,674.
Ray’s receivers will also be inexperienced as the Warriors replace all six of their top pass-catchers from 2024, including standout tight end Wyatt Tash, who caught 36 passes for 620 yards and four touchdowns as the county’s fourth-leading receiver.
“(Ray) is going to be young, and that’s kind of the story of our team,” Holley said. “We will have a lot of sophomores playing that you normally don’t see in 6A football, but we feel like we have some really good young talent. We are going ahead and throwing him in the fire.”
Cherokee’s newest quarterback will be protected by fellow sophomore left tackle Nation Farmer, who garnered serious attention from colleges over the summer with offers from Georgia and Georgia Tech. Farmer has the prototypical size for an offensive lineman at 6-6.
Holley expects Farmer, along with the 6-5, 300-pound senior right tackle Dorian Stewart, to lead a much-improved offensive front.
“Well, what’s kind of nice about it is, I think the strength, offensively, is up front on the offensive
See WARRIORS, Page 53
CHEROKEE WARRIORS
River Ridge ............................21-7 ..........W
Coach: Adam Holley • 2nd Season • Record: 4-6 • Career: 4-6
WARRIORS
From Page 52
line,” Holley said. “It was a big step, where we knew we had to make an improvement from last year. I feel really good about that.”
Despite all the inexperience on the Warriors’ roster, seniors Brandon Hamilton and Jalion Trowers
hold down the running back room. Hamilton was Cherokee’s secondleading rusher with 48 carries, 363 yards and 3 touchdowns, trailing only Savasir’s 543 yards and six scores.
Trowers steps into a two-way role, playing both running back and linebacker. The lanky powerrunner also showed glimpses of his breakaway speed with a 50-yard
touchdown run in the Warriors’ record-setting win over Pope in 2024.
Defensively, Kayson Simmons is the top returning tackler (41), while corner Elijah Foote will return to his starting role. Holley also expects senior safety Jack Ruban to step into a featured role.
As the Holley-Cherokee partnership heads into Year 2, they hope
on-field improvement is the result.
“They understand the expectations, and they understand the standard,” Holley said. “It’s the way we attack each day, the way we lift in the weight room, how we want to work and just take on everything. It’s more prevalent with this group. I’m excited to see how that plays out, and I think our culture is getting stronger and stronger each day.”
Jack Ruban, Brandon Hamilton, Brooks Adams and Elijah Foote
Standout seniors lead underdog Warriors
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Cherokee’s roster has changed quite a bit since 2024, losing the majority of its high-end contributors on both sides of the ball.
However, the Warriors have talent ready to fill those gaps. Cherokee is a young team overall, sprinkled with battle-tested veterans, including running back Brandon Hamilton and defensive back Elijah
Foote, both of whom are seniors. Two more seniors, defensive back Brooks Adams and receiver Jack Ruban, prepare to step into the spotlight after building up their games. The sentiment was the same between all four guys, though –they are underdogs.
“Obviously, we’re a young team and we’re underdogs, but we have heart, a lot of heart, and we fight as a team,” Foote said.
With that underdog mentality,
Cherokee’s veterans know their heart can make the difference in one of the more competitive regions in Class AAAAAA.
“We have a ton of heart,” Adams said. “I think that will be a big strength for us this year. Playing with a lot of heart is going to push us through, you know, if we’re close in a game and it’s the fourth quarter, and it’s coming down to that last drive.”
The Warriors hope that translates,
especially on an offense where they replaced the quarterback, two running backs and their top six receivers.
That’s where Ruban, a lanky 6-foot-2, 180-pound receiver, comes in. He got a taste last season among a sea of veteran pass catchers, including Wyatt Tash (620 yards, four TDs) and Israel Conway (588 yards, five TDs). Ruban caught six passes for 65 yards and See SENIORS, Page 55
Special - Anthony Stalcup
CARBIN
defense one more time before continuing his career at Georgia Tech. Playing in college has been a longtime focus.
“I’m ready to play, ready to get things done. I have been preparing for this for a while,” Carbin said. The commitment brought him one step closer to fulfilling a lifelong dream.
“Since I was a kid, I’ve dreamed of playing in the NFL,” he said. “I mean, it’s every player’s dream.”
Carbin said he tries to remain humble and grounded in the support system that helped him reach this point.
“I’m thankful for everything I’ve been given, my coaches, my family, this program,” he said. “There’s a lot of people who helped me get here.”
Though he wasn’t born in Powder Springs, Carbin said he considers Hillgrove home.
“This school is really nice,” he said. “I wasn’t born here, but I love it. The culture, the people, it’s different. I’m glad I get to play at a place like this.”
With his final high school season approaching, Carbin said he
SENIORS
From Page 54
“I’m extremely ready,” Ruban said. “All the hard work this summer, with a little bit of playing time last year and a little bit of experience. I feel confident in myself.”
In the running back room, the bulk of the carries went to power-runner Christian Irwin last season, though Hamilton still finished second on the rushing chart with 363 yards and three touchdowns, behind only quarterback Tanner Savasir (543 yards, five TDs).
As sophomore Sawyer Ray takes over the quarterback position and Ruban becomes the featured receiver, Hamilton expects the run game to complement the passing game.
“The quarterback has done a
believes this Hillgrove team is capable of more than last year’s playoff run.
“It feels a little different this year,” he said. “I think we’ve got the region, and the state. We were close last year, but we’re better now.”
Hillgrove finished second in Region 3AAAAAA last season, but won two games before losing to Carrollton High School in the third round of the state playoffs. It was the team’s first quarterfinal appearance since 2018.
“Carrollton is good, but if we play them again, we will win,” Carbin said.
As a senior and returning starter, he said he’s embracing his role as a tone-setter for the defense.
“I like going after the quarterback and making plays,” he said. “It really feels good.”
Off the field, Carbin said his routine is simple.
“I mostly play football and sleep,” he said. “That’s pretty much it. My focus is really just on football and the next level now.”
Carbin said he’s adopting DeShon’s week-by-week mindset, especially in a region filled with playoff-caliber programs.
really good job, and our receivers are doing their thing,” Hamilton said. “The running back group is definitely going to be big on this team, so I think we’re going to be pretty good on offense.”
Defensively, Foote and Adams look to hold down a secondary that lost its 2024 interception leader, Jayce Jones (six). Adams did contribute 37 tackles, four passes defended and one fumble recovery last year, though his role should grow significantly.
Cherokee’s schedule begins with two county rivals in River Ridge and Sequoyah, both likely playoff teams in Class AAAAA, so the Warriors have a chance to prove themselves early in 2025.
“Everybody is saying we are underdogs, so we just have to show them we are coming with a lot,” Hamilton said. “They have to be ready.”
CULTURE
From Page 31
“Iron sharpens iron, making each other better everyday.”
West and Buggs are also dedicated to creating a lasting culture at Campbell and leaving their impact on the younger players.
“We need to show the younger players that the culture here is what needs to be done,” Buggs said. “We’re young, but we’ve been taught from our coaches, and we want to pass this on to the upcoming freshmen and sophomores.”
Last season Buggs ran for 187 yards and a touchdown. He also had 241 receiving yards and two touchdowns. The 5-foot-8, 171-pounder is looking to step up as a vocal leader during his senior season.
“I want to become more vocal. In the football aspect, we already have that leadership, just showing it and displaying it on the field,” Buggs said. “We need to step up more, especially to all the younger guys, since we have been in the program since middle school.”
West had 28 total tackles last
season, defended two passes and had one fumble recovery. The 6-foot, 174-pounder is set to continue his football career at UNC Charlotte.
“I really liked how they upheld the standard, the gold standard is what they call it, “ West said. “I liked the new coaches, how they came in and how they handle business.”
West and Buggs are not only dedicated to the football program, but also to the Campbell community.
“We just like to help out in the community and give back because they help us and support us in everything we do,” West said.
Phillips said he is looking for all of his players to be devoted to Campbell, the way West and Buggs have been throughout their football careers.
“They have that passion for Campbell that we long to have in senior leaders,“ Phillips said. “Just a passion to be here at Campbell High School.”
Even in their free time, the duo stays focused on football. They enjoy doing hydrotherapy sessions with their teammates and getting in extra practice.
ETOWAH EAGLES
New coach, new attitude, new era of Etowah football
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
There’s a new era on Eagle Mountain.
Brett Vavra makes his return to Etowah in 2025, following an eight-year run as Sprayberry’s head coach. His time in Cobb County culminated in a Region 6AAAAA championship and state quarterfinals berth last season, along with five playoff appearances.
In 2025, Vavra inherits a program starving for postseason football, with its last appearance coming in 2019 under Dave Svehla. The Eagles are now 11 years removed from their miraculous run to the semifinals,
and the program was historically successful prior to this latest drought with 13 playoff seasons in 14 years.
For now, the No. 1 priority is progress.
“The kids are definitely buying into what we are trying to teach them, coach them and just the way that we do things,” Vavra said.
“Overall, the work ethic has been pretty good. The kids are definitely willing to do what’s asked of them, I think that’s been really good.”
Junior quarterback Zeke Douglass returns to help ease the transition of a new coach and multitude of new faces after Etowah graduated 30-plus seniors from the 2024 roster.
Douglass will be the Day 1 starter
following two straight years of being thrust into action after former quarterback Xavier Mahoney suffered consecutive season-ending knee injuries. He threw for 835 yards and 7 touchdowns last year, with another 235 yards and 1 score on the ground, leading the Eagles in both categories.
“He’s not a surprise at all,” Vavra said. “We played against him last year, which is cool. He was young and he has really progressed. He’s matured physically and athletically, and he’s learning. He’s someone we feel like we can build a team around for two more years and he’s going to be a really good player.”
Walker Hughes, another key
returner, has officially switched his position to receiver, hoping to fill the void left by departed seniors Malone Pesqueira and Will Zazzara. Hughes will also play running back, where he rushed for 220 yards and two touchdowns in 2024, along with seeing some time at defensive back.
“He’s a guy that we have to get the football to, however way that may be,” Vavra said.
Outside of Hughes, it will be running back by committee, featuring Michale Goines, Oliver Creigh, Gevin Letendre and Drake Mason, a big-bodied quarterback and linebacker who Vavra looks to move
North Cobb ..........................0-43 ............L
Davis
Buster Skrine (2003-06) .........................UT-Chattanooga, New York Jets
Christian Harris (2007-10) ............................................................Tennessee
Stuart Head (2013-16)........................................................................Stanford
EAGLES
From Page 57
into the backfield.
Etowah also received a small influx of new talent as well, whether guys moved in from out-of-state or
Pertz-Moye ...............92
SACKS
Andrew Christofferson........5
INTERCEPTIONS
Brody Hand 2
Cain Moss ...............2
Ethan Weidner.......2
came over from other sports, including basketball. Mason and Letendre are two of those newcomers, with Mason moving in from Louisiana and Letendre playing his first high school football season as a senior. Overall, Vavra is excited about Douglass, Hughes and the Eagles’
sizable junior class, many of whom saw the field as sophomores. Vavra implemented more time in the film room and early-morning lifts to help build strength.
“It’s just improving as a team and getting these kids tougher mentally and physically,” Vavra said.
“Honestly I’d love to win more games, from an optics standpoint, and I do think that’s important to a degree, but I want our kids to focus on the day-to-day process and getting better, becoming better people, tougher, stronger in knowing the game and building relationships.”
Douglass steps into his own spotlight
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Etowah quarterback Zeke Douglass was pressed into action the last two years, but this time, it’s his job from Day 1.
After injuries prematurely ended former starter Xavier Mahoney’s junior and senior seasons, the Eagles turned to a young Douglass, who kept them afloat in one of the most competitive regions in Class AAAAAA.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound junior
comes into 2025 with valuable experience on Fridays, and he’s already earned the trust of his new head coach, Brett Vavra.
“There is no substitute for experience,” Vavra said. “You can’t manufacture that in practice. You can try and get close, but you can’t even really manufacture it on a Thursday in a JV game. Friday night experience just carries a lot of weight and value.”
Douglass first saw the field as a freshman, playing in two games and learning on the fly as Etowah
finished the turbulent season 4-6 overall.
Then, as a sophomore, Douglass took on a much larger role with substantially more playing time. He completed over 60% of his passes in 2024 for 835 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Nerves were a factor, especially in his first varsity game.
“That was probably the most nervous I’d ever been,” Douglass said. “Getting thrown in like that and just never really having played with the guys on that field, I didn’t
know exactly what to do. I feel like that helped me for last year, though, when I was thrown into the exact same situation, so I was better prepared, but still not enough.”
Etowah’s chemistry is palpable, especially between a 33-man junior class that includes Douglass and Walker Hughes, who converted to receiver from running back. That duo led the Eagles in rushing last year, and now they hope to ride their connection into the passing game.
“I’ve played with him since like
Special - Anthony Stalcup
After taking over as the starter early in each of the last two seasons, Zeke Douglass enters this year as the true No. 1.
Q&A with Etowah’s Brett Vavra
New Etowah coach Brett Vavra led Sprayberry to a region championship last year. Now he will try to do the same thing with the Eagles.
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Q: Going through the offseason with these guys and getting reacclimated to this program, has it been everything you’ve expected so far?
A: It’s been good. The kids are buying in and working hard and the support from the community has been great. Support from administration’s been really good. Just getting our staff fully in place, it’s always a little bit of a process. It’s never going as quickly as you like it, but we finally got all that figured out and finalized, so that’s been good. But it’s just getting the kids to understand, buy into the process and get better every single day, and it’s not going to happen overnight. It’s about working hard, doing things with a purpose and being very intentional and detail-oriented. Those are all things we’ve been preaching, with a sense of urgency.
Q: Coming from a place in Sprayberry, where you’ve spent the last eight years, how much of an adjustment has it been returning to Cherokee County and Etowah?
A: You know, it’s been a little bit of adjustment, obviously, because I was there (at Etowah) for five years, but it was a long time ago. Schools change a little bit, and there’s still some employees that I worked with in the past who are still there, which is cool. But there are a lot of new faces, too, and obviously new kids and new families, so it’s just getting to know everybody. There’s a lot of new, but there’s also a good deal of familiarity because I’ve been there before. I know the facilities, I know the campus. I felt like it was a pretty easy transition from my standpoint.
Q: The fact that you were coming off a season where you won your region and went to the quarterfinals. Did that make it more difficult to leave Sprayberry, or did you see it as going out on top?
A: It was definitely a little bit of both, but it was probably one of the toughest decisions I’ve had to make in my life. But what made it harder was the kids because I loved those kids so much, and I know what kind of group was coming back. I think they have a chance to be really, really good again and special. It was hard, but just the timing of everything and trying to look at it as a big picture and long-term decision, I felt like it was what was best for myself and my family.
Winning the region last year was awesome, but I don’t know if it would have mattered if we didn’t win it or we didn’t have the season we had, I don’t know if that would have factored into my decision more, but it probably did factor into it.
Q: Have you stayed in touch with or have relationships with any of the other coaches here in Cherokee County?
A: Yeah, I mean, Coach (Chris) Bryce was on staff when I was at Etowah earlier, and he’s on staff, and he does a great job for us. Coach (Adam) Holley, I’ve gotten to know him a little bit, just over the last year or so. Mike Collins at River Ridge, I’ve known him for a long time, and we’ve always stayed in touch. We played them when I was over at Sprayberry. They were in our region for a lot of years, including last year. I have a pretty good relationship with all of the coaches that are in Cherokee County, just from playing them, River Ridge, Sequoyah, Creekview and all of those schools, and even Woodstock — I’ve known Dan (Devine) for a long time. I have a pretty good relationship with all those guys, so that’s kind of helped the transition be a little bit easier, too.
Q: You start your season with probably the biggest rivalry game in Cherokee County, against Woodstock, and they have won the last two. Does the fact that it starts the season amp up the intensity at all?
A: I would probably be lying if I said it didn’t weigh on my mind, and that’s who we play in game one. It’s a huge rivalry, and I have been a part of many of those games. That’s are a really good football team right now. They have a lot of returning players, and they were really good last year, so that’s going to be a big test. I know our kids will be excited about it, and I know the community is excited about it, but you feel a little sense of urgency to perform well and have our kids playing as well as we possibly can that night.
Q: Game 2 you head to Sprayberry to be on that visiting sideline. Do you have any expectations for how that will feel?
A: Yeah, that’s a tricky one. I’m sure it’s going to be an emotional rollercoaster that night, and quite honestly, I’m not really looking forward to it all that much. I’ve got a lot of history there and a lot of memories made with a lot of great people that, you know, I have really great relationships with. I’ve never coached against Sprayberry at Jim Frazier Stadium, or been on that visiting team sideline other than one JV game at the beginning of my career when I was at South Cobb.
That’s going to be kind of a weird feeling, and I’m trying not to think too much about it. It’s a tough matchup, one because they’re going to be really good, but two, just the feeling of being on that opposite side for so many years. It’s definitely going to be a weird, and probably, emotional night for myself and some of my assistant coaches that were with me there, and then probably for my family as well.
Answershavebeeneditedforspaceandclarity
Special - File
MARIETTA BLUE DEVILS
New philosophy for new-look Blue Devils under Duke
By John Bednarowski sportseditor@mdjonline.com
Marietta fans in the 2025 season can expect an up-tempo offense with its first rule being – take what the defense gives it.
Under new head coach Cameron Duke, the Blue Devils are planning to use it with the hopes of averaging 20 points or more per game for the first time since 2021, with the hopes of approaching the 36.6 points per game they averaged in the state championship season of 2019.
To achieve that goal, Duke and the coaching staff are trying to build the trusting relationships with the players necessary to get them to work as one unit each time it takes the field.
“It takes time,” he said. “We want them to be the best player, best student, best man they can be to be so they can become the best person they can be.
“So far, their attitude and effort have been great. Now we want to see how we can transform from being a team to becoming a family.”
Duke has experience in that area. He built Edgewater (Fla.) into a state power, taking the program to 85 wins and a pair of state championship appearances over the last eight seasons. He also did it after taking over a program which went 0-10 the season prior to his arrival.
Marietta went 2-8 last season, which was its third straight losing season and fourth in the last five,
but Duke said there is plenty of talent on the team to start setting the foundation for success.
Offensively, it starts at quarterback. Jayden Whiteside will be the likely starter with Carson Snipes also in the mix at the position. Whiteside started last season and completed 58% of his passes for 1,594 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions.
He will play mainly out of the shotgun with the idea of being able to lead an offense which runs the ball effectively and can push the ball down the field when the opportunity is available.
The key will be an offensive line led by tackle Trey Hudgens-Tucker (6-foot, 260-pounds), along with guard Jordan Adams, which is athletic and gotten bigger.
Landon Mannery (374 yards, 4 touchdowns), who is coming off an ACL injury, and Titus Grant (177 yds.) are expected to lead the running game. Both backs averaged right at 4.5 yards per carry a year ago.
On the outside, the team returns leading receiver Elijah Green, who had 41 receptions for 747 yards and three touchdowns. He is joined by Samaj Anderson (35 rec., 389 yds., 3 TD), Jackson Neismith (6 rec., 85 yds.) and Brody Archie (34 rec., 562 yds. 10 TD) who comes over from North Cobb Christian. Whiteside and Snipes will also have a chance to throw to a pair of tight ends in Isaac Copeland (19 rec., 249 yds. TD) and Merrick Ham. See DUKE, Page 63
QB Eric Zeier (1989-90) ..................................Georgia, Cleveland Browns
K Scott Sisson (1985-88), ...............Georgia Tech, New England Patriots
K Rex Robinson (1974-77), ........................Georgia, New England Patriots
RB James “Friday” Richards (1968-71), .................Florida, New York Jets
DUKE
From Page 62
Defensively, Duke said the team will play out of a 3-4 base look. He wants them to be attacking and
RUSHING
Landon Mannery 84 car 374 yds 4 TD
PASSING
Jayden Whiteside…105/180…1604 yds…10 TD…5 INT
RECEIVING
Elijah Green .......... 41 rec ....... 747 yds..... 3 TD
Anthony Kruah .... 25 rec ..... 427 yds .... 4 TD
Samaj Anderson 35 rec 389 yds 3 TD
TACKLES
Jamine Solomon ....................71
Jude Morris...............................57
Anthony Kruah ........................55
SACKS
Anthony Kruah 7
INTERCEPTIONS
Caleb Graham ....... 4
a strong downhill run defending squad.
“If you can’t stop the run, you can’t stop anything,” Duke said.
Ham, though only a sophomore, will be one of the leaders on the defensive line. At 6-5, 230-pounds
he already has Division I offers from Indiana, Wake Forest and Kennesaw State. He finished last season with 25 tackles, three sacks and three tackles for loss. Ham is joined by Payton Smith, DJ Plummer and Derrick Jenkins.
Alec Huff (45 tackles) and Don Gober will man the middle at the linebacker spots and will be covered by a secondary that includes Snipes, Jasmine Soloman (71 tackles, 2 INT), Caleb Graham, Danta Young and Max Turner.
Ham could be the next big thing across multiple Blue
Ham following family athletic pattern
By John Bednarowski sportseditor@mdjonline.com
It seems there isn’t much Marrietta’s Merrick Ham can’t do when it comes to athletics.
At 6-foot-6, 220-pounds, the
sophomore is an up-and-coming football player, playing defensive end and getting reps as a passcatching tight end.
As a forward on the basketball team, Ham averaged 11.7 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, and there
are already stories about him hitting home runs into the Blue Devils softball complex as a member of the JV baseball team.
However, his finest athletic accomplishment to date may be winning his family’s Christmas
Games.
“It breeds competitiveness and whoever wins is a big deal,” Ham said. “I enjoy winning a lot. I’ve won it three years running.”
For most families, winning an See HAM, Page 65
John Bednarowski
Merrick
Devils’ sports programs.
Reindeer
annual competition which includes competitions on judging who can throw an egg the farthest or who can unwrap presents with their feet, may not register as an accomplishment, but in Ham’s case, he may be right. Consider his competition.
His father Nicholas was a college baseball player and his mother Deana played college basketball.
His uncle, Paul Duncan III, played left tackle at Notre Dame and briefly for the Denver Broncos, and his grandfather played defensive tackle at Newberry College in South Carolina.
In addition, his sister is a member of the Marietta flag football team, basketball team and she also plays soccer. Younger brothers Duncan and Bennett play football, lacrosse and basketball for their middle school team.
Maybe winning the Reindeer Games is his best accomplishment to date, but coach Cameron Duke is hoping Ham can use all his talents to help put the Blue Devils football team back at the top of the region standings and compete for a state championship sooner than later.
“He’s extremely intelligent,” Duke said. “He’s very coachable and we’re thoroughly pleased with how he is picking up the new system. He’s versatile and I think it’s a testament to his family and the work ethic they have instilled in him.”
Ham said his parents held him out of tackle football until he was in seventh grade, but he has quickly made up for any perceived lost time. Ham already has offers from Vanderbilt, Indiana and Kennesaw State after a freshman season in which he had
Merrick Ham sacks Walton quarterback Kaleb Gilstrap last season.
25 tackles, three sacks and three tackles for loss in eight games.
Heading into his second varsity season, Ham said he understands the possibilities which lie in front of him.
“There’s a little bit of pressure to do well,” he said based on his family’s athletic history. “You see the path, but the key is to work hard and keep my head down. That way, when you look up, you can be where you want to be.”
Ham will mainly line up on the defensive side of the ball and rush the passer this season. It’s where he said he feels most comfortable. He said it is where he has the most fun, and he enjoys the physical contact.
“I like to be able to attack and be able to go pop somebody,” he said.
However, with his large frame and
big hands, he is likely to become a favorite target of quarterback Jayden Whiteside, especially down near the goal line.
“He has great value as a tight end and H-back,” Duke said. “We are not opposed to working him on offense.
“We’re excited about what he can do. We’re excited about him playing football. To be good at all three sports at his age is incredible.”
While there is a big future for Ham in whichever sport he may want to play, he is excelling in the classroom to make sure he is successful in whatever he does after school. He currently has a 4.32 grade point average and his favorite subjects are in math. Ham has also found a way to take those math
skills and utilize them on the football field.
“I enjoy learning how to learn,” he said. “I enjoy problem solving. I enjoy seeing the decisions that are three steps ahead of you.”
While he may even entertain becoming a coach in the future, for now, he wants to help Marietta get back to winning, including a state championship. He was around the team when the Blue Devils won the 2019 title. He said he saw the impact that team made and he wants to be part of something similar before his career is over.
“Winning a championship means a lot,” Ham said. “I saw the community and how it bonded together and grew. Being able to be part of that would mean a lot.”
JONES
From Page 50
experiences,” he said. “The guys on this team now have become real tight like brothers and we just chill together a lot and even on days when we don’t have practice we still come out here and work.”
Jones said he’s been focused on becoming better off the field this offseason.
“The big thing I want to improve off the field is just helping the team,” he said. “Just being more of a leader and helping the team when we’re down is something I’m working on because I’m the leader, so I have to pick my guys up.”
He said the little things are where he can inprove in terms of that leadership role.
“Even if it’s just the small things like remembering their birthdays or getting gifts for the offensive line,” Jones said. “They’re in the trenches for me so I just want to be there for them more too. I want to be there for all my teammates even in the smallest ways.”
He said he feels like his biggest strength is his consistency and the
main thing he can improve is his footwork. He said he has been doing cone drills and working on his comfort level in the pocket.
Jones said he believes a focused mindset can help the struggling South Cobb program turn things around.
“Over time, everyone has begun to focus as we’ve gotten closer and spent time together during the summer I think that’s the best thing for us,” he said.
Jones did not play in his time with the Indians but he did get to be around a team that had success and made the Class AAAAAA playoffs in 2024.
He said McEachern’s success, particularly on offense, showed him what things could look like at his new school if everyone is on the same page.
“Offensively I think we can be excellent,” Jones said. “We can continue to get better but everything has been going smoothly. If I get the passes down and everyone is in sync then everything will continue to go smoothly.”
Jones does not currently have any offers but he said he still has big goals for the future.
