2011 Marietta Daily Journal Football Tab

CARRYING THE LOAD

A SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT OF THE MARIETTA DAILY JOURNAL AND CHEROKEE TRIBUNE � SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011

KICKOFF 2011

Etowah’s Devonte Wheaton, Hillgrove’s Kenyan Drakeand Allatoona’s Miles Jones are big-time backs whoare poised to help take their teams deep into the playoffs, but to do that, they will be the ones...

Austell3698 Largent WaySuite 103Marietta, GA 30064678-354-2883

Woodstock2230 Towne Lake Pkwy.Bldg. 300, Suite 100Woodstock, GA 30189770-592-4424

Kennesaw270 Chastain Rd.Kennesaw, GA 30144770-421-8005

Marietta61 Whitcher St.Suite 1100Marietta, GA 30060770-422-3290

Canton15 Reinhardt College Pkwy.Suite 102Canton, GA 30114678-505-4455

West Cobb2041 Mesa Valley WaySuite 100Austell, GA 30106770-944-1100

Orthopaedic Physicians Specializing in:

Sports Medicine • Joint Replacement • Trauma Care • Hand Surgery

Foot and Ankle Surgery • Non-operative Spine Care • General Orthopaedics

Neck and Back Surgery • Arthroscopic Surgery • Shoulder & Elbow Surgery

Leave it all on the Field withResurgens Orthopaedics

Freddy A. Achecar, Jr., M.D. · Williams S. Armstrong, M.D. · Raj Bhole’, M.D. · Anthony C. Carantzas, M.D.

Ryan C. Chen, M.D. · Tapan K. Daftari, M.D. · Robin L. Dennis, M.D. · Daryl L. Figa, M.D. · Glenn J. Jonas, M.D.

Robert A. Kelly, M.D. · Stephen Kim, M.D. · Scott G. Kleiman, M.D. · John D. Knox, Jr., M.D. · Scott M. Levere, M.D.

Julie E. Levine, D.O. · Douglas W. Lundy, M.D · Brian Z. Makhuli, M.D. · Thomas M. McQuail, M.D. · Ali Mortazavi, D.O.

Eduardo J. Olmedo, M.D. · Michele T. Perez, M.D. · Todd A. Sacks, M.D. · Gary S. Simon, M.D. · Jacob A. Strong, M.D.

Jennifer J. Tucker, M.D. · M. Shay Womack, M.D.

PROUDLY SERVING THE SPORTS MEDICINEAND GENERAL ORTHOPAEDIC NEEDS OFCOBB COUNTY AND METRO ATLANTA.


AUG. 19CHEROKEE AT NORTH FORSYTH

AUG, 20KELL VS. GRAYSON (DOME) 11:45 AMLASSITER VS. BROOKWOOD (DOME) 2:30 PMMCEACHERN VS. N. GWINNETT (DOME) 5:30 PMWALTON VS. P’TREE RIDGE (DOME) 8:30 PM

AUG. 26KMHS AT ALLATOONACENTENNIAL AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT WEST FORSYTHHILLGROVE AT SPRAYBERRYALPHARETTA AT NORTH COBBPEBBLEBROOK AT LOWNDESSOUTH COBB AT MARIETTAMILTON AT CHEROKEEETOWAH AT BERKMARPOPE AT WHEELERNORTH FORSYTH AT WOODSTOCKOSBORNE AT HUGHESSEQUOYAH AT CREEKVIEWWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT WALKERMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT PACE ACADEMYMOUNT ZION AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN 5 PM

SEPT. 2ALLATOONA AT RIDGELANDCAMPBELL AT HUGHESWOODSTOCK AT HARRISONMARIETTA AT HILLGROVEKMHS AT POPEMCEACHERN AT LOWNDESNORTH COBB AT CENTENNIALEAST COWETA AT PEBBLEBROOKWHEELER AT SOUTH COBBWEST FORSYTH AT CHEROKEEETOWAH AT KELLSPRAYBERRY AT LASSITERWALTON AT MILTONOSBORNE AT WOODWARD ACADEMYCREEKVIEW AT NORTHWEST WHITFIELDJOHNS CREEK AT SEQUOYAHMT. PISGAH AT RIVER RIDGEPACE ACADEMY AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYN. COBB CHRISTIAN AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANWALKER AT CALVARY DAY

SEPT. 9ALLATOONA AT SOUTHEAST WHITFIELDWALTON AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT MILTONHILLGROVE AT NORTH FORSYTHSPRAYBERRY AT KMHSMARIETTA AT MCEACHERNLASSITER AT NORTH COBBPEBBLEBROOK AT CHAPEL HILL

NORTHVIEW AT SOUTH COBBCHEROKEE AT MILL CREEKWEST FORSYTH AT ETOWAHWHEELER AT MEADOWCREEKKELL AT WOODSTOCKMCNAIR AT OSBORNEPOPE AT VILLA RICACREEKVIEW AT LAMBERTNORTHWEST WHITFIELD AT SEQUOYAHRIVER RIDGE AT TEMPLEWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT WILKINSON COUNTYMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT HARALSON CO.FELLOWSHIP AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN 5 PMPACE ACADEMY AT WALKER

SEPT. 16DALTON AT ALLATOONACAMPBELL AT MCEACHERNPEBBLEBROOK AT HARRISONSOUTH COBB AT HILLGROVENORTH COBB AT KMHSNORTH FORSYTH AT ETOWAHMILTON AT LASSITERALPHARETTA AT MARIETTAROSWELL AT WALTONCENTENNIAL AT WHEELERWOODSTOCK AT NEWNANKELL AT EAST PAULDINGOSBORNE AT HIRAMNORTH PAULDING AT SPRAYBERRYCHATTAHOOCHEE AT CREEKVIEWSEQUOYAH AT CASSMODEL AT RIVER RIDGESACA AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT TRIONCROSS KEYS AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN 4:30 PMWALKER AT GORDON LEE

SEPT. 23WOODSTOCK AT CHEROKEEWALTON AT ETOWAHWHEELER AT MARIETTAHIRAM AT KELLPOPE AT OSBORNEJOHNS CREEK AT CREEKVIEWROME AT SEQUOYAHRIVER RIDGE AT CROSS KEYSWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT LANDMARK CHRISTIANDARLINGTON AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANNORTH COBB CHRISTIAN AT ST. FRANCIS 5 PMBOWDON AT WALKER

SEPT. 30CARTERSVILLE AT ALLATOONANORTH COBB AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT HILLGROVEKMHS AT PEBBLEBROOKMCEACHERN AT SOUTH COBB

ETOWAH AT CHEROKEELASSITER AT WALTONWHEELER AT WOODSTOCKKELL AT POPESPRAYBERRY AT EAST PAULDINGCREEKVIEW AT ROMESEQUOYAH AT SOUTH FORSYTHRIVER RIDGE AT GORDON LEEELCA AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYNORTH COBB CHRISTIAN AT TOWNS COUNTY

OCT. 7ALLATOONA AT MURRAY COUNTYCAMPBELL AT KMHSSOUTH COBB AT HARRISONHILLGROVE AT MCEACHERNPEBBLEBROOK AT NORTH COBBCHEROKEE AT LASSITERETOWAH AT WHEELERWOODSTOCK AT MARIETTAOSBORNE AT KELLPOPE AT NORTH PAULDINGHIRAM AT SPRAYBERRYSOUTH FORSYTH AT CREEKVIEWLAKEVIEW ACADEMY AT RIVER RIDGEWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT FIRST PRESBYTERIANMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT GORDON LEEGLASCOCK COUNTY AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIANWALKER AT BREMEN

OCT. 13SPRAYBERRY AT POPE

OCT. 14CEDARTOWN AT ALLATOONAHARRISON AT CAMPBELLHILLGROVE AT NORTH COBBKMHS AT SOUTH COBBMCEACHERN AT PEBBLEBROOKHILLGROVE AT NORTH COBBWALTON AT CHEROKEEMARIETTA AT ETOWAHLASSITER AT WHEELERNORTH PAULDING AT OSBORNECREEKVIEW AT CASSSEQUOYAH AT CHATTAHOOCHEETOWNS COUNTY AT RIVER RIDGEBREMEN AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANN. COBB CHRISTIAN AT LAKEVIEW ACADEMYTRION AT WALKER

OCT. 21ALLATOONA AT PICKENSSOUTH COBB AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT KMHSPEBBLEBROOK AT HILLGROVENORTH COBB AT MCEACHERNWOODSTOCK AT ETOWAH

MARIETTA AT LASSITERWHEELER AT WALTONKELL AT NORTH PAULDINGOSBORNE AT SPRAYBERRYPOPE AT EAST PAULDINGFORSYTH CENTRAL AT CREEKVIEWLAMBERT AT SEQUOYAHLANIER AT RIVER RIDGEWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT STRONG ROCKWALKER AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANHEBRON AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN

OCT. 28ALLATOONA AT GILMERCAMPBELL AT PEBBLEBROOKMCEACHERN AT HARRISONHILLGROVE AT KMHSSOUTH COBB AT NORTH COBBCHEROKEE AT WHEELERMARIETTA AT WALTONLASSITER AT WOODSTOCKSPRAYBERRY AT KELLEAST PAULDING AT OSBORNEHIRAM AT POPECREEKVIEW AT WOODLANDSEQUOYAH AT FORSYTH CENTRALSOCIAL CIRCLE AT RIVER RIDGEOLM AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT MOUNT ZIONN. COBB CHRISTIAN AT GEORGIA MILITARYDARLINGTON AT WALKER

NOV. 3ETOWAH AT LASSITER

NOV. 4CAMPBELL AT HILLGROVENORTH COBB AT HARRISONKMHS AT MCEACHERNCHEROKEE AT MARIETTAWALTON AT WOODSTOCKWOODLAND AT SEQUOYAHBOWDON AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANWALKER AT MOUNT ZIONALLATOONA REGION PLAY-INKELL REGION PLAY-INOSBORNE REGION PLAY-INPOPE REGION PLAY-INSPRAYBERRY REGION PLAY-INRIVER RIDGE REGION PLAY-INWHITEFIELD ACADEMY REGION PLAY-IN

NOV. 5PEBBLEBROOK AT SOUTH COBB NOON

ALL GAMES 7:30 P.M. KICKOFF UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED

2011 Composite Cobb/Cherokee High School Football Schedule

DevonteWheaton (24)

will look tohave a big

game Oct. 21when Etowah

hosts archrivalWoodstock.The teams will try to

recreate lastyear’s 17-14

overtimethriller. The

Eagles’ victorypropelled them

to the Region5AAAAA

championship.

Kenyan Drake(17) and

Hillgrove willhead to

McEachern on Oct. 7 in a

rematch of thewhat was,

arguably, thebest game of

the 2010 season. The

Indians beatthe Hawks 64-48 last

year in a key Region

4AAAAAmatchup.

Allatoona’sMiles Jones (7)

finished the2010 season

with more than1,900 yardsrushing and

was named tothe Class AAAAll-State first

team. Now, hehopes to lead the

Buccaneers totheir first

region title andplayoff victory.

2011 KEY GAMES

AUG. 20MCEACHERN VS. N. GWINNETT (DOME) 5:30 PMWALTON VS. P’TREE RIDGE (DOME) 8:30 PM

AUG. 26KMHS AT ALLATOONA

SEQUOYAH AT CREEKVIEWSEPT. 2

MCEACHERN AT LOWNDESETOWAH AT KELL

SEPT. 9KELL AT WOODSTOCK

SEPT. 16DALTON AT ALLATOONA

KELL AT EAST PAULDINGCHATTAHOOCHEE AT CREEKVIEW

SEPT. 23WOODSTOCK AT CHEROKEE

WALTON AT ETOWAHSEPT. 30

CARTERSVILLE AT ALLATOONAHARRISON AT HILLGROVEETOWAH AT CHEROKEELASSITER AT WALTON

OCT. 7HILLGROVE AT MCEACHERN


OCT. 21WOODSTOCK AT ETOWAH

WALKER AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANOCT. 28

MCEACHERN AT HARRISONNOV. 3

ETOWAH AT LASSITERNOV. 4

WALTON AT WOODSTOCK

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 3 �KICKOFF 2011

2011 MARIETTA DAILY JOURNAL/CHEROKEE TRIBUNE

ANNUAL FOOTBALL PREVIEWTeam Pages

Allatoona ....................................8Campbell ...................................12Cherokee ..................................14Creekview ..................................16Etowah .....................................20Harrison ................................22Hillgrove ...............................24Kell ......................................26Kennesaw Mountain ..............28Lassiter ..............................30Marietta ............................32McEachern .........................34Mount Paran Christian .........36North Cobb ...........................42North Cobb Christian ............44Osborne ...............................52Pebblebrook .........................54Pope ....................................56River Ridge ...........................58Sequoyah ..............................62South Cobb ..........................64Sprayberry ..........................66Walker ..............................70Walton .............................72Wheeler ............................74Whitefield Academy ...........76Woodstock .................... . . .80

Features

Games to Watch in 2011 ..............................5

Big-Time BacksCarry the Load....................6

Prime-Time Football ....................................40

MDJ Dynamite

Dozen ........48

Cherokee

Super Six ...60

Cobb Turf Project ............................................78

Region Previews5A ...........................83 6A ..........................867AAA ......................87 5AAAA ..................887AAAA ...................89 4AAAAA ...............925AAAAA ...............93

KICKOFF 2011

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011� PAGE 94

KICKOFF 2011

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011� PAGE 4SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 93 �

KICKOFF 2011

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

Region 5AAAAA has themakings to be a stronger regionin 2011, but it’s still Etowah’schampionship to lose.

Lassiter is expecting to bestronger, particularly on theoffensive side of the ball.

Walton is expecting to havea more seasoned defense thisseason with the bulk of itsstarters coming back from lastyear’s playoff team.

Woodstock lost a lot fromlast season but has enough tal-ent to be just as solid as it wasin 2010.

And Cherokee, Marietta andWheeler are expected to makeimprovements from last season.