“The dream for me is to make it
BEST Hearing Center &BEST Hearing
Zeke Douglass is the expected full-time starter for Etowah this season.
DOUGLASS
From Page 59
fifth grade, so we’ve had that chemistry coming into high school,” junior running back Walker Hughes said. “It started before we even got here, so that’s been great. It’s great to have a quarterback that I played with all throughout elementary school and middle school.”
Douglass said off-field activities have helped build the bond between himself and his teammates, while his own game has continued progressing on the gridiron. He’s worked to grasp the new playbook and system,
along with understanding how to read defenses at a higher level.
Etowah’s new quarterback feels a sense of comfort and support coming from his new coaches ahead of the season. He said the scheme fits his game perfectly, and he’s ready to showcase his and the Eagles’ potential on Friday nights.
“They know what we can do,” he said. “They challenge us, and they push us because they know where we can be, and what we’ve been these past 10 years. They are ready to step it up and so are we. It’s hand in hand. Players are ready, coaches are ready. We’re ready to move up.”
Tardy,
Q&A with Marietta’s Cameron Duke
guy. I was able to run and catch the football well. I could get in and out of breaks. I was kind of a (Wes) Welker, like all those guys that were slot receivers for the Patriots.
I played two years at South Lake High School, and then I played two years at East Ridge High School in Claremont, Florida. I felt like I was a good athlete and played for a good coach who allowed me to play — coach Bud O’Hara.
After high school, there was an opportunity to go off and play. It was NAIA, D2, small school football in different places.
Q: What from coach O’Hara did you take with you?
A: How much he genuinely cared for his players. He loved us well and cared for us way more than just as a football player.
You could go to him about other stuff besides football. He was a funny guy. He was intense. We were tough. He made us tough. We practiced hard, but we genuinely knew he cared for us and loved us, and we would play hard for him because of that relationship that he had with all of us.
Q: There’s another coach that had a pretty good influence on you in your father, Jeff Duke.
A: No doubt. He had the most influence on me of anyone in my life, him and my mom, but as a coach and as a son, for sure. He’ll still be helping me out this year. He’ll be traveling up on Wednesdays and going back on Saturdays in the fall, and he’ll sit up top and help us out. On game day, more importantly, he’s going to help us as a staff, grow as men.
I got a chance to see him, you know, early as a young man, coach at an extremely high level. To get a great perspective and see he had his priorities in order. So, you know, I saw him as a father, as a coach and as a man. He definitely has had the most positive impact on my life.
Q: What led you to coaching?
A: I was a good high school player, but I had an opportunity to have an academic scholarship at Florida State and had a chance to become a student assistant with the football program for a year. So, I did that, worked towards my degree, and then jumped on at Childs High School in Tallahassee as I finished up my degree.
I got my first full-time teaching and coaching job at Jefferson County High School in 2009. I knew at an early age that’s where the good Lord was calling me. What He was calling me into.
Q: You got to coach one game up here a couple of years ago with Edgewater. Now that you’re here, how much are you looking forward to coaching in Marietta?
A: It’s such a special place with an incredible community. Families and the people that we’ve got a chance to get to know so far have been awesome. They’ve been great to myself, my wife, my two girls. I’m just very grateful for the community, for welcoming myself and our family up here. It was a big boost. Getting them to come see us, have an opportunity to play when we get to Northcutt Stadium in the fall we’re really excited.
By John Bednarowski sportseditor@mdjonline.com
Q: How did you get involved in football
A: When I was born my dad was the county athletic director of the Leon County School system in Tallahassee, Florida, so early on my childhood was Friday nights. Then of course I started playing at a young age as well, but definitely from my father.
Q: What was your playing career like?
A: I played slot receiver, and I’d love to tell you it was better than it was. I thought it was a really good position for me to play and I was fortunate to be an all-whatever
Q: You lived in Florida for a long time. You come up here, new community, is there anything that has surprised you that you didn’t expect? What has surprised you?
A: I think the natural beauty of Marietta is special. We got up here in February to go through spring and to see the amount of flowers and everything blooming. It’s beautiful. The mountain, the nature that we have here. I think the kindness of the people. I don’t think that’s surprising. It’s just really awesome.
Answershavebeeneditedforspaceandclarity.
Marietta City Schools
New coach Cameron Duke will lead Marietta into the 2025 season.
NORTH COBB WARRIORS
Warriors’ offense set to lead team on postseason run
By Kai Millette MDJ Sports Writer
A dynamic backfield and new, highly-touted quarterback will look to lead North Cobb to a deeper playoff run in 2025.
The Warriors tore through their non-conference schedule and Region 5AAAAAA last year en route to an undefeated regular season, finishing a game within one possession just once.
North Cobb’s title hopes fell short, however, falling to Douglas County 31-10 in the second
round of the playoffs.
“I think our program’s gotten to the point where, hey, you know, those 10 regular season games are practice games,” North Cobb coach Shane Queen said. “What are you going to do in the playoffs? And I’ll be the first to admit that we need to make a deeper run and to make that deeper run we need to work on the little things.”
The Warriors lost senior quarterback Nick Grimstead to graduation, but filling his shoes is North Cobb Christian transfer and highlytouted recruit Teddy Jarrard. Standing at 6-foot-4, 200 pounds,
Jarrard is currently rated a fourstar recruit by On3 and 247Sports composite, holding 33 college offers including Georgia, Auburn, Clemson, Ohio State and several other power conference schools. He was scheduled to commit in late July.
“He’s a generational player,” Queen said. “He’s very cerebral, loves the game of football. He’s a gym rat, constantly studying the game. (He) wants to get better every day, drives his teammates to do the same. The sign of a leader is bringing other guys up to your level and he does a good job of that.”
Aiding Jarrard is a slew of returning offensive production, including the Warriors’ top three leading receivers from last season in Steele Ingram, Micah Billingsley and Sebastian Easley who combined for 1,145 yards and 15 touchdowns on 62 receptions in 2024. North Cobb also returns the 1-2 punch in the backfield consisting of star sophomore Zach Belyeu and his counterpart Arquevious Echols. The two combined for 1,846 rushing yards and 27 touchdowns last season while splitting carries. See WARRIORS, Page 70
“They had a great campaign last year, but again expecting them to just build on that,”
“Both of them are very talented, big physical backs and they push each other to be better,” Queen said. “What I love about it, one gets a
7 TD
Micah Billingsley ...20 rec ...342 yds ..... 5 TD
TACKLES
Cooper Negron ...........145 SACKS Dom Moody .................. 6
Wilson 6 Cooper Negron 6
INTERCEPTIONS Dy’lon Womack............ 8
20-yard run, we put the other guy in, we don’t miss a beat.”
A stout offensive line anchored by Missouri commit Brandon Anderson is expected to make offensive coordinator Tyler Queen’s job even easier. Returning all-region center Joshua Dahan and newcomer Madden Fredenburg are also expected to be major contributors in the trenches.
Shane Queen said. “We’ve just got to get those young guys to grow up in a hurry.”
The Warriors find themselves much younger on the opposite side of the ball. Major departures including Kamron Cullins, Dy’lon Womack and Cooper Negron make room for fresh names on the North Cobb defense.
“We’re young on that side of the
ball but it’s good youth, it’s very talented youth,” Queen said. “We’re going to have some bumps and bruises probably early on. Hopefully our offense can score some points till they continue to develop.”
Queen said he expects nose guard CJ Williams to step up on the defensive line, and Keshawn Alexis and Aziz Helm to do the same in the secondary.
North Cobb’s Zach Belyeu is ready to better last year’s breakout freshman season.
Belyeu setting foundation for big career
By Kai Millette MDJ Sports Writer
North Cobb’s Zach Belyeu seems to have unlimited potential. The sophomore running back took Region 5AAAAAA by storm last
season as a freshman, posting 1,107 yards and 15 touchdowns, averaging 8.7 yards per carry along the way. Despite his individual success, things remain about the team. With that, Belyeu said he doesn’t consider last season to have been a
great one.
“I don’t want to say it went great because we didn’t finish the mission like we wanted to,” Belyeu said. “But as far as everything in the regular season, it went well, we won our region. I feel like this team
right here could be better than last year’s team.”
Thanks to his youth, Belyeu still has what feels like forever to sharpen his abilities before he makes the jump to the college level. This See Belyeu, Page 80
Special - Paul Holm
WALTON RAIDERS
Raiders back planning for deep playoff run in 2025
By Devyn Hlavek MDJ Sports Writer
Walton has three goals for the 2025 season – win the opener, win the region and be the last team standing.
The Raiders are coming off their eighth consecutive playoff appearance, but they are hungry to make a deep playoff run. They are looking to prove themselves after going 7-4 and finishing second in Region 5AAAAAA last season. The program is two seasons removed from a state championship appearance.
“I want the people in our program and our players believing that we can go win 15 games year in and year out,” Coach Daniel Brunner said. “I feel like we have a team this year that can make that happen. We’re going to have to have some things come together for us and have a lot of growth, but I definitely feel like this is a group that can make a run.”
Last season, Walton fell short to Valdosta in the first round of the playoffs. The loss came after a Week 10 bye, which left Walton with 21 days between their last game
of the season and the first round of the playoffs. Brunner said that Walton has to make adjustments after being given a Week 10 bye again this season.
“We’re going to hopefully learn from some things that we did last year in preparation and hopefully do it better this time around,” Brunner said.
The program will have a mix of new talent and experienced players this season. Christion Peacock, a transfer from North Cobb, to compete for the starting quarterback position. The 6-foot, 172-pound
sophomore ran for 114 yards and recorded three rushing touchdowns last season. He also threw for 58 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore Pierson Degala, who has offers from Arkansas State, Bethune-Cookman and UNLV is also a contender for the starting quarterback title.
Walton is bringing in Levi Brown as its new offensive coordinator. He will be the team’s third offensive coordinator in three seasons. Brown is a former quarterback for the Buffalo Bills and previously served as See RAIDERS, Page 74
DB Chuck Carswell (1983-96), ............................Georgia, Miami Dolphins
RB Justin Forte (2000-03),............................................................Richmond
OL Brandon Kublanow (2009-12), .................Georgia, Baltimore Ravens
DL Chase Thomas (2004-07),....................Stanford, New Orleans Saints
Kaeden Gilstrap ........124/231 1925 yds 19 TD 12 INT RECEIVING
Ward 46 rec 768 yds 10 TD TACKLES
RAIDERS
From Page 73
served as the offensive coordinator at River Ridge and Valdosta State. It will be without Alex and Christian Ward who transferred to IMG Academy, but Brunner said the changes that happened over the offseason are positive.
“We want the guys that want to
be here. I want to be a part of what we’re doing and I feel like we’re stronger because of the changes that occurred throughout the off season,” Brunner said. “ I hope that shows up when we get to the fall.”
Walton is also set to return more than 30 seniors with experience on both sides of the ball. On offense, Brunner is expecting 6-foot-2, 250 pound tackle Cooper Bowles to step
up as a vocal leader. Running back Noriega Thompson is also returning for his senior season after gaining significant playing time last season. He had 566 rushing yards on 95 carries along with five touchdowns.
“There are some very talented players in that group, but that’s not what makes them special,” Brunner said. “It’s their chemistry, their ability to play for each other, desire
to work hard and give everything I can for the man next to me.”
Brunner said linebacker Noah Lavallee and cornerback MJ Burnett are projected to be leaders on defense. Lavallee is committed to Florida State and led Walton in total tackles with 124, one sack and two fumble recoveries last season. Burnett had 47 total tackles and defended seven passes.
Quiet Thorner a key to Raiders offensive line
By Devyn Hlavek MDJ Sports Writer
Walton offensive lineman Nick Thorner is quiet and unassuming, but he is arguably one of the most dependable players on the field.
The 6-foot-3, 250-pound senior will be new to his role as a leader and said he plans to lead the team by example.
“I wouldn’t say I’m the most vocal leader, but I go out and get the work done,” Thorner said.
He and his brother Jake Thorner, who graduated earlier this year, have both been in the program since kindergarten. Thorner said he looks up to Jake as a role model, but wants to set himself apart from his brother.
“I follow him, but also want to make my own name, too,” Thorner said. “He is a hard worker and I’d say I am a hard worker too.”
Thorner said something that makes him stand out is his success academically. He has a 4.0 grade point average, and he aims to balance his time between football and schoolwork.
Walton coach Daniel Brunner said Thorner does everything with little fanfare or recognition.
“He’s a pretty amazing human being. He’s a 4.0 student, great in the classroom and a phenomenal football player,” Brunner said. “He speaks softly but carries a big stick.
I think that’s how he goes about his life in the classroom and how he goes about his life on the football field.”
This will be Thorner’s third year as a starter for Walton and he has high expectations for the upcoming season.
“My expectations are pretty big. We have a good team,” Thorner said. “I want to make it far in the playoffs.”
He is a key part of the offensive line, playing guard and tackle. Thorner said he models his game after Detroit Lions offensive tackle Penei Sewell, and feels as though they have a similar playing style.
Thorner will line up next to Cooper Bowles and Sam Besselink, who are also returning to Walton’s offensive line for their senior seasons. Brunner said Thorner is a part of a senior group that is committed and hungry to win.
“This senior group has gritty determination. If they work hard, trust the program and trust the process, then good things will show up,” Brunner said. “That’s really happening with a lot of these guys, and I am hoping it shows up in the fall.”
Thorner is still early in the recruiting process, and said he is still figuring out where he wants to go to college. He is yet to receive his first official offer, but has attended camps at Mercer and Elon in the offseason.
wants to leave a legacy within the
when his high school career comes to an end later this fall.
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Nick Thorner
Walton football program
Special - File
Nick Thorner, left, will be one of the leaders on the offensive line.
DOZEN
From Page 9
Sam took the opportunity to interview all the players with a handful of questions, which allows us to get to know them and their personalities a little bit. In addition, you will get to see the highlights that have helped the players earn those star ratings.
There will be an individual story on each of the Dynamite Dozen and Super Six players available online at mdjonline.com or cherokeetribune.com once Kickoff ‘25 has been published.
Normally, we try to get a unique story to feature from each high school to pair with their team preview.
We made a few alterations to that rule this year. We had so many players who could have been included within this year’s Dynamite Dozen class, we took advantage of the school’s feature story to introduce the fans to those players who may have been included in most other years. They include Hillgrove linebacker
Chris Carbin and Kell tight end Nathan Agyemang, who are committed to Georgia Tech along with McEachern defensive lineman Darryl Rivers (Tennessee). All three are current three-star recruits.
The stories also include players who will soon earn a rating in Kennesaw Mountain quarterback Chris Miller, North Cobb running back Zach Belyeu, Sprayberry quarterback Jaden Duckett, Marietta defensive lineman and tight end Merrick Ham and a sir name which should be familiar to Georgia fans — Luckie.
Gino Luckie is a freshman quarterback for our newest GHSA football program at Mount Bethel Christian.
He is the latest talent to come out of the family that gave us Georgia defenders Mike, Miles and Dustin (Gino’s father) in the 90s, and current Bulldogs tight end Lawson Luckie. It is an impressive amount of talent for one county, and it should give us one heck of a season.
John Bednarowski is the sports editor of the Marietta Daily Journal. He can be reached at sportseditor@mdjonline.com or on X @cobbfballfri or @jbednarowski
CARDS
From Page 44
be OK,’ if all three of them can stay healthy and keep moving in the right direction,” Cook said.
Herrin is the most experienced of the three, having played for Cook last year. He finished strong with four catches for 78 yards and a touchdown in the regular season finale against McEachern. He also had an interception and nearly came away with another .
With King and May getting adjusted to Osborne’s system this offseason, Herrin has been supportive.
“I just encourage them,” he said. “Everybody makes mistakes. I make mistakes. I drop passes. It just happens. It’s part of the game.”
King joined the Cardinals last spring after taking time away last year, Cook said. Entering his second season as head coach of the program, he said he likes what he sees from the newcomer, describing King as an explosive player with his hands. He also complements both his speed and work ethic.
“When we got out here, it didn’t take long to figure out he was pretty fast,” he said. “He’s got good speed and has good hands. He can take it and go.”
May also has Cook’s attention. Not having played football until he was 12, May is coming off a solid junior varsity season. While he may not be the fastest, quickest or the strongest player on the roster, Cook said May has a knack for being at the right place at the right time. May is also a player that does not seem to be afraid of taking a hit.
“I wasn’t good (at first),” May said. “I didn’t play as much and just got better. (Seeing) everybody else on the field, I’m like ‘That’s supposed to be me.’”
Cook said he is impressed with how May has progressed.
“As a JV player, you could tell that he was way ahead of some of the other kids his age in knowing how to play the game,” Cook said, “his understanding of things that are happening on the field and quickly adjusting to certain things he would see. He has good ball skills. He catches the ball well.”
Wildcats taking lessons learned into new season
By Adam Carrington MDJ Sports Correspondent
“What has been is no more and what shall be is now.”
That is Wheeler coach Bryan Love’s way of saying that the disappointing 2024 season is staying in the rear view. All the Wildcats can do now is move forward and focus on 2025. It won’t be easy moving on without learning what went wrong a year ago, when the Wildcats finished the year with a 2-9 season that ended with a 48-20 first-round playoff loss to Colquitt County.
“Last year was definitely a learning year for us,” Love said. “We had a large senior class. We
have high expectations. Then, we had some injury bugs in some key places. It kind of hurt us from that standpoint, but that is no excuse. We had a disappointing year, but we’re looking to bounce back.”
Arguably the biggest setback was quarterback Marcus Romain injuring his non-throwing arm in early October and not returning. Not only did Wheeler miss Romain in the latter half of the 2024 campaign, but injuries also hit hard at the offensive line, linebacker and wide receiver positions.
So if worst comes to worst, and the injuries continue this season, Wheeler will be more prepared.
“What I learned personally as a
head football coach was that we don’t take anything for granted” Love said. “I’m putting more emphasis this year in getting our ‘Next Guy Up’ players ready to go. We’re putting a greater emphasis on developing these younger kids.”
One advantage of having an injury-ravaged season is that Wheeler has a slew of players who have experience playing at the varsity level. The Wildcats return seven offensive players and six on defense who received ample playing time last season.
Having received reps as a sophomore in place of Romain, junior quarterback Patrick McCollough is the new starting quarterback with senior Brock Adams also
getting snaps under center.
Senior running back Greg Kendrick is also stepping into the forefront after playing a backup role last season. He is filling the shoes of Josiah Allen, who is now at Cornell University.
“He’s going to be more of a complete back this year,” Love said of Kendrick. “He’s going to be more of a versatile guy for us that we will be able to move around in certain spots.”
While Adams will play quarterback at times, his primary role as Wheeler’s top receiver. Sophomore Bolt Odutola is also expected to play along with senior tight end Bryce Carries. Wheeler will also benefit from See WILDCATS, Page 78
WHEELER WILDCATS
North Forsyth .........................0-1. ....L (FF)
Harrison ..............................34-35 ............L
North Atlanta ........................9-10 ............L
Kell ........................................13-31 ............L
North Paulding ..................14-22 ............L
North Cobb ........................14-49 ............L
State Playoffs
Colquitt County ................20-48 ............L
FAMOUS FOOTBALL ALUMNI
DB Byron Capers (1989-92), ...............Florida State, Philadelphia Eagles
DL Randy Edwards (1976-79), .......................Alabama, Seattle Seahawks
RB Ed Guthrie (1972-75), ...................................................................Georgia
OL Robert Shaw (1972-75),............................Tennessee, Dallas Cowboys
WILDCATS
From Page 77
having three experienced offensive linemen in seniors
Jayden Randolph and Khalil Bullock and junior Makio Sattiewhite.
On defense, it will be hard for the Wildcats to replace Kobi McInnis and Shamar Yarber, who combined for 14 sacks
on the defensive line. They have a key returner in senior De’Marion Hurd after posting 47 tackles and three sacks. Sattiewhite and Carries are also linemen expected to rotate up front.
Seniors Jajid Alleyne and Jemar Mitchell are back at linebacker after combining for 75 tackles last year. Seniors Landon Harper, Da’Kari Moore and Braylon Ford are counted on to lead the secondary.
Wheeler blessed with plenty of speed
By Adam Carrington MDJ Sports Writer
Having speed on the roster can go a long way in having a successful season.
Wheeler plans on taking advantage of that in 2025.
Four seniors, who are also members of the Wheeler track team, plan on taking on extra responsibility due to their quickness. Greg Kendrick, Brock Adams, Da’Kari Moore and Jerry Hatter are all up to the challenge and plan on using
the disappointment of last season as motivation.
The foursome recently returned from the New Balance Nationals in Philadelphia, where they competed in the 400-meter and 800meter relays.
Kendrick, Adams and Moore were on the 400-relay team that placed 42nd out of 94 teams in the preliminary round with a time of 42.42 seconds. Hatter was supposed to be the fourth runner on the team but aggravated his hamstring prior to the race and was replaced by
Ja’Von Broussard.
Kendrick was also on the 800relay team that finished 16th in the finals, clocking in at 1:27.41.
During the 2025 track campaign, Kendrick, Adams, Moore and Hatter helped guide the Wildcats to a third-place finish in the Region 5AAAAAA meet behind Marietta and Etowah.
Coach Bryan Love said having experienced track athletes on his football team should bode well toward having an improved season.
“Playing two sports keeps their
conditioning at a high level the entire time,” Love said. “They learn to compete on a daily basis. In track, they are competing against the clock. If they are on a relay team, they’re going to have to work together on the handoffs and timing. Those are the important keys.”
These four players are determined to put their disappointing 2024 campaign in the rear view.
“We know the mission,” said Kendrick, who is tabbed as the starting running back after backing up See SPEED, Page 80
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Brock Adams, JT Hatter, Greg Kendrick and Da’Kari Moore have speed to burn for the Wheeler offense.
SPEED
From Page 79
Josiah Allen last year. “We don’t want to go 2-9. Everybody knows the mission and what to achieve.”
Adams mentioned that the losses last season caused players to grow apart and do their own thing.
Now he is saying the chemistry has been great during the offseason with seven players returning on offense and six on defense. He also mentioned that the team is more disciplined.
Being a track athlete is going to help Adams take on multiple responsibilities as Wheeler’s go-to wide receiver and parttime quarterback. A major key to his success is avoiding injury.
“I just have to stay in shape,” Adams said. “I’m going to be everywhere on the field. I’m not going to get off the field too much. I have to make sure I’m going hard every play.”
Kendrick, who rushed for 430 yards on 49 carries and scored three touchdowns last season, is eager to have an expanded role as the main tailback, with
pass catching duties out of the backfield.
“You are going to see that level of hunger when he touches the football because he knows that this is his senior year,” Love said. “He had split time with Josiah (last year), and this is his time to shine.”
Moore and Hatter will have expanded roles on defense.
Love plans on using Moore’s speed in the secondary, where he will rotate at both safety and cornerback. Love said Moore is fast enough to play both man-on-man defense and blitz from the secondary.
Hatter is projected to start at linebacker this season after being a rotational player last year. He is also expected to get playing time at defensive end.
Love describes Hatter as a rangy player who has increased in both speed and agility from a year ago.
“We’re definitely excited about what he can do rushing the passer, but also what he can do in pass coverage as well,” Love said. “We’re looking this year to get more out of him. He’s excited about the role he’s going to play.”
BELYEU
From Page 71
offseason, he said the theme has been watching film in order to improve his vision as a ballcarrier.
“I’d say (I’ve been) really working on my vision,” Belyeu said. “Working on how to get better at watching film, reading how my blocks will get me to the promised land as they would say.”
Belyeu’s early career success has earned him plenty of early attention from colleges.
He currently holds more than 30 offers, including potential in-state suitors; Georgia, Georgia Tech, Georgia State and Georgia Southern, as well as Tennessee, Vanderbilt and Memphis from his home state of Tennessee.
Even with the heaps of attention and scouts at every home game, Belyeu said it’s a privilege rather than added pressure to be in his position.
“No it isn’t pressure, I take it one-by-one,” Belyeu said. “I just really look at it like I’m blessed by God, you know? A lot of kids want to be at my point in life, I just really thank (God) for what he’s done for me and I just embrace it all.”
With Belyeu’s strong work ethic and ability to rally his older teammates, it’s safe to say he’s earned the respect of his coaches and fellow Warriors.
“He’s a very mature young man, so he leads our football team even from a freshman standpoint,” coach Shane Queen said. “I remember one time last year in the playoffs, he brought our whole team up. And it was like, ‘Let’s get this, we got to go get it together.’
“He does a great job in the classroom, works his tail off on the football field, in the community and in the weight room. He’s somebody that can be very vocal and people listen to him because he does all the right things.”
Q&A with Pebblebrook’s Rodney Hackney
Rodney Hackney will take over Pebblebrook with the hopes of leading it to the top of Region 3AAAAAA.
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
Q: Why did you choose Pebblebrook?
A: Pebblebrook is a great opportunity for me to showcase the things that I’ve been harboring for the last 20 some, 30 years as a head football coach. It gave me a chance to definitely show what I think Pebblebrook has to offer the community and the Georgia High School Association, and then me as a coach, just to come in and be able to highlight those things that I think are running well at the program already, so it was a win-win for me.
Q: What do you think you bring to this team?
A: I’m a consistent winner and I’m also a program builder. Those are two things that
have been labeled on me over the years. I bring consistency, I think I’m going to bring some things that the kids need as far as being able to take things to the next level. I think the coaches before me have done a good job in keeping them right there, you know, able to get them to the first round (of the playoffs) and to stay in the mix. I think coach (Leroy) Hood was there for a couple of years. He did a great job of maintaining the program, and coach Woolridge did a good job after him and just kept the program at a steady pace of making it to the playoffs. I think my job is to come in and try to enhance that, get us to another level and maybe compete for region championships, those types of things. I’m excited about it, and I think I have an opportunity to do it.
Q: Last season you helped Tri-Cities to its first winning season in nine years, so how do you think you can do the same at Pebblebrook and elevate this program?
A: I think when you have a place like Tri-Cities that has been losing for so long, getting kids to buy into something is really difficult, but we were able to do that. We were able to get our kids to buy into our system and how we did things, and just doing things the right way all the time is one of the things I believe in, and that’s on the field and off the field. That’s kind of what I came in with — the process with Pebblebrook is just getting our kids to buy into the process of doing things the right way all the time, and that’s when coaches aren’t looking or aren’t around, just doing the right thing and making sure you hold to that mindset every day. I think it helps our kids become better-character kids, and that’s what we want to shoot for, changing the whole mindset and making sure that we’re doing the small things on and off the field, and then those things will carry on to wins later on the football field.
Q: What would you say you’re most proud of from your time at Tri-Cities?
A: Tri-Cities is a beast, man. I told people if you can win at Tri-Cities, you can win anywhere. So, we did, we were able to turn it around. We went 6-5 as well over there, made it to the first round of playoffs, and that says a lot for the things we did. The school hadn’t been to the playoffs in 12 years, so that’s a long time to go without being in the state playoffs. So, for me to get that, I was proud of myself for helping lead the team to that. We had a couple of seniors that really bought in, and they just wanted to win, they wanted to go out as winners that year, and they really did that. It was exciting to coach over there, and it’s so challenging that you really forget how good people at Pebblebrook really have it, like some of the stuff that we have here, we didn’t have at Tri-Cities. That’s one of the things you look at, you take stuff for granted and move forward, but when you come to a place like this, you’re like, ‘Man, these guys are blessed, the stuff that they have.’ So, we’re really excited to be here.
Q: What would you say you’re most excited about in this new position?
A: It’s the administration. I’m really excited about what Dr. (Dana C.) Giles has done here so far and the foundation at Pebblebrook because the stuff that we’re basically reaping is stuff that they’ve been under construction for three or four years. And then just her leadership all together, like we’re having an athletic luncheon for all the kids that have been practicing over summer. So, she’s doing that. I haven’t had that at other places. She took my staff out to eat, and we all went out to dinner when I first got hired, and she got a chance to get to meet the whole staff. That’s stuff that doesn’t usually happen with your principal, but she’s definitely making it a family atmosphere, and that right there for me is excitement.
Q: Pebblebrook is coming off of a 6-5 season and first-round exit last year and lost its top receiver, top tackler and top pass rusher, so where is your confidence level overall with the team right now?
A: For right now, I’m satisfied. The guys that are coming back are working hard, efficient, strong. I’m definitely going in with the mentality I had back at Riverdale, which is ‘don’t flinch.’ That’s the mentality I’m coming in with — I’m not going to flinch. I’m not going to go in and start worrying who’s left and who’s not there anymore. I’m going to go over to the kids that are there that do want to be at Pebblebrook. I’m going to focus on those guys, and we’re not going to flinch in the process.
Answershavebeeneditedforspaceandclarity.
Special - File
SUPERIOR PLUMBING IS PROUD TO
REGION 5AAAAA
Mustangs improving, Rome still favorite
By Kai Millette MDJ Sports Writer
Region 5AAAAA’s contenders will have to produce new star power this season.
Kennesaw Mountain’s win over Lithia Springs saved it from last place finish in the region last season. The Mustangs have a real young talent in Chris “Smooth” Miller who held things down in the pocket as a freshman, throwing for 1,347 yards and 12 touchdowns last season. Nicholas Rankine is expected to get his opportunity as the primary ball-carrier this season following the graduation of leading rusher Jeremiah Tatum.
Rome ran the table last season, finishing with a 7-0 record in region play after dropping two of its nonregion games. The Wolves return expected starting quarterback Braxton Anderson for his senior season, but will have to find a way to replace the production of their three leading rushers in Chance Arthur, Javarius McDearmont and Jaedon Harmon.
East Paulding fell a 27-7 loss to Rome short of an undefeated regular season in 2024, defeating every other opponent with the exception of South Paulding by two or more possessions. Chantz Bouknight’s graduation opens the door for sophomore and expected starter Bode Spence to take over at quarterback after seeing action in eight games while throwing seven touchdowns and over 500 yards along the way.
New Manchester had one of the more impressive turnarounds in the state last season, improving
PREDICTED FINISH
1. Rome
2. East Paulding
3. Villa Rica
4. New Manchester
5. Kennesaw Mtn.
6. Alexander
7. South Paulding
8. Lithia Springs
from 4-6 to 8-3 and cracking the postseason for the first time since 2020. The Jaguars will have to fill the shoes for quarterback Delancy Alexander who transferred to Chapel Hill after a stellar junior season. The only returning quarterback to see action last season on the roster is Lucius Robinson III, who played sparingly in 2024. The loss of leading receiver George Sabb means senior Jakobe DeJesus could be poised for a big year in the WR1 slot.
Villa Rica’s 4-3 record in region play was enough to claim the final playoff spot in the region last year, but dropping four of its final five contests did not do an impressive start justice. Running back Cameron Bolton is expected to be the X-factor this season after torching opposing defenses for 1,053 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2024. Junior wideout Myles George showed significant promise last season, leading
Chris Miller will try to lead Kennesaw Mountain to the postseason this year.
the team with 533 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
Alexander had bright spots last season, such as expected starting quarterback Chance Collins who completed 61% of his passes to go along with 13 touchdowns and just two interceptions. Junior running back and expected primary ball carrier Josh Smith posted a team-high 633 yards in his sophomore campaign to impress as well. The Cougars climbing the ladder this year will likely hinge on the continued development of its promising offensive core and vast improvements on a defense which surrendered 32.1 points per game last season.
South Paulding ended the season with a 3-7 record, narrowly defeating Kennesaw Mountain and
Alexander to escape the bottom two in the standings.
The Spartans attempted just 142 passes last season, the majority of which came off the arm of expected returning starter Kade Wigginton who threw for 900 yards and 11. They graduated running back Albert McCoy, who made up almost all of the team’s rushing production last season with 1,486 yards and 12 touchdowns, leaving Jaleel Shakir as the only returning running back with a carry.
Lithia Springs lost its starting quarterback and leading receiver to graduation. It will have to find quick solutions for a defense which held opponents under 30 points just twice last season in order to find something that sticks in 2025.
Mustangs focus on winning attitude for 2025 season
By Trey Perry MDJ Sports Writer
Kennesaw Mountain is beginning the 2025 football season with the goal of trying to improve.
This year’s team will be younger, but coach Caleb Carmean said the players gained a lot of experience last season. With that, it hopes to better last year’s 2-8 mark this season.
“I think every day it’s about creating competition. You know, for us, we have a 1-and-0 mindset in everything that we do,” Carmean said. “Finding ways to generate competition in the
mundane in practices, the offseason, and the summer it really helps grow a team together. They learn how to compete together, how to battle adversity together, while also growing that inner competitor.”
Returning starting quarterback Chris Miller, who started as a freshman last season, threw for 1,347 yards with 12 touchdowns.
“I’ve said this forever. I coach the quarterbacks and I think the growth of a quarterback, the largest growth, comes between Year 1 and Year 2,” said Carmean, a former Mustangs quarterback in his own right. “Seeing
his offseason, he’s one of the hardest-working players and definitely one of the hardestworking quarterbacks I’ve ever seen. He puts in a lot of time, a lot of effort into being a great quarterback, but also a great leader. I’m excited to see him continue to develop.”
Along with Miller on the offensive side, taking a new position at tight end is Trevor Williams. Carmean said Williams, at 6-foot4, 235-pounds, could be a key player this season as he has the size to create mismatches against smaller defensive backs and slower linebackers. Williams will team with returning receivers
Carson Law, who caught 11 passes for 162 yards last season, and Ashtyn Thomas, who had 14 receptions for 107 yards and six touchdowns.
On the defensive side, leading the front seven is Dylan Green Jr., who had 34 tackles, including 26 solo stops and one sack last season, with Kamari Butler returning at linebacker after posting seven tackles and adding two sacks.
Carmean said the goal this offseason was to foster teamwork and internal competition with such a young squad.
“I think the hardest challenge See MUSTANGS, Page 86
OL Jeremy Ciulla (2004-07), ...........................................................Michigan
OL Jay Finch (2005-08), ...........................................................Georgia Tech
OL Connor Lew (2019-22), .................................................................Auburn
TE Ryland Goede (2015-18) .....Georgia, Mississippi State, Georgia Tech
MUSTANGS
From Page 85
we face in the world we live in with all the distractions is trying to find a way to eliminate those distractions while we’re here and focus on the team,” Carmean said. “How
we’re going to get better each day and forget about everybody else but us.
“For us this year it’s been twofold. It’s about earning everything that we get, nothing is entitled here. And the second layer of that is what we call FEBU: Forget Everybody But Us. That helps us eliminate
Chris “Smooth” Miller hopes he’s the guy to lead Kennesaw Mountain back to the playoffs.
Mustangs hope Miller is ‘Smooth’ operator
By Trey Perry MDJ Sports Writer
Chris Miller is just starting his sophomore year at Kennesaw Mountain, but his impact is already being felt within the program.
“At 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, he already has the size, the arm and the ability to lead even at his age,” coach Caleb Carmen said. “There’s a reason they call him ‘Smooth.” Miller has been known by his
nickname since his early football days.
“Everyone calls me ‘Smooth,’” Miller said with a smile. “That started back in third grade when I was playing receiver. I caught a pass, and I guess it looked smooth to the coaches. It just stuck ever since.”
As a leader, Miller is preparing to take a big step forward for a Mustangs team that believes he has elite potential. He said his adjustment to
high school football came quickly, thanks to the coaches and teammates around him.
“Being a freshman quarterback isn’t easy, but the team really helped me,” Miller said. “The brotherhood here is strong. They accepted me from Day 1 and pushed me to grow.”
Handling the pressure that comes with the position has been a challenge at times, but Miller said he embraces it.
“I try not to let it get to me,” he
said. “I prepare during the week, meet with my coach, go over the plan, and just stay focused. When Friday night comes, I’ve already seen it all in my head.”
That level of preparation didn’t stop when the season ended. It became a focus of his offseason work.
“Miller put a lot of work into strengthening his leadership during the offseason,” Carmean said. “He’s See MILLER, Page 88
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Indians, Raiders face off in Classic
By John Bednarowski sportseditor@mdjonline.com
The usual teams — McEachern, Walton and Kell — will again represent Cobb County as part of the Corky Kell-Dave Hunter Classic, but there will be one fewer game to keep an eye on.
McEachern and Walton will face off against one another in the 4 p.m. game on Saturday, Aug. 16 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
It will be the third time the teams have met in the Classic, and the first time since Walton won 21-7 in 2003. McEachern won 29-13 the previous year. Both of those games were played at the Georgia Dome.
“I think its exciting,” Walton coach Daniel Brunner said. “We don’t get to face them very often. It will be a good matchup for Cobb County football.”
Overall, it will be the 10th meeting between the programs, with Walton leading the series 6-3. The most recent matchup was a
MILLER
From Page 87
proven himself as a regular in gym mobility workouts to help with movement in and out of the pocket and band-resisted footwork drills.”
That effort showed up in every part of his growth.
“Definitely my movement and leadership,” Miller said. “Taking over the weight room, along with
49-9 victory for the Raiders in the opening round of the 2020 state playoffs.
McEachern, as one of the founding schools of the Classic with Brookwood, have played every year since the annual event began in 1992.
Kell will once again host the first regular-season football games of the year in Georgia.
The Longhorns will host South Paulding on Wednesday, Aug. 13, with kickoff set for 8 p.m. It will be only the second matchup between the teams, with the first coming in a 55-21 Kell victory in 2011.
That game will follow a 4:30 p.m. game between Class A-AAA state runner-up Prince Avenue Christian and Callaway.
This year’s Corky Kell-Dave Hunter Classic will include a total of 11 games between four days and five locations — Kell, West Forsyth, Buck Godfrey Stadium in DeKalb County, Barron Stadium in Rome and MercedesBenz Stadium.
footwork drills, and keeping the team connected. That’s been a big thing for me.”
Last season, Miller threw for 1,347 yards and 12 touchdowns, while also adding six scores on the ground. Carmean said his ability to stretch the field helped him average 12.7 yards per completion and finish with a 73.9 quarterback rating.
Miller has the poise and confidence of a much older player. His awareness and ability to lead the
2025 Corky Kell-Dave Hunter Classic Schedule
Wednesday, Aug. 13
At Kell
4:30 p.m. — Prince Avenue Christian vs. Callaway
8 p.m. — So. Paulding vs. Kell
Thursday, Aug. 14
At West Forsyth
4:30 p.m. — Hebron Christian vs. North Atlanta
8 p.m. — Douglass vs. West Forsyth
offense haven’t gone unnoticed.
“He’s learning how to command the huddle, not just play quarterback,” Carmean said. “He’s vocal, but more than that, he’s consistent. Guys follow that.”
Recruiting interest is starting to pick up. Miller holds offers from Auburn, Duke, Pitt, Georgia State and Indiana, and has already visited Georgia, Georgia Tech, Alabama and Mississippi State, though he’s not rushing any decisions.
Friday, Aug. 15
At Buck Godfrey Stadium, Decatur
2 p.m. — Therrell vs. Cedar Grove
At Barron Stadium, Rome
5 p.m. — LaGrange vs. Cass
8 p.m. — Creekside vs. Rome
Saturday, Aug. 16
At Mercedes-Benz Stadium
10 a.m. — St. Pius X vs. Dunwoody
1 p.m. — Brookwood vs. Houston County
4 p.m. — McEachern vs. Walton
“I’m just taking it one step at a time,” Miller said. “It’s a blessing to be in the conversation, but I know there’s a lot of work left to do.”
As his sophomore season approaches, Miller knows expectations both internal and external are beginning to grow.
“We’ve got the talent, we’ve got the culture,” Miller said. “Now it’s time to win. That’s the focus, bringing it all together and doing something big this year.”
7 p.m. — Douglas County vs. North Gwinnett ,
Chasing History
Sequoyah’s James Teter will soon become the winningest
Teter on cusp of new Sequoyah standard
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Sequoyah coach James Teter is chasing history this season.
Teter, heading into his 17th year with the Chiefs, is one win away from tying his predecessor, Sid Maxwell, for 97 wins. It will make him the winningest coach in Cherokee County history, while putting him at the doorstep of the illustrious 100win mark with a single program.
“It just says a lot about what we’ve done here in 16 years,” Teter said. “We’ve had some really good players and some great coaches come through here, so it says a lot about
them, and I think more so than me getting 100, it says what we’ve done since we’ve been here, what this program’s come to.”
Teter is just the third coach in Sequoyah history behind Maxwell and Ronnie Jackson. Maxwell finished his Sequoyah career with a 97-67 record, and he crossed the 100-win mark the following season after departing for Lambert, while Jackson went 17-23 over four seasons.
Overall, Teter has 137 wins since coming to the state of Georgia, and he’s 196-147 across all three stops as a head coach. He’ll more than likely cross the 200-career-wins
threshold in 2025 as well.
He’s well aware of where he stands, historically.
“I think you are always aware of what’s going on, and Sid did a great job here,” he said. “So, to be able to be in the same area he was in, and almost in the same amount of years, it means a lot.”
Teter could break Maxwell’s record the year after the former Sequoyah, Lambert and Dawson County coach announced his retirement with a career record of 197128. Maxwell was in attendance as the Chiefs took down Gainesville in the 2024 playoffs, earning Teter his 95th win at the school.
“He’s done a great job with Sequoyah since he took over for me,” Maxwell said. “It couldn’t happen to a better man… When you’re coaching, in one place for a long time, you can’t do that without success, so his longevity speaks for who he is and what he’s brought to that program.”
Behind Teter and Maxwell, Cherokee coaches Brian Dameron and Josh Shaw have the next-most wins in the county at 58 and 55, respectively. River Ridge’s Mike Collins (38) and Creekview’s Trevor Williams (37) are the active leaders behind those two in Cherokee County.
See Teter, Page 90
Special - Anthony Stalcup
coach in Sequoyah program history.
Special - File
Top: Sequoyah coach James Teter needs two more wins to pass Sid Maxwell as the all-time winningest coach in Chiefs program history. Above: Teter has a calm conversation with the referees about a call in Sequoyah’s playoff game last year against Coffee.
From Page 89
With two quarterfinal runs and nine postseason appearances in 16 years, Teter has become a household name in Canton.
Longevity, though, is something he’s especially proud of. It’s the theme of his career, going back to Clay County in Florida, where he spent nine years. Teter then spent seven years at Dunwoody, taking that program from irrelevant to a playoff contender, before his longest stop in Canton.
“The most I had been at a school at that time was nine years, and usually, in high school football right now, you don’t see a lot of longevity and coaches staying places,” Teter said. “Every administrator I’ve had has been really good, and they work really well with us, so it’s just been very comfortable for us and our family.”
He gave credit to a talented staff for assisting his success at Sequoyah, in particular, led by current defensive coordinator Brent Budde, who coached Woodstock from 2010-20, and longtime assistant Greg Key.
Teter has won everywhere he’s gone, between Clay County, Dunwoody and now Sequoyah. He won a region championship in 2008 with the Wildcats, alongside a career-best 12-1 record, an undefeated regular season and a perfect 6-0 region mark. Since taking over the Chiefs, he has two 10-plus-win seasons, and he has finished below .500 in region play just twice.
In 16 years, Teter averaged six wins per year. That type of sustained success catches eyes around Cherokee County, including those of new Etowah head coach Brett Vavra, who spent the last eight years at Sprayberry.
Teter and Vavra squared off four times since 2017, with Sequoyah winning three of four.
“Coach Teter is a phenomenal football coach,” Vavra said. “I’ve coached against him for many, many years, probably more than half of my career, whether I was an assistant or a head coach. He just does a really, really good job and not only just coaching and the fundamentals, but their scheme is really, really good. It makes it difficult, all of that coupled with the way he develops players in the weight room, on the field and as people.”
The Eagles’ newest coach sees the Chiefs as a model program.
“That’s where we are trying to take this program,” he said. “That’s my goal, so I have a lot of respect for Coach Teter and the job that he’s done there.”
Looking back to the start of Teter’s
career, his high school coach, Mike Hickman, played an integral role. Teter played for Hickman in West Virginia and then worked his first coaching jobs alongside him in Tallahassee, Florida.
They worked together for three years, and they remain in contact to this day.
“It’s the same thing everybody else would tell you that gets into this business,” Teter said. “They had a coach in their life that kind of set them down the path… It’s the relationships you build, and then you have the opportunity to do the same thing with the kids you’re coaching.”
Of Teter’s 16 seasons at Sequoyah, a few stand out, including the 2018 Class AAAAAA state quarterfinals run. The Chiefs went 10-3 and beat Alpharetta and Creekside in the playoffs as the games were decided by four points and one point, respectively.
All-state players Cole Jacobs and Adam LaSelva led an experienced team that lost just two regular-season games. However, that group coincided with Creekview’s lone region championship season, where the Grizzlies went 12-1 in Adam Carter’s one year and also made the quarterfinals.
Despite all his coaching success and accolades, Teter said his players are the reason he does it. During Teter’s last trip to St. Augustine, he had dinner with three former players from 30 years ago, and they had their own families.
It’s those moments that validate him, but it goes both ways. Teter is a strong figure in his players’ lives, and he’s left a lasting impression.
“Coach Teter has meant a lot to me during my years at Sequoyah,” senior running back Will Rajecki said. “Starting my freshman year, he pulled me up to varsity. It really showed me he believed in me and thought I could be something special. Since my freshman year, we’ve been undefeated in the county. He and our coaching staff have proven they know how to get the best out of our players to build a winning program. Not only have they built a winning program, our coaches have invested in our lives as young men.”
As Teter gears up for 2025, he has a chance to build on his legacy, beyond just the milestone wins. Sequoyah returns most of its difference-makers on offense, and the defense should improve as its experience grows.
Still, in Year 17, Teter has no plans of stopping.
“I don’t know, everybody keeps asking me that, how much longer I want to go,” Teter said. “I’m going to go until they run me out of here… But I like what I’m doing, I like being around the kids, I like being around the coaches, and as long as they’ll have me, I want to stay.”
Cherokee Super Six
Sequoyah’s 3-stars lead county’s best
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
The decisions were rather easy for this year’s Cherokee Super Six, headlined by the Sequoyah duo of running back Will Rajecki and offensive lineman Alex Brewer.
Rajecki, rated a three-star prospect by 247Sports, had 25 Division I offers at the time of his commitment to Memphis. He broke out as a junior with 1,541 yards and 21 touchdowns during the Chiefs’ run to the Class AAAAA quarterfinals.
His teammate and fellow threestar, Brewer, is an imposing presence along the Sequoyah offensive front, standing at 6-foot-4, 300-pounds. He committed to Colorado State in April.
Rajecki and Brewer made it a
trio of three-star commits from Sequoyah in the last three years, joining former Super Six member Jackson Hancock, who signed with Missouri in 2023.
The clear difference with this year’s Super Six class is the lack of any quarterback presence. After back-to-back years with signal callers, running backs are the dominant position in 2025 between Rajecki, Cherokee’s Jalion Trowers and Creekview’s Mason Munn, with Woodstock linebacker Trace Washington also expected to receive some handoffs this season.
As of press time, Washington did not have a star rating, though that is likely to change as he moves through his junior season. The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder has offers from South Florida and Miami (OH), with interest
coming from Alabama.
Washington registered 58 tackles, nine passes defended and six tackles for loss in 2024.
Munn has been a constant in the Creekview backfield, running for 1,339 career yards and 10 touchdowns as now a fourthyear starter. The 5-10, 190-pound running back notched 652 yards and five touchdowns on 5.6 yards per attempt.
Trowers, a lesser-known commodity in Cherokee County, will become a featured runner in the Warriors’ young offense. He’s tall for a running back at 6 feet and 205 pounds, but is a physical player who will also play linebacker on the defensive side.
River Ridge’s Wyatt McCarty rounds out this year’s Super Six, a speedy linebacker who’s the top returning tackler in Cherokee
County, coming off a season where he tallied 100 total tackles and 12 for a loss.
All six players will likely move on to college football, joining a talented group of recent Super Six alumni and current NCAA athletes AJ Swann (Appalachian State), Andrew Rosinski (Georgia Tech), Tate Nelms (Georgia) and Grant Hollier (Georgia State), among others.
This year is the fourth time we have included a short video of each Super Six and MDJ Dynamite Dozen, so check out the QR codes on each athlete’s page to watch their highlights and learn a little more about them.
Griffin Callaghan is the sports editor of the Cherokee Tribune & Ledger News. He can be reached at gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @griffcallaghan.
5-foot-10, 190-pounds
Wyatt McCarty
River Ridge
Linebacker Senior
Mason Munn Creekview
5-foot-10, 185-pounds
Running Back, Linebacker
Senior
College Offers: Sewanee Reinhardt For
6-foot, 200-pounds Running Back
Senior 3-Star
National Rating: 1,380
State: 83 Position: 146
Jalion Trowers
6-foot, 204-pounds
Running Back, Linebacker
Senior
College Offers: Sewanee
Trace
REGION 6AAAAA
Chiefs, Yellow Jackets vie for supremacy
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
There are two clear frontrunners in Region 6AAAAA — Sprayberry and Sequoyah. However, they are not the only contenders in the eightteam group.
Fresh off their run to the Class AAAAA quarterfinals, the Chiefs eye their first region championship since 2003. However, as the reigning champs, Sprayberry will not lie down despite the head coaching change.
“I think it’ll be like last year, where it will be a fight for those four spots,” Sequoyah coach James Teter said. “Hopefully, we get things figured out by the time we get to region play and we’re in the middle of that fight, or pushing for the top. I think our region is always very competitive and probably a lot better than what most people think.”
Still, nothing is guaranteed in a region where one or two games could be the difference between making or missing the playoffs. Woodstock, with a 4-3 region record, narrowly clinched the 4-seed ahead of Creekview and Pope, which both finished 3-4 in region play a year ago.
Even the region champion wasn’t safe. Sprayberry’s only regular-season loss was delivered by the Greyhounds in the first week of region play. The Yellow Jackets and Chiefs remain the favorites, though, heading into 2025.
“You gotta feel like Sequoyah is going to be one of the favorites with all the players they have coming back, coming off of the incredible run that they had last year,” River Ridge coach Mike Collins said. “And then you would think with Sprayberry, it’s kind of the same. They got a lot of players back.”
Both Sequoyah and Sprayberry return key offensive pieces, led by Chiefs running back Will Rajecki, who’s coming off a 1,541-yard, 21-touchdown junior season. The region’s reigning Offensive Player of the Year, Jaden Duckett, returns to quarterback the Yellow Jackets’ offense, while Alabama commit Jorden Edmonds headlines the defense, and also stars at receiver.
Lassiter continuing their rebuilding efforts. The Knights and Wolverines occupied those spots in 2024, with Woodstock returning to the postseason for the first time since 2017.
“I think we’re probably in one of the most underrated regions in the state,” Creekview coach Trevor Williams said. “You talk about Sprayberry, Sequoyah, River Ridge, Woodstock and Pope, and then Lassiter and Riverwood are getting better. I mean, all those guys can beat you on any given Friday night. We saw it last year. You have some teams that were heavily favored lose games, and then teams that were big underdogs win games.”
senior Mitch Seaman to run the show.
The Knights have been a postseason fixture in recent history with three straight appearances and four in the last five years. Both River Ridge and Creekview will lean on the run between backs Camden Cox and Mason Munn, respectively, as they fight for playoff contention. Woodstock, on the other hand, will contend with the talented region to re-establish itself as a consistent winner.
Behind them, Creekview, Pope, River Ridge and Woodstock should be fighting for the final two playoff spots, with Riverwood and
River Ridge, Creekview and Pope will all deploy new quarterbacks, while Lassiter, which hasn’t made the playoffs since 2016, retained
“You just want to try to get better every year, though it’s a really hard region,” Woodstock coach Dan Devine said. ‘It’s tough competition, but that’s what we like. It’s important. You’re going to have to win games that you were not picked to win last year. But it’s fun, and we’re looking forward to it.”