“I think you have to startwith Etowah,” Lassiter coachJep Irwin said. “They wentundefeated in region play.”

Etowah became a postseasonregular in Class AAAAA fiveyears ago when Bill Stewarttook the helm. The Eagles arecapable of defending with sixoffensive and five defensiveplayers returning.

Having experience on bothsides of the ball does helpEtowah’s chances. The Eagleshave the most experienced run-ning back in the region withsenior Devonte Wheaton —arguably the best player in theregion — along with widereceiver Barrett Burns and fourreturning offensive linemen.

Etowah also has linebackerRyan Wilborn returning to bol-ster its defense.

If there is one team that’shungry to stop Etowah, it is its

Towne Lake rival Woodstock.The Wolverines are expecting tobe just as strong on defense asthey are every season and coachBrent Budde said his offensiveskill set behind senior quarter-back Jonathan Wiener has thepotential to be stronger than lastseason.

To beat Etowah and fellowregion contenders Lassiter andWalton, the Wolverines have totake care of the basic funda-mentals on both sides of theball.

“(Winning region is) goingto take us taking care of whatwe can take care of,” Buddesaid. “We can’t afford to turnthe ball over and we have totake advantage of the opportuni-ties that present themselves.”

The Trojans return highlycoveted junior quarterbackEddie Printz.

Printz is expected to bemore mature as a junior andthree of his four startingreceivers were starters last sea-son. Senior Charlie Hegedus,who committed to NorthCarolina State, brings bothspeed and experience.

Walton, which is known tostart slow and finish strong, hasnine returning defenders guid-ed by senior twins Daron andZach Blaylock in the sec-ondary. The Raiders are alsoreturning senior defensive endKoty Allen and senior line-backer Justin Brooks.

The remaining teams in5AAAAA — Cherokee,Marietta and Wheeler — arestill building their respectiveprograms after finishing withlosing seasons in 2010.

A THREE-TEAM RACE SHAPING UP IN 5AAAAAOne of thebiggest early-seasonmatchups willbe whenEtowah facesoff withWalton. Thewinner willhave a clearadvantage inRegion5AAAAA.

�File photo

REGION 5AAAAA PROJECTIONS

1. ETOWAH 2. WALTON 3. LASSITER 4. WOODSTOCK 5. CHEROKEE 6. MARIETTA 7. WHEELER

REGION 5AAAAA MOST IMPROVED

REGION 5AAAAA BEST TEAM

REGION 5AAAAA BEST PLAYER

While Lassiter quarterbackEddie Printz is getting most of thecollege attention, Etowah speed-ster Devonte Wheaton emerged asthe catalyst of the Eagle backfieldlast season, helping the Eagles goundefeated in region play en routeto a title.

Etowah appears to be the mostbalanced in terms of having expe-rience coming back from bothsides of the ball. A total of 11returners have performed underpressure and are capable of doingit again.

ETOWAHDEVONTE

WHEATON

RB, ETOWAH

The Raiders return everyoneexcept their quarterback and run-ning back from a year ago. CoachRocky Hidalgo said this defensecould rival some of the bestWalton has ever had.

WALTON


By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

The next game on the schedule isalways the most important one, but, oftentimes, there is a game that matters evenmore.

Typically, that game, the most antici-pated or highlighted one on the schedule,tends to have something of value ormeaning attached to it. For example, it’s abig rivalry, or a revenge game from theprevious season.

Every game from the Corky KellClassic held significant meaning, as it pit-ted a Cobb County school versus aGwinnett County school for the secondconsecutive year. Those rivalries tend torun deep every season since Cobb andGwinnett schools typically face eachother in the postseason.

Digging deeper into the schedules ofall 27 Cobb and Cherokee Countyschools, there are several contests worthyof being considered as the most anticipat-ed games of the year:� Sequoyah at Creekview, Aug. 26:There is probably nothing more difficultthan to begin your season with a regiongame, let alone a game with your rival.The majority of Creekview’s populationdrew from Sequoyah so the “bad blood”was there right from the beginning. TheGrizzlies have taken the last two of threefrom the Chiefs and, if either team wantsto have any chance at making the postsea-son this year, then that team has to winthe first game of the season against a bit-ter foe.

� Whitefield Academy at Walker,Aug. 26: Walker started its football pro-gram in 2001. Whitefield started in 2002.Since the Wolfpack opened up shop, thetwo teams have faced each other in eachof the last nine seasons, with theWolverines winning the last two and hold-ing a 5-4 edge in the series. It’s a niceCobb County rivalry that will hopefullycontinue for years to come.

� Allatoona at Ridgeland, Sept. 2:Alatoona beat Ridgeland 17-14 in the sec-ond game of the season last year only tohave the Panthers bounce back and topplethe Buccaneers for the Region 7AAA cham-pionship. Buccaneer fans sure can’t wait toget their hands on Ridgeland again, and thisis their first opportunity to do so. With anyluck, the two teams will meet again for thetitle towards the end of the year and theresults will be different for Allatoona.

� Pebblebrook at Harrison, SouthCobb at Hillgrove, Sept. 16: AfterMcEachern, the standings in Region4AAAAA are likely to be up in the airevery week. For the most part last year,one game separated the No. 2 team fromthe No. 5 team, and this is the week region

play starts up again. South Cobb beatHillgrove by one point a year ago, whilePebblebrook overcame Harrison by 10.There’s no telling what the region stand-ings will look like at the end of this season,but victories in the first week of regionplay are always important.

� Hiram at Kell, Sept. 23: Kell wonRegion 5AAAA by beating the top threeteams — East Paulding, Hiram and Popein consecutive weeks. The Longhorns’roster looks very different from last year,but their schedule remains the same asthey open their region slate against theRaiders, Hornets and Greyhounds.Depending on Kell’s outcome againstEast Paulding on Sept. 16, its matchup upthis week against Hiram could say a lotabout how good the Longhorns are andwhere they’ll finish in the final regionstandings.

� Walton at Etowah, Sept. 23:Etowah went undefeated in Region5AAAAA last year, while Walton’s onlyregion loss was at the hands of the Eagles.The two teams face each other once againto begin their region slate and the winneris sure to make a statement with a victory.

� Lassiter at Walton, Sept. 30: Yeartwo of the Eddie Printz regime begins inearnest with the Trojans taking on theRaiders in a Region 5AAAAA matchup.While the other region teams playedagainst each other the week before,Lassiter was able to sit back and watch thecarnage unfold. Knowing the stakes, andhoping to prevent another 3-3 regionmark, a good start out of the gate againstWalton would go a long way for Lassiter.

n Hillgrove at McEachern, Oct. 7:One thing is certain, Powder Springs isn’t

big enough for Hillgrove and McEachern

after the teams combined for 112 points

and 1,125 yards of offense in their first

gridiron meeting last season. It took five

years for the Hawks to finally face the

Indians on an even Class AAAAA playing

field and the Indians took round one 64-48

in regulation. Round two could be another

slugfest.

� Sprayberry at Pope, Oct. 13:Thursday night television pits the YellowJackets and the Greyhounds with Region5AAAA implications on the line. It’s theonly game that night in the area, so thereare sure to be fireworks.

� Towns County at River Ridge, Oct.14: River Ridge plays four of its finalgames at home and Towns Country is oneof those teams the Knights would like tobeat.

River Ridge, which is entering its secondvarsity season, fell to the Indians 14-7 on theroad last year and a welcome sign ofimprovement would be to win games at homeagainst teams you’re capable of beating.

� Woodstock at Etowah, Oct. 21:This Towne Lake rivalry is one of thebiggest in Cherokee County and usuallyhas playoff implications associated withit. This season should be no different,especially with the two teams meeting solate in the year.

� Lambert at Sequoyah, Oct. 21:Former Chiefs head coach Sid Maxwellmakes his return to the where he servedas head coach for 15 seasons.

Lambert, Maxwell’s new team, beatthe Chiefs 10-3 last season, so althoughChiefs fans will be happy to see Maxwellagain, they’ll be even happier to witness aSequoyah victory over a region opponent.

� Creekview at Woodland, Oct. 28:Creekview lost seven of its last eightgames and concluded the year on a four-game losing streak. The Grizzlies certain-ly don’t want a season like they had lastyear and a big win in their regular seasonfinale could help them in the long run.

� Sprayberry at Kell, Oct. 28: Thesetwo teams are not very far apart from oneanother, yet it will only mark the fourthtime they’ve met in their histories. Thegames have been exciting now thatthey’re both in Region 5AAAA, and play-off ramifications will ensue for bothteams meeting this late in the season.

� Etowah at Lassiter, Nov. 3: Region5AAAAA implications will be on the linein this final televised Thursday nightmatchup.

� North Cobb at Harrison, Nov. 4:Harrison beat North Cobb 17-6 last sea-son to spoil the Warriors hopes of makingthe postseason and instead guaranteeditself a spot. With Region 4AAAAAexpected to be jumbled again, this season-ending matchup could be a big one forboth schools once again.

� Pebblebrook at South Cobb, Nov.5: Saturday afternoon contest to end theseason against rival schools from southCobb playing in the same region. ’Nuffsaid.

BIG GAMES ABUNDANT ON 2011 SEASON LANDSCAPEKEY CONTESTS THAT COULD DETERMINE PLAYOFF PARTICIPANTS BEGIN AUG. 26

It was notuntil thefinal day ofthe 2010season thatthe finalplayoff spotin Region4AAAAA wasdecidedwhenPebblebrookfaced SouthCobb. Thatmakes thesamematchupone to watchin 2011.

�Staff /

Laura Moon

KICKOFF 2011


By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

All signs point to the Region4AAAAA championship run-ning through McEachern onceagain. The Indians have beendominant in the league the pasttwo years by collecting a 16-0mark against region foes.

The Indians return fivestarters on offense and eight ondefense from last year’s squadthat went 10-2 on the season andreached the second round of thestate playoffs.

Four of the five offensivestarters are at the skill positionsof quarterback, running back andwide receiver, so timing andchemistry shouldn’t be a problemfor that group as long as theoffensive line does its job. Third-year starting quarterback TrentThompson takes over the reinsfull-time after splitting withteammate Dondre Purnell theprevious two seasons.

Always joined withMcEachern in the fight for theregion championship will beHarrison and North Cobb. New-comer Hillgrove is also expectedto be in the mix while SouthCobb and Pebblebrook continueto improve every year.

“It’s a very competitiveregion,” McEachern coachKyle Hockman said. “Thereare some really good coacheswho know the game and workhard at getting their playersready every week. We’re alsovery familiar with each otherwhich makes game planningeven tougher.”

Hillgrove went 10-3 andreached the quarterfinals of theClass AAAAA state playoffs in

their first year as a AAAAAschool.

The Hawks will have to workin a new quarterback after GageHenry graduated, but they still haverunning backs Kenyan Drake andIke Erenge, as well as receiverJoJo Marshall. John Silas alsoreturns to hold down the defense.

North Cobb narrowly misseda spot in the playoffs and posteda 5-5 record. According to coachShane Queen, the Warriors areexpected to bounce back thisyear with a strong senior classand several starters returning.

Harrison edged North Cobband Pebblebrook for the finalplayoff spot. The Hoyas, whowent 5-6 last year, return quar-terback Clay Chastain andrunning back C.J. Posey aswell as linebacker Judd Haley,strong safety Tonne’Osaigbovo and defensive tack-le Will Sicilano.

South Cobb, which went 7-4,returned to the postseason forthe first time since 2006.Replacing quarterback John-tavious Mullins and leadingrusher Demarcus Adkins will bedifficult for coach Ed Koester,but the Eagles always have ath-letes ready to go.

Pebblebrook (4-6) returnstalented quarterback C.J.Goodman, running backSertonuse Harris and widereceiver Dontavious Heard.

First-year Campbell coachHarris Rainbow is out toimprove his team’s recent histo-ry. The Spartans have won threegames in two years.

Kennesaw Mountain coachChad McGehee is also lookingfor better results from theMustangs.

MCEACHERN STILL TEAM TO BEAT IN 4AAAAAAfter sharingquarterbackduties withDondrePurnell lastseason,McEachern’sTrentThompson,right,will be thefull-timestarter in2011.

�File photo


1. MCEACHERN 2. HILLGROVE 3. PEBBLEBROOK 4. HARRISON 5. NORTH COBB 6. SOUTH COBB 7. KMHS




He’s a powerful, quick andspeedy runner who has all of thetools. The dual threat ran for1,000 yards last year and caughtpasses for another 500. His versa-tility is one of the main reasons hewill be heading to the Universityof Alabama next year.

The Indians have athleteseverywhere and they return a lotof the personnel that made themso successful last season.

MCEACHERNKENYAN

DRAKE

RB, HILLGROVE

The Falcons’ defense was inevery game last year and shouldpoint the way toward the playoffs,but their returning quarterbackC.J. Goodman will get them there.

PEBBLEBROOK

8. CAMPBELL

KICKOFF 2011


Heading intothe 2011season,there are nobiggerrecruits thanthe big-timerunningbacks inCobb andCherokeecounties.Etowah’sDevonteWheaton,Hillgrove’sKenyanDrake andAllatoona’sMiles Jonescan choosevirtuallywhereverthey want togo to school.In Drake’scase, healready haschosen theUniversity ofAlabama.

�Staff /

Laura Moon

2010 Season Recap� 765 yards, 10 TD � Cherokee Tribune All-County FirstTeam

THE WHEATON FILE

2010 Season Recap� 145 carries 1,002 yards, 9 TD

35 receptions, 539 yards, 7 TD � Class AAAAA Second-Team All-State� Committed to Alabama

THE DRAKE FILE

2010 Season Recap� 304 carries, 1,939 yards, 19 TD � Class AAA First-Team All-State� Cobb County Touchdown Club

Running Back of the Year

THE JONES FILE

BACKS ON THE RUNHILLGROVE’S DRAKE, ALLATOONA’S JONES AND ETOWAH’S

WHEATON PREPARED TO HAVE SPECIAL SENIOR SEASONS

By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

Kenyan Drake had caught theeye of a few recruiters during the2010 season and was settinghimself up for a heavy recruitingyear heading into his senior sea-son, but with one game every-thing changed.