Sprayberry will try to win consecutive region championships this year for the first time in program history.
CREEKVIEW GRIZZLIES
New-look Grizzlies ready to roar into new season
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Growth and development are the names of the game for Creekview.
The Grizzlies, who finished 5-5 last year and narrowly missed the Class AAAAA playoffs, bring a mixture of battle-tested veterans and unproven talent into the 2025 season.
Turnover on the roster and within the coaching staff, including the departure of standout quarterback Austin Guest, has tested Creekview but seventh-year coach Trevor Williams is optimistic as he fits the puzzle pieces together.
“It’s been a big offseason for us,” Williams said. “We graduated a ton of guys from last year’s team — a ton of production on both sides of the ball — so it’s been really important for our guys to get into the weight room. Our guys have done a phenomenal job of growing into those roles, and they’ve done a nice job for us so far.”
In Guest and Jackson Stanley, Creekview graduated its top passer, rusher and receiver from 2024. Stanley broke the school’s all-time career receiving record last year following an 820-yard, nine-touchdown senior season.
One primary holdover on the
offensive side is senior running back Mason Munn, who finished second on the Grizzlies’ rushing chart with 652 yards and 5 touchdowns on 5.6 yards per attempt.
Munn has 1,339 career yards and 10 touchdowns heading into 2025.
“We feel really good about our running back room with Mason, who will be playing his fourth varsity year for us,” Williams said. “With Travis Vines and Carson Lott, too, we feel like we’ve got three guys that can carry the football. We feel really explosive at the skill spots on offense.”
Munn will be taking handoffs from receiver-turned quarterback
Alex Penrod, who’s no stranger to the most important position on the field. Penrod came up as a quarterback but moved out wide because, according to Williams, his skills were too great to keep on the sideline.
Penrod caught 15 passes for 132 yards last year, paired with another 54 yards and 1 touchdown on the ground. He threw the ball five times, with three of four completions resulting in touchdowns.
On the defensive side, Williams expects Creekview’s D-line to be a strength. State championship wrestlers populate that unit, led by junior Damion Moreno, who See GRIZZLIES, Page 100
Issac Clayton ....................WR Forrest Paulson .......Asst. OL
2024 LEADERS
RUSHING
Austin Guest...........121 car ...883 yds ..... 11 TD Mason Munn ..........116 car ...652 yds..... 5 TD
PASSING
Austin Guest.............118/218 ... 1686 yds ..... 15 TD..11 INT
RECEIVING
Jackson Stanley....49 rec ...820 yds..... 9 TD
TACKLES
Brant Freeman ......97 Ryan Brooks...........79
SACKS
OL Nick Pendley (2015-18) .......................................................Georgia Tech
OL John Williams (2016-19) ..............................................................Clemson
RB Cade Radam (2015-18) ..................................................Kennesaw State FAMOUS FOOTBALL ALUMNI
Brant Freeman ......6 INTERCEPTIONS JD Russell ...............2
Coach: Trevor Williams • 7th Season • Record: 5-5 • Career: 37-25
GRIZZLIES
From Page 99
was also the Region 6AAAAA individual title-winner.
“I’m excited about those guys, with Damion Moreno, Caden
Simpson, Jason Nicks, Ryan Marrinson, and some others in that mix,” Williams said. “A couple of those guys were on the state championship wrestling team, so I’m really excited about getting those guys in. I think that could be a strong point for us defensively.”
The Grizzlies look to make backto-back postseason appearances for the second time under Williams, though a competitive region featuring favorites Sequoyah and Sprayberry, along with three Cherokee County rivals, stands in their way.
“The goal is always to make the
playoffs and play to win down the stretch when we get to region play,” Williams said. “That’s always the initial goal, but for us, it sounds cliche, but it’s about being better tomorrow than we were today and taking it one step at a time because we are so young.”
Back in primary position, Penrod takes reins
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Alex Penrod was Creekview’s natural successor at quarterback.
The Grizzlies replaced one dualthreat with another, moving from former starter Austin Guest to Penrod, who occupied the receiver position last season. He played the backup role in 2024, making the transition much smoother as Creekview strives for a playoff return.
Penrod returns to his preferred position, one of the most important on the field.
“I played a lot of receiver last year, but I like quarterback a lot more,” he said. “I’m excited to lead this team and really excited about this season…. I was still the backup, so
I still got a lot of work in, and I’ve been playing quarterback since I was in sixth grade, so I just keep trying to get better.”
At receiver, Penrod caught 15 passes for 132 yards last season, with another 54 yards and a touchdown in the run game. He also stepped behind center, completing 4 of 5 passes for 87 yards and three touchdowns, a rather efficient clip.
Creekview coach Trevor Williams couldn’t just leave him on the bench as the backup quarterback.
“He’s been a quarterback his whole life,” Williams said. “He’s just so athletic. We wanted to find him a spot last year, and we were able to get him in at receiver. So now he’s back into his comfort position, really taking the reins of the group and has done a nice job for
us throughout this offseason.”
Now as the team’s primary quarterback, Penrod gets to complete passes to his brother, Austin, who plays on both sides of the ball between receiver and defensive back. Austin caught four passes for 68 yards and a touchdown last season, while tallying 55 tackles and three passes defended.
“It’s great, I love it,” Penrod said. “You’ll hear Penrod to Penrod on the intercoms during games, and that’s awesome.”
Both brothers also compete on the Creekview baseball team, which had a resurgent season behind the allcounty duo. Alex and Austin helped the Grizzlies finish 21-16 and make the Class AAAAA quarterfinals.
Alex, a pitcher, has a similar role in both sports.
“Yeah, it’s similar, but I’ve got to switch it sometimes,” Penrod said with a chuckle. “When I play baseball, I throw it like a football, when I play football, I throw it like a baseball, so sometimes I have to flip it, but (playing both) helps a lot.”
As a mobile quarterback, Penrod expects to hit the ground running in 2025, working seamlessly in the Creekview offense following Guest. He praised the progress of his offensive line, namely Ryan Sullivan, throughout the Grizzlies’ summer practices.
“Our guys have done a great job this summer, especially on the line,” Penrod said. “I’m just excited to prove a lot of people wrong. You know, a lot of people count us out this year, so I’m ready to prove everyone wrong.”
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Alex Penrod takes over the starting quarterback position for Creekview this season.
BOUNTY
From Page 26
the play himself.
The few times Dallas threatened to make a big play, Wilkerson found himself in the right place at the right time.
“He made three or four tackles that just barely got Dallas to the ground,” Smith said. “If he missed him, Dallas may have scored a touchdown.”
Glynn Academy did drive into Allatoona territory twice in the first half, but on each occasion, defensive lineman Allen Johnson broke through the line and blocked a field goal to keep the game scoreless.
Early in the second half, Rainey finally got Allatoona on the board with a quarterback sneak for a 7-0 lead.
In the fourth quarter, a 30-yard run by Rainey set up a 29-yard field goal by Skyler Davis with 2:21 to seal the victory.
The only question left to answer was could the Buccaneers get the shutout? Glynn Academy drove the length of the field and threw an incomplete pass as the clock hit zero. A penalty allowed for one more play and Dallas went around the right side for a touchdown.
Final score: Allatoona 10, Glynn Academy 6.
Aftermath
Allatoona won its state title in only the eighth year of the program, and it gave Cobb County a state champion in back-to-back years. Mount Paran Christian had won the Class A title the year before, which ended a 47-year drought without one.
The victory allowed a special group of seniors to go out on top, and Rainey said it was the way it was supposed to be.
“There was a group of five of us who had played together since we were 6-years-old,” he said. “Tesler, Juanyea Tarver, Faizon Harris and Raleigh Webb.”
Rainey and Webb would go on to the Citadel together and came back to Atlanta a couple years later, and hooked up on a touchdown pass to upset Georgia Tech in Bobby Dodd Stadium.
However, that moment would never eclipse the title they won with the Bucs in 2015.
“It meant the world for the whole Allatoona community,” Morrell said. “We opened in 2008 right when the stock market was crashing. It wasn’t the best time to try to build a football program, let alone an entire athletic department. But we knew we were going to build something great.”
Staff - file
Allatoona quarterback Brandon Rainey scored the Bucs lone touchdown in the second half to give them a lead they would not relinquish in the 2015 Class AAAAA state championship game against Glynn Academy.
LASSITER TROJANS
Lassiter searching for day-by-day improvements
By Jack Martin MDJ Sports Writer
Lassiter looks to keep moving forward this upcoming season.
Coach Sean Thom said his team is improving day-by-day. He said the Trojans have been working hard to improve over the offseason, and he is excited for them to put it together on the field.
Thom said this improvement is a great step for his players.
“It is exciting just seeing these guys put the pads on again and hopefully get this thing turned around to where we all want it to
be,” he said.
Thom said he believes three phases of the team have improved since last season.
“We’ve improved our coaching staff,” he said. “I truly believe that. We improved our offense, and there’s a lot more continuity from last year with returning starters same thing defensively. The last phase I’d say is culture because I have a different feel with this team. The way the kids interact and the way they come to work. I believe their work ethic is truly elite, especially from what I’ve seen over high school kids the last 15 years.”
With the improvements that Lassiter has made, Thom said there is still room to grow.
“I think the biggest thing is just decisiveness,” he said. “These kids are smart, and they know what they’re doing. Just having them go out there and be decisive would be the biggest improvement we can make.”
Thom said there are a number of players he believes will make an impact this year.
He started with senior quarterback, Mitch Seaman, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound three-star quarterback according to Rivals.com. After
No. Name Pos. Cl.
49. Hunter Jackson DB 11
50. Barrett Burkhart OL 10
51. Jonah Youmans LB 9
52. Sean Beirne OL 12
53. Jake Johnson DL 12
54. Jalil Isaac DL 11
55. Joey Del Pozzo DL 12
56. Tavaris Knuckles OL 12
57. Will Haskin DL 11
58. W yatt Hensman DL 10
59. Ethan Hoang OL 9
60. Keegan Sellers OL 12
61. Miles Usher OL 11
62. Michael Henson OL 11
63. Connor Murray OL 11
64. Alan Rodriguez OL 11
65.
his junior season, where Seaman completed 57.3% of his passes for 1,641 yards and six touchdowns, the staff believes he is primed for a big improvement this season.
Thom also mentioned Michael Henson, Alejandro Tobar and Keegan Sellers as offensive lineman that will make an impact. Henson is a 6-foot, 255-pound junior offensive guard. Tobar (6-0, 283) is a sophomore offensive tackle and guard and Sellers (6-2, 245) is a senior center.
Thom said that Lassiter has many impactful players in the front seven.
See TROJANS, Page 105
LASSITER TROJANS
FAMOUS FOOTBALL ALUMNI
OL Ross Brannon (1992-95), .....................................................Florida State
TE Philip Lutzenkirchen (2005-08), ...............Auburn, Los Angeles Rams
QB Hutson Mason (2006-09), .................Georgia, Washington Redskins
LB Kevin Schimmelmann (1997-2000), ......Stanford, Green Bay Packers
OL Camden Wentz (2005-08), ..................N.C. State, Minnesota Vikings
TROJANS
From Page 104
including linebackers Reid Ashmore (73 tackles, 14 tackles for loss) and Cole Stewart (two tackles, one tackle for loss across four games) and defensive ends Chase Jones and Jake Johnson (combined for 36 tackles, nine tackles for loss and two sacks).
Thom said his skilled position
INTERCEPTIONS
Johnny Michaels 1
players are going to be impactful this year as well. Defensive back Caden Bloom, running back Tyler Morton (101 yards, five touchdowns on 40 carries) and wide receivers Dalton Price and Collins Price (combined for 611 yards, two touchdowns on 52 receptions) were amongst the names listed.
Thom said every player has improved this offseason, which is why he expects a lot of players to make an impact
this season.
“I know that it seems like we have a lot of guys, but I think we have a lot of good pieces now,” he said. “We just have to keep getting better and hopefully stay healthy.”
Thom mentioned players Jax Brickley, Luke Turner and Bryce Kitzrow as more players he expects to have a big leap in production this year. Brickley is a 6-foot-1, 146pound junior safety. Turner is a 6-foot-1, 174-pound sophomore
cornerback. Kitzrow is a 5-foot-9, 135-pound sophomore defensive back and receiver.
Thom said he is looking forward to seeing how his players have improved and how they can make an impact for the Trojans this season.
“Our big mantra that we’ve preached to them this offseason is ‘What are you doing to become the best version of yourself?’” he said.
Seaman to keep Trojans above water
By Jack Martin MDJ Sports Writer
Lassiter quarterback Mitch Seaman is ready to lead the Trojans this season.
He said his growth has been good, especially since transitioning to quarterback during his sophomore year.
“I started off by playing a different position because I wasn’t as good at quarterback, and they just needed me,” he said. “I played receiver for a little bit, and then that offseason, I just took off and worked hard to start.”
Seaman completed 57.3% of his passes for 1,641 yards and six touchdowns during his junior season.
Currently, the 6-foot-1, 205pound senior holds offers from Shorter and Reinhardt. Seaman is also talking to the University of North Alabama and Murray State. He models his game after his favorite
See SEAMAN, Page 141
Mitch Seaman set to be fulltime starter for Lassiter this season.
POPE GREYHOUNDS
New faces, clean slate for Greyhounds
By Bryce Holder MDJ Sports Writer
Pope returns just one starter on defense this season. Mix that with a new starting quarterback, a new starting running back and losing most of their top receivers, the Greyhounds have a nearly clean slate in 2025.
After showing improvement in coach Sean O’Sullivan’s second season, the new-look Greyhounds have a lot to prove, but also a lot to replace as they hope to continue building towards success.
“I think the biggest thing is just obviously trusting the process and working hard and competing,”
O’Sullivan said. “Football is not rocket science.”
Hudson Marinko will take the reins at quarterback from two-year starter Hudson DeLine. The junior grew four inches to 6-foot-3 and was offered by Southeastern Louisiana University in the offseason.
“He’s worked his tail off in the weight room,” O’Sullivan said. “So just his body maturing and him having a great offseason.”
O’Sullivan said the Greyhounds will turn to Ethan Alterman as their top running back in 2025. Alterman rushed for 402 yards on just 58 carries last season. He will be one of the more experienced players on either side of the ball for the
Greyhounds.
“I expect him to have a big senior year,” O’Sullivan said. “He’s played on Friday nights, which always helps when you have a kid with experience back.”
John Stuetzer has been described as one of the best athletes to ever play at Pope and after 34 receptions for 797 yards and 12 touchdowns, his departure leaves a big hole on the outside. Keita Watanabe will lead a relatively inexperienced wide receiver group that will also feature Luc McClendon, Brennon Wendel and Dylan Talley.
Experience will not be lacking on the offensive line as the Greyhounds will start five seniors. Returning
starters Jaxson Griffin and James Burns will be the anchors in the trenches alongside Isaiah White who also played meaningful snaps last season.
On the defensive side of the football the Greyhounds return just one starter, second-team all-region defensive end Josiah Moss. Moss had 66 total tackles and four sacks in 2024.
Senior Colton Miller and sophomore Connor O’Ryan will start at linebacker for the Greyhounds with a young and inexperienced secondary behind them.
“A lot of young, new guys out there, but they’ve been working See GREYHOUNDS, Page 108
QB Holland Frost (2008-11), .....................................................Georgia Tech
OL Max Kemper (2011-14), ...............................................................Air Force
OL Thomas O’Reilly (2007-10), ................................................Georgia Tech
WR Ryan Sawyer (1995-98), ..............................................................Virginia
QB T.J. Yates (2002-05), .........................North Carolina, Houston Texans
Coach: Sean O’Sullivan • 3rd Season • Record: 6-14 • Career: 24-46
GREYHOUNDS
From Page 107
hard this offseason, trying to learn the new defense,” O’Sullivan said. “I’d say the biggest thing is, obviously the weight room, because we have a lot of young kids, so you
have to develop them.”
O’Sullivan said he expects special teams will once again be a strength of the Greyhounds as senior Mathews Lago will handle the kicking and punting duties. Lago received a kicker rating of four stars and is rated as a top 100 punter in the class of 2026 per Chris Sailer Kicking.
“The biggest thing is playing complimentary in all three phases of the game,” O’Sullivan said. Pope finished just 4-6, 3-4 in region play, in 2024. However, they defeated region champion Sprayberry before suffering multiple injuries on both sides of the ball. After a sixth place finish in Region
6AAAAA in 2024, the seven game region slate will once again provide a challenge in 2025.
“There are not any guaranteed wins in our region, because I feel like our region is strong,” O’Sullivan said. “I think the biggest thing is keeping the kids hungry and loving football as we go through this long season.”
Alterman gets his shot in Pope backfield
By Bryce Holder MDJ Sports Writer
Pope’s Ethan Alterman is ready to step up on and off the field heading into his senior season. He is one of the few returning Greyhounds with experience on Friday nights, and he hopes to make it count.
The 5-foot-10, 180-pound running back rushed for 402 yards on just 58 carries as a junior, nearly seven yards a carry. Alterman said he learned toughness from former Greyhounds running back JT Way and perseverance from former wide receiver John Stuetzer, but is ready to make his own mark as the top guy in the backfield.
Alterman has put on size and muscle in the offseason and said he believes his quickness and vision in the open field give him the opportunity to have a special senior season alongside a new-look team.
“We’re just ready to show what we’ve been doing,” Alterman said.
Not only will Pope look different
See ALTERMAN, Page 141
RIVER RIDGE KNIGHTS
Defense will pace Knights’ path to postseason
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
River Ridge has been an offensive powerhouse in recent years, but in 2025, the Knights look to win on defense and in the trenches as they strive for a fourth consecutive playoff appearance.
Turnover at quarterback and a strong returning defensive unit headlined River Ridge’s offseason as seventh-year coach Mike Collins, the young program’s alltime winningest coach (38-27) expressed his optimism.
“We’ve had a really good offseason,” Collins said. “The guys have been working extremely
hard. I’m pretty excited about the 2025 season offense, defense and special teams. Hopefully, all of the hard work that we put in will pay off for us in the fall.”
Defensively, standout senior linebackers Wyatt McCarty and Matthew Burdette are expected to lead the returning unit, with McCarty posting a team-best 100 tackles last year. The 2025 Super Six member registered 12 tackles for loss, along with a sack and forced fumble.
River Ridge allowed 19.1 per game in 2024, its fourth-fewest all-time and best mark since 2017. The Knights held six of 10 opponents in the regular season under 20 points, including a
shutout against Region 6AAAAA foe Riverwood.
Collins said he expects his front-seven to play a major role in limiting opposing offenses.
“Our strength would be our linebacker corps,” Collins said. “They’ve got quite a bit of experience with Wyatt (McCarty) and (Matthew) Burdette. Some of those guys have been playing since sophomore year. So that’s probably the strength, and our D-line, too, is another group that’s been together for a while and got a lot of games under their belts.”
River Ridge’s offensive strengths will be along the offensive line, where it returns size
and experience to protect a new starting quarterback.
Junior Hunter Lockerman is the favorite to succeed former slinger Ethan Spector, who threw for a school-record 35 touchdowns and just one interception in 2024. Lockerman pushed Spector for the job last year, but he now steps into the spotlight.
“He actually was nipping at the heels of Ethan about this time last year,” Collins said. “We thought it was a really, really close competition. It really wasn’t until the spring game that Ethan edged him out and took that job last year. So, we’ve been pretty excited about Hunter. He had a See KNIGHTS, Page 111
Amehre Morrison .......Assist. Pete Maderano ...........Assist.
KNIGHTS
From Page 110
good offseason, but that competition will continually be open until the first game.”
Camden Cox and Sam Vincent
are expected to be key pieces again this year after Cox led River Ridge in rushing and Vincent snagged a team-best three interceptions. Both players contributed on both sides last season and will likely maintain another heavy workload.
The Knights need all hands on
deck to make their sixth postseason trip, and they have a chance to start fast, similarly to last year, when they went 5-1. However, a brutal Region 6AAAAA schedule, featuring reigning champ Sprayberry (11-2 in 2024), Sequoyah (11-2) and two other county rivals
awaits them.
“There’s a lot of parity in our league,” Collins said. “I think it’s an incredibly competitive league from top to bottom. Anything can happen on any Friday night, so we’re looking forward to competing in it.”
Cam Cochran, a member of the
Cochran glad to be back at alma mater
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
A dream come true is how the newest addition to River Ridge’s coaching staff, Cam Cochran, described his return to the program to coach the offensive line ahead of 2025.
Cochran, a vital part of the Knights’ first region championship and state quarterfinals trip back in 2020, played his college football at Huntingdon from 202124 before finding himself back at his
alma mater. The former Offensive lineman maintained a relationship with River Ridge coach Mike Collins, which ultimately helped land him a spot on staff.
“This is something I have really looked forward to my entire time through college,” Cochran said.
“I kept in contact with coach Collins and the previous offensive line coach as well, (Joe) Mullinax. But this is something that I’ve looked forward to, and it was amazing how it just fell in my lap after I graduated early. I wasn’t going to waste
the opportunity.”
Cochran isn’t the only former Knight on staff from that magical 2020 season. Running back Amehre Morrison has returned as a community coach working with running backs. He ran for nearly 2,000 yards and finished with 29 touchdowns as River Ridge went 11-1 overall.
The Knights went undefeated in the regular season before squeaking past Kennesaw Mountain 35-34 in Round 1 of the playoffs and then blowing out Rome in the second round.
Most of that 2020 group remained in contact, but Cochran said he and Morrison had a special relationship, as running backs and their blockers often do. Memories from that school-record season are fresh in Cochran’s mind, and now he hopes to recreate his success as a coach.
“I remember Amehre going for crazy numbers and just being an awesome guy that you want to block for,” Cochran said. “I remember all of it, really, because it meant a whole lot. It’s one of the big reasons why See COCHRAN, Page 141
Special - Anthony Stalcup
River Ridge
SEQUOYAH CHIEFS
Veteran Chiefs have high expectations
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Fresh off its best season since 2018, Sequoyah has high expectations.
The Chiefs reached the Class AAAAA quarterfinals in 2024, taking down Gainesville and Woodward Academy in perceived upsets. They’re not catching anyone off guard this year, in a season where longtime coach James Teter can become Sequoyah’s all-time winningest coach.
With a veteran roster and plenty of momentum, Teter eyes the
program’s second region championship and first since 2003.
“That’s been our goal every year,” Teter said. “This group has been lucky enough to make the first round as ninth graders, second round as sophomores and third round as juniors. So the objective is to try to raise the bar and see if we can go further, and part of that would be adding a region title.”
Sequoyah’s offense features a talented senior class between running back Will Rajecki, quarterback Kolby Martin, offensive lineman Alex Brewer and receiver Brooks Darling. Brewer, a Colorado State
commit, anchors a physical unit, which paved the way for 202.9 rush yards (2,638 total) per game in 2024. Rajecki accounted for 1,541 of those yards, along with 21 touchdowns. The future Memphis running back was the Chiefs’ secondleading receiver with 578 yards and five scores.
Darling hauled in 56 passes for 931 yards and 11 touchdowns to lead Sequoyah’s offense, catching balls from an experienced quarterback in Martin, who enters as a fourthyear starter after injuries pressed him into action as a freshman. Those returners powered the
Chiefs to a school-record 481 points (37 per game) last season, with a season-high 56 in a blowout win over region rival Pope. They hope to be even better in 2025.
“Our offensive line is pretty good, and Will had a great offseason,” Teter said. “Kolby has done really, really well. Jack Ripley’s gotten a lot better at wideout. Brooks has looked good, and then defensively, our defensive line has been the best part of it. We’ve gotten better at linebacker with Drew (Williams) a year older and understanding things more, and then just there’s a lot of
Kolby Martin ............153/239 ..2392 yds ..24 TD .. 3 INT
RECEIVING
Brooks Darling 56 rec 931 yds 11 TD
TACKLES
Taiwo Ogundele ..101
SACKS
Ean Marria .............. 8
INTERCEPTIONS
Jake Bertils 3
Benji Smith 3
Coach: James Teter • 17th Season • Record: 96-79 • Career: 137-112
CHIEFS
From Page 113
competition in the secondary.” Williams, at 6-foot-2, 200-pounds, takes the primetime role on defense following the departure of former standouts Ean Marria and Taiwo Ogundele. He
registered 55 tackles, three sacks and an interception last season.
“It’s different because we don’t have Ean and some of those other guys,” Teter said. “I think the experience will help. It’s just about how they handle the replacements and how well they do their jobs and perform at the level we need to try to make a run at the region.”
Fun Facts:
• Originally from Americus, GA
• Lived in North GA since 2011
• Dog dad, big foodie, and favorite hobby is traveling.
• Almost done with my goal of visiting all 50 states.
Matthew Matz will also step into a larger role on the defensive line after his four-sack season. Sequoyah’s defense allowed 334 total points (25.7 per game) last year – the most in program history – so improvement on that side of the ball is paramount.
Sequoyah’s veteran roster and dynamic playmakers has it positioned to return to the
playoffs, challenge for the Region 6AAAAA crown and potentially much more.
“We were close last year, and most of these kids are back, so they know how hard you have to work to get there,” Teter said. “So, I think that’s kind of always the goal. It’s just, how do we come together, have the chemistry to make it work.”
I’m excited to join the Cherokee Tribune/Ledger and connect with the businesses & communities across Cherokee County! It’s clear that is a truly special place, and I’m eager to partner with local businesses to help them grow, reach new audiences, and elevate their brand presence. Looking forward to making a positive impact together!
Sequoyah’s vets helping avoid complacency
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Sequoyah has dedicated itself to avoiding complacency in 2025, following a historic run that saw the program’s third state quarterfinals appearance in its 36 years of existence.
The Chiefs have displayed an upward trajectory over the last
three years, going from a first-round playoff exit in 2022, to Round 2 the next year, to the elite eight in 2024. As it looks to continue that trend to make school and county history, Sequoyah’s veteran roster is working to ensure letdowns will not sneak in.