A 170-yard, two touchdownperformance against then-No. 1Camden County not only putHillgrove into the Class AAAAAstate quarterfinals, but also sentDrake’s stock soaring.

All of a sudden the Hawks’ 6-foot-1, 195-pound running backwas getting offers from schoolslike Georgia, Georgia Tech andAlabama. For many 17-year-oldsthe new sudden attention would

have been overwhelming, butHillgrove coach Phil Ironsidesaid Drake just took it in stride.

“Most kids can’t handle that,”Ironside said. “You just don’thave a kid that can take all of thatand stay humble. Kenyan did.”

Drake, who runs a 4.4-second40-yard dash, finished the 2010campaign with 1,002 yards rush-ing, 539 yards receiving and acombined 16 touchdowns thatmakes him, Allatoona’s MilesJones and Etowah’s DevonteWheaton the big-time backs towatch in Cobb and Cherokeecounties as the 2011 seasonkicks off.

“When I was young, I wantedto be the best player out there,”said Drake, who eliminated anyrecruiting pressure by commit-

ting to the University of Alabamalast spring. “But the gameagainst Camden County, youalways watch them because theyare always one of the best in thestate. To have a performance likeI did against them, that’s when Ireally realized I could reallycompete in this game.”

Jones and Wheaton have hadsimilar revelations during theirhigh school careers, and, likeDrake, they have set themselvesup to play at a big-time DivisionI program.

“It was my sophomore yearagainst North Paulding,” saidJones, who is currently beingrecruited by Mississippi State,Maryland and has an offer fromKentucky. “I carried the ball 38

See Backs, Page 11



F A M I L Y O W N E D & O P E R A T E D

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The Pendley

family wishes

a safe and

successful

football season

to all of the

High Schools

and Private

Schools.

KICKOFF 2011


The Top Ten teams in the Associated Press Georgia high school football pollsof the 2011 season with first-place votes in parentheses, win-loss record, totalpoints and last year’s final ranking:

Class AAAAARecord Pts Prv

1. Brookwood (8) 0-0 97 12. Camden County (1) 0-0 83 93. Lowndes 0-0 75 64. Grayson 0-0 60 35. Colquitt County (1) 0-0 58 26. McEachern 0-0 46 107. Stephenson 0-0 45 NR8. North Gwinnett 0-0 32 79. Hillgrove 0-0 19 510. MLK Jr. 0-0 8 NROthers receiving votes: Collins Hill 7, Peachtree Ridge 6, Valdosta 5, Walton 4,

Mill Creek 2, Norcross 2, Etowah 1.Class AAAA

Record Pts Prv1. Tucker (6) 0-0 90 42. Statesboro (2) 0-0 78 33. Northside-WR (1) 0-0 77 NR4. Chattahoochee (1) 0-0 50 15. Flowery Branch 0-0 46 NR6. Brunswick 0-0 41 NR7. Ware County 0-0 40 88. Starr’s Mill 0-0 32 29. Kell 0-0 30 510. East Paulding 0-0 26 6Others receiving votes: Marist 12, Clarke Central 8, Dutchtown 4, Griffin 3,

Bainbridge 3, Lambert 3, Creekside 2, Dunwoody 2, Northgate 2, Whitewater 1,Pope 1.

Class AAARecord Pts Prv

1. Sandy Creek (8) 0-0 97 12. Carrollton (1) 0-0 85 23. Cairo (1) 0-0 79 44. Peach County 0-0 73 35. St. Pius X 0-0 52 86. Burke County 0-0 40 57. Allatoona 0-0 30 NR8. Baldwin 0-0 28 99. Cedar Grove 0-0 24 710.Eastside 0-0 12 NROthers receiving votes: Grady 11, Gainesville 4, Monroe Area 3, Spalding 3,

Thomson 2, Ridgeland 2, Columbia 1, Cartersville 1, Washington County 1,Stephens County 1.

Class AARecord Pts Prv

1. Buford (9) 0-0 99 12. Calhoun 0-0 86 23. Carver-Columbus (1) 0-0 79 34. Cook 0-0 68 45. Greater Atlanta Christian 0-0 47 106. Fitzgerald 0-0 45 57. Dublin 0-0 29 NR8. Westminster 0-0 27 89. Brooks County 0-0 22 910. Swainsboro 0-0 15 NROthers receiving votes: Thomasville 8, Jefferson County 8, Lovett 4, Putnam

County 3, Callaway 3, Lamar County 2, Elbert County 2, Laney 1, Pepperell 1,Vidalia 1.

Class ARecord Pts Prv

1. Clinch County (4) 0-0 94 12. Eagle’s Landing (5) 0-0 87 33. Savannah Christian Prep. 0-0 76 24. Wesleyan 0-0 54 45. Wilkinson County 0-0 51 56. Wilcox County 0-0 50 67. Lincoln County 0-0 39 78. Emanuel County Institute 0-0 33 89. Charlton County (1) 0-0 26 NR10. Darlington 0-0 21 10Others receiving votes: Johnson County 8, Brookstone 4, Bowdon 2, Hawkinsville

1, Marion County 1, Aquinas 1, First Presbyterian Day 1, Bremen 1.

All Associated Press members in Georgia are eligible to participate in the high school footballpoll. Those who voted for this week’s poll are: Augusta Chronicle, Augusta; Brunswick News,Brunswick; Times, Gainesville; Gwinnett Daily Post, Lawrenceville; Marietta Daily Journal, Marietta;Telegraph, Macon; Times-Herald, Newnan; Rome News-Tribune, Rome; Tifton Gazette, Tifton;Valdosta Daily Times, Valdosta.

ASSOCIATED PRESSPRESEASON RANKINGS

KICKOFF 2011


ALLATOONA BUCCANEERS

3-year record: 15-12

KMHS 24-22 WRIDGELAND 17-14 WSE WHITFIELD 55-14 WDALTON 17-21 LCARTERSVILLE 18-13 WMURRAY CO. 42-7 WCEDARTOWN 30-15 WPICKENS 14-0 WGILMER 40-0 WRIDGELAND 12-13 LST. PIUS X 17-24 L

WON 8, LOST 3

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Gary VarnerAge: 44Year at School: 4Record: 15-12Career Rec.: 15-12

Varsity Coaching StaffKeith Byrd — Running BacksJeremy Anderson — ReceiversBarry Cox — QuarterbacksMike Dennison — LinebackersTroy Peterson — Def. CoordinatorAndy Wilcox — Defensive LineBrett Hubinger — Defensive EndsDavid Cintron — Defensive BacksKevin Pena — Defensive Backs

NO. NAME POS.CL.

1 TERENCE SYKES DB 11

2 TOMMY DAVIS WR 11

3 JUSTIN HOBBS WR 12

4 CL. SOLBERRY WR 11

5 ALEX ISON DB 11

6 JEREMY UZEE QB 11

7 MILES JONES RB 12

8 AUSTIN PURVIS DB 12

9 ALEX WEAVER QB 12

10 T.J. HERRON FB 11

11 D.J. EZELL WR 10

12 NATE STEPHENS DB 10

13 TYLER HEATON RB 10

14 GRANT VARA WR 12

15 ZECH HAMPTON QB 12

16 ELIJAH REED QB 10

17 GRACIA TSHIMANGA RB 12

18 CHRIS MCCREA WR 11

19 GARRETT DETWILER TE 12

20 LOGAN EDGE RB 10

21 KENNY PADTHA DB 12

22 TJ REED RB 11

NO. NAME POS.CL.

23 DARIN HILL WR 12

24 MARVIN MITCHELL DB 12

25 DAVID JEUNE DB 10

26 CHRIS COLMAN DB 12

27 SCOTT ROEMBKE DB 10

28 CHARLIE MAISON RB 11

29 JOEY BROOKER DB 10

30 CODY SORRELLS LB 11

31 AUSTIN DANIEL LB 11

32 MATT JOHNSON TE 12

33 BROCK WILEY LB 12

34 AUTRY SHORT WR 12

35 NICK JONES RB 10

36 RICO WALTERS LB 12

37 DREW NORMAN WR 10

38 AUSTIN CAIN LB 12

39 DILLON COURTNEY LB 11

40 ROBERT JOHNSON RB 12

41 STEPHEN OSBORN WR 11

42 ROBBIE ENSLEY TE 10

44 JUSTIN WADE LB 10

46 JOE TAYLOR LB 10

NO. NAME POS.CL.

47 MIKE MILLER LB 12

48 MARVIN JOHNSON RB 11

49 BRETT BENTON LB 10

50 GEORGE HITESHEW OL 12

51 ANDREW HESTER OL 11

52 RYAN BENTON OL 10

53 AMIR NADEER OL 10

55 PEARSON KILGORE LB 11

56 WALKER BOWEN OL 12

57 A.J. BOWIE OL 11

58 HUNTER ARNOLD LB 11

59 LUKE MILLER OL 12

60 ALEX FURGUSON DL 11

61 JP DEAN OL 10

62 PRESTON BUSH OL 12

63 CASSIE ALLEN DL 11

64 DALTON ALEXANDER OL 12

66 CADE STRICKLAND OL 12

69 MIKEDZURENKO OL 10

70 AMIR MOORE OL 10

71 VAUGHN CHURCH 10

74 MIKE GIRESI OL 11

75 MATT HARDAGE TE 11

NO. NAME POS.CL.

76 DEVON WILLIAMS DE 11

77 NICK MILLER OL 11

78 EDDIE WELBORN K 10

79 JOR. SUTHERLAND WR 10

80 DOUG BRUNNER TE 10

81 HUNTER YOUNG WR 12

82 AUTIN KHOLER K 11

83 MARK DAVIS K 12

84 BR. DESROSIERS WR 11

85 AUSTIN ADAMS WR 10

86 DAMEKUS CARMON WR 12

87 JOHN ROGERS WR 12

88 MARKEL MILNER TE 11

89 JOSH BROWN DL 12

90 BRYSON BRINDLE DL 12

91 CALVIN HOWARD DL 11

92 VAUGHN STEVENS DE 11

93 NATE SHAW K 11

94 GREYSON BOWEN 11

95 SHANE TULEY DE 12

96 DEXTER BRANDON DL 12

97 BRANDON WILLIAMS DE 12

Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Week 10

VS.KMHS

AUG. 26

ATRIDGELANDSEPT. 2

ATSE WHITFIELD

SEPT. 9

VS.DALTON

SEPT. 16

VS. CARTERSVILLE

SEPT. 30

ATMURRAY CO.

OCT. 7

VS.CEDARTOWNOCT. 14

ATPICKENSOCT. 21

ATGILMEROCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

Season Outlook

Allatoona’s first season in

Class AAA was a successful one.

At 8-3, the Buccaneers made the

playoffs in the first season they

were eligible and hosted a first-

round playoff game.

Now, after the first taste of

success, Allatoona is ready to

take it to the next level.

The key to the Bucs having

another successful season is run-

ning back Miles Jones. Jones car-

ried the ball for more than 1,900

yards as a junior and was named

Class AAA First-Team All-State.

Heading into this year, Jones

has put on 20 pounds of muscle,

gotten faster and more powerful and

has become an instinctive runner.

“At the end of the day you

have to stop him to beat us,” said

Allatoona coach Gary Varner.

However, Varner is hoping

not to have to give Jones the ball

more than 300 times again this

year. Other players who will see

an increased load will be T.J.

Herron and Robert Johnson.

Herron is Jones’ primary backup

and has shown the potential of

being a solid runner of his own.

Johnson is a true fullback and

enjoys opening the holes for his

teammates to run through.

The trio will run behind a line

that Varner calls “strong, stocky

and solid,” at an average size of

5-foot-11 and 250 pounds, and

Varner added they are “good

high school football players.”

On defense, the Buccaneers

return eight starters from a unit

that allowed 13 points per game.

Allatoona will continue to show

an aggressive, physical defense

and will look to a pair of upper-

classmen for leadership.

Mike Miller will help lead the

way at linebacker. After a year of

alternating between the inside

and outside linebacker positions,

Miller will mainly play in the mid-

dle with a keen eye on stopping

the run.

If the opponent takes to the

air, junior safety Alex Isom will

have an opportunity to ball hawk

with his above average speed

and play-making ability.

Playing in Region 7AAA, the

Buccaneers’ success in 2011 will

likely come down to their Sept. 30

home game against Cartersville. If

everything goes to plan, a victory

would put Allatoona in position to

play for a region championship in

early November — again at home

— likely against either Dalton or

Ridgeland.

— By John Bednarowski

[email protected]


By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

Region realignment was verygood to Region 7AAAA last year asthe region laid claim to the newestClass AAAA state champion.

With the opening of the near-by Johns Creek High School,new Region 7AAAA memberChattahoochee, which used to bea AAAAA school, dropped downbecause of smaller enrollmentnumbers and went on to claimthe first state football champi-onship in its 20-year history.

The Cougars completed theseason with an undefeated 15-0record and topped previouslyunbeaten Starr’s Mill 24-0 in thechampionship game.

With all of the euphoria sur-rounding Chattahoochee’s victo-ry, it will be tough for the team toprovide an encore performancethis time around. The Cougarslost several key seniors from lastyear’s squad, so there will be lotsof question surrounding thereigning champions.

Despite the losses — eight onoffense and eight on defense —which includes starting quarter-back Timmy Byerly and his pri-mary target, Kane Whitehurst,Chattahoochee remains talentedand could once again competefor the region crown.

“It’s a tough region,”Creekview coach Al Morrellsaid. “It’s a very tough region.Obviously, Chattahoochee wonthe state championship, but theylost a lot of seniors from lastyear, and I understand that theyhave a lot of move-ins, so I’msure they’ll be good again.”

In only its second varsity sea-son, Lambert, which finished the

year 8-3, turned a lot of heads inearning the No. 2 seed from theregion and reaching the stateplayoffs under veteran coach SidMaxwell, the former Sequoyahmentor. The Longhorns returneight offensive starters, includingthree-year starting quarterbacksenior David Broadus and juniorrunning back Brock Maxwell,and four defensive starters,including three-year starting line-backer senior Matt Ham.