“We can’t get complacent with the success that we had last year,” senior tight end and Samford commit
Maddox Waller said. “It’s about constantly keeping our foot on the gas and getting better every day, trying to be better than we were last year.”
Last year marked the third time in program history that Sequoyah made three consecutive playoff appearances. If they qualify in 2025, it will be just the second time they’ve made four straight trips.
Senior defensive lineman Matthew Matz said with every playoff season, the hunger to return and to win the school’s second region championship grows. As one of the favorites to win Region 6AAAAA this year, he and the Chiefs hold high expectations.
“We are confident, but not satisfied,” Matz said. “With what we’ve See VETS, Page 141
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Riley O’Neill, Matthew Matz and Maddox Waller are seniors who are not letting the Chiefs settle
SPRAYBERRY YELLOW JACKETS
Yellow Jackets look to back up record season
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
With a new year, new coach and a perfect storm of returning and incoming starpower, Sprayberry is confident it will get over the hump in 2025, using last season as both a template and a motivator.
The Yellow Jackets are coming off of their best season on paper in school history.
They won the Region 6AAAAA championship, finished with a program record 11 wins and reached the state quarterfinals for the first time since 1982.
However, the 2024 season came to a stinging end with a 64-0 loss to Lee County in the state quarterfinals, a reality check new coach Pete
Fominaya is using to help the team stay grounded this year.
“I tell the boys, every time we think we’re king of the hill or the best team in the area, go back and watch the first half of that game,” Fominaya said. “We need moments in life that humble us because that makes us work harder. I think when we can refocus and talk about those moments, they can push us and give us drive and motivation to move forward.”
Consensus five-star Alabama commit Jorden Edmonds headlines the group of notable returnees. The 6-foot-3, 175-pound senior is currently ranked as the top cornerback and 14th-best player nationally in the 2026 class by 247Sports. Edmonds is not tested often, but
he has recorded two interceptions, seven passes defended and 63 tackles across the past two seasons.
Though he is primarily recruited as a cornerback, he is also an offensive standout at wide receiver. In 2024, he hauled in 35 receptions, tied for the team high, amassing 670 yards and four touchdowns.
The Yellow Jackets lost some talent in the secondary with threestar cornerback Mark Manfred’s graduation, but safety Kealen Jones emerged as the team’s newest elite defensive back last season. The nowsenior tallied 42 tackles, four passes defended and a team-leading four interceptions, earning a three-star rating and offers from 25 Division I schools, including Georgia, who he committed to in April.
Reigning Region 6AAAAA Offensive Player of the Year Jaden Duckett will man the offense, entering his third season as the Yellow Jackets’ starting quarterback. The dual threat signal caller threw for 1,969 yards and 14 touchdowns, while tallying another 805 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground.
Duckett said he is looking to prove that he can be a consistent passer, and this year, he will have the weapons to help him accomplish that.
Sprayberry also picked up two transfer wideouts who are expected to make an immediate impact alongside Edmonds.
Kobe Lewis transferred from Kennesaw Mountain after leading the team in receptions (36), yards (654) See JACKETS, Page 117
SPRAYBERRY YELLOW JACKETS
2525 Sandy Plains Rd, Marietta, GA 30066 • Jim Frazier Stadium https://www.sprayberryfootball.org
Alexander .............................28-0 ..........W
Coach: Pete Fominaya • 1st Season • Record: 0-0 • Career: 31-45
JACKETS
From Page 116
and receiving touchdowns (7) and setting a school record with 237 receiving yards in a game last season. He has six Division I offers, including from Bowling Green, Kennesaw State and Troy.
Nicco White spent his first two seasons at Sprayberry, moved to Tate in Cantonment, Florida for his junior year and is now back at Sprayberry for his final year. White
hasn’t gotten significant playing time, but has dangerous speed and acceleration — he clocked a 10.2 in the 100-meter dash this past spring.
“We got two D-I wide receivers, and that’s going to cause a whole lot of problems,” Duckett said. “Our outsides are dangerous. We’ve got Jorden (Edmonds) and Kobe (Lewis) — everyone’s going to want to double team them, and now we’ve got a guy that runs a 10.2, so they’re not going to be ready.”
Fominaya said that he’s looking to test the guys he knows are playmakers
11-2
4-7
3-6 2020: 6-5
REGION CHAMPIONSHIPS
and drive them to push their limits.
“You’ve gotta make them the kid that when other coaches are watching film, they look up and say, ‘Man, how are we going to stop that kid?’” Fominaya said. “We’re fortunate enough that we don’t just have one of those guys, we have a few of them. My focus is to continuously challenge our kids to be better because they’ve nowhere near emptied the tank.”
Fominaya is replacing Brett Vavra after leading Hiram for the past seven seasons, and he brought a
whole new coaching staff and playbook with him. He believes Sprayberry is on the verge of greatness, and he can help the Yellow Jackets finally break through.
“I think I can just come in and bring a fresh set of ideas, maybe bring some fresh ideas to the table,” Fominaya said. “The two previous coaches really did a good job of getting this place healthy financially, facilities-wise, uniforms. Now it’s my turn to continue what’s been done here and take the next step as a program.”
Entering his third season under center, Sprayberry’s Jaden Duckett has transformed himself into a quality quarterback who can do it all.
Duckett set to prove he’s a true QB
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
When quarterback Kemari Nix transferred to Kell following the 2022 season, Sprayberry was left without a player on its roster that had played a varsity snap at quarterback. Former coach Brett Vavra had to find a replacement quickly, and Jaden Duckett stepped up.
A sophomore wide receiver at the time, Duckett did not know much
about the quarterback position, but he knew he was dangerous with the ball in his hands — and if all else failed, he could depend on his legs to make plays.
“I’ve always wanted the ball in my hand,” Duckett said. “I feel like when the ball’s in my hand, I can change the game. Whether that’s running the ball, passing the ball or just simply handing it off, I felt like that’s what I wanted to do.”
Vavra’s offensive scheme gave
the fleet-footed signal caller plenty of opportunities to use his speed in open space, and Duckett capitalized. He ran for 843 yards and 16 touchdowns on 118 carries in his first season at the helm of the offense.
However, his arm needed a little more work. Duckett averaged 52.7 passing yards a game, completing just 50.5% of his passes while dishing out more interceptions than touchdowns.
He focused on developing his arm talent after the season, and the work came to fruition immediately. In his junior year, Duckett completed 54.8% of his passes while averaging 164.1 passing yards per game. He threw for 1,969 yards and posted a 14-to-3 touchdownto-interception ratio in 13 games. On top of his improved passing numbers, Duckett ran for 805 yards and 16 touchdowns, leading him See DUCKETT, Page 142
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COBB FOOTBALL FRIDAY
The essential weekly update for all things high school football in Cobb county.
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Q&A with Sprayberry’s Pete Fominaya
Q: Have you been able to keep some of Sprayberry’s traditions in place?
A: Yeah, it’s one of the oldest football programs in Cobb County. I think next year we’ll be playing 70 something years of football here, so there’s three generations of guys who have played football here at Sprayberry. We’ve tried to honor and respect a lot of things that have happened in the past, but also pave our way forward and really build off of what has been done, specifically last season.
Q: I saw an interview from when you first got to Sprayberry where you said you think this team is on the verge of greatness. What do you think you bring to this program or what can you put in place to help this team get over the hump?
A: I think the difference between a good team and a great program is on good teams, it comes along every couple of years. They’re good, then you don’t hear about them for a few years, then they’re good again. But if you think about the elite programs in Georgia, the last names graduate, but the standards never change. You talk about some of the really good teams, whether it’s in Cobb or South Georgia or in the metro, they graduate 25 kids every year, but their expectations don’t change. So, that’s what we’ve kind of talked about here, ‘Last year’s team’s legacy is their legacy — what is your legacy going to be?’
I think I bring a fresh set of eyes. I’ll be the first head coach who’s not an alumni in 20 years, so I think I can just come in and bring a fresh set of eyes, maybe bring some fresh ideas to the table. The two previous coaches really did a good job of getting this place healthy financially, facilities wise, uniforms, they did a really good job. Now it’s my turn to continue what’s been done here and take the next step as a program.
Q: Looking at your schedule, it looks like your home slate is a little bit easier on paper, but you have a couple tough road games. You have Sequoyah, River Ridge, Creekview and Lassiter. Have you given any thought to the schedule so far? Do you have any initial thoughts on it?
A: I think specifically the teams that are on our schedule, I know every single one of those head coaches, I know all of them work really, really hard. I tell our guys when they’re having a bad day, ‘Hey, you think you’re competing against the guy next to you, but you’re not. You’re competing against that guy up the street at blank high school or the kid up in Cherokee County. I promise you, he’s working.’
We’ve got our local rivalries with Lassiter and Pope, and those are always going to be huge games for us and Kennesaw Mountain is up the street, so that’s going to be a big game for us as well. But then when we get up against some of those Cherokee teams, I think there’s going to be some really big challenges that come through the schedule.
Q: What’s one thing that you’re really excited about for this new position?
A: I’m really excited to be part of this Cobb County fraternity. I’ve lived in Cobb the entire time even though I was coaching in Paulding. My kids go to Cobb County schools, my wife works for a Cobb County school, so I was kind of the outside man, outside looking in. Now, I’m here. I’ve got a lot of respect, like I said earlier, for the coaches in this area, and I’m just excited about being part of this Cobb County fraternity.
By Owen McDaniel MDJ Sports Writer
Q: This team is coming off of what was, on paper, its best season in school history. You have a lot of returning stars, so what kind of potential do you see in 2025?
A: The previous staff did a really good job establishing the standard, establishing some traditions here that we’re really excited about going forward. Our expectations are really high. When you have a team that won 11 games last year, went to the third round and has multiple Division I players, I think you’re doing the kids a disservice if you’re not talking about going all the way, about competing at the highest level. So, what we talk about here is how we need to get better every single day to reach our goals, and that’s been our focus.
Q: Last season ended in a rough way for Sprayberry. Is that something that you think the returning guys can use as fuel to motivate them and want to wipe that ugly feeling away?
A: I tell the boys, ‘Every time we think we’re alright, we need to play the first half of that game. Every time we think we’re the king of the hill, or every time we think we’re the best team in the area, go back and watch that half.’ I did it this Saturday as a matter of fact, and I didn’t even coach in the game. I think we need moments in life that humble us because that makes us work harder. So, I think when we can refocus and talk about those moments and talk about those things, they can push us and give us drive and motivation to move forward. So yes, we do speak about that game often.
Answershavebeeneditedforspaceandclarity
Special - File
New Sprayberry coach Pete Fominaya will try to keep the Yellow Jackets atop Region 6AAAAA in 2025.
WOODSTOCK WOLVERINES
Talent, expectations driving Wolverines hopes in ‘25
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Woodstock has turned the page on its rebuild under thirdyear coach Dan Devine.
The Wolverines went from 2-8 to 7-4 in a one-year span, while making the playoffs for the first time since 2017. With plenty of returning players, and an established system, Woodstock searches for consecutive postseason appearances for the first time in nearly a decade.
“I think there are expectations, which are fun,” Devine said. “I think there’s an expectation that’s set, and it’s important that they’re up to the standard every day. We let them
know, and we’ve got good leadership this year with our leadership council. These guys having experience always helps, too.”
The difference was night and day between Devine’s first two years with clear improvement on both sides of the ball. Defensively, the Wolverines surrendered just 231 total points (21 per game), their best mark since 2011.
Junior linebacker Trace Washington – who has seen a significant uptick in his recruiting – returns to lead that unit, while also headlining the backfield, which graduated last year’s 1,000-yard rusher, Isaiah Payton. Washington sang the praises of his
coach and Woodstock’s new culture heading into Year 3.
“Coach Devine has had a huge impact,” Washington said. “He really built this program. It’s more physical, and it’s more competitive.”
The results speak for themselves, and Woodstock’s lead man has earned the trust of his players because of it.
“The beautiful part is the locker room is 110% in,” Devine said. “That’s what you try to build from day one as part of your culture. I think that’s the beauty of it, just accountability from the players. Once you build that accountability, then you’ve won a locker room.”
Woodstock returns junior
quarterback Graham Burmeister to lead the offense in 2025, who made quite the impact in his first year under center. Burmeister, a dual-threat, threw for 2,057 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions, while picking up another 485 yards and seven scores on the ground. However, graduation gutted his receiving corps as the Wolverines will deploy an entirely new receiving unit.
Defensively, all-county defensive back Tyler Barbera is back to lead the defense alongside Washington, who’s Woodstock’s top returning tackler with 58. Barbera registered 48 tackles and seven passes
RB Bruce Miller (2007-10) .................................UCF, San Francisco 49ers
DB David Daniel-Sisavanh (2017-2020) ...............................Georgia, Troy
WOLVERINES
From Page 120
defended, which trailed only Washington’s nine.
The secondary has plenty of experience overall, with
Isaiah Payton 175 car 1062 yds 11 TD
Graham Burmeister 157/269 2057 yds 15 TD 6 INT RECEIVING Chase Colina .........50 rec ...545 yds ..... 6 TD
TACKLES
Drew Burmeister ..113
Cooper Price..........106
SACKS
Cooper Price..........8
INTERCEPTIONS
Rylan Hubbard ......3
Barbera, a senior, along with fellow senior Luke Similien and junior Daniel Palmese (44 tackles). Junior Rylan Hubbard (28 tackles, 11 PD, three INT) will pair with Washington in the linebacking unit, while senior Tyler Howard (42 tackles, four
sacks) anchors the defensive front.
The Wolverines remain in a loaded Region 6AAAAA, so their path to the playoffs will face resistance. Still, Devine remains confident in what he’s built heading into Year 3.
“It’s just the hard work from these coaches and players,” Devine said. “I think it’s been a really good summer. It’s just got to continue progressing and getting ready for kickoff, so we’re looking forward to it.”
Graham Burmeister helped return Woodstock to the
Burmeister shows Woodstock belongs
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Woodstock quarterback Graham Burmeister took Cherokee County by storm last season, taking the Wolverines back to the state playoffs for the first time since 2017 in his first year as the starter.
Still, Burmeister feels like Woodstock has something to prove heading into his junior year.
“I’ve definitely improved physically and mentally at the quarterback position, and we’re locked in,” he said. “We have something to prove this year. After having a good year last year, we just want to go and have another great season.”
Burmeister threw for 2,057 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions in his debut season. He averaged 13.1 yards per completion as the Wolverines scored 296 total points (26.9 per game), their best
marks in eight years.
However, his receiving corps is changing substantially in 2025, with an entirely new group featuring tight end Jordan Foster, a basketball convert. Burmeister spent the summer building a rapport with his new unit, and he’s been impressed with the results.
“Most of them are new, so we’ve been doing 7-on-7s and getting chemistry that way,” he said. “But, I mean, I got Rylan (Hubbard) and Jordan (Foster), my tight end, and they’re both good receivers. We have 8-10 good receivers that can play varsity football.”
Among the departed receivers from last year’s team is Burmeister’s brother, Drew, who gears up for his first season of college football at Columbia. The brotherbrother connection was alive in 2024 as Drew caught 29 passes from See BELONGS, Page 142
Special - Anthony Stalcup
REGION 6AAAA
Kell looks to claim top spot in loaded region
By Bryce Holder MDJ Sports Writer
Region 6AAAA is a small region, but it is loaded with returning talent, as Blessed Trinity hopes to defend its region crown, with Kell as the top contender.
Kell is the lone Cobb County representative in the region, and with just five teams, securing a spot in the state playoffs is likely, but leaves the Longhorns with little room for error if they want to capture the region championship.
“Our region is tougher than people think,” Kell coach Bobby May said. “Cambridge and BT both made runs last year. Obviously we had our chances too.”
The Titans swept the region in 2024, including a 27-24 region clinching overtime win over Cambridge in the last week of the regular season. Westminster, Kell and Cambridge all finished 2-2 in the region with Kell winning its final two games to continue its streak of 17 straight state playoff appearances.
The Longhorns will look to win their second region title under coach Bobby May as they return starting quarterback Kaleb Narcisse, leading rusher four-star Moonie Gipson, who rushed for 1,683 yards and 17 touchdowns, and added 3-star transfer tight end Nathan Agyemang to help replace leading receivers from last season, Jaden George and Trenton Wanjogu.
Kell features three highly touted players: linebacker Brayden Rouse,
PREDICTED FINISH
1. Kell
2. Blessed Trinity
3. Westminster 4. Cambridge
5. Centennial
a Tennessee commit, Arizona State commit cornerback Jalen Williams and safety Jowell Combay who will lead a stout Longhorns defense.
Blessed Trinity QB and Cincinnati commit Brooks Goodman who threw for 1,668 yards returns alongside leading rusher Ahmonte Pitts, leading receiver Quinn Davis and leading tackler D.J. Jacobs as the Titans look to improve on their 2024 semifinal appearance and capture their second straight region championship.
Cambridge turned in a 10-3 record and Class AAAA quarterfinal appearance in 2024. It will have to replace most of the offensive production outside of four-star wide receiver Craig Dandridge who had 1,443 yards and 14 touchdowns last season. The Bears have made five straight playoff appearances.
Westminster has missed the state playoffs only once in the past 18 years, and won a Class AAA state championship a decade ago in 2015.
Kaleb Narcisse and Kell will try to dethrone
Centennial went winless in region play last season and will also have to replace multiple starters if it wants to improve on its last place finish in Region 6AAAA and return to the state playoffs for just the third time since 2018.
The Longhorns non-region slate leaves them with the fourth toughest strength of schedule based on 2024 win percentage in Cobb County.
The Longhorns will open by
hosting South Paulding and Alpharetta, before traveling to Sequoyah hoping to avenge last season’s 27-24 loss. Kell will round out non-region play with games at Wheeler and state powerhouse Lowndes before returning home to face Columbia.
After a bye-week, Kell will travel to the defending region champions, Blessed Trinity to open region play.
Special - File
Blessed Trinity this season.
KELL LONGHORNS
Kell positioned to make run at Class AAAA title game
By Bryce Holder MDJ Sports Writer
Kell will have a mix of talent and experience this season as they hope to claim their second region championship in three years.
Starting quarterback Kaleb Narcisse and running back Moonie Gipson return alongside a talented and experienced defense as the Longhorns have a lot to prove after a second round exit in the Class AAAA state playoffs last season.
The Longhorns finished 7-5, 2-2 in region play in 2024 with a second place finish in Region 6AAAA after dropping games to eventual region champion Blessed Trinity
and Westminster. With just four region games to round out the regular season, Kell will once again have a good litmus test against teams in higher classifications that handed them losses last season.
“We got a lot of people we’ve got to get back,” Kell coach Bobby May said. “We’re just worried about ourselves right now. In the summer, we don’t talk about anybody else, but when we get there, we’ll have some extra motivation.”
Gipson, who rushed for 1,683 yards and 17 touchdowns on 237 carries as a junior will once again be the focal point of the Longhorns offense. The four-star is a top 10 ranked running back in the class
of 2027 and currently has more than 40 offers.
“He’s a talented back and can catch the ball in the backfield,” May said. “I think the best thing about him is he’s better in the fourth quarter than the first.”
After throwing for 2,168 yards and 22 touchdowns, senior Kaleb Narcisse will return behind center for the Longhorns. The strongarmed dual-threat quarterback is expected to take a big jump as a full-time starter.
Despite losing both leading receivers from last year’s team – Jaden George and Trenton Wanjogu –the Longhorns do not lack talent at receiver with elite two-way player
Brayden Rouse who caught eight touchdowns last season, Creekview transfer and Georgia Tech commit Nathan Agyemang and speedster Nemo Watson to complement Brock Burrus, who missed most of last season with a broken hand.
Seniors David Ornelas and Vincent Consolino will anchor the offensive line alongside a young group.
“The offensive line is definitely where we need the most improvement,” May said. “We definitely need to improve in that group as far as our work ethic and consistency.” On the other side of the trenches, the Longhorns will have to replace sack leader and two-time first-team
See LONGHORNS, Page 126
North Atlanta .....................29-15 ..........W
DB Quincy Mauger (2009-12), ..............................Georgia, BC Lions (CFL)
DB Brian Randolph (2007-10), ..................Tennessee, Los Angeles Rams
LONGHORNS
From Page 125
all-state defensive lineman
Tyshawn Natt. They will have a more experienced defensive line led by Alexander Jean and Collin Davis.
Rouse, whose main position is linebacker, had 111 total tackles last year, is a highly-touted four-star
.....26
Brayden Rouse .....111 SACKS
Tyshawn Natt 8 INTERCEPTIONS
Jalen Williams ........2
Zayd Rogan 2 Tony Forney Jr.......2 2024 RESULTS
recruit. He held offers from more than 40 Power 4 schools before announcing his commitment to Tennessee. He will team with Charlotte commit Michael Domanik to lead a deep and talented linebacking core that also includes seniors Jacob Carroll and Jaziah Owens. Arizona State commit cornerback Jalen Williams and safeties Jowell Combay and Missouri commit Tony Forney Jr. will make up one of the
most experienced and talented secondaries in the state to round out a Kell defense with high expectations. Williams played most of the 2024 season with a torn labrum.
“We’re excited to have Jalen healthy, and he’s a lockdown corner,” May said. “Those three guys, really are going to move around for us and definitely be the leaders on the defense.”
The expectations are certainly
high for an experienced Longhorns team as they look to recapture a region championship and make a run in the Class AAAA state playoffs, but May said he is focused on the small things that will make his team successful.
“Just to play with discipline and to play hard every single snap,” May said. “I think the big thing is we got to practice better than we did last year to stay consistent.”
New position has paid off for Agyemang
By Bryce Holder MDJ Sports Writer
Fresh off his commitment to Georgia Tech, Kell tight end Nathan Agyemang is ready to take the next step with his new team in his senior season.
The Creekview transfer is switching schools and shifting positions, but he is ready to hit the ground running. As a receiver for the Grizzlies last year, Agyemang had 21 receptions for 397 yards and three touchdowns.
“It was a great move for me in the offseason.” Agyemang said.
While it is a drop in classification, Agyemang knows the Kell program will be a different challenge.
The Longhorns have made the state playoffs 17 straight years and have a track record of sending players to the next level including many Division I commitments off this year’s team.
“(Kell) gets me more prepared for the next level,” Agyemang said. “It’s really preparing me, my body, my mind, for the next level.” Offers began rolling in for Agyemang upon his transfer to the program and before he knew it he was ready to
Special - Paul Holm
New Kell tight end Nathan Agyemang is another weapon for the Longhorns offense in 2025.
REGION 7AAAA
Bucs better, but have tough region slate
By Jack Martin
MDJ Sports Writer
Coach Brad Smith said Region 7AAAA is shaping up to be one of the most stacked regions in Georgia. Cobb County’s sole team in the region, Allatoona, is ready for the challenges that come with playing in this region.
“Attack the region as a separate entity, take it day-by-day and hopefully get an opportunity to make our way into the playoffs at the end,” Smith said.
He said there is no shortage of talent as many of the squads have multiple Power 4 caliber players.
“We are going to play D-I kids every week,” he said. “You have the Brady Marchese kid at Cartersville, you’ve got the quarterback from Cass (Brodie McWhorter), you’ve got the lineman from Cass that’s going to Michigan (Bear McWhorter). Hiram is just full of talent when it comes to how they play the game.”
Smith said his team will have to watch film each week, and prepare for each region opponent equally.
“I wouldn’t say we are looking at anyone individually,” he said. “We are very aware of the big-name kids that we play against.
“When we get to that region play you can circle the whole region, because I think top to bottom it is one of the toughest ones in Class AAAA.”
Cartersville won the region a year ago. The Hurricanes went undefeated in the regular season and fell in the state quarterfinals of the playoffs to North Oconee. Cartersville is headlined by Marchese, Langston Hogg and Cole Crawford.
Hogg is a three-star senior offensive lineman who is committed to Tulane. Marchese is a four-star senior wide receiver who is committed to Georgia. He logged 1,051 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns on 44 receptions during his junior year. Crawford is a four-star junior linebacker who holds 12 Power Four offers. He had 26 total tackles and two sacks during his sophomore year.
Cedartown finished second in the
Allatoona will try to find a way to get past Cartersville and the rest of Region 7AAAA.
region and its only loss came from Cartersville. The team is expected to be led by junior quarterback Wyatt Mosley, who threw for 126 yards and two touchdowns last season in limited action.
Hiram finished third. The Hornets are led by senior quarterback Ethan Latimore, who threw for 1,351 yards and 10 touchdowns.
After a Cinderella playoff run in 2023, Cass finished fourth in 7AAAA last year.
The team is headlined by brothers “Bear” and Brodie McWhorter. “Bear,” is a four-star senior offensive lineman who is committed to Michigan, while his brother Brodie is a three-star senior quarterback who is committed to Mississippi
State.
Allatoona finished fifth and missed the playoffs for the second straight season. The Bucs are headlined by Xavier Rucker and Tyler Duckworth. Rucker is a three-star senior running back who is committed to Georgia Tech. He ran for 1,135 yards and 11 touchdowns on 174 carries last season.
Duckworth is a junior offensive lineman with offers from UNLV and Bethune-Cookman.
Smith said he has a history against region schools and there is not a school in the region the Buccaneers can take lightly.
“I worked at Dalton for five years, so that’s a huge game when it comes to the history of football
in this state,” he said. “Cartersville, Cass, Cedartown, and everybody knows Woodland.”
ALLATOONA BUCCANEERS
Bucs ready to make return run to postseason play
By Jack Martin MDJ Sports Writer
After doubling its win total from the previous season, Allatoona looks to build on the foundation it has set over the last few seasons.
This is the third season under coach Brad Smith and second season under defensive coordinator Fran Mahan, and Smith said he believes there was a key aspect of improvement made over the offseason.
“I would say development,” he said. “A lot of these guys have been playing since they were sophomores and now they’re getting to their senior year where they’ve had a ton
of experience on a Friday night.”
Smith said the Buccaneers have faith in their staff, and they expect to see improvements across the board. He said he believes in their process of development and molding of players. With another year under his and Mahan’s belt, they expect to execute new schemes, and they will better understand the strengths and weaknesses of their team.