“You always hope to be com-petitive every year,” Maxwellsaid. “But I’ve been around along time and one thing I’velearned is to take it one game ata time. The important thing is toget better each week becausethat helps you win games.”

After Chattahoochee andLambert, Region 7AAAAappears to be wide open. Romeis always competitive and JohnsCreek is expected to makestrides in its third varsity season.

Sequoyah went 5-5 last sea-son and just missed out on theplayoffs with a veteran group.Coach James Teter will have ayoung team, but one capable ofwinning.

“I think we’ll be in the mix bythe end of it,” he said. “The bigthing is, we lost 22 seniors, so wehave a lot of holes to fill. We’llstart eight sophomores on bothsides of the ball and how they’llhandle things will be a factor.”

Creekview (3-7), which suf-fered its first losing season in itsfive-year tenure, could be rebuild-ing again, but not according tothe coaching staff. Coach AlMorrell has 11 seniors on theteam, which means there will beseveral young players involved inmaking plays.

SEQUOYAH, CREEKVIEW FACE TOUGH 7AAAACreekview

and Will Kirby

(26) will again open the

season withSequoyah on

Friday.

�File photo

REGION 5AAAA PROJECTIONS

1. LAMBERT 2. CHATTAHOOCHEE 3. JOHNS CREEK 4. ROME 5. SEQUOYAH 6. SOUTH FORSYTH 7. NW WHITFIELD

8. CREEKVIEW 9. CASS 10. WOODLAND 11. FORSYTH CEN.

REGION 7AAAA MOST IMPROVED

REGION 7AAAA BEST TEAM

REGION 7AAAA BEST PLAYER

It’s difficult to identify becauseno one player stands out.Everyone is talented, but no onesticks out as a must-see, danger-ous player that can change a game

Lambert, because theLonghorns pretty much have theirentire offense intact as well as astrong defense.

LAMBERT? After a 3-7 season a year ago

its hard to imagine the Grizzliesstruggling as much in 2011.Creekview will still be a youngsquad, but the young players from2010 will have an opportunity toshow how much they improved.

CREEKVIEW


ALLATOONA BUCCANEERSABOUT THE BUCCANEERSLocation: 3300 Dallas-Acworth Hwy. Acworth. Phone: (770) 975-6503. Home Field: Buccaneer Stadium. Team Colors: Red, Black, Silver. Online: bucs-football.com

By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

When Allatoona takes the field this year,they will play in front of thousands of ador-ing fans cheering them on in the hopes ofbringing home victories.

But for three members of the Buccaneers,some of their biggest fans won’t be in atten-dance during the 2011 season, and all theycan do is hope that they will be in the future.

Grant Vara, Cassie Allen and HunterArnold all have relatives currently servingabroad in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait.While the players are proud of their service,commitment and love of family and country,their absence is always in the back of thetrio’s minds.

“It takes a lot of dedication to go off andleave your family to fight for what youbelieve in,” said Arnold, a 16-year-old line-backer for the Buccaneers.

But for Allen, Arnold and Vara, it is some-thing they are reluctantly getting used to.

Last season, Allen’s father, Sgt. MichaelAllen Sr., traveled to every Allatoona game— home and away — to watch his son playon the Buccaneers’ defensive line. That

won’t be the case for the 2011 season as heprepares to deploy for his third tour of dutyin the Middle East in the last six years aspart of the 202nd EOD unit of the NationalGuard based in Marietta.

Upon his arrival in the desert, Sgt. Allenwill have multiple duties, but his trade allowshim to be a high-tech mechanic that repairsHumvees and other military transport vehi-cles. At no time will Cassie Allen or hismother, Shelia, know the exact whereaboutsof their father or husband, but thanks to cur-rent technology, the Allen family, along withthe other families, is able to keep in regularcontact.

“We use Skype,” Shelia Allen said. “Weusually talk two times a day — once in themorning and once before I go to bed.”

Even with consistent contact, however, thefamilies rarely, if ever, know the details of theirrelatives’ day-to-day activities. It was no moreevident than when Michael Allen came homefrom his first tour in 2005.

“He came home and he was wearing aBronze Star,” Shelia Allen said. “When Italked to his commander, she said it wasgiven to him for continuously leading trans-ports without ever losing a soldier or a

truck in action.“When I asked him about it, he just said,

‘I was just doing my job.’”For Vara, a wide receiver, he knows his

brother, Blake Cash, does his job so theAfghan people have a chance to lead a betterlife in their war-torn country.

Cash, a former wide receiver and punterat North Cobb, is a member of a 58-personunit, of which a dozen studied agriculturalbusiness at the University of Georgia. Those12 teach the Afghan farmers how to growand produce better yields with their crops,while Cash and the rest of the unit providethe necessary security during the instructiontime.

Ironically, Ronnie Cash, the father of Varaand Blake Cash, said Blake’s choice to go intothe Army is forcing him to experience the onething he most wanted to avoid.

“He didn’t want to go into the Air Forcebecause he didn’t want to fly,” Ronnie Cashsaid. “But what he does in Afghanistan(because of the severe uneven terrain) he’s in ahelicopter 80 percent of the time.”

That realization became a bigger causefor concern for the family recently as Blake

KEEPING THINGS IN PROPER PERSPECTIVETHREE BUCCANEERS DEAL WITH KNOWLEDGE LOVED ONES ARE IN HARMS WAY

From left,Cassie Allen,Hunter Arnoldand Grant Varahave their daysfull of schooland football,but their mindsare always withtheir relatives whoare servingabroad inAfghanistan,Iraq andKuwait.

�Staff /

Jon-MichaelSullivan

See Perspective, Page 10

ABOUT CASSIE ALLEN

He is an early riser, gettingup nearly every day at 5 a.m.

He hates to be late

He did not go on summer vacation this year to make

sure he did not miss a singleoffseason workout

ABOUT GRANT VARA

He is considering joining themilitary after high school

KICKOFF 2011


By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

It’s been rumored that EastPaulding coach John Reid issaying he has the most talentedteam he’s ever coached.

And he’s got a couple ofstate championships on hisresume.

“That’s what I heard hesaid,” Kell coach Derek Cooksaid. “That a pretty bold state-ment considereing he’s wonsome state championships.”

Kell’s the defending champi-on after going undefeated duringthe regular season. A lot of thathad to do with having a ParadeAll-American in BrianRandolph, who has taken hisservices to Tennessee.

Even with Randolph gone,the Longhorns are still returningtalented running backs in ChrisGaines and A.J. Redwine.Senior Jordan Chambers, who isexpecting to anchor the line-backer unit, may also get a fewsnaps toward the end of the sea-son, like he did a year ago.

Add senior receiver HunterMarshall to the list, as well as cor-nerback Taylor Henkle, who hasthe daunting task of fillingRandoph’s shoes in the secondary.

“It’s early to really tell whatwe got because we lost so manystarters,” Cook said. “It’s tooearly to tell if we are a con-tender or not. We got some goodathletes. Its’s a team game, andit takes a lot of wins.”

There are teams like Pope,Hiram and Sprayberry who arein Kell’s subregion that haveathletes as well.

The Greyhounds’ season will

depend greatly on how ClassAAAA honorable mentionHolland Frost performs as asenior under center. He’s notgoing to have Garrett Brown tothrow to this season, but seniorMyles Everett is being groomedto fill Brown’s shoes.

Pope’s running game will beorganized by committee, butFrost is expected to be in on thecarries. The Greyhound defen-sive line is young, but is expect-ed to be strong at linebacker.

The Greyhounds have thepotential to sqeeze into the topfour after making the playoffslast season for the first time in adecade, but they know they can’tunderestimate the teams theywill have to beat to get there.

Sprayberry is another teamready to make a statement in5AAAA after coming up shortof expectations last season.Ironically, Sprayberry’s best winof the season came against EastPaulding, which is favored towin.

The Yellow Jackets are goingto be extremely young. Theywill be new at quarterback, run-ning back and wide receiver.Most of their defense consists offirst-year starters, with line-backer Terrell Brownridge beingthe most experienced player.Based on preseason workouts,the Yellow Jackets appear to bereplacing talent with talent, butthe new talent is still unproven.

Osborne, the other CobbCounty participant in 5AAAA,are still attempting to laydown a foundation under first-year coach Xarva Smith, whohas experienced in rebuildingprograms.

SAME COMBATANTS TO REIGN IN REGION 5AAAAThe matchupbetween Kelland EastPaulding onSept. 16 willlikely give thewinner the legup in the racefor the subregiontitle.

�File photo


NORTH

1. EAST PAULDING 2. KELL 3. HIRAM 4. POPE 5. SPRAYBERRY 6. N. PAULDNG 7. OSBORNE

SOUTH

1. VILLA RICA 2. S. PAULDING 3. DOUGLAS CO. 4. LITHIA SPRINGS 5. CHAPEL HILL 6. ALEXANDER 7. PAULDING CO.




The region’s best player maybe a tie between East Pauldingrunning back Kamani Thomas andKell linebacker Jordan Chambers.Thomas closed in on 2,000 yardsin 13 games last season, eclipsing100 yards in 11 of them. He alsohad 22 rushing touchdowns.Chambers produced 130 tackleslast season and will be vital to theKell defense.

East Paulding has returningtalent in all areas of the field,including a star running back andreceiver. It’s been rumored thatcoach John Reid is claiming hehas the best team he has evercoached, and he’s coached teamsto state championship titles.

EASTPAULDING

JORDAN

CHAMBERS

LB, KELL

Osborne may not be ready tochallege for a region title in thenear future, but new coach XarviaSmith has the Cardinals headingin the right direction. For the firsttime in recent memory, Osbornehas a full coaching staff and thatshould lead to more teaching andbetter results.

OSBORNE

KICKOFF 2011


HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY1ST

!

SAVEDCOBB COUNTY

$165,000IN ITS FIRST YEAR!

10,620 DEALS SOLD!TOP 25 DEALS

675 SOLD 504 SOLD 422 SOLD 316 SOLD 293 SOLD






By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

The Allatoona Buccaneers will again befavored to advance to the state playoffs in 2011,but it is not going to be an easy task coming out ofRegion 7AAA.

The region, which is split into two six-teamsubregions, has the potential to be full of hurdlesfor whichever team is to advance to the regionplay-in games with hopes of reaching the postseason.

Miles Jones, a 1,900-yard rusher in 2010,should have the Buccaneers in position to win thesub-region for the second straight year.

Allatoona needed an 18-13 win overCartersville to secure the Region 7AAA (B) title,and it appears the Purple Huricanes will be thebiggest challenge to a return to the region titlegame.

If there is a dark horse, it may come in theform of Southeast Whitfield, which has a lot ofyoung talent, and Cedartown, which is led by theChubb brothers — quarterback Zach and fullback

Nick — and has a lot of team speed.“We can’t afford to fall asleep on any of these

teams,” Allatoona coach Gary Varner said. “Wehave to play our best because if we let down some-one could come up an get us.”

On the other side of the region, traditional pow-ers Dalton and Ridgeland will again challenge forthe top spot.

Ridgeland defeated the Buccaneers in the regiontitle game last season after Allatoona had defeatedthe Panthers earlier in the season.

Dalton will challenge for the top spot behindsmall, quick running back Tre Beck, a 1,200-yardrusher in 2010.

Ringgold will also be better behind the rushingefforts of 1,000-yard rusher Mark Fairbanks.However, the Tigers will be playing the entire sea-son on the road.

Ringgold’s stadium was destroyed in the Apriltornadoes that devastated much of Alabama andparts of western and northern Georgia. The Tigerswill play all their home games in 2011 at FinleyStadium on the campus of the University ofTennessee-Chattanooga.

ALLATOONA TO CHALLENGE FOR 7AAA TITLE

REGION 7AAA PROJECTIONS

NORTH

1. DALTON 2. RIDGELAND 3. RINGGOLD 4. SE WHITFIELD 5.LAFAYETTE 6. HERITAGE

SOUTH

1. ALLATOONA 2. CARTERSVILLE 3. CEDARTOWN 4. GILMER 5. MURRAY CO. 6. PICKENS

REGION 7AAA POTENTIAL SPOILER

REGION 7AAA BEST TEAM

REGION 7AAA BEST PLAYER

While Dalton’s Tre Beck andRinggold’s Mark Fairbanks maymake some noise, and Cartersville’sCollin Barber has already puntedhis way into a commitment toGeorgia, but the best player inRegion 7AAA is the Buccaneers’Miles Jones.

He rushed for 1,939 yards in2010 and he is bigger and fasterin 2011.

While the Buccaneers may beled by Jones, they have qualitybackups at running back to helphim shoulder the load. The offen-sive line, while inexperienced, hasthe potential to be better thatn itwas a year ago and the defensewill find ways to make plays togive the offense short fields towork with.

ALLATOONAMILES JONES

RB, ALLATOONA

The Bulldogs have speed andthe young and inexperienced teamfrom 2010 will be better preparedin 2011. The quarterback-fullbackcombination of the Chubb broth-ers will present problems for anyteam that comes into the gameunprepared.

CEDARTOWN

File photoMiles Jones, front, and Allatoona will challege for the school’sfirst football region championship in 2011.


Cash is stationed at the same base asthe 22 Navy Seals who lost their lives ina helicopter crash on Aug. 6.

“You always wonder what’s going on(over there),” Vara said. “You wonderwhether it’s calm or whether they aregoing through ‘hell.’”

The fact that both Vara and Blake Cashplay or have played high school footballhas always been something that hasbrought the brothers closer together, andit’s a reason Vara is anxiously waitingOctober when Cash is scheduled to comehome on leave. It will give Cash plenty of

time to see his brother catch a few passeswhile helping the Buccaneers to a potentialRegion 7AAA championship.

Arnold, one of Allatoona’s inside line-backers, is the one most kept in the darkwhen it comes to his relative. His great uncleserves in a highly classified area as a mem-ber of the Army’s intelligence unit, and he iscurrently serving his “second or third” six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan. As a dis-tant relative, Arnold isn’t even sure of hisgreat uncle’s name, but he is well aware ofthe risks he is taking and the sacrifices hehas made. And he echoes the thoughts of histeammates and shares their same concernsand prayers.

“How is he? Is he OK?” Allen said,and maybe more importantly, “Did any-thing go wrong?”

Continued from Page 9

Perspectivetimes for 244 yards and came out of thatgame knowing I could play.”

Jones, who runs a 4.47-second 40,responded by becoming one of the pre-mier backs in the state as a junior. At 5-10 and 185 pounds, he carried the ball304 times for 1,939 yards and 19 touch-downs leading the Buccaneers to an 8-3record and their first state playoff appear-ance. His efforts were good enough toearn a spot on the Class AAA All-Statefirst team, but for Allatoona coach GaryVarner, what Jones did following hisjunior season is more impressive.

“It’s his maturity,” Varner said. “Hiswork ethic. He didn’t miss a day of off-season workouts. He put on 15 pounds ofmuscle and got faster. He’s going to be afast, powerful kid.

“At the end of the day, you are goingto have to stop him to beat us.”

The fastest of the three backs with a4.38 40, Wheaton had his first glimpse ofwhat his future might hold as a sopho-more against Harrison during the 2009season. The first time he got into thegame against the Hoyas, he gathered in atoss, went around the corner and foundthe end zone from 40 yards out. That

helped lead him to his 765-yard, 10-touchdown season in 2010. But don’t letWheaton’s conservative numbers makehim appear as an underachiever in anyway. At least five times during last sea-son, Etowah produced blowout victories,leaving Wheaton on the sidelines formuch of, if not the entire, second half.And with teams like Georgia, Auburn,Mississippi State and Old Miss zeroingon his services, a season of well over1,000 is in the offing for 2011.

“Early on we knew he was fast,” saidEtowah coach Bill Stewart. “But wedidn’t know he was going to be the 4.4real deal.

“He’s built himself up from 10thgrade to 11th to now and he’s reallymade more of the commitment in theweight room. It’s evident he can bespecial.”

All three backs will be counted onheavily this season and all have a chanceto lead their teams deep into the playoffs,but for Drake, Jones and Wheaton, adeep playoff run might not be enough.

“The main goal is to win a statechampionship,” Drake said.

If the trio has the kind of year that isexpected from them a Class AAAAA ora Class AAA state title may be possible,but one thing is certain — Drake, Jonesand Wheaton will be exciting to watchalong the way.


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KICKOFF 2011


By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Mount Paran Christian hasits work cut out for it as theEagles attempt to earn a secondstraight trip to the Class A stateplayoffs in a tough and competi-tive Region 6A this year.

The Eagles finished fourth in6A to qualify for state for thefirst time in school history in2010, but a repeat performancewill be challenging task for ateam that lost a large seniorclass.

Not to mention the fact thatRegion 6A features as many asseven teams that have a legiti-mate chance at earning a post-season bid.

“Our goal every year is tomake the state playoffs, but thatis very difficult to do in a verycompetitive region like 6A,”Mount Paran coach MitchJordan said. “We have six orseven teams competing for fourplayoff spots, so it’s going to bea big challenge for us to earnone of those playoff spots.”

While Mount Paran’s offensewas hit hardest by graduation,the defense has key players, likelinebacker John Pierce McKayand defensive end Colby Dozier,who could help keep the Eaglesin the hunt.

Darlington and Bremen havebeen the dominant teams inRegion 6A the last few yearsand this season should be nodifferent.

Darlington (10-2, 7-0) isonly two years removed from astate semifinal appearance andadvanced to the second round in2010.

“Darlington has had a strong

run the last few years and theylook to be back to form this sea-son,” said Jordan, a formerDarlington assistant. “They arethe strongest team in the region.”

The Tigers feature the mostprolific offense in 6A, averaging36 points a game in 2010.

Quarterback Brad Butler andwide receivers Nigel Matthewsand Cameron Gibson providemuch of Darlington’s offensivefirepower, while safety TevinHamilton is among the key play-ers on defense.

Bremen (10-2, 6-1) shouldalso be among the region’s topteams with a strong runningattack and a solid defense.

Bowdon (4-6, 3-4) will be inthe mix as well with a speedybackfield that features seniorsMaricio Askew, Alonzo Wyattand Wezley Stevens, with quar-terback Tyler Wright and widereceiver J.B. Stevens also pro-viding much firepower.

Walker has been on the out-side looking in as far as the stateplayoff picture after a couple of3-7 seasons.

Contending for a postseasonberth won’t be any easier thisseason for the Wolverines, wholack depth with only 35 playersand have lost two-year startingquarterback James Clements afterhe decided to pass up his seniorseason to focus on baseball.

Walker (3-7, 2-5) will beboosted by its solid junior classthat includes running back EvanKasian, offen-sive lineman MikeRamsey and quarterback SamYarborough.

North Cobb Christian (2-8)is technically in 6A, but thefledgling program is still play-ing a non-region schedule.

MOUNT PARAN, WALKER HAVE 6A UPHILL CLIMBChristopher

Graham (11)and Walker

will faceMount ParanChristian in

October. Thegame willlikely be a

must-win ifeither teamhas playoff

hopes.

�File photo

REGION 6A PROJECTIONS

1. DARLINGTON 2. BREMEN 3. BOWDON 4. TRION 5. MOUNT PARAN 6. WALKER 7. GORDON LEE

REGION 6A MOST IMPROVED

REGION 6A BEST TEAM

REGION 6A BEST PLAYER

The 5-foot-9, 170-poundAskew is an explosive back whocan break open a big play at any-time. He is being recruited by anumber of SEC schools likeGeorgia, Auburn and Ole Miss.

Darlington is once again theteam to beat in 6A with a potentoffense that averaged 36 points agame last year. The Tigers, whoreached the state semifinals in2009, will once again be in themix for the state title in Class A

DARLINGTONMARICIO

ASKEW

RB, BOWDON

The Wolverines have a newquarterback in Sam Yarboroughand return their ‘Mr. Everything’in Evan Kasian, who wasWalker’s leading rusher andreceiver in 2010. If theWolverines can stay healthy, theyshould tally more than three wins.

WALKER

KICKOFF 2011


CAMPBELL SPARTANS


VS.CENTENNIALAUG. 26

ATHUGHESSEPT. 2

VS.WALTONSEPT. 9

ATMCEACHERNSEPT. 16

VS. NORTH COBB

SEPT. 30

ATKMHSOCT. 7

VS.HARRISONOCT. 14

VS. SOUTH COBB

OCT. 21

ATPEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 28

ATHILLGROVE

NOV. 4

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


CENTENNIAL 0-36 LHUGHES 35-29* W WALTON 7-34 LMCEACHERN 15-54 LNORTH COBB 6-34 LKMHS 3-25 LHARRISON 0-42 LSOUTH COBB 0-27 LPEBBLEBROOK 0-28 LHILLGROVE 16-35 L* OVERTIME

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Harris RainbowAge: 33Year at School: 1Record: 0-0Car. Record: 26-52

Varsity StaffDavid Cardoza — Assistant HCNick Williamson — Def. CoordinatorBrad Hawkins — Defensive LineWade Stewart — LinebackersSkyla Hutchins — Defensive BacksColeman Joiner — QuarterbacksJamal Wilson — ReceiversPhil Sandifer — Offensive LineIsaiah Williams — Offensive Line

NO. NAME

1 DEMARIO FORMBLY

2 MATT COTTON

3 MARQUIS HUDSON

4 KEVIN CHIRWA

5 GREG TULL

6 JAMEZ TAYLOR

7 AUSTIN GREEN

8 JOSH MILLER

9 GEORGE WRIGHT

10 ROBERT COOKS

11 QADEEM SALAAM

12 JUAN CASTRO

13 MORGAN FORD

14 AJ ANDERSON

15 ERIC PERDUE

16 ARVIEL JENKINS

17 RICKY JAMES

18 DAVID COLLINS

19 ZAC GRISSETT

20 GENERO MADURO

NO. NAME

21 JUDE LOUISSANT

22 DYKARI HICKEY

23 DARIUS HARRIS

24 LANCE MAGWOOD

25 SHERON MASON

26 SAMUEL MORRISON

27 BRAXTON STEPHENS

28 JAVON REEVES

29 GAIYON REAVISH

30 NIGEL CLARKE

31 KIEVIAN MCGHEE

32 NICK SHANKLIN

33 KERRELL SUMMERHOUR

34 CALEB PARKS

35 D’AMONTE ERVIN

36 DERRICK HALL

37 JEREMIE TUZIZILA

38 MAC BRAYLOCK

39 ARMAND GAZDA

40 DELARRION PURIFOY

NO. NAME

41 CHANCE JACKSON

42 JUSTIN ROGERS

43 JORDIE GONZALEZ

44 SAEVON SPRINGER

45 MICHAEL NICHOLS

46 KEON DAVIS

47 VICTOR INGRAM

48 KERHEEM DARRINGTON

49 ARNEIAS ROBINSON

50 JAMES WALKER

51 LEDARION LEWIS

52 CHRISTOPHER BROWN

53 OSCAR PERALES

54 DEKEVION BYRD

55 DWIGHT HANSARD

56 ALEX COOKE

64 ALEC BROWN

66 CORY HAWKINS

67 WALTER LOPEZ

68 CHASE SIMMS

NO. NAME

69 KENDRICK PLEMING

70 ETHAN CALIXTE

71 TYLER HOUSTON

72 ROBERT ADAMS

73 STEPHEN WASHINGTON

74 JHAMED OWENS

75 ALBERT TAYLOR

76 WESNER SIMILIEN

77 JUSTIN SWINT

78 JULIO TELLEZ

79 ENRIQUE YENNY

80 MALCOLM PERDUE

81 MARLON HORNE

82 CHARLIE SHARITZ

83 KAHSAAN WILKINS

84 KENNETH SMITH

85 JOSH MONYEI

87 ANDRE WOODS

88 QUINCY PERDUE

89 JALEN BATHEA

90 NICK MITCHELL

Season Outlook

The revolving door of new

Campbell coaches continues to

swing open as Harris Rainbow

has become the Spartans’ fifth

different coach in seven sea-

sons, and their third in the last

four.

Rainbow was with his unit for

all of spring practice, as well as

the current preseason practice

drills. In his opinion, the Spartans

remain a work in progress and

will stay that way until the first

game of the season.

“Our practices have been

good and the kids have been

working hard,” he said. “We

have lots of seniors and good

leadership from that bunch,

but, to be honest, we’re

starting from square one.

These guys are learning how to

practice.”

In teaching his players how

to practice, Rainbow acknowl-

edged that it’s going to take time

to determine which of them

deserve starting roles on offense

and defense. Campbell’s first

game is scheduled for Aug. 26

when the Spartans host

Centennial.

“We have a lot of great kids

and everyone is still competing

for jobs,” he said. “I don’t know

who will start for us, and they’ll

still be competing for jobs up

until the day before the first

game. I want them to fight for

those jobs right up until the last

possible minute.”

To that end, Rainbow’s prac-

tices haven’t had a set first team

or a set second team. Players

continue to rotate in and out of

the units.

“Everybody on the first team

has been practicing on the sec-

ond team and vice-versa,” he

said. “I want these guys to be

hungry and understand that their

spot isn’t guaranteed. They have

to continue to earn it.”

— By Carlton D. White

[email protected]


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CAMPBELL SPARTANSABOUT THE SPARTANSLocation: 5265 Ward Street, Smyrna. Phone: (678) 842-6850. Home Field: Richard McDaniel Stadium. Team Colors: Royal Blue, Silver. Online: campbellhighfootball.com

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanCampbell’s Tyler Houston has had three coaches during his four years withthe Spartans, but in this, his senior season, he is ready to take on a leader-ship role and become a coach on the field.

THE ANCHORBy Carlton D. White

[email protected]

New Campbell coach Harris Rainbowhas high expectations for the 2011 season.Despite all of the ups and downs theSpartans have gone through over the years,including four head coaches in five seasons,Rainbow is optimistic about the kind ofsuccess Campbell can achieve.

The problem he faced entering springpractice in May though was not knowingwhich players he’d be able to count onwhen fall practice rolled around. New tothe team, the school and the community, hequickly learned that Tyler Houston wassomeone he could rely on.

“For just the brief time we’ve seen him

on game film and during spring practice, weknew he was the real deal,” Rainbow said ofHouston.

A 5-foot-11 senior, Houston made quitean impression on Rainbow during earlypractices. Entering his third year as a starterand as a Campbell letterman, Houstonturned out to be the perfect kind playerRainbow wanted.

“Tyler’s a model cititzen and a greatyoung man,” Harris said. “I wish he werehere longer because he’s the type of playerwe could build our team around.”

Houston, a 280-pound starter along thedefensive line at nose guard, established himself in practice, player interviews withcoaches and in the classroom, where he takes

See Houston, Page 38

CAMPBELL’S HOUSTON LEADING SPARTANS INTO NEW ERADON’T MISSTHE

NEXT DEAL!

KICKOFF 2011


FOLLOWCOBB DAILY DEALS AT


SAVEDCOBB COUNTY


KICKOFF 2011


CHEROKEE WARRIORS


NORTH FORSYTH 3-14 LMILTON 19-41 LWEST FORSYTH 17-42 LMILL CREEK 14-35 W*WOODSTOCK 10-31 LETOWAH 0-56 LLASSITER 24-27 LWALTON 21-45 LWHEELER 21-13 WMARIETTA 27-20 W* WON BY FORFEIT

WON 3, LOST 7

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Brian DameronAge: 49Year at School: 11Record: 56-54Career Rec.: 56-54

Varsity Coaching StaffBradley Fowler — Asst. HC/DCBen Martin/Thomas Sheehan — OLBill Holton/Jason McDaniels — QBAdam Johnson — Running BacksLance Riccio — ReceiversCasey Wingard — Defensive LineCharles Higdon — Defensive BacksBarry Dalton — Linebackers


ATNORTH FORSYTH

AUG. 19

VS. MILTON

AUG. 26

VS.WEST FORSYTH

SEPT. 2

ATMILL CREEK

SEPT. 9

VS. WOODSTOCKSEPT. 23

VS.ETOWAH

SEPT. 30

ATLASSITEROCT. 7

VS. WALTONOCT. 14

ATWHEELEROCT. 28

ATMARIETTANOV. 4

NO.NAME POS. CL.