“This is the second year with our defensive coordinator coach Mahan, so our defense has to be much improved, but I think it will be,” Smith said. “We returned a lot of those guys from last year, so a second year in the system usually
sees a lot more changes, a lot more higher level stuff than we were able to do last year.”
Smith said he wants his team to be complete and build on its strengths from last year.
“We ran the ball really well last year, we need to do a better job of passing the ball down the field,” he said. “I don’t wanna be cliche but all three areas matter. Offensively we’ve got to have a better passing game than we did last year, defensively just continue to improve Year 2 in the system, and special teams all together we gotta tighten that up across the board.”
Allatoona takes great pride in developing its players. The growth
of the players comes from the foundation the coaching staff has set.
“We have to be great at development, and I think that’s what is so big about our strength and conditioning department,” Smith said.
Smith said he and his team are eager to see all of the work culminate for this upcoming season.
“I’m most excited for us to do what we’ve been saying we’ll do for the past couple years,” Smith said. “I think we have the right mindset, we have the right leadership in place. We’re finally going to accomplish some goals we’ve been setting for the last couple of years.”
The goals in place for this team
See BUCS, Page 130
ALLATOONA BUCCANEERS
3300 Dallas-Acworth Hwy NW, Acworth, GA 30101 • Cobb EMC/Buccaneer
Cruz Paul .................51/124 721 yds 4 TD 4 INT
RECEIVING
Xavier Rucker 17 rec 281 yds 2 TD
TACKLES
John Arnold............71
Michael Odinjor ....67
SACKS
Collin Fields 3
INTERCEPTIONS
John Arnold 4
Coach: Brad Smith • 3rd Season • Record: 6-14 • Career: 24-28
BUCS
From Page 129
are optimistic. Smith said he wants to take the season day by day, but each goal works towards another goal.
“The first thing is to go undefeated in the non-region,” he said. “I think the biggest goal right now is for us to make the playoffs. That’s not the end goal, we want to win a region championship. We know that it runs through a couple places, and we’re working for that.”
Smith said he knows what lies ahead, which is why he is preparing his players as Allatoona looks to return to the playoffs.
Smith highlighted a number of impact players for the Buccaneers this season, starting with Xavier Rucker. He ran for 1,135 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground last season. He also logged 17 receptions, 281 yards and two touchdowns through the air.
“Obviously, you have Xavier Rucker who I feel is one of the best players in the state,” he said.
“He holds over 30 offers, and he is committed to Georgia Tech. He can do so many different things for us, whether it’s catch the ball, play running back, he could play quarterback if he wanted to, but he does so many things for us. This year we are going to work him some on the defensive side which will be huge for us as well.”
Smith also gave praise to players on the other side of the ball. With Mahan’s second year as the defensive coordinator, Smith expects a big jump from these players.
“Michael Odinjor also on the
defensive side,” he said. “He’s a young outside linebacker, and he’s going to be big for us as well. Then you have John Arnold who was a unanimous firstteam all-region safety last season.” Odinjor had 67 tackles, five tackles for loss and two sacks, while Arnold logged 71 tackles and four interceptions.
There is a message that Smith and his staff preached to players all offseason.
“Our thing for the summer is to do hard better,” he said. “We are trying to do hard things better than other people.”
Allatoona trio signifies team brotherhood
By Jack Martin MDJ Sports Writer
The brotherhood built within the Allatoona football program is shared between Jeremiah Coleman, Tyler Duckworth and Ethan Corpus.
Coleman is a 6-foot-1, 256pound senior defensive lineman and offensive lineman. Duckworth is a 6-foot-3, 265-pound junior offensive lineman. Corpus is a 5-foot-10, 200-pound senior running back.
The players stayed busy over the summer with camps. Coleman competed in the Reinhardt camp. Duckworth participated in USF’s camp. Corpus competed in a Shorter University camp, where he received his first offer.
All three said they all plan on continuing their football careers at the next level. Duckworth has offers from Bethune-Cookman and UNLV. Coleman is continuing to work for offers as the summer goes on.
Coach Brad Smith said
Corpus and senior Xavier Rucker make up the best backfield in Northeast
Georgia. Coleman said the time he and
his teammates have spent together
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Tyler Duckworth, Ethan Corpus and Jeremiah Coleman are part of the core that makes the Bucs a family.
See TRIO, Page 142
REGION 7AA
Rockmart enters season as region favorite
By Grant Turnage MDJ Sports Writer
This is the second year of the realigned Region 7AA, a deep nineteam league where the top spot is up for grabs.
Rockmart, the defending champion, is once again a favorite to win and this will be its third region championship in four years, but they will face stiff competition against North Cobb Christian and other contenders.
Last season, the Eagles made a strong playoff push with their only region loss coming at the hands of eventual champion Yellow Jackets.
This year North Cobb Christian will field a younger roster, integrating new talent at crucial offensive and defensive positions. However, a stout offensive line returns to anchor their efforts.
Rockmart enters the season coming off back-to-back undefeated region campaigns. Its deep run in the Class AA state playoffs ended in the semifinals with a 35-22 home loss to eventual runner-up Burke County.
The Yellow Jackets will be led by two-way standout Nate Davis. The starting running back and linebacker, finished last season with 937 rushing yards and 117 total tackles.
The Eagles and Yellow Jackets are set to face off in early October in what could be a decicive game for the region title.
“They’re very good, but just like us, who knows what we will be in October,” said North Cobb Christian coach Matt Jones.
Beyond the top two, North Murray and Ringgold emerge as formidable contenders with the potential to compete for the region title.
“Those are the kind of games this team can’t just show up and win,” said coach Jones. “ It takes tough, hard-nosed football to win in this league, and the Eagles have a lot of respect for everyone in the region.”
The Mountaineers return their leading passer and rusher
A younger North Cobb Christian will try to get back on top of the region standings this season.
in quarterback Hudson Hulett and leading tackler Jacob Daley, who averaged 12 tackles per game.
Hulett, who threw for 825 yards and five touchdowns, while also rushing for 1,426 yards and seven touchdowns, led the Mountaineers to a third-place finish last year, highlighted by a narrow 27-26 victory over Ringgold.
The teams will have a rematch in October, with both facing the tough challenge of beating the Rockmart on its home turf.
Ringgold finished 5-3 in region play last season, with its three losses coming by an average of just two
points. The Tigers made it to the state playoffs, but fell to Carver 35-14.
“This is a competitive region from top to bottom, and you cannot slip up or have an off week,” Jones said.
He also highlighted the strength of the region, with five teams qualifying for the playoffs last season. Despite the challenges his team faces he is confident in his players and they want to win for the school and community.
They know they are capable of winning and Jones has continued to make improvements in the program every year.
NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN EAGLES
Young roster hopes to build on Eagles’ success
By Grant Turnage MDJ Sports Writer
North Cobb Christian enters the 2025 season under coach Matt Jones with significant momentum from a program-best 11-2 record and state semifinals appearance, though this season will feature a younger roster.
The Eagles lost several starters through transfers and graduation, but will counteract it with a coaching staff which combines for more than 140 years of experience. They also have an experienced group of seniors on the offensive line, who will play a pivotal role in a rebuilding year.
The team has really bought into the brotherhood mentality and the “iron sharpens iron message” Jones has emphasized for the team, which offensive line coach Jack Knapp
said has been significant this offseason for the team’s development
The offensive line features four seniors who have developed under the guidance Knapp since middle school. This deep-rooted connection has cultivated exceptional leadership among the unit, composed of seniors Mike Patterson, Andy Reed, Jackson Elbert, and Connor Feltault, and sophomore Wright Upton.
“They’re willing to stick their face in front of a bus for their teammates. Do whatever it takes for their teammates and that’s what I’m excited about,” Jones said. “Because there are some years you don’t have (any) lineman, and we have a good group of linemen that work hard and will be the strength, and then there’s a lot of personality in that group.”
Going into fall camp Jones said Jayden McCollough is presumed starter at quarterback, unless something drastic changes. He is a sophomore and got his first game like reps at their spring game back in May.
On the defensive side the Eagles lost their two leading tacklers Ray Dixon and Beedjy Guerrier. This will be the most depth Jones has had during his tenure with the Eagles. Two will be playing on the offensive and defensive line — Feltault and Patterson. This will be their first full season as starters playing both ways for the Eagles. Although this defense may not feature any top end player to carry the load Jones said fans can expect to see five to seven kids fill the void that is left.
For Jones and his staff having a younger roster and less experienced
starters, is a position they dealt with back in 2022. The team started approximately 15 freshmen. The mindset is to take one rep at a time and one play at a time. Jones said there is no secret to success but does speak highly of his team overall and references the underclassmen’s work ethic.
“These freshmen and sophomores that we do have are competitive,” Jones said. “They work their butt off in the weight room and on the field. They’re going to be here before it’s time to start and after it’s time to leave. These kids love North Cobb Christian, and they love our school, they love our community. The kids love being an Eagle and want to play for North Cobb Christian.”
Every game is important, but after See EAGLES, Page 134
NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN EAGLES
4500 Eagle Dr, Kennesaw, GA 30144 • Jacob Dennis Field https://www.ncchristian.org X: @NCCEaglesFb Instagram: @nccseagles Facebook: @North
North Murray .....................34-13 ..........W
Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe.....47-21 ..........W
Union County.....................44-24 ..........W
State Playoffs
Whitefield Academy ...........40-6 ..........W
Savannah Christian ..........30-27 ..........W
Prince Avenue Christian ....0-43 ............L
Gary Varner ...................AHC/QB PJ Hughes ................................DC
Raymond Priester ...................RB
Poole ...........................DB
FAMOUS FOOTBALL ALUMNI
LB Jacob Cruz (2019-22), .........................................................Georgia Tech
OL Gabe Fortson (2019-22), ....................................................Georgia Tech
RUSHING
Denim Stevens......... 86 car ...... 514 yds .... 10 TD Cooper Bazarsky .... 94 car ...... 489 yds ... 5 TD
PASSING
Teddy Jarrard…209/291…2647 yds…31 TD…5 INT
RECEIVING
DJ Huggins ........... 53 rec .....899 yds..... 11 TD
TACKLES
Spears Martin ......89
SACKS
Raymond Dixon 7
INTERCEPTIONS
Beedjy Guerrier 1
Turner Davis 1
Brody Archie ...........................1
Rilee Hutchinson ...................1
JD Aufderheide 1
Oakleen Padgett 1
EAGLES
From Page 133
speaking with the offensive line, there are two games which stand out on their schedule. Both will be home games, however only one is
to avenge a region loss.
The Darlington game in September was a close one last year with the Eagles winning 14-7. Members of the offensive line are anxious for this matchup. Although it is a nonregion opponent this will be a good litmus test to see
where the team stands in preparation for region play and the rest of the season.
The region rematch against Rockmart at home in October has the potential to be a de facto region championship game for the second year.
“I learned how good everybody in the region is,” Jones said. “There’s going to be four to six teams in our region that are going to be hard games, and you got to be healthy, you got to be on your A game. You can’t just show up and win. So a lot of respect for the region.”
Eagles’ offensive line to lead team in ‘25
By Grant Turnage MDJ Sports Writer
North Cobb Christian’s experienced offensive line is poised to lead the Eagles to a successful season this year.
The group features four seniors — Mike Patterson at 6-foot-2, 310-pounds, Andy Reed (5-10, 220), Jackson Elbert 5-10, 260) and Connor Feltault (6-2, 175). The two underclassmen are sophomores, Wright Upton (6-2, 220) and Brayden Gutierrez (6-3, 260).
Most of the linemen have three years of experience and a deep understanding of the playbook. This will be beneficial as the Eagles will have a new starting quarterback in Jayden McCollough, after last year’s starter, Teddy Jarrard, transferred to North Cobb. They will also be blocking for a new running back, Cooper Bazarsky, as last year’s leading rusher, Denim Stevens, transferred to Holy Innocents.
With new faces in key positions,
Special - Anthony Stalcup
The North Cobb Christian offensive line will be the backbone of this year’s team.
REGION 5A DIVISION I
MPC, Whitefield to fight for subregion
By Paul Holm MDJ Sports Writer
Mount Paran Christian and Whitefield Academy return with two of the top rushing attacks in Class A and enter 2025 as favorites in their subregion of Region 5A Division I.
Mount Paran, now led by coach Connie Arnold, finished 8-4 last season and went 3-2 in region play. Arnold took over midway through the season and now enters his first full year in charge. The Eagles ran for more than 3,000 yards and will return key playmakers, including junior running backs Gavin Steele and Christian Holmes.
“We’re going to focus again on the triple-option,” Arnold said. “We spent last season installing it, and now that it’s in, we can focus more on the air. We want to put in a few more passing concepts than last year.”
The Eagles are expected to rely on a balanced backfield and competition between two sophomore quarterbacks, Eli Hewatt and Kobe Fleming, to lead the offense.
“Whitefield’s going to be a tough game,” Arnold said. “They have some of the best athletes we will face. It’s going to take a lot of discipline and a lot of luck to win the region.”
Whitefield Academy is coming off a 7-4 season and a 4-1 finish in region play. Coach Robert Walsh expects another strong year on the ground.
The Wolfpack will be led by Mason Hollingsworth, who had more than 1,400 total yards of offense last year, and is expected to have at least as big a role in the offense, if not bigger this season. He has a personal goal of reaching the 2,000-yard mark this season. A lot of that depends on his offensive line.
“We have a lot of experience coming back on our O-line, so our run game should improve,” Walsh said. “Last year it was pretty run-dominant across the region.”
Walsh also noted that the Wolfpack could open up the offense this fall.
“Our quarterback, Landon Ryan, is a year older, so our passing game will be more of a part of the plan,” he said. “We have to see what Mount Paran is doing, our game plan could change depending on who they are trying to get the ball to.”
Walker went 2-8 last year and 0-5 in region play. The Wolverines are hoping to build consistency with a short roster headed into the season under coach TJ Anderson.
“We got a tough region so we are going to do our best,” Anderson said. “For the most part, it’s a run-dominant conference, so we have to be ready in the trenches. We’re going to continue to work hard throughout the summer.”
Walker will depend a lot on senior Grant Addison who is a main target on offense and a leading tackler on defense.
One of the biggest challenges for the Wolverines will be numbers. The roster is thin again despite
Anderson’s best efforts of recruiting players within the school to come out for football.
Rounding out Subregion A is Landmark Christian and B.E.S.T. Academy.
Landmark finished 7-4 overall and 3-2 in region play last year behind quarterback Skyler Hamilton, who passed for 1,914 yards and 20 touchdowns.
B.E.S.T. Academy went 4-6 and 1-4 in region play and will look to bounce back behind a more experienced lineup.
Sub-region B features Wesleyan, Fellowship Christian, Mount Pisgah, Mount Vernon and St. Francis. Wesleyan and Fellowship are expected to be early favorites to win that side of the bracket.
Arnold said he knows the road won’t be easy.
“Landmark can do it all,” he said. “There’s no team in this subregion you can overlook.”
Whitefield Academy will try to win the subregion for the second straight season.
MOUNT BETHEL CHRISTIAN EAGLES
Mount Bethel has final year to prepare in non-region
By Kai Millette MDJ Sports Writer
Mount Bethel Christian isn’t using its youth as a program as an excuse to not be successful in 2025.
The Eagles are not only a young program, entering its second varsity season and playing a full varsity schedule for the first time, but they also host a young roster – without any seniors.
“You want that senior leadership, but we have such a strong junior class that they’re kind of able to lead,” coach Micah Hughes said. “And then two you know, hey, we got all these kids for another year after this – that’s exciting for us, too.”
Mount Bethel will play a nonregion schedule this season, including teams from Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.
Despite the lack of a postseasonbased goal due to the nature of this
season’s schedule, Hughes said he put the schedule together with the intention of testing his team’s attitude, effort and execution through adversity.
“The biggest thing for us, we kind of harp on three things – attitude, effort (and) execution,” Hughes said. “Really the two biggest things for us is attitude and execution on how we do that, and I feel like we’ve done a really good job on that the last two years. That’s continuing to do that even though we’re not playing for a playoff spot, but it’s keeping that level and that intensity.
“I think that’s why I put the schedule together the way I did, where we’re going to play different teams from different states, people we’ve never seen before. Then make some trips to play some tough teams that’s going to put us in situations where we’re going to have some adversity and then seeing those kids and how their attitude is, how their execution is and
their effort through those different forms of adversity.”
There is one familiar opponent on this year’s calendar in Copperhill, Tennessee’s Copper Basin.
The Eagles’ 22-0 loss to the Cougars was one of only two losses the team had last season in an 8-2 campaign, and Hughes said the game will serve as not only an opportunity for payback, but also a barometer on how far the team has come.
“That was a tough game for us and we went through about a two game stretch where we had about six or seven kids that were dinged up and injured and that’s part of football,” Hughes said. “Having (last season’s loss) gives us a little bit of an extra boost going into that to kind of, I’ll say get a little payback, but to see where we are and how we’ve progressed and how we’ve grown and how much better we’ve gotten from that year to this one.”
The Eagles’ fall camp is expected
to include an open race at quarterback between last season’s starter Ronin Thompson, who also plays defensive end, and freshman Gino Luckie.
“Both the kids have very unique qualities and traits,” Hughes said. “You know Ronin is a really good passing quarterback, but is a dualthreat kid, almost. He’s a running quarterback, very physical (and) can throw the ball very well. Geno started the (spring game) with about a 70-yard touchdown pass, and started the game for us. He had a huge game as well.”
Hughes also said there’s a possibility both quarterbacks see the field this season.
“I know a lot of people don’t like a two-quarterback system but that’s something we may really kind of look into this year with kind of how we do things,” he said. “And again with Ronin playing both sides of the ball very effectively as well.”
the signal-caller may be, the Eagles return each of their four most productive receivers from last season in DeAnthony Wymbs, Asher Adams, Alex
Hedden and Tripp Parson who all combined for 1,511 yards and 18 touchdowns.
In the backfield, Wesley Dunlop is expected to bring more
continuity after posting 682 rushing yards and six touchdowns last season, and will be joined by newcomer Zion Williams.
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Luckie gets to grow up with Mount Bethel
By Kai Millette MDJ Sports Writer
Gino Luckie has the chance to be next up in an accomplished football family.
Georgia football fans may quickly recognize the Luckie family name from current Bulldogs tight end Lawson Luckie, who ended his freshman season with 24 receptions, three for touchdowns.
Older fans may also remember the Luckie triplets from the late 90s. Mike, Miles and Dustin Luckie became the first set of triplets to play together at the Division I level, and remained the only to do so until this year when the Coleman triplets enrolled at Texas.
Gino’s father, Dustin Luckie, started at linebacker for the Bulldogs for two seasons. His uncle Miles Luckie, started at center for
two seasons and was named firstteam All-SEC in 1999, and middle triplet Mike Luckie spent three seasons playing in Athens before transferring to James Madison, where he helped lead the Dukes to a Division I-AA playoff appearance.
Largely due to his family’s influence, football has been a large part of Gino Luckie’s life for about as long as he can remember.
“Football’s been a great thing ever since I was little,” he said. “I was introduced maybe when I was like four or five and ever since I was little, that’s all I’ve been doing since I was like a kid so, I love it, that’s what I like to do.”
Distinguishing himself from his relatives, Gino plays quarterback.
“Gino’s one of those kids that likes to do the coaching mode when playing Madden or anything like that,” Dustin
Luckie said. “He just always had a football mind. He liked that side of the ball and (he’s) worked at it really hard.”
Despite his son’s young age, Dustin Luckie said it’s easy to pick up on Gino’s unique leadership skills.
“If you were to talk to any of his coaches, they’d tell you he has a leadership quality – something’s in him, it’s always been that way,” Dustin Luckie said. “You can’t really teach that quality he has being a leader, and he’s always been out front. He’s just a unique kid in that way.”
As a freshman, Gino is in the running to be the starting quarterback for Cobb County’s newest Georgia High School Association member, Mount Bethel, a program he said has given him the best time of his life, providing growth on and off the field.
“I’ve only been here for almost one and a half years, and so far
it’s been the best time of my life,” Luckie said. “I’ve learned so much and gotten so much better. It’s been just a great joy to be here.”
He said his dream is to continue playing football at the next level, but he wouldn’t reserve his options to Georgia.
“I’m not sure (where I would want to go), I have no idea,” he said. “Whatever God has in plan for me that’s what I’m going to do.”
Still at the front end of his high school career, Gino Luckie is aware his play has plenty of time to improve. He said his primary objective is to grow off the field and as a leader in the locker room.
“This season I would like to become a better person, not only for myself but for my teammates,” he said. “(I would like) to improve as a leader. I have to be the best person on the field and off the field.”
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Gino Luckie will take the quarterback reins at Mount Bethel this season, breaking from the family tradition of mainly playing defense.
Q&A with Mt. Bethel’s Micah Hughes
Mount Bethel Christian coach Micah Hughes and his team will face a nonregion schedule this year before joining Region 5A Division I next season.
By Kai Millette MDJ Sports Writer
Q: Tell us about yourself. Where are you from and how did you settle into Cobb County?
A: I’m originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee. I went to Soddy Daisy High School, and as soon as I got out of high school, I knew I wanted to get into coaching, I ended up coaching at the Baylor School in Chattanooga, which is a pretty prominent private school there. From there, I took a defensive coordinator job at a rural public school. A lot of people thought I was crazy. They were like what are you doing? It was to help start a program. So that’s kind of been my passion. It was called Sale Creek High School. The ability to kind of start a program and put your stamp on it. (That) was huge for me.
Q: What was so good about Sale Creek?
A: They never had football. They had been okay at other sports, basketball and some things like that, but they had never had football. So coming in and having to teach kids how to put a helmet on, how to put shoulder pads on, we weren’t even at Xs and Os yet. It was just how to put your equipment on. And then kind of move into how to play football. So you got to teach it from the ground up, which made me a lot better coach.
Q: Mount Bethel is your first head coaching job. How did you first find out about the school here?
A: I had a buddy who was at South Forsyth. I had coached him at Sale Creek. He called me and said, ‘Hey, you need to check this job out,’ because he had known I had been looking at a couple of head coaching jobs, and I had been offered a couple, but it just really wasn’t the right time or right situation for me. When you start doing your research and you do your due diligence where you could have success or the administration wants to be successful, some of them aren’t as appealing or maybe not the right move for you at that point in time. I started doing research on it, and while I was doing the research, you start to figure some things out.
I went through a pretty extensive interview process here. When I got here and really started talking to the administration they had a five year plan in place. I was really impressed and kind of knew the amount of work they had put into the planning. When I was offered the position we quickly made the decision to come down here and take the job.
Q: you mentioned a five-year process, I imagine we’re probably around Year 3 or 4 right now?
A: Yes. Year 1 was the planning process. Year 2, they did like a padded flag football just to kind of launch the football aspect of it. Year 3 was us playing a modified, I say modified, like a JV schedule, which we did play a couple varsity games in the first year. Just found some teams that were smaller schools like us. We actually played a team that was in the same situation as us, brand new program, starting out. Last year we played almost all varsity games. And really, like our first year, we were able to go 5-5. Last year, we were able to go 8-2 and had a lot of success. We’ve had a lot of success too at the middle school level, but this will be fully Year 3.
Q: What are some of the long term visions and goals of this program?
A: Grow the numbers. We’ve had decent sized rosters within our middle school programs. We have two middle school programs, the Junior Eagles, which is fourth, fifth, and sixth grade, and then we have the true middle school program, which is seventh (and) eighth grade. We have to get kids excited about football. The long term goal is to grow the program, to have success. Win and be successful, that’s what we’re looking to do.
Q: There are a number of notable private schools in Cobb County – North Cobb Christian, Mount Paran Christian, Walker and Whitefield Academy right up the road. Are you looking forward to getting a chance to play them, and as far as potential rivalries go, who maybe sticks out to you?
A: I’ve been asked that question some about the rivalries and who. I def initely want to see and play all those schools around the area. From a rivalry standpoint, I’ve tried to look at it from a basketball or baseball standpoint to try to figure out who it is. Who’s the best team? Who’s that gold standard in this area? You want to be able to compete against those type teams. So it’s still trying to learn the landscape from my standpoint. We want to compete at that high level with the best of the best, and just try to figure out who that is and matching up against them each week.
Answershavebeeneditedforspaceandclarity
Special - Paul Holm
COCHRAN
From Page 112
I’m out here and coaching them so hard. I want them to have that same experience, and the same success I had.”
Cochran and Morrison were weight-training partners in high school, and Cochran said coaching alongside him has been “picking up right where we left off.”
As Cochran transitions from his playing to coaching days, he’s had a decorated coaching staff to learn from. Collins has 107
VETS
From Page 115
got, we want to go farther. We want to make a little history and get past the elite eight for sure. And we want to win this region because we came up short last year.”
Matz, especially, is slated for a more substantial role within the Sequoyah defense following the departure of Ean Marria, who tallied 18 tackles for loss and eight sacks last season. Matz had 36 tackles, nine tackles for loss and four sacks as a junior.
wins across 21 years of coaching with two region championships, including a 38-27 record with the Knights.
“I had great relationships with all of my coaches, and playing college ball helped a lot with trying to know the game better,” Cochran said. “It hasn’t been that big of an adjustment. It was more of an adjustment going into teaching, but it’s just been ball, which is something that I love to do.”
Cochran sees River Ridge as a very real postseason threat heading into 2025, with high praise for his new offensive line and
Waller, Matz and offensive lineman Riley O’Neill – all seniors –were at the forefront of Sequoyah’s anti-complacency push during the offseason.
SEAMAN
From Page 106
quarterback to watch, the Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen.
Now entrenched as the full-time starter, Seaman hopes to lead the program to more victories this season. Lassiter went 2-8 a year ago and has only won 14 games over the last seven seasons. He said he expects the team to be better as the Trojans look for their first playoff berth since 2016.
“Win, play hard and work as a team,“ he said of their goals.
Seaman said that the coaches at Lassiter have helped him develop a lot.