1 J. GONZALEZ RB/LB 11

2 TALLEY REDMOND TE/LB 11

3 TREY BUTLER SE/DB 12

4 ANDREW BLAYLOCKDB/RB 12

5 BLAKE JOHNSTON RB/LB 10

6 WILL SHUBERT TE/LB 12

7 BRANDON HROUDA RB/LB 10

8 BLAKE JONES SE/DB 12

9 HUNTER WINGFIELD QB/DB 10

10 JONATHAN JONES K 10

11 JORDAN FREEMAN SE/DB 10

12 WILLIE CYRUS RB 11

13 ZACH DAWSON K 10

14 TROY TUCKER SE/DB 12

15 TIMOTHY PATTISON SE/DB 12

16 MATT BEARDEN SE/DB 10

NO.NAME POS. CL.

17 BLACE BROWN QB/DB 10

18 MASON KEYT QB 11

19 CLAYTON FIELD SE/DB 10

20 ZAVIER WIGGS RB 12

22 TYVON WILLIAMS RB/DB 10

23 E. MESTEMAKER LB 12

25 J. METCALFRB/LB 11

26 ZACH BOGDAN SE/DB 10

27 DEVON MERCER SE/DB 10

28 ISAAC GRUNDY DB/SE 11

29 BRANDON GREENE SE/LB 10

30 LANCE PARCHMENT SE/DB 10

31 PRINCETON GETER SE/DB 10

33 KIEFER WRIGHT LB 11

34 KYLE ACEVEDO RB/LB 12

35 HUNTER SIDWELL SE/LB 10

NO.NAME POS. CL.

36 LANDON MONROE RB/LB 10

37 SPENCER KEALEY K 10

38 ZACH WILSON SE/DB 10

39 LOGAN HORNBACK RB/LB 10

44 MASON DOZIER LB 11

46 JUSTIN CLARK SE/DB 10

47 GEORGE CARMO SE/LB 11

50 B. SANDERCOCK LB/OL 11

52 NICK MITCHELLI OL 12

53 LEVI SATTERFIELD OL/DL 11

54 JACOB CROWLEY OL/DL 11

56 ALEC RIGGINS OL/DL 10

58 CODY PARKER OL/DL 11

59 TUNDE AYINLA DL 11

64 NICK RAGSDALE DL/TE 11

65 HUNTER COLLETT OL 12

NO.NAME POS. CL.

67 ZACH JONES OL/DL 10

68 HUNTER BURTON OL/DL 11

69 MICHAEL ACKERMAN OL/DL 10

70 BRADLEY REEVES OL 12

71 TYLER RATCLIFF OL 12

72 CALVIN MAYO OL/DL 10

73 XAVIER KEITH DL 11

77 LOGAN WITHEROW DL/OL 10

80 ZAK KUYKENDALL SE/DB 11

81 CAMERON SEBRINGOL/DL 10

82 SEAN ANDERSON SE/DB 10

83 MASON MAYES SE/DB 11

85 JOSH MCCLAIN SE/DB 11

88 AUBREY SHARP TE/LB 10

89 T. SHACKLEFORD SE/LB 10

94 DJ MOORE TE/DL 12

Season Outlook

Cherokee’s success on

offense this season relies heavily

on its offensive line. Defensively,

the Warriors are going to have to

fill some holes, especially in the

secondary.

The biggest positive for the

Warriors going into this season is

returning four starting offensive

linemaen from last season who

are in the 250- to 300-pound

range and have experience cre-

ating holes for their running

backs in the triple-option offense.

The offensive line is coming off a

productive summer and appear

ready to turn around Cherokee’s

fortunes after finishing with a 3-7

record last season.

The Warriors will have to deal

with a blend of returning players

and newcomers on both sides of

the ball.

Junior Mason Keyt is a first-

year starter at quarterback, and

his strength is his knowledge of

the triple option. Keyt isn’t overly

flashy, but he has got skilled play-

ers around him who are. Junior

Xavier Wiggs is a junior running

back that shows exceptional

speed, and returning seniors Kyle

Acevedo and Andrew Blaylock

have the experience.

Cherokee will line up junior

track and field specialist Blake

Jones at receiver, along with

senior Trey Butler.

The Warriors are a little

uncertain defensively, especially

in the secondary. Safety Matt

Ellis, is academically ineligible

and returning defensive back

Quincy Mauger has transferred

to Kell, where former Warrior A.J.

Redwine also is.

Cherokee still is returning tal-

ent led by junior nose tackle

Ayinla Tunde, who is expected to

be the cornerstone of Cherokee’s

3-4 defense. Senior Will Shubert

is a four-year starter at line-

backer. Senior DJ Moore is back

at defensive end, and junior

Talley Redman is another return-

ing player at linebacker.

— By Adam Carrington

[email protected]


By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Whitefield Academy is astrong bet to bounce back fromits disappointing 2010 seasonand once again claim a stateplayoff berth in Region 5A.

That is a lot easier said thandone, however, as the Wolfpackface some tough competition inthe southern subregion of 5A in2011.

Plagued by a rash of injuriesall season long, Whitefield tum-bled down to 2-8 overall and 2-4 in the subregion to finishfifth.

The Wolfpack lost a numberof key players, including UABsignee Kennard Backman, butwill be led by a strong group ofseniors that includes 6-foot-4,270-pound offensive linemanand Division I prospect JacobSoutherland.

As a result, Whitefield has astrong chance to grab one ofthe two state playoff berths, insubregions if the Wolfpack canavoid the injuries that doomedtheir 2010 campaign.

But Whitefield coach JimmyFields knows, that first, histeam will have to beat out anumber of competitive squadssuch as First Presbyterian Day,Landmark Christian and OurLady of Mercy.

“There are some very toughteams in our subregion,” Fieldssaid. “The entire region has 14schools, and 10 of those foot-ball teams are capable of mak-ing the state playoffs, so it’s ahuge challenge just to contendfor a spot in the state playoffs.”

The team to beat in isEagle’s Landing ChristianAcademy (12-0, 7-0), the

defending subregion championwhich advanced to the Class Astate quarterfinals last year.

“Eagle’s Landing (ChristianAcademy) is a very strong pro-gram,” Fields said. “They’realways strong and they’re theteam to beat in our subregion.”

Senior defensive end JustinThomason will anchor theChargers defense. The 6-foot-3,240-pound Thomason is beingpursued by a number ofDivision I programs, includingNorth Carolina, BostonCollege, Louisville, Pittsburgh,Vanderbilt and Central Florida.

On offense, the Chargerswill be led by junior runningback Keyante Green, seniorquarterback Aaron Spratlin,senior running back John Tatumand senior wide receiver TravisManon.

Landmark Christian (6-4, 4-3) is expected to battleWhitefield for second place inthe subregion, while Our Ladyof Mercy (7-3, 4-3) and FirstPresbyterian (5-5, 3-3) are theother contenders.

State semifinalist Wesleyan(12-2, 6-1) faces some rebuild-ing with only two starters eachreturning on offense anddefense, but the Wolves areexpected to have enough talenton hand to win the northernsubregion again.

Cornerback Zander Yost, a5-11, 184-pound senior who isbeing recruited by Georgia andIowa, leads the way forWesleyan, along with seniortight end Eric Rappe and 6-9,275-pound senior offensivelineman Josh King.

Pace Academy (9-2, 6-1)and Holy Innocents (7-4, 5-2)are the other contenders.

WHITEFIELD TO MAKE MOVE TOWARD TOP OF 5ARichardSherrell (1) andWhitefieldAcademy maybe ready tomove backtoward thetop of Region5A and returnto Class Aplayoffs.

�File photo


NORTH

1. WESLEYAN 2. HOLY INNOCENTS 3. PACE ACADEMY 4. PINECREST 5. MOUNT PISGAH 6. KINGS RIDGE 7. FELLOWSHIP

SOUTH

1. ELCA 2. WHITEFIELD 3. LANDMARK CHR. 4. FIRST PRESBY. 5. OLM 6. STRONG ROCK 7. SACA


REGION 5A BEST TEAM


At 6-foot-4, 280 poundsSoutherland is a force on the lineof scrimmage for WhitefieldAcademy and will go DI. He iscurrently being recruited byGeorgia, Wake Forest, Clemson,Tennessee, Vanderbilt and others.

Wesleyan was hit hard bygraduation which turns the regionover to Eagles Landing Christian.

The Chargers return most oftheir key weapons from last year’sstate quarterfinalist, including run-ning back Keyante Green, quarter-back Aaron Spratlin (1,350 yardspassing, 13 TDs) and runningback John Tatum (1,054 yards, 22TDs) on offense and JustinThomason on defense.

ELCAJACOB

SOUTHERLAND

OL, WHITEFIELD

After a 2-8 season a year ago,Whitefield Academy returns asenior-laden offensive line led byJacob Southerland, and MaxKemether returns at quarterback.The big question is who will runthe ball, but, with the line intact,there should be plenty of holes tochoose from.

WHITEFIELDACADEMY


CHEROKEE WARRIORSABOUT THE WARRIORSLocation: 930 Marietta Highway, Canton. Phone: (770) 479-4112. Home field: Tommy Baker Field. Colors: Red, White, Black. Online: www.cherokeewarriorstdclub.org.

Staff / Samantha M. ShalCherokee’s offensive line, from left, Nick Mitchelli, Tyler Ratcliff, HunterCollett, Levi Satterfield and Jacob Crowley, hope to return the Warriors to thetop of Region 5AAAAA and the Class AAAAA state playoffs.

UNBREAKABLE WALLBy Adam Carrington

[email protected]

When Cherokee senior center HunterCollett and his stout offensive line wereasked about their offseason schedule,Collett said, “We have some pinned upaggression that’s ready to be unleased.”

In other words, they’re ready to surprisea few teams after going 3-7 last season.

“We’ve worked hard this summer onand off the field,” senior offensive guardNick Mitchelli said. “We want to go to theplayoffs. Our goal is to play 11, but wewould love to play more and that’s whatwe intend to do.”

There is no doubt that Cherokee’s offen-sive linemen will be a strength going into

the 2011 season. Based on their productivi-ty throughout the summer, they’re buildinga wall that will be difficult to break.

Their goal is not to improve on their los-ing record. Their goal is to make the ClassAAAAA state playoffs and then make astatement once they get there. The experi-ence factor on the offense is working inCherokee’s favor with four returning starterscoming back, and they’re ready to create apath that will lead them to postseason.

“I think the overall feeling of having 10games under your belt will help,” Cherokeecoach Brian Dameron said. “They trust eachother and have become a tight-knit group.”

What makes these linemen stand out istheir size. Collett is 6-foot-3 and is more

See Wall, Page 38

OFFSEASON PROVES CHEROKEE LINE READY FOR 2011

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step faster. He’s much, muchmore mature as an overall athleteand the way he has approachedthe game and how he approacheshis preparation. Hopefully, allthat will manifest into a success-ful season.

“I think it was good experi-ence last year for him to gothrough the ups and downs of avarsity season as a sophomore. Ithink he’s coming in well sea-soned. The jitters he had as a

young player, I hope not to seethose this year.”

However, Bryant doesn’twant to rely solely on his speedthis season. His priority this sea-son was mastering the passinggame. With Bryant being a short-er quarterback, throwing doesn’tcome easy. He has to use hisquickness to roll out and see thefield beyond his bigger offensiveline.

He threw the ball three to fourdays a week during the wintermonths. He attended passingcamps at Kell and Campbell andtook advantage of Wheeler’s ownpassing camp.


Bryant

the team’s need for communica-tion on defense. “Our linebackersare a little greener. They are hit-ters that play downhill, but theirFriday night experience is not asgreat as some others.”

On top of being the team’stop corner and its captain, SouthCobb will also feature Thomason the offensive side of the ball,as a slot wide receiver.

“We’ve worked really hard inthe last 12 months on kids beingtwo-way contributors,” Koestersaid. “We’re working with ourkids from the standpoint that, ifyou are the kind of prospect thatwe believe you to be, then youshould be a two-way performer.

So, we’re trying combinations onthe field to get our best 11 on thefield that are our freshest 11 onthe field.”

In order to make the adjust-ment, Thomas said that he hadworked more on his route running.

“Basically, it’s just footwork,and you’ve got to be smart,” hesaid. “You have to figure out thedefense and how they line up.”

By playing wide receiver,Thomas believes that he canbecome a better cornerback andvice versa.

“Playing corner, then goingback to playing receiver, youalready have a step on the otherdefender because you know whatthey are going to do,” he said.“You know about their capabili-ties and the zones they play, man(to-man), everything like that.”


Task

“They’re great athletes. Mywife and I have been happy thatthey all chose the same sport. Ithas been unusual, but it’s greatthat they love football like wedo. They all want to play col-lege ball. If everything alignsright, then they will have thatopportunity.”

The family’s connectiondoesn’t stop there. Matt Schoebserves as a community coachthat handles the middle schoolprogram, though Woodstockcoach Brent Budde said hewould love to have him on hisvarsity staff — only he can’t bewith his sons playing for theWolverines.

“It’s really nice,” Woodstockcoach Brent Budde said. “Theyare a football family… They areall hard workers and havebright, bright futures in footballand can all play at a high levelat the next level.

“I think we’ve had brothers onthe team even and even in somecases three, but nothing to where

they are all really close to beingon the field… I think it’s definitelya unique situation that you havethat many brothers on one team.”

Like most athletes, theSchoeb brothers began playingfootball by playing games inthe front yard and by playingyouth football.