“They have helped me with my leadership, my playmaking and they have helped me learn the plays a lot better,” he said. “Lassiter has
“With a lot of us starting and a lot of us getting new roles, we just hold each other accountable and set the standard,” Matz said.
“We are not joking around this year. We’re trying to go as deep as we can.”
According to O’Neill, team chemistry and the sizable senior class have also helped the Chiefs keep their eyes on the prize.
Sequoyah’s 30-player senior unit includes running back Will Rajecki (Memphis commit), offensive lineman Alex Brewer (Colorado State) and quarterback Kolby Martin, who’s led this team behind center since his freshman year.
O’Neill said team chemistry has strengthened exponentially over time, coming from
helped me become a better teammate, a better person, a better son and a better brother.”
Seaman said his brotherhood with the Trojans is special.
“I’ve been with Lassiter since sixth grade,” he said. “All of my teammates that were on my team in sixth grade have been my friends for a very long time, and I love them all.”
Seaman said his father inspired him to play the game.
“He was the first one to teach me how to throw a football, and he has always helped me,” he said. “He has always been there for me, he knows what is best for me, and he helps me a lot.”
As he continues to learn the game, Seaman said quarterbacks coach Josh Herring is a big influence on the field for him both on the field and off.
returning running back Camden Cox. With those position groups as strengths, along with a new quarterback, Cochran expects the Knights to lean on the run game to find success.
“I think a big emphasis this year is that we’re going to run it, and we’re going to be very physical,” Cochran said. “That’s a big reason why I’m so hard on them — I’m trying to get the best out of them, get the best out of double teams and all that stuff. It’s because I want to see the best, and I think we can be that, especially with the guys that we have in the backfield.”
elementary and middle school, when they first stepped onto the field together.
Sequoyah has been an underdog over the last few years, according to Waller, especially with a younger quarterback. With last season’s quarterfinals run, along with an experienced and dedicated roster, the Chiefs aren’t sneaking up on anyone in 2025.
“We want to make a deep run, and we want to win state — that’s always the goal,” O’Neill said. “We want to win the region, but what we want to do is always make sure that we’re going all out. We are setting an example that we don’t take plays off, we don’t take reps off. We just always keep working.”
ALTERMAN
From Page 109
personnel wise, Greyhounds fans can expect some aspects of the offense itself to look different around Alterman and other first-time starters.
The Greyhounds have a lot to replace and a lot to prove, however, Alterman knows the turnover also leads to an opportunity for him and his teammates.
“I’m looking forward to seeing what our offense and defense can do against other teams and have a winning season,” he said.
For Alterman, it is about the energy he feels on the field on Friday nights. As a senior, he is looking forward to being the guy that leads his team into every game.
The leadership role will be new for Alterman, but he feels in the midst of a long season and region schedule his leadership will make a difference.
“Just do my best to support my team on everything,” Alterman said. “Don’t let anything get to anyone.”
At Pope, the program is building towards the future with a young roster, but players like Alterman know this is their last chance. He feels the pressure on him to lead the backfield.
However, coach Sean O’Sullivan is confident one of the most experienced returning players will be up to the challenge.
“I expect him to have a big senior year,” O’Sullivan said. “He’s played on Friday nights, which always helps when you have a kid with experience back.”
“He always tells me what to do,” Seaman said. “He is always encouraging me, even if I make a bad throw.”
The confidence and encouragement he’s gotten from his coaches and teammates has helped him fulfill his spot as a team leader.
“I make sure my teammates are doing the right thing at the right time,” he said. “I help out players that need to know what the plays are and what to do or questions that the coaches don’t have time to answer.”
Lassiter coach Sean Thom has been impressed as Seaman has grown into the quarterback role, and he has seen those leadership qualities emerge.
“I think he’s a phenomenal young man, he’s a leader,” Thom said. “He is the type of guy that if you send a message out and you need
something, he is the first one to respond. He is a leader in the weight room and he is a leader in a school building.”
Thom said that when he first saw Seaman, he did not expect him to be a quarterback. The young player was husky to the point he may have his hand on the ground as an offensive lineman. It was because of a relentless work ethic Seaman has worked his way into his current position.
“I’m glad I was wrong,” Thom said. “I was somewhat joking with him, but he is a phenomenal person.”
Seaman said he looks forward to his future outside of football.
“I hope to be a good husband, be a good brother and be a good son,” he said. “I hope to find a good career that suits me.”
From Page 131
has shaped their brotherhood.
“It has made us more disciplined, made us play better as a team and let us know what we need to do to get better,” he said.
Each player has their own story, whether it is perseverance, improvement, or dreams of supporting their parents through football.
Corpus said he has been taught to grind through challenges.
“The time at Allatoona I spent, it’s really been a great experience,” he said. “It taught me grit, getting through my sophomore season through an injury really taught me how to persevere through things that are tough.”
Coleman said he has improved a lot during his high school career. He logged 34 tackles, two sacks and four tackles for loss last season.
“Before, I did not know what I was doing, but after getting training, I have gotten better and more experienced,” he said. “I am more prepared for college and the higher level.”
Duckworth said the growth is apparent in his teammates across the board. Smith said Duckworth helps anchor the offensive line.
“We’ve all definitely gotten a lot stronger, a lot of development and growth through our training and all the work ethic we put in here,” he said. Duckworth said he dreams of turning football
POSITION
From Page 127
commit to the Yellow Jackets. The expectations are certainly higher, but Agyemang is using the outside noise as fuel.
“It all came pretty fast, but I think I handled it pretty well,” Agyemang said. “I didn’t let it get to me or get to my head, and just use that motivation to go harder.”
The consensus three-star prospect will play tight end for the
DUCKETT
From Page 118
to be named the Region 6AAAAA Offensive Player of the Year and earning scholarship offers from eight schools, including Miami of Ohio, Eastern Kentucky and Central Michigan.
His efforts helped propel the Yellow Jackets to a 9-1 regular season record, Region 6AAAAA championship and two playoff wins, but their season came to an end in emphatic fashion with a 64-0 defeat to Lee County in the state quarterfinals.
into a means to support his family.
“My biggest goal is to make it out for my parents,” he said. “We’re in a good situation now, but I love football so much and being able to retire them is my biggest dream.”
The upperclassmen have many messages for younger players on the team.
“Relentless effort is key. More effort is better,” Duckworth said. “If you make a mistake just make sure you are making it at full speed.”
Coleman said to be coachable.
“My advice to them is keep your head down and work hard,” Corpus said. “Coach Smith appreciates hard work and he would definitely take you on the field as long as you know what you’re doing and work hard.”
Coleman said that this final season for him and his fellow seniors means more than anything.
“We’ve got to put everything together now,” he said. “When we get into the season we can’t be playing around, and have to take it more seriously so we can do better than we did last time.”
Duckworth said that he expects big things this year for the team.
“We’re going to be great this year,” he said. Corpus, who had 604 yards and six touchdowns last year, said there is improvement made throughout the locker room.
“Our goal for the team is definitely a state championship,” he said. “Our O and D-line look good this year, I feel that I could rush for like 1,500 yards with the help of my lineman. As long as we lock in this season we definitely walk away with a state championship.”
Longhorns in 2025. Agyemang will join a talented Kell offense alongside quarterback Kaleb Narcisse and running back Moonie Gipson.
“We make each other better every day,” said Agyemang. “Just playing with them, it’s like a confidence booster.”
Although Agyemang has only been in the Longhorns program for a couple of months, he and coach Bobby May believe he is fitting right into the program.
“He’s a smart kid, he’s a really humble kid, he’s a hard worker, so I think we’re happy to have him.” May said.
At 6-foot-5, 230-pounds Agyemang will be able to utilize his size and athleticism at tight end while remaining a capable pass catcher for the Longhorns and Narcisse.
“He’s a really good blocker,” May said. “Obviously, he’s a size mismatch.”
Agyemang will enter a new program with new expectations and a lot more to prove. He has just one season with the Longhorns, but coming off a summer where they won three 7-on-7 titles, the expectation is a state championship.
Duckett said the loss left a bad taste in his mouth and he couldn’t watch the film for a whole week after the game, but he eventually dove in to see what he could fix.
He identified consistency in his passing game as an area where he needs improvement, so he has been focusing on putting in the reps this offseason to elevate that aspect of his game.
Duckett also set a personal goal of 3,000 passing yards for his senior season, as he hopes to prove he is a complete quarterback.
“A lot of people think I’m just a running back, but I want to prove them wrong,” he said. “I think I
From Page 118
Graham, totaling 452 yards and three touchdowns.
In one of the duo’s best performances last season, Graham and Drew connected five times for 125 yards and a touchdown to beat Creekview for the first time in program history and earn Georgia High School Football Daily’s statewide “Team of the Week” award.
“Playing with Drew was a blessing, to be honest,” Graham said. “It was fun throwing him the ball and seeing him just be great, you know. And going to college, hopefully, he can contribute at Columbia and do well.”
With Burmeister now a year older and more experienced, he’s expected to become a vocal leader for third-year coach Dan Devine’s team. He understands the assignment, and it’s been an adjustment because of his mild-mannered personality, but Burmeister looks to take his game to the next level this year, individually, while also helping Woodstock advance past Round 1 of the playoffs for just the fifth time in school history. He hopes to reach the 3,000-yard mark in the passing game, which would likely lead Cherokee County in 2025.
The 2024 leader, Cherokee’s Tanner Savasir, threw for 2,674 yards. Burmeister sees those goals every day when he opens up his phone. The dualthreat quarterback has lofty expectations for himself, and now he can prove himself in 2025 as the Wolverines’ most impactful player.
“I have a screenshot on my phone of what I want — 3,000-plus passing yards and 700-plus rushing yards,” Burmeister said. “I want to be over 30 touchdown passes. You obviously want to win games, and our goal is definitely to go deeper in the playoffs and succeed in our region.”
can do it. I think my team and my wide receivers are really gonna help me out, they’re going to make it an easier job to accomplish that goal.”
Sprayberry’s new coach Pete Fominaya has only been on campus for seven months, but he already has high praise for Duckett’s on-field talent, calling him one of the best dual threat quarterbacks he has been around.
Fominaya said it’s Duckett’s intangibles that stand out the most.
“What I’m most impressed with is his leadership and commitment to our team,” Fominaya said. “He wants us to be great. He’s doing
everything he can for us to go as far as we possibly can. I think that speaks louder about him than anything he can do on the field. You can turn on the Hudl tape and be shocked by how good of a football player he is, but he’s a better leader and better person for this team.”
Duckett’s leadership comes with a healthy confidence in the guys around him, and he believes the team as a whole will take a major step forward next season.
“We got some guys this season,” Duckett said. “I feel like nobody in Georgia is expecting what we’re going to do this year.”
MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN EAGLES
Arnold hopes for new heights in first full season
By Grant Turnage MDJ Sports Writer
Mount Paran Christian enters the 2025 season with a strong foundation and heightened expectations, aiming to climb the ranks in Region 5A Division I.
After finishing 2024 with an 8-4 overall record and a 3-2 mark in region play, coach Connie Arnold, entering his first full season at the helm, said he plans to guide the program to new heights.
Arnold, a familiar face within the Eagles program since 2011, transitioned into the head coaching role officially in April after being the team’s interim coach last year. He gives credit to his experienced and dedicated coaching staff for the smooth shift.
“The transition has been pretty smooth, because we have a great coaching staff, and we have guys who believe in what we are doing,”
Arnold said. “For the most part, our coaching staff has stayed intact. Those guys work just as hard as I do, and they care as much as I do about what this program means.”
Drawing lessons from his decadelong mentorship under former head coach Mitch Jordan, Arnold continues to prioritize character development alongside on-field success.
Offensively, the Eagles will stick to their established triple-option base, but with a new addition. Arnold has integrated a two-minute offense into the playbook, aiming to make the team more versatile and capable of attacking defenses in different ways.
A significant strength for the Eagles, according to Arnold, will be their offensive line. This year’s front will feature juniors Carter Levstek, Webb Scarbrough and Cooper Thompson, senior JJ Hankins, and sophomore Hunter New.
Leading the backfield will be junior running back Gavin Steele, a key offensive weapon who closed 2024 with 894 rushing yards and 12 total touchdowns.
“Gavin’s barely scratched the surface of what he’s capable of,” Arnold said. “Every year he gets closer and closer to having a breakout year. He’s the catalyst for our offense right now. He’s going to have the load of the carries, and I think it’s realistic to think that he’s 12-plus touchdowns for the season.”
On the defensive side of the ball, Mount Paran will bring back key returners. Sophomores Cash Cauley and Alejandro Torres, who both started as freshman, bring experience and understanding of the playbook to the secondary. Cash had three interceptions and 32 tackles last season, while Alejandro had two interceptions and 26 tackles. Arnold said he was impressed by
their poise as young players under the lights, believing their baptism by fire as a freshman will serve them well this year.
Junior Davis Cauley contributed significantly last season with 69 total tackles. Up front, junior Bennett Schwab, who led the team with eight quarterback hurries and added three sacks, serves as the “motor” on the defensive line. Linebackers Jack Hollis and Christian Holmes, who combined for 111 total tackles, are two more defensive players Arnold expects to perform well for the Eagles.
Region 5A Division I is segmented into two sub-regions, with the Eagles competing in Sub-Region B. In 2024, Mount Paran finished second in their sub-region behind Whitefield. Arnold acknowledges the overall strength of the region, though the immediate focus remains on their own team, with closer See EAGLES, Page 144
MT. PARAN CHRISTIAN EAGLES
Lake Oconee Academy.......0-16 ............L
Mount Pisgah Christian ....17-13 ..........W
St. Francis .............................27-3 ..........W
Calvary Day ..........................7-48 ............L
Connie
Tyron Kirkland .......AHC/ OC
Brandon Scarborough.....DC
Blake Jones........................OL
Kyle Levstek .......................OL
Carter Smith .......................OL
Jerimiah Aken....................DL CJ Jackson ........................WR Cam Ealey ..........................LB
FAMOUS FOOTBALL ALUMNI
QB Niko Vangarelli (2016-19), ........................................................Princeton
OL Brady Scott (2013-16), ..........................................................Florida State
DL Allen Cater (2012-15), .......................................................North Carolina
RB Taylor Trammell (2012-15), ............................New York Yankees (MLB)
DB Dorian Walker (2011-14), ...............................................Kennesaw State
EAGLES
From Page 143
attention to crossover matchups later in the season.
The path to a deeper playoff run
SACKS
Finbarr Crowley ....6
INTERCEPTIONS
Reed Stallings ........3 Cash Cauley 3
and a potential region championship will demand consistency and health. Arnold said depth could become a factor if injuries mount, as some players have opted for single-sport commitments.
“It’s going to take a year of focus
with the guys we have, and it’s going to take a year of just staying healthy,” Arnold said.
To prepare, Mount Paran beefed up its non-region schedule. Marquee matchups against Savannah Christian and Cedar Grove, will
provide invaluable tests.
“You want to put your kids out there against really good athletes and a really challenging game,” Arnold said, highlighting these challenging contests as crucial opportunities to prepare for the postseason.
Experienced OL to pace way for MPC
By Grant Turnage MDJ Sports Writer
With a seasoned offensive line, a workhorse running back, and a full year under Mount Paran Christian coach Connie Arnold, there’s a sense of renewed focus and determination within the program.
The unit will be responsible for paving the way for the triple-option attack that Arnold plans to stick with which has been a core of the Eagles offense in recent years. He believes the offensive line can compete with anyone they face and are developing into leaders.
“I feel like it’s a big responsibility, but it also encourages us to put in more work than everyone else and showing up in practices when we have harder stuff to do,” said JJ Hankins, the only senior of the
group. “We know it pays off in games and we’re able to show our abilities and help to carry the team.”
Arnold said the offensive line had a mix of seasoned players and promising young talent. At center, fans can expect a rotation between two seniors: Luke O’Kelly, who stands at 6-foot, 300-pounds, and JJ Hankins, at 6-1, 220 pounds.
The tackles include a trio of talented underclassmen. Juniors Cooper Thompson (6-4, 230) pounds and Carter Levstek (6-4, 315) are poised to anchor the edges, bringing both size and experience.
Joining them will be sophomore Imri Dunson, a formidable presence at 6-4, 264-pounds, who is also expected to see considerable action at tackle.
Rounding out the starters, junior Webb Scarbrough, weighing in at
6-1, 235-pounds, will take up a spot at guard.
Levstek, entering his third year as a starter at offensive guard and tackle, led the team last year with 58 pancake blocks as part of the unit’s total of 104. His dedication and leadership are already evident to his teammates. This summer, he attended several recruiting camps to get interest from college coaches. His ultimate goal is to play in the SEC and hopes to get his first offer this fall.
“Nothing’s changed. I mean, we got a taste of what he’s like last year, and it’s just how we are focused,” Levstek said. “The team and coach Arnold are focused on winning these games. I think that with him being the coach, it’ll boost us a lot higher.”
The offensive line’s success is also intertwined with the trust they share
with running back Gavin Steele. Arnold anticipates Steele, who racked up 894 yards and 12 touchdowns last season, will be the workhorse in the Eagles’ ground game. Looking ahead at the challenging Region 5A Division 1 schedule for sub-region B, the Eagles have circled a few key matchups. Whitefield Academy is a team they are particularly eager to face again.
“I’m really excited to face Whitfield again,” Scarbrough said. “I really want that opportunity to prove that last year was not our best and that we are a better team, a more mature team, and that they are someone I’m really excited to face, because they have got some good players, and I think it’ll be a good challenge for us, but it would be a good time to prove what we have.”
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Carter Levstek, Webb Scarbrough, JJ Hankins, Cooper Thompson and Hunter New will pace the Eagles’ triple-option offense.
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Undermanned Wolverines building a solid foundation
By Lance Warren MDJ Sports Writer
Coach TJ Anderson said the future of Walker football is on its way up.
“The future’s bright, for sure,” he said. “We’re building it the right way and the future is obviously to be able to compete and put a good product on the field and have a successful program. I just think that the future is very bright and that’s one of the reasons why I keep this job is because I know this is a great job and a great community of support. We’re going to get there one day and we’re heading in the right direction.”
The Wolverines are coming off their first year back playing a full region schedule in which they went 2-8 with an 0-5 record in region 5-A Division I.
Anderson said growth is about the little things this year.
“A big one for us is just getting the numbers up,” he said. “Participation has been a problem here at Walker
but even with that, you know, the guys that we have right now I just want to see growth from those guys in terms of the way they’re learning the game of football and we’re trying to cultivate a culture of just having a great football experience and learning everything that it takes to play this game.”
Anderson said he expects Walker to field a team with somewhere between 20 and 25 players this season. He said they have to get more of the younger kids at the school to play football in an effort to grow the program.
“We’ve been trying to grow and promote our program with kids we already have at Walker,” Anderson said. “We’ve been working hard to build through our junior Wolverines programs and I host a summer youth football camp every year for first through sixth grade. I also hope to be able to start flagging kids for football as early as the elementary school level in the near future.”
He said not having the luxury of being able to have a ninth grade or
junior varsity team has hurt the program.
“As soon as kids hit ninth grade here they’re having to play varsity football,” Anderson said. “A lot of kids just shy away from it because they don’t have that development and they can’t develop on a JV or ninth grade team so it hurts us a little bit.”
Anderson said he hopes some of those freshmen from last year can take small steps this season.
“Growth for those guys just means that they’re picking up the offensive and defensive schemes we’re implementing,” he said. “And hopefully they’ve gotten a little bigger, a little faster, a little stronger and are ready to compete at the varsity level.”
Anderson said the players he has have bought in.
“We have a small number of guys that are consistently bought in,” he said. “They show up everyday and it’s not many of them but that’s a strength for us as far as those guys being committed to each other and
committed to building a football program. The bond and the relationships they’ve built among each other and the coaching staff, you know, that’s one thing we’ve done a good job of at Walker.”
Anderson said senior Grant Addison is one player who’s been a standout despite the program’s struggles.
“Grant has been a special player for us ever since he was a freshman,” he said. “He’s a Walker kid through and through just in the way he goes about his business the right way and lives his life. He’s a high moral kid, high academic kid and he’s going to be the guy we feature game in and game out. Everyone knows that when they play Walker it’s all about finding number eleven so, you know, he’s Mr. Everything for us.”
The 6-foot-2, 180-pounder had 49 receptions for 585 yards and five touchdowns in 2024 to go along with 20 carries for 154 yards and a touchdown on the ground. He See WOLVERINES, Page 148
WALKER WOLVERINES
815 Allgood Rd. NE, Marietta, GA 30062 • Robertson Field https://www.thewalkerschool.org/football-varsity X: @TWS_Football Instagram: tws_football_
OL Hunter Nourzad (2014-17), .....................................................Penn State
DL Nick Schulz (2003-06), ........................................................Wake Forest
DL Mike Ramsay (2009-12), ...................................................................Duke
Jack Burkhalter 2 INTERCEPTIONS Lyndon Davison ....1 Amara Gueye 1
Coach: T.J. Anderson • 3rd Season • Record: 8-13 • Career: 8-13
WOLVERINES
From Page 147
played in seven games tallying 739 allpurpose yards and six touchdowns. Ian Hall will be the quarterback for Walker.
The 5-foot-10, 150 pound rising sophomore played in eight games during 2024 completing 25 of 47 pass attempts for 213 yards.
“We can’t beat ourselves,”
Anderson said. “We have to overcome pre and post snap penalties and not put ourselves in a deficit that is already hard enough to climb out of with our participation numbers and the lack of depth that we have. Just playing the game of football with enthusiasm, flying around and most importantly, having fun is what matters. Playing the game with energy and passion is what it’s about for us.”
He said he wants his team to learn a lot from playing football at Walker.
“To me football is the ultimate game of life,” Anderson said. “That’s what we’re trying to preach and pour into these guys is that someday they’re going to learn a lot by overcoming the struggles that they have by playing football at Walker and it’ll help prepare them for any life challenges that they may face down the road as fathers, husbands or coworkers
so that’s what we’re preaching here mentality wise at Walker.” Anderson said he loves his job and Wolverines football.
“We got great kids here and I just think the people here at Walker are tremendous,” he said. “From our faculty and staff all the way down to everyone else here we just get so much support from everybody and the community and it’s just a tremendous place to be and I’m excited to be a part of what we’re building.”
Walker’s Evangelista using leadership role to prepare for post high school and college
By Lance Warren MDJ Sports Writer
Ty Evangelista said he’s just trying to share his experience and help Walker’s program grow during his senior year.
“I’ve been experiencing football at Walker since elementary school so I’m looking for one final year to share my experience,” he said. “We have a lot of freshmen and just a lot of younger guys and we’re just trying to grow our program. I know a lot of the rising freshmen so I’m just trying to help them all grow and build a stronger program for the future.”
The Wolverines are coming off their first season back playing a region schedule in which they went 2-8 with an 0-5 record in Region 5A Division I.
The 5-foot-10, 200-pound linebacker said his leadership can be a tool to help the team get through the difficult times.
“I think one of my biggest strengths is that I have a loud voice,” he said. “I think I am a pretty good leader, I know how to talk to people and I just want to set a good example for my team.”
Evangelista dealt with hamstring injuries limited him to just three games during the 2024 season.
He totaled nine tackles in those games.
He said he’s been working to recover and further prevent the nagging injuries which have plagued his career.
“I’ve had really bad hamstring problems so I’ve been working on being much more flexible,” he said. “I’ve been doing some yoga, continuing to work out, and focusing on my agility to just get better and healthier.”
Evangelista is a four sport athlete – competing in football, wrestling, lacrosse and track. He said playing so many sports helps him stay in shape, be stronger as an athlete
and improve his time management.
“In my opinion, the more sports you play, the better and stronger you’ll be,” he said. “In season you’ll always be better and more in shape than in the off-season so I think it just helps me stay fit for every season. And then of course just managing my time and everything has improved so much because of playing so many sports.”
Walker is only expecting to have between 20 and 25 players on the team this coming season. Evangelista said the players they do have are bought in, but the team needs more of them.
“We’ve been working very hard,” he said. “We got guys on both sides of the ball but I still think growth for us is getting more people in. The problem is, we do have a pretty big school but no one plays football. The people who do play are hard workers, give great effort and come in with a great spirit everyday. If guys are playing here they’re always going to work hard.”
Evangelista said Walker has changed him as a person.
“When I got here in sixth grade I was very rowdy and didn’t really have the ability to listen to others,” he said. “I was not who I am today because now I’m able to listen, learn and do better, even from the younger guys. I’ve learned to open my ears and I’m just very appreciative of this school. They’ve been very loving.”
Evangelista said his dream is to become a Navy SEAL when he graduates.
“There’s no better place to find family than with something like a military program,” he said. “I want to be the best of the best and I want to serve my country the best way I can. That’s definitely the focus once I graduate is just doing an ROTC Program for the Navy and then becoming a Navy SEAL.”
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Walker’s Ty Evangelista is preparing himself to be a successful leader once he leaves high school.
WHITEFIELD ACADEMY WOLFPACK
Whitefield eyeing trip to quarterfinals... or farther
By Faith Stokes MDJ Sports Writer
Whitefield coach Robert Walsh said he and his seniors are hungry for postseason play.
Walsh is entering his third season with the Wolfpack and he is ready to make it past the second round of playoffs for the first time in program history. With 73 kids on the roster this year, which is the most the program has ever had, Walsh said he is excited to see what they can accomplish this year.
Last year, the Wolfpack went 7-4 and 4-1 in Region 5A Division I, which was enough to finish third. It made it to the second round of Class A-AAA Private school playoffs, but short of making the quarterfinals for the first time in program history.
“The seniors have set the goal of getting to the quarterfinals for the first time, and getting past the second round,” Walsh said. “That’s definitely the hump they want to get over.”
Additions to the staff this season are wide receiver coach Octavious Andrews and defensive backs coach Jaquan Henderson. Andrews played at Georgia State and Auburn, and Henderson played at Georgia Tech. Walsh believes the two will bring a lot of knowledge from their experience at the highest level of college football.
“They’re both young,” Walsh said. “They’re definitely going to bring good energy.”
He added the Wolfpack have 16 seniors returning this year, with a lot on both sides of the ball. He said the offensive line and defensive line will be a strength for them
this year, and he is looking to senior Joshua Ellis to anchor the offensive line and senior William Dukes to anchor the defensive line.
Ellis is a guard and defensive tackle standing at 5-foot-11 and 270 pounds. Dukes, a defensive end, had 45 tackles and two sacks in eight games played.
“We have two really good slot receivers that are very dynamic with the ball in their hands, — Parker Shim and Cole Rabalais,” Walsh said.
Last year, Shim and Rabalais led the team in receiving. Shim had 22 receptions with 277 yards and two touchdowns. Rabalais had 22 receptions for 210 yards and two touchdowns.
Walsh said the quarterback position is still up for grabs, with juniors Landon Ryan and Ian Kelly battling over the summer. Ryan played
the first six games as quarterback before suffering an injury. Harrison Brantley took over, but the plan is for him to play receiver.
Walsh said Ryan did a good job last season managing the offense before his injury, but that Kelly and him are still in a good competition for the position.
Last year Brantley threw for 520 yards, three touchdowns while Ryan had 568 yards with three touchdowns. Kelly threw for 54 yards and a touchdown.
Senior Mason Hollingsworth is also a leader that Walsh will be looking to this year. Last year, Hollingsworth put up stats on both sides of the ball, as a running back and linebacker/safety. He had a total of 1,406 yards on offense, and will likely be more in the mix at receiver this season.
See WOLFPACK, Page 151
WHITEFIELD ACADEMY WOLFPACK
Savannah Christian ............7-35 ............L
Mount Vernon ....................35-14 ..........W
Social Circle .......................35-14 ..........W
QB Trey Miller (2005-08), .......................................................................Navy
WOLFPACK
From Page 150
Hollingsworth, at 6-foot, 185 pounds, had 1,214 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns last season.
The Wolfpack’s first game will be at home against non-region opponent Savannah Christian. In last year’s opener, Whitefield lost 35-7. The Wolfpack began playing Savannah Christian as their opener after Walsh was added to the coaching staff at Whitefield ahead of the 2023 season. He was Savannah Christian’s
defensive coordinator for six years. Walsh said he expects good competition in Region 5A Division I, and said he believes Mount Paran to be their biggest competitor in region play. Last year, the Wolfpack defeated the Eagles on the road, 35-8.
“I think Mount Paran is going to be a pretty good landmark,” Walsh said. “It has some really good athletes and are coached up really well.” Walsh also expects Fellowship and Wesleyan to be tough competition on the other side of the region championship.
Hollingsworth sets ambitious goals
By Faith Stokes MDJ Sports Writer
Mason Hollingsworth said he is aiming to break 2,000 total yards to have a career season. If he’s successful, the team likely will be too.
Whitefield Academy’s 6-foot, 185-pound star running back has big goals ahead of his senior season. Last year, Hollingsworth led the team in rushing with 1,214 yards and 14 touchdowns. He also had 15 receptions and 147 yards as a receiver.
Hollingsworth is a multisport athlete who plays multiple positions on Whitefield’s basketball team and runs the 100 and 200-meter dashes. He is also a member of the 4x100-meter relay team.
“Track helps a lot with endurance and speed,” he said. “Basketball helps with coordination and it translates to football, helping me with hand-eye coordination, speed and stamina so I can play
See HOLLINGSWORTH, Page 141
Special - Anthony Stalcup
Whitefield Academy’s Mason Hollingsworth has big goals for him and the Wolfpack.
CONFERENCE USA
Kennesaw State has long climb to top of CUSA
By Kai Millette MDJ Sports Writer
New quarterbacks and programs could shake things up in this year’s version of Conference USA.
With Delaware and Missouri State making their CUSA debuts and UTEP and Louisiana Tech taking a final lap around the league, the conference sits at 12 teams for the first time since 2012.
Jacksonville State will have to deal with the loss of experienced starting quarterback Tyler Huff. In his place, Kentucky transfer and former Rutgers starter Gavin Wimsett is expected to take over and bring high-level experience in coach Charles Kelly’s first season.
Last season’s pre-season favorite Liberty started 5-0 before being tripped up by Kennesaw State midseason and split its final six games to end the year. The Flames are expected to replace 2023’s CUSA MVP quarterback Kaidon Salter with last season’s Coastal Carolina starter Ethan Vasko. Running back Quinton Cooley was lost to the Canadian Football League and is expected to be replaced by former wide receiver Julian Gray.
Sam Houston State’s 10-3 record in 2024 may have been somewhat deceptive. The Bearkats struggled mightily on offense, ranking 99th in scoring in the nation and 122nd in passing. First-year coach Phil Longo
PREDICTED FINISH
and Gabriel Benyard provide options for the senior quarterback through the air while the Owls are expected to take a running back by committee approach. The defense returns most of its production, including every starter in the secondary.
Western Kentucky’s Ty Helton enters his sixth year with the program. The Hilltoppers made a run to the conference championship game last season, but find themselves replacing nearly their entire starting lineup.
Left tackle Marshall Jackson is the only returning starter on offense, and defensive backs Kent Robinson and Demarko Williams are the only two on defense. Abilene Christian transfer Maverick McIvor is expected to take over at quarterback after throwing for over 8,000 yards in three seasons at the FCS level.
Following an 0-6 start in coach Scotty Walden’s first season at UTEP, the Miners seemed to begin putting the pieces together late in the season, winning three of their last six games. The addition of former five-start recruit Malachi Nelson at quarterback is expected to help boost an offense that averaged just 19.5 points per game last season.
Louisiana Tech ranked 111th in total offense last season, but not due to quarterback play. All-CUSA freshman Evan Bullock returns as signal-caller after completing 65.8% of his passes last year with 14 touchdowns and just three interceptions. The Bulldogs ranked 12th in the nation last season in total defense, but they only return three starters.
will be a head coach for the first time in two decades after leaving as Wisconsin’s offensive coordinator to take the job. The Bearkats return three of five starters from a stout offensive line to protect returning starter Hunter Watson. This should be another year full of firsts for Kennesaw State. Firstyear coach Jerry Mack brings a newlook offense to the program, which is expected to be run by Georgia Southern quarterback transfer Dexter Williams II. Returners Christian Moss
HOLLINGSWORTH
From Page 152
throughout the whole game.”
Hollingsworth also plays defense as a linebacker and safety. Last season he had 45 tackles and two sacks. He said he is able to take his offensive knowledge and apply it on defense, and vice versa.
“They say a linebacker is like a running back on defense. So knowing what the linebacker is going to do as a running back helps a lot,” he said. “As a linebacker, seeing the different options that the running back has and being able to be there and make the play helps a lot.”
Hollingsworth said he also expects to be mixed in as receiver more this season, hoping to help push towards his goal of 2,000 total yards.
Middle Tennessee State enters the second year of the Derek Mason era following a 3-9 initial campaign. The Blue Raiders were one of the worst rushing and scoring teams at the FBS level last season, but veteran quarterback Nicholas Vattiato is expected to start for a third straight year. Chattanooga linebacker transfer Alex Mitchell is expected to have an immediate impact on a defense that ranked near the bottom of the country in rushing, passing and scoring.
He said a big goal for the team is to make it to the quarterfinals, something that has never been done in Whitefield program history.
“As a team, quarterfinals is a big goal that we’ve all had since freshman year and we’ve just been falling short of that,” Hollingsworth said.
As a running back, the relationship with the offensive line is vital. Hollingsworth said the players up front protect him, and they’re some of his best friends.
“If I could buy them something I would. They’re all really nice guys and you know, they protect me,” he said.
Coach Robert Walsh took over the program in Hollingsworth’s sophomore year. Despite the adjustment, Hollingsworth said he and Walsh have grown very close.
“It’s like tough love. He’s definitely a great mentor, someone I look up to,” he said.
Walsh said he is a very passionate, high energy coach and holds the players to a high standard.
FIU held onto standout quarterback Keyone Jenkins in the offseason, but lost just about the rest of its production.
New Mexico State struggled on both sides of the ball in coach Tony Sanchez’s first year, finishing 121st in total offense and 120th in total defense. Montana transfer quarterback Logan Fife who put up solid numbers last year is expected to take over an offense only returning three starters.
Delaware and Missouri State bring well established programs into the conference, but are ineligible for postseason play this season.
He said he and Hollingsworth had to figure each other out to really shape it into the relationship they have today.
“That kid’s pure as gold to me,” he said. “He’s a great kid that comes from a great family and represents our community well.”
Walsh also said Hollingsworth was voted by his peers to be captain as a junior, which says a lot about him in the locker room when the coaches aren’t around.
During the offseason, Hollingsworth said he is constantly in the weight room seeing trainers to make sure his body is prepared with three sports going on.
Hollingsworth’s recruitment process is off to a slow start, although he has no firm offers he has attended camps and had some conversation with schools in the offseason. He is hopeful to continue his career and has plans to play on Saturdays, if he is given the opportunity.
KENNESAW STATE OWLS
Owls look for better showing in CUSA under Mack
By John Bednarowski sportseditor@mdjonline.com
For the first time in the 11-year history of the Kennesaw State football program, it will open a season with a new head coach.
Former North Carolina Central coach Jerry Mack was hired last fall to replace Brian Bohannon, the only coach the Owls had ever had. Like Bohannon at the program’s inception, Mack was able to sell his own vision of program firsts to bring new players to campus.
“It was the opportunity,” Mack
said. “We sold the chance to play on national TV. We sold an opportunity for snaps and a chance to get on the field, for a chance to be the No. 1 and not just be a guy. And there was a chance to play in the program’s first bowl game.”
In its first year as a member of Conference USA, KSU suffered through growing pains. The Owls went 2-10 and 2-6 in conference play and struggled on both sides of the ball. The offense only averaged 16.5 points per game while the defense allowed 31.2. To try and get the team back pointed in
the right direction, and fulfill his vision, Mack attacked the transfer portal and almost completely turned over the roster.
Offensively, the team should look different playing a more balanced style of offense, and it will start with Georgia Southern transfer quarterback Dexter Williams II.
Williams has had limited playing time, seeing action in only five games a year ago, but he finished the year 19-of-30 for 238 yards and three touchdowns. It will also be important to develop Wofford transfer Amari Odom, a redshirt
sophomore, and true freshman Skylar Williams to lead the program into the future.
Mack said Coleman Bennett, a redshirt senior transfer from Rice, and returnee Alexander Diggs have taken the lead in the running back department. Bennett, who saw action in only four games last season, was a second-team All-Patriot League running back at Bucknell in 2023 with 1,377 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns.
Diggs, in three seasons at KSU, has rushed for 122 yards. Working See OWLS, Page 156
Coach: Jerry Mack • 1st Season • Record: 0-0 • Overall: 31-15
OWLS
From Page 155
his way into the mix is West Georgia transfer Chase Belcher, who had 422 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns.
Former North Cobb high school standout Christian Moss ,and Gabriel Benyard, who enters his fifth season in the program have separated themselves heading into fall camp.
“They are the top dogs,” Mack said. “We expect them to be productive and move the ball.”
In the slot are Tykeem Wallace and last year’s starting quarterback
Davis Bryson.
“They are older and have played a little bit,” Mack said.
One key area is the offensive line where 14 of the 18 players on the roster are new. The unit has gotten significantly bigger as 13 of the players are at least 6-foot4, 300-pounds, including Georgia Tech transfer Brandon Best.
One key player who is not quite at the 300-pound mark is Florida International transfer JaDarious Lee, who at 6-4, 287-pounds is the leader to be the new left tackle.
“We like the combination,” Mack said. “A lot of guys have played college football.”
Defensively, Donovan Westmoreland, a transfer from South Carolina, is expected to finally make his KSU debut at edge rusher. Mack said he has had a great offseason and will join a group which includes Western Kentucky transfer Marcus Patterson, Liberty transfer Roderick Daniels and true freshman Jackson Cooper.
Adam Watkins, Georgia State transfer Tylon Dunlap and former Pope High School standout Jaiden Grimes will help man the inside of the line.
Mack said he has been impressed with Grimes, who has put on 15 pounds of muscle and has had a really good offseason.
Three returnees highlight the linebackers — Garland Benyard, Baron Hopson and Juan Silas. They are expected to earn starting positions, while the defensive backfield will have a Cobb County feel.
Three of the leading contenders for playing time are former Lassiter standout Tyler Hallum, who had 56 tackles and an interception last season, Milon Jones (Marietta) and James Ziglor (Harrison), who Mack said is coming into his own. Jones had 62 tackles a year ago, and Ziglor, who saw action in nine games, will see time along with starter JeRico Washington Jr. and Isaac Paul in the secondary.
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COBB FOOTBALL FRIDAY
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KSU offensive line ready to surprise
By John Bednarowski sportseditor@mdjonline.com
Kennesaw State offensive lineman JT Pennington has to be laser focused when he takes his place on the line of scrimmage.
It’s not just because there is a large opponent lining up opposite him who will be trying to get to his quarterback. It starts well before with the line calls. He has to focus to make sure he can understand the things being called out by new linemate, South Florida transfer Nikola Milovac.
Milovac, who goes by Mili to his friends and teammates, comes from Indjija, Serbia, has a unique accent which forces Pennington, from Wilsonville, Alabama, to concentrate a little harder to make sure he understands the calls.
“Coming from Alabama, I couldn’t be any more different,” Pennington jokingly said about understanding the Eastern European accent. “It took me a little while to know what he heck he was saying.”
Milovac laughed and said it was equally challenging to understand Pennington’s southern drawl, but it was all part of learning about new teammates.
That was especially true within the offensive line room. New coach Jerry Mack completely overhauled the unit as 14 of the 18 offensive linemen are new to the program. Pennington is one of the few holdovers, and he said he is looking forward to the season, mainly because he expects the offensive line to surprise a lot of people in Conference USA.
“I’m pumped up,” he said. “The coaches have done a great job of bringing in talent. The guys want to win and are hungry for it. We’re just a good group of guys all working together.”
Mack said when putting the new offensive line together he knew the players had to get bigger and stronger.
Pennington, who was recruited under former coach Brian Bohannon, at 6-foot-4, 305-pounds was one of the larger members of the line with the team playing in the Big South Conference, now heading into the second season of CUSA play, he is now average sized.
Cameron Williams, a transfer from Alabama A&M, is 6-3, 315-pounds, Chrisdasson SaintJean, who comes in from Florida
Atlantic is 6-7, 310, Arkansas State transfer Elijah Zollicoffer measures in at 6-5, 345, and Rene Miller, an Alcorn State transfer, is 6-6, 335.
Not only are the players bigger, but Pennington said they can all move well, too.
“I don’t mind it one bit,” he said of being an average height and weight on this offensive line. “Small guys have to be perfect all the time. Our strength staff had done a great job with everyone’s mobility. We’re moving better than ever before.
“We are a bunch of big guys who can move, and that’s scary.”
As good as the new size is for offensive line coach Jay Clements, he said the players have quickly become a tight-knit group who work in unison. It will be the key to being able to live up to the
offense’s motto of RTDB – “Run The Damn Ball.”
Other key members of the line this year will be Georgia Tech transfer Brandon Best (6-4, 305), Florida transfer Chase Stevens (6-3, 310), and JaDarious Lee, a 6-4, 290-pound transfer from Florida International who is expected to start at left tackle.
To become one unit, Milovac, who is 6-6, 310, said the players have done everything together this summer. Pool parties, cook-outs, and a lot of extra work and walkthroughs.
“I haven’t seen anything like it,” he said. “After every run, we’re doing extra work. After every lift guys are putting in extra work.
“It helps the main goal, because I just want to win games.”
Special - Kennesaw State
Offensive linemen JT Pennington and Nikola Milovac get ready to play in the KSU spring game.
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APPALACHAIN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
Reinhardt favorite for 10th straight title
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
One thing is clear in the Appalachian Athletic Conference: it runs through Reinhardt.
Nine consecutive conference championships later, the Eagles own their AAC opponents, though 2024 wasn’t as painless as normal. Reinhardt shared last year’s title with new conference foe Pikeville as both teams finished 5-1 in league play.
Behind the Eagles (7-4 overall in 2024) and Bears (6-6), Bluefield and Point tied for third place, each at 4-2 in conference play. Union Commonwealth, Kentucky Christian and St. Andrews finished fifth, sixth and seventh, respectively.
Reinhardt returns the majority of its key contributors from a year ago, including its entire quarterback room and running back duo Jah Colbert (751 yards, four TDs) and Jamarion Walker (617 yards, eight TDs).
Defensively, it brings an experienced front seven, with defensive end Emmanuel Olaitan coming off a 10-sack season, and linebacker Julian Stevenson looking to back up his breakout freshman campaign. Stevenson posted 38 tackles last year, and he expects Reinhardt’s defense to lead the conference in 2025.
“We’ve got the confidence, and we’ve got the guys at every position,” Stevenson said. “We are three or four deep at each position, and everyone can play. We have a lot
PREDICTED FINISH
1. Reinhardt
2. Pikeville
3. Bluefield
4. KY Christian
5. Point
6. Union
7. Rio Grande
of older guys, along with a lot of younger guys who can play. I think this defense is going to be one of those ones.”
On the other hand, Pikeville also returns many standouts, headlined by running back Amon Williams, who ran for 1,314 yards and 15 touchdowns as a freshman. The Bears have won six or more games for three straight years, and they show no signs of slowing down.
“Pikeville is going to be really good again,” Reinhardt coach James Miller said. “Point has a new coach, but they always have good players. So it’s a challenging schedule that I’m excited about and these kids are excited about.”
Reinhardt will try to win its 10th
Nigel Lawrence takes the post at Point, making the jump from assistant to head coach after four seasons on staff. The Skyhawks have won four games for three consecutive seasons, so they hope Lawrence pushes them to the next level.
“This is more than just a coaching opportunity – it’s a chance to build young men of character, compete with excellence, and uphold the values that make this university special,” Lawrence said in a statement. “I’m excited to lead this
program forward, both on the field and in the classroom.”
Rio Grande makes its AAC debut this season, replacing St. Andrews, which dropped from the conference and closed its doors in May following two straight winless years.
From Page 135
styles are present with this group
“Connor Feltault and Jackson Elbert both do it in different ways which is what I love about them. Connor is going to be the vocal guy, he’s encouraging, he’s uplifting. If you do something wrong, he’s going to let you know you got it next time,” Knapp said. “Then Jackson Elbert just shows it by how he practices. He brings some energy out there that not a lot of kids at
this age bring, which is awesome. He comes to practice every day to work, and he sets that example, and everyone follows his lead at practice. So those two have been huge for the offense.”
The Eagles’ ability to dominate in the trenches will be key to its offensive success. Although they run a balanced offensive scheme, its capacity to provide time in the pocket for McCollough to go through his reads or open holes for Bazarsky will alleviate pressure on the defense.
“This is the hardest group of
workers he’s coached; they are really bought into the culture that coach Jones has implemented,” Knapp said. “I think they are confident in themselves, and they’re confident as a group and confident as an offense, which is really cool to see,
“I think it’s exciting that they’re in the leadership role, and I think they are ready for it.”
During the offseason, the team is emphasizing improving the run game and communication, which are crucial for the Eagles’ offensive success this year. Knapp is
also working with the linemen on their footwork and continuing to develop their football IQ. He has utilized film study to enhance their understanding of the game and onfield drills to refine their footwork.
The seniors said they want to be dominant upfront, win every game in the trenches, and give their best effort on every play. With their experience, leadership and dedication to improvement, this North Cobb Christian offensive line is poised to be a formidable force and a tough matchup for any opponent this season.
Griffin Callaghan - File
straight AAC championship this season..
REINHARDT EAGLES
Veteran offense will pace Eagles in 2025
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Reinhardt has only gotten stronger since the end of last year, reloading at key positions and returning the majority of its skill position standouts.
The Eagles, after finishing 7-4 in
2024, have their top passer, rusher and receiver back as they chase an 11th conference title. They led an offense that averaged 30.8 points and over 360 yards per game, and veteran coach James Miller is ready to see them thrive after another productive summer.
“They are great about being
accountable, and I feel like they’ve been really working hard,” coach James Miller said. “We’ve had a good amount of guys on campus this summer, and I’m excited about that. I feel like we’re in a really good place.”
On the offensive side, Reinhardt returns its entire quarterback room
between Taylor Jackson III, Stephin Craig, Kace Kinnamon and Ethan Rice. All four signal callers saw the field last season, though Jackson III led the group with 1,177 yards, 11 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Jackson III will likely be the opening day starter, but Miller See EAGLES, Page 161
said multiple quarterbacks should play this season.
“There’s a lot of experience in that room,” Miller said. “It’s a room where I think they’re all ready to contribute and help us in any way they can to win.”
Reinhardt’s offensive line, as it always is, will be another strength. Zac Lyle, the 6-foot-5, 285-pound tackle, returns to the fold, while newcomer Ja’nas Daniels impressed enough to earn the starting left guard job.
“I think we’re going to be pretty good up front on offense,” Miller said. “Our O-line will be experienced — we have four guys coming back with a lot of playing experience. I’m excited about them, and I’m excited about our tight end room, too. I think it’s the biggest and most physical we have ever been in that area.”
That offensive front will pave the way for running backs Jah Colbert and Jamarion Walker, the Eagles’ two leading rushers from 2024.
Colbert posted a 751-yard, fourtouchdown season, while Walker broke onto the scene with 617 yards and a team-best eight touchdowns.
Defensively, Reinhardt has one of its best pass-rushing duos in recent history between Emmanuel Olaitan and Nolan Marshall. Olaitan notched a team-best 15 tackles for loss and 10 sacks, while Marshall added another four sacks.
“Nolan Marshall and Emmanuel Olaitan are two of the better defensive ends in our conference, and maybe in the country,” Miller said.
Linebacker Julian Stevenson returns after his breakout freshman season, and Darren McKenzie will hold down the defensive front. Bryghton Peters and Braylon Jones patrol the secondary as the defense hopes to improve on
its 26.7 points allowed per game from 2024.
The biggest difference for the Eagles between its 2024 and 2025 teams will not come on the field. Jonathan Burton became the school’s interim athletic director back in December before taking on the position full-time. Miller said he’s off to an excellent start.
“I’m really excited about our new leadership,” Miller said. “(Burton) has done a phenomenal job of reshaping and rebranding our entire university on the athletic side. I’m super excited about him and the vision and the goals he has for myself, our program and our kids.”
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Tre Coney (2016-19)
Billy Hall (2018-21)
Expectations, development driving trio
By Griffin Callaghan gcallaghan@cherokeetribune.com
Improvement is the name of the game at Reinhardt, and the trio of Julian Stevenson, Emmanuel Olaitan and Stephin Craig embodies that ahead of the 2025 season.
Expectations are high, and they are backed by a history of winning as the Eagles seek an 11th conference championship, 10th consecutively, and an elusive national title, which they came close to in 2017 but fell just short.
“The standard is the standard, which is a national championship,” Stevenson said. “So that’s what we’re pushing for every day. I think we have a group of guys who come in every day willing to work. Just taking it day by day and bringing energy, bringing all we have that day.”
Stevenson exploded onto the scene last year as a redshirt freshman, notching 38 tackles for fifth on the team. He did a bit of everything with a sack, interception and fumble recovery. His role will only expand in 2025.
“It’s just being versatile,” Stevenson said. “Not just being a linebacker, but being a defensive player as a whole. It’s being able to go wherever coach puts me. Wherever I can impact us winning, that’s where I’ll go.”
Like Stevenson, Olaitan has shown substantial growth since arriving in Waleska. The Marietta High School product transferred in from Faulkner, where he registered 13 tackles and 4.5 sacks.
After a full offseason with Reinhardt and coach James Miller, Olaitan posted 41 tackles, 15 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. This year, he expects to be even better, working with the Eagles’ new defensive line coach Fred Alexander.
“I felt like I was a more aggressive player,” Olaitan said. “This season, I’m developing my move set and IQ of the game. We had a new defensive line coach coming in, Coach Alexander, and he’s honestly changed the tempo a lot. He’s very uplifting, and he teaches a lot of great techniques. I’ve learned a lot from him
Emmanuel Olaitan rushes the quarterback last season. He is one of a trio of players who have shown significant growth on and off the field heading into this year.
in just a short time this spring.”
Olaitan’s dedication bleeds into the classroom, too, where he has a 4.0 GPA. The importance of academics was instilled in him early on by his parents, and it remains a priority in college because he knows it will help him beyond his football career.
On the offensive side, this is Year 4 for Craig in the Reinhardt quarterback room. He’s gradually earned more playing time each year, culminating in nine appearances last season with 376 passing yards and 3 touchdowns. He ran for another 201 yards and 3 scores.
The next level of his game is better dissecting coverages, and alongside working in the film room, Craig has supplemented his knowledge with the new EA College Football 26 video game. It helps him remain sharp as the Eagles
use different quarterbacks throughout the year.
“It’s just being a student of the game, and it starts in practice,” Craig said. “I’m getting mental reps in whenever I can, and I’m taking advantage of all the reps I do get. You never know when your number is going to be called.”
Reinhardt’s first chance to showcase another summer of progress is Aug. 30 against Florida Memorial. Olaitan said it’s one week at a time as the Eagles work toward yet another winning season.
“We’re trying to be one of the best teams in the nation,” Craig said. “We have a lot of offensive firepower coming back, and we have a lot of depth. It’s going to be exciting. We’re going to have fun this year and put some points on the board.”
Fun Facts:
• Originally from Americus, GA
• Lived in North GA since 2011
• Dog dad, big foodie, and favorite hobby is traveling.
• Almost done with my goal of visiting all 50 states.
I’m excited to join the Cherokee Tribune/Ledger and connect with the businesses & communities across Cherokee County! It’s clear that is a truly special place, and I’m eager to partner with local businesses to help them grow, reach new audiences, and elevate their brand presence. Looking forward to making a positive impact together!