“At the time, when theywere young before the seasonwould start at rec ball, all threewould be in the yard going backand forth in pads hitting adummy,” Matt Schoeb said. “Icoached pretty consistently andoversee the junior program atWoodstock… Jacob would takea little more abuse. Josh wasbigger and would get both ofthem. We would always gothrough fundamentals beforethe season would start.”

Off the field, the three broth-ers all have their own innatequalities. On the field, Josh,who stands at 6-foot-4, 270pounds, is larger than life andmakes his presence well knownto his opponents. Off the field,he possesses a more calm andquiet persona.

“He is (Woodstock’s) bestoffensive lineman,” Matt said.“He’s got great feet and is a nice

kid. With any great of-fensivelineman, he has to have a littlenastiness to him. He does. But offthe field you wouldn’t know it.”

For Josh’s younger brothers,they have grown up and becomelinebackers that will each see keyplaying time for the Wolverines’defense. They follow a long lineof talented linebackers inWoodstock’s program.

“(Jonah) played in ourscrimmage game last yearagainst McEachern, and gotthrown into the fire as a sopho-more.” Budde said. “The wholefamily is blessed with somegood size and great instinctsand they are hard working.

“Jonah has a bright future atinside linebacker. In the past, we’vehad the Carmichael brothers, thenCameron Allen, who walked on atUGA. Then, there’s Bruce Miller,who’s now in the NFL with the(San Francisco) 49ers. (Jonah andJacob) are part of Woodstock’sown ‘Linebacker U’.”

This year, instead of com-peting against each other inpads on the front yard, all threebrothers have the chance towork on the same team towardthe same goal — winning thestate championship.


Love

ABOUT THE SCHOEB BROTHERS

The brothers moved to Georgia from Arizona

Each brother has a different collegiate allegiance — Josh likes Tennessee, Jonah favors Georgia and Jacob pulls for Georgia Tech

Hobby. After holding off the dis-ease as long as he could, the 17-year-old Hobby died on May 30,2006.

“I have lived 17 years andbeen able to do a lot of greatthings,” Hobby told his parents afew days before he died. “Butthe little kids with cancer need achance to live. Tell (my friendsand teammates) to raise moneyfor research.”

Because of Hobby, theRally 4 Quarters 4 Researchfundraising campaign was bornas was the annual Matt Hobby

Jersey Award.In the past 5 years, Pope stu-

dents have helped raise morethan $55,000 for the RallyFoundation for ChildhoodCancer Research by passingbuckets around at football gamesto collect loose change, and nowtwo Hanshaw’s have worn jerseyNo. 70.

“It’s a humbling experienceto wear No. 70,” Kemper said.“It’s a big deal and one the play-ers take very seriously.”

The Matt Hobby JerseyAward goes to the lineman thatemulates the toughness, determi-nation and enthusiasm for thegame and love of his teammatesthe way Hobby did during hisfight with cancer. To make the

award even more special, thewearer of No. 70 is bestowed thehonor through a vote by histeammates.

Matt Hanshaw, Zach’s broth-er, was the first to be honored in2006 and it will be somethingthat he carries with him for alifetime.

“I was never All-County,MVP, or anything really big atPope,” Matt Hanshaw said. “ButI was the Matt Hobby JerseyAward winner. It means a lot tome because my teammates andcoaches appreciated how Iplayed and how I went about mybusiness on the football field.

“It was a great honor to meback then, but now after 5 yearsit’s an even greater honor to me.”

Geddy Wilson, GarrettSchoppman, Rylan Leary andTrevor Buhr followed Matt withwearing No. 70 and now the tra-dition has been passed on toZach.

“I realize the footsteps I haveto follow in,” Zach Hanshawsaid. “It hasn’t really hit me yet.I cried the night Matt got itwhen he came out for the firsthome game so that’s when I willprobably realize it.”

Hanshaw will officially behonored before Pope’sSeptember 30 game against Kell.He will accept it during a pre-sentation before the game withHobby’s parents, Jud and PamHobby.

“It’s an important thing here,”

Kemper said. “That night 20children with cancer will be onour sidelines and they will besmiling ear to ear. The biggestlesson they teach is (dealing withthe disease) is all about attitude.”

Hanshaw, who is currentlybeing recruited by West Georgiaand Valdosta State, realizes thekind of people he is following bywearing the No. 70. He said heunderstands what the honor is allabout and vows not to sully his,or the award’s, reputation.

“I’m under a microscope nowand I definitely have a height-ened responsibility,” he said. “Ascenter I try to take command ofthe offensive line. Hobby was aleader, and that’s what I want tobe.”


70

KICKOFF 2011


CREEKVIEW GRIZZLIES

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


SEQUOYAH 17-13 WNW WHITFIELD 18-0 WLAMBERT 7-17 LCHATTAHOOCHEE 7-42 LJOHNS CREEK 10-13 LROME 51-14 WSOUTH FORSYTH 23-38 LCASS 10-38 LFORSYTH CEN. 20-21 LWOODLAND 21-38 L

WON 3, LOST 7

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Al MorrellAge: 54Year at School: 5Record: 34-18Career Rec.: 34-18

Varsity Coaching StaffSeth Deering — Inside LBsJeff Nelson — Def. CoordinatorJustin Wheeler — FullbacksRonnie Jackson — QuarterbacksChris Jeffreys — Wide receiversNate Cline — Outside linebackersFreddie Foster — Defensive BacksJamie Nelson — Wing backsShawn McClellan — KickersTim Smyrl and Chip Wludyga


VS.SEQUOYAHAUG. 26

ATNW WHITFIELD

SEPT. 2

ATLAMBERTSEPT. 9

VS.CHATTAHOOCHEE

SEPT. 16

VS. JOHNS CREEK

SEPT. 23

ATROME

SEPT. 30

VS.S. FORSYTH

OCT. 7

ATCASS

OCT. 14

VS.FORSYTH CEN.

OCT. 21

ATWOODLAND-BAR.

OCT. 28

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 XANDER PING QB/DB 11

2 RILEY DAVIS WR/DB 12

3 KEITH WOODS RB/LB 12

4 AVERY JEANS RB/DB 10

5 CONNOR DULMAGE QB/LB 10

6 HADEN HALL QB/DB 11

7 AUSTIN MURPHY WR/DB 10

8 JONATHAN RUSSELL WR/DB 11

9 JOEY NOLL WR/DB 11

10 HUDSON GRAHAM WR/DB 10

11 JACOB HOLCOMBE WR/LB 11

12 CASEY MARTIN WR/LB 10

14 B. MORISSET RB/DB 12

15 KYLE ALLEN WR/DB 11

16 JACK O’DONNELL WR/DB 10

17 COLE RICHARDS RB/LB 12

18 GARRETT HARE RB/LB 12

19 STEPHEN SHUGART WR/DB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

20 DYLAN HARRISON RB/DB 11

21 HUNTER UDALL WR/LB 11

22 ZACH HENSON RB/DB 11

23 ISAIAH RODGERS RB/LB 10

24 BAILEY QUINN RB/DB 11

25 HAYDEN GALLOWAY RB/DB 12

26 WILL KIRBY RB/DB 11

27 WADE GODFREY RB/LB 12

28 NATE DRAUGHON WR/DB 10

29 EVAN GIBSON WR/DB 10

30 T. TANKERSLEY RB/DB 12

31 M. RICHARDS RB/LB 11

33 EDDY SCHOEWE RB/LB 11

34 LUCAS NELSON TE/LB 11

35 DONDREI HUBBARD RB/LB 12

37 HUNTER SMITH WR/LB 10

38 J. SORRENTINO RB/LB 10

39 TRENT GILELAND TE/DL 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

40 CHASE CALLAHAN RB/LB 11

41 ALEX DULONG RB/DB 10

42 LOGAN RIDINGS RB/LB 10

43 BEN O’DONNELL TE/DB 10

44 RJ KNECHT RB/DB 10

46 AUSTIN MCDONALD RB/DB 10

47 GRANT SHEDD QB/DB 10

50 TRAVIS BALL OL/DL 12

51 AUSTIN CHESTER OL/LB 12

52 AUSTIN KING OL/DL 11

53 BLAKE COCHRAN OL/DL 12

55 AUSTIN WEAVER OL/DL 11

56 ROBERT LYON OL/DL 11

57 DUSTY CALLAHAN OL/LB 10

58 MICHAEL SHAW OL/DL 10

59 MICHAEL CRAFTON OL/DL 11

60 LUKE SCHULTHEISS OL/DL 10

61 JOSH COOK OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

62 TRAVIS WALLAGE OL/DL 12

65 CODY WATKINS OL/DL 10

66 N. VISCOMI-SCHWABB OL/DL 10

67 DOUGLAS NULPH OL/DL 10

68 ALEX GAINEY OL/DL 12

69 JOE BRADLEY OL/DL 10

70 GLEN CARPINO OL/DL 11

72 JONATHON SULLIVANOL/DL 10

73 PAYNE, KATAVIOUS OL/DL 11

76 DOTSON, JOHNATHANOL/DL 10

77 GRANT RHODES OL/DL 11

78 C. THRELKELD OL/DL 10

79 MATT SINGLETON OL/DL 10

83 NATHAN PELLETIER TE/DL 11

84 BRANDON WRIGHT WR/DB 11

89 BEN MCCLELLON K 10

99 JESS GRAHAM WR/LB 10

Season Outlook

Creekview will attempt to put

a rough 2010 season behind it

with an entirely different roster.

The Grizzlies couldn’t have

gotten off to a better start last

season, winning their first two

games of the year that included

archrival Sequoyah on the road,

but finished with a disappointing

3-7 record. And if they are looking

to make strides from last year,

they will have to do it with new

faces on both sides of the ball.

They have talent at the skilled

positions, but most of them lack

the varsity experience, with the

offensive line being the biggest

question mark.

Creekview is tweaking a few

tings offensively based on the

talent it has on the field. They

may run a multiple and spread

the field more instead of being

strictly Wing-T.

Junior quarterback Haden Hall

is expected to lead the offense

after a successful JV season a

year ago. Brandon Wright is doing

good things at receiver as is senior

newcomer Riley Davis. Senior

D’Ondrei Hubbard is tabbed to

start at fullback after getting varsity

playing time last season with junior

Will Kirby filling in.

Senior linebackers Keith

Woods and Garrett Hare and

junior lineman Robert Lyon will

anchor the Creekview defense,

which is also reloading from last

season. Junior Joey Knoll will

contribute in the secondary after

getting playing time on varsity as

a sophomore last year.

“We’re unproven, but talent-

ed,” Creekview coach Al Morrell

said. “Our biggest question is in

the trenches, especially the

offensive line.”


[email protected]


WOODSTOCK WOLVERINESABOUT THE WOLVERINESLocation: 2010 Towne Lake Hills S Drive, Woodstock. Phone: (770) 592-3500. Home Field: Wolverine Den. Colors: Navy Blue, Cardinal Red, White. Online: www.eteamz.com/woodstockwolverines/

BROTHERLY LOVE

By William Bretherton

[email protected]

There are fans so fervent thatthey live and breathe by whathappens with their favorite team.

But there are few people whodevote themselves so fully to oneteam that it becomes their liveli-hood. In the case of the Schoebfamily, that much is true.

The family of five has threebrothers, Josh, Jonah and Jacob.Josh, a senior, figures to be thestarting left tackle for Woodstock,

serving as the team’s top lineman.As a sophomore, Jonah will likelybe one of the linebackers —though he is currently injured —while Jacob, a freshman, is cur-rently competing for his brother’sjob in his absence.

“It’s been great,” their father,Matt, said. “It wasn’t plannedthat way. First, the youngest oneand oldest one started in rec ballat CYFA (Cherokee YouthFootball Association). Our mid-dle son, Jonah, wanted to seehow his brothers like it.

See Love, Page 82

WOODSTOCK’S SCHOEB BROTHERS

PART OF A TRUE FOOTBALL FAMILY

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanThe Schoeb brothers, from left, Jonah, Josh and Jacob, could all see playing time this year.Josh is Woodstock’s starting left tackle while Jonah and Jacob are linebackers.

THE SUMMIT AT ATPP3910 Canton Road | Marietta, GA 30066

For registration and program information,visit www.summit-atpp.com or call 678-384-6500

Coming November 2011…

Winter Basketball Leagueat The SummitBoys and Girls Teams

Grades 3-8November - February

Team & Individual Registrations Accepted10 Game League

Games on Saturdays

Programs at The Summit

• Basketball Training Clinics

• Summer Camps & Private Instruction

• Bootcamp By Kathy Fitness Class

• Team Basketball, Baseball and Volleyball Tournaments

• Team Practice Court/Field Rental

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 17�KICKOFF 2011

CREEKVIEW GRIZZLIESABOUT THE GRIZZLIESLocation: 1550 Owens Store Road, Canton. Phone: (770) 720-7600. Home Field: The Grizzly Den. Colors: Blue, Green. Online: www.gogrizzly.net.

RAMP UP THE INTENSITYBy Adam Carrington

[email protected]

Riley Davis was ready for achange after being home-schooled and private-schooled hiswhole life.

The only thing he may regretabout joining the Creekview foot-ball team was not doing it sooner.

“To tell you the truth, I loveit,” the senior wide receiver andsafety said. “From the first work-out, (they) accepted me. I lovethe coaches. (Creekview) is like abig family. The teachers are smartand the coaches are good.

Everyone is watching out foreach other. They’re not worriedabout (themselves) and how toget scholarships.”

Davis said he enjoyed theexperience of playing private-school and home-school football,but stated that the football atmos-phere wasn’t as intense.

He appreciates the longer andmore grueling practices he has atCreekview as opposed to playingin the private-school and home-school football. He doesn’t mindpracticing four to five days aweek instead of two. He also getsmore reps and enjoys the breaksin between practice sessions

where he can talk and work withassistant coaches privately, andcompliments his Creekviewteammates for not giving upwhen games aren’t playing out intheir favor.

And most of his private-schoolfriends having already graduatedfactored into his decision.

Riley took a liking to coachAl Morrell right away. From thefirst meeting, Davis said Morrelltook a strong interest on how heperformed academically andtaught him few things about lifeon and off the field.

“He’s one of best coaches thatSee Intensity, Page 39

CREEKVIEW’S DAVIS READY FOR SOME PUBLIC-SCHOOL FOOTBALL

Creekview’sRiley Daviswill play hisfirst year oftraditionalhigh schoolfootball in2011 afterplaying inprivate-school andhome-schoolleagues.

�Staff /

Todd Hull

KICKOFF 2011


WOODSTOCK WOLVERINES


NORTH FORSYTH 7-0 WHARRISON 16-6 WKELL 10-17 LNEWNAN 28-16 WCHEROKEE 31-10 WWHEELER 48-0 WMARIETTA 42-7 WETOWAH 17-14(OT) W LASSITER 30-14 WWALTON 0-20 LCOLLINS HILL 3-7 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Brent BuddeAge: 37Year at School: 2Record: 7-4Car. Record: 7-4

Varsity Coaching StaffMike Mills — Assistant HCRoy Clayton — Off. CoordinatorAndrew Price — Def. CoordinatorTodd Harris — QuarterbacksJonathan Thomas — Running BacksTight Ends — Tripp Chandler Chandler Wall — ReceiversChris Jones/Cory Nix — Def. LineSam Young — LinebackersTrey Thomas — Defensive Backs


VS.NORTH FORSYTH

AUG. 26

ATHARRISONSEPT. 2

VS.KELL

SEPT. 9

ATNEWNANSEPT. 16

ATCHEROKEESEPT. 23

VS.WHEELERSEPT. 30

ATMARIETTAOCT. 7

ATETOWAHOCT. 21

VS.LASSITEROCT. 28

VS.WALTONNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 CHRIS MOWERY DB 103 JARED BOLAK DB 114 AUSTIN STROUD WR 124 REX EIFORT DB 95 JONATHAN WIENER QB 126 ALEX MOTSINGER QB 107 MAX KEETON DB/WR 118 BRANDON YEAGER WR 129 JOHN LAY DB 1110 BRIAN CONRAD RB 1111 ADDISON BASS WR 1112 JUSTIN AGNER QB 913 JAKE INGRAM DB 1214 SAGE JORDAN QB 915 JORDAN BROWN QB 916 BRONSON BLAKE DB 1217 P. WASHINGTON QB 1218 AUSTIN MEAUT RB 1019 ZACH SHAREEF DB 920 DONAVON BRAND RB/LB 921 DAVID BROWN RB/DL 1221 DEVON MARTIN DB 922 CHRISTIAN WHITE DB 1223 LAROB TERRELL DB 1123 ZACH NANI DB 924 WILLIAM FREEL DB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

25 RYAN HENDON DB/RB 1225 REAGAN AMOS DB 926 ALEX TOLEDO DB 1227 SHARRONE GATES RB 928 JEAN BOEREAU RB 1029 RYAN STEPHO DB 1230 ERIC MONROE DB 931 JELANI REGAN DB 932 JEBRAI REGAN LB 1233 SPENCER REED DB 934 IGNAT DEINEKA LB 1235 JON CHELENA DB 1036 CHRISTIAN HUNT DL 1137 TONY RICCI LB 938 CHRISTIAN BARNESDB 1039 AUSTIN STEPHO LB 940 JACOB SCHOEB LB 941 JORDAN DONLEY LB 942 C. CHAPMAN LB 1143 JOSEPH ARCURI LB 1044 JOHNNY CLARK DL 1245 NICK LEEPER LB 1246 ETHAN WHEELER LB 1047 TREY ALEXANDER LB 1148 GARRETT KIEFER LB 1049 JONAH SCHOEB LB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

50 HUNTER POOSER OL 1151 JACOB AUSTIN LB 1152 JORDAN WILLIAMS OL 1053 ANDREW LENHART LB 1054 NOAH RICE LB 1255 ZACH MINOR LB 1256 DANIEL PETERS OL 1157 DUNCAN MORRIS LB 1058 JOEY PURPURA LB 959 AVERY KONECNY LB 960 JEFF DAVIS OL 1161 ZACH BLANTON OL 1162 BLAKE JACOBS OL 1063 CHAZ DUNN OL 964 AUSTIN BIGGERS OL 1065 FOSTER GREEN OL 1166 THOMAS TRIBOLET OL 1167 STAFFORD COOK OL 969 TYLER BAGGETT DL/OL 1070 ANDY WOODYARD OL 971 WESLEY PELLA DL 1172 DAVID SCHRECK OL 1173 JOSH SCHOEB OL 1274 RUSSELL SPROUSE OL 975 MATT JOHNSON OL 1176 DENZEL PIKE OL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

77 ROBERT DELOACH OL 978 LINCOLN WALKER LB 1079 TYLER GOLEMI OL 1280 GARRETT TREVINO WR 981 MILES DICKEY WR 982 COLIN TAYLOR WR 983 JOSHUA LOUD TE 984 TYLER COX WR 1085 JIMMY KELLEY TE 1285 GARRET ATKINSON WR 986 WILL STUMF TE 1087 JOSH KUZA WR 1188 DILLON THOMPSON TE 1288 JOSH THUERER WR 989 D. HOUSEHOLDER WR 990 DANIEL BENETEZ DL 991 AUSTIN ALDRIDGE DL 1092 DADRIAN SMITH DL 1093 ANDY RODRIGUEZ DL 1094 JACOB KLEIN DL 1195 LONDON DEMETRIODL 996 COLE LANSDELL DL 997 JOHN FOLEY DL 998 KENDALL HUNTER DL 1299 NOAH MANZELLA DL 9

Season Outlook

After finishing the season lastyear in three losses inWoodstock’s last four games, theWolverines come into this sea-son looking to finish strongerthan they did last year.

Woodstock will have to moveon, however, with several of itsbest players departed due tograduation. Leading rusherTanner Skogen is at Furman,while starting quarterback KevinBolak is gone, too.

“I think Kevin was a great leaderfor us and wasn’t by any means aflash in what he did,” Budde said.“But he led the team and quarter-backs are judged by their wins-loss-es whether that is fair or unfair. And,in the case of Kevin Bolak, he won17 games as a starting QB.

“Tanner was a hard workerand a great athlete and did a lotof great things at running backfor two years and even got in asa sophomore and played for us.”

This year, Woodstock will run atwo-quarterback system that fea-tures Jonathan Wiener, a playerthat saw time as the team’s kicker,kickoff specialist, wide receiverand quarterback, as well as PryceWashington, who transferred intoWoodstock’s program last yearfrom Whitefield Academy.

More than Woodstock’soffense, which returns fourstarters, the Wolverines’ programhas always focused on its ability

to play tough defense. Thisyear’s team returns five starters.

“We have been blessed overthe years to have some great tal-ent and kids… And I fully expectfor all of our players on bothsides of the ball to step up andcontinue the tradition that hasbeen built before them.”

— By William Bretherton

[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011� PAGE 18 SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 79 �KICKOFF 2011

competed in.Currently, Kasian’s personal

bests include 280 pounds in theclean-and-jerk and 205 in thesnatch, but he said, by the time thecompetition comes around nextyear, he hopes to be at 315 and 225.

For Walker football coachBen Williamson, Kasian’s goalsbring a smile to his face.

“He’s our feature guy,”Williamson said. “He’s our mostexplosive player. He wants theball and (the lifting) has helpedhim with his strength and speed.

Kasian said the lifting hashelped his speed significantlybecause many of the moves aresimilar to what he encounters onthe football field.

“It helps with your speed andraw strength,” Kasian said. “Thespeed from (taking the weight)from the ground to the chest issimilar to the explosive moves arunning back does when he’s get-ting off the ball quickly.”

The lifting has also helped insoccer when he is trying to maneu-

ver between defenders. Kasian hasbetter balance and is able to con-tinue moves to get shots on goalthat defenders may have been ableto prevent previously.

“He just wants to score morethan the opponents want to stophim,” Williamson said.

Kasian rushed for more than600 yards, caught 36 passes for 351yards and scored eight touchdownsin 2010, and more is expected fromhim this season. As an upperclass-man, Kasian has taken his leader-ship responsibilities seriously andWilliamson said he believes thepowerlifting is proving to be a helpwhen it comes to influencing theyounger players that are coming upthrough the program.

“When he is on the platform,everyone in the weight room stopsand watches to see what kind ofrecord he’s going to break next,”Williamson said. “They see howhard he’s working and the youngerplayers want to be like him.”

Williamson said he alsoexpects Kasian’s production toturn some heads.

“His numbers are going to beimpressive,” he said. “His num-bers could be near the top of thecounty on both sides of the ball.”


Pumped“It’s definitely an honor to be

mentioned with the great defensivelinemen that we’ve had over theyears,” Allen said. “Following guyslike Chase Thomas, who are playingon the Division I level, is exciting,and I want to be where they are. I’vebeen playing football for 12 yearsand to get to this level is awesome.”

Walton coach Rocky Hidalgoagreed that Allen will be the latestWalton defensive line standout tomove on to the Division I level.

“We’ve had a lot of guyswho have played on the D-Ilevel and Koty will definitelyjoin them,” Hidalgo said.

Allen certainly showed thepotential to reach the next level in2010, when he recorded 69 tacklesand 7½ sacks in his first year inthe starting lineup to help leadWalton to the state playoffs.

While Allen has been a littleundersized for a defensive line-man, he makes up for with hisintense, physical, all-out style.

“I may not be the biggest orfastest player out there, but I canbe the most intense,” Allen said.

“I’m very physical. I like to gofull-out and hit people.”

Hidalgo agrees.“He plays so hard. He does a

great job of getting to the ball-carri-er. He plays hard every game andevery play and he brings a lot ofintensity to the field every game.”

Allen will be part of astrong Walton defensive unitthat also includes defensivebacks Daron and Zach Blaylockand linebacker Justin Brooks.

He will be stepping up tomore of a leadership role on thedefensive line as a senior afterthe departure of Woestmann,Burrows and Mooney.

“I’m looking forward tobeing more of a leader ondefense and just being a leaderon the team,” Allen said.

Another key to Allen’s successis all the hard work that he does inthe weight room — an area inwhich he is helped out by hisfather, Billy, a competitive body-builder in the 1980s who nowworks as a weight trainer and hasbeen a big contributing factor inhis son’s physical development.

“My dad has really helpedme with my weight training,”Allen said. “He pushes me hardand he has helped become theplayer that I am.”

Allen is certainly on his wayto becoming Walton’s latestDivision I defensive lineman, with anumber of D-I schools vying forhis services.

For Allen, it will be awhilebefore he makes his final deci-sion on what college he wantsto continue his career at.

“It’s still pretty early,” Allensaid. “I’m still looking at a lotof schools. It’s pretty exciting tobe recruited on the D-I level.”

For now, Allen is looking for-ward to the 2011 season and isfocused on improving his individ-ual stats as well as leading Waltondeeper into the state playoffs.

“I would love to lead theteam in sacks and help us winthe state title,” Allen said.


Next ABOUT KOTY ALLEN

His favorites subjects arechemistry and science

His favorite football player is Dick Butkus


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KICKOFF 2011


Staff / Samantha M Shal (above) and Lindsay FendtWith Allatoona completing its new turf field this month, every public school in Cobb County — except Marietta and its storied Northcutt Stadium — now hasthe all-purpose surface to play football, soccer, lacrosse and offer the youth athletics in the area an additional place to hold games and tournaments. Aboveis the turf field at Osborne High School. The turf in North Cobb’s Emory Sewell Stadium is pictured below.


[email protected]

As the last artificial turf field wasinstalled recently at Allatoona HighSchool, every public high school in theCobb County School District now hassome form of an artificial surface installed.

At every school, that surface isFieldTurf, with the exception ofMcEachern, which was the first and onlyschool in the county to have SprintTurfinstalled.

At Marietta’s home for more thanseven decades, Northcutt Stadium main-tains the tradition of its natural surface.

As a result of the installations, foot-ball has changed in a variety of ways foreach school. For those schools thatalready had turf installed, such asLassiter and McEachern, the playing fieldmay have evened up for them somewhat.

“Maybe,” said McEachern coach KyleHockman, on losing some of the pro-gram’s competitive advantage. “I thinkthere could be something to that. Wenever ever missed practices. We alwayshad lines and hash marks. And I thinkthere is also a safety concern sometimeswhen you are on a practice field that’s notin very good shape.

Regardless, it is universally believedamong high school coaches that theinstallation of the artificial turf surfacearound the county will save Cobb Countymoney in the long-term compared withhaving to maintain a natural surface year-round.

“At the school level, we spent some-where between $5,000-10,000 each year

sodding the game field every year thatwe don’t have to do anymore,” Waltoncoach Rocky Hidalgo said. “The cost ofcutting and chemicals on the field hasbeen dramatically cut down. We onlyhave to maintain our practice fieldsnow. We probably save $10,000-20,000with everything included because of theturf field annually from the athletic budget.”

For everyone else, the new installationwill save man hours that typically wouldhave spent on tasks, such as cutting thegrass, fertilizing, maintaining the naturalsurface and striping the field.

“It probably saved me 200 hours ofwork this summer because I don’t have tomow or stripe the field,” Pebblebrookcoach Randall Smith said. “Golly, itallows me to watch film more and break-down opponents because I’m not havingto be on the field.”

That time can now be spent on a mul-titude of other tasks — including spend-ing more time on the game of footballitself.

“You have coaches who spent time cut-ting grass or painting fields,” Hidalgo said.“They can go home and spend time withtheir families, prepare for games or pre-pare more for their classes. We don’t haveto spent nearly as much time at the field.”

On top of added time spent on practiceor film study, the new fields prevent fieldsfrom being destroyed in the case ofextreme rains that turn grass fields intomud pits.

“The weekend of the flood (in 2009),”Smith said. “We couldn’t even go outside.It was so muddy that you couldn’t even go

out and function. We had to practice in thegym, which is basically just a walkthrough.You just lose out. With this field, it can rainlike that all day for three days and we canstill go outside and get things done.

“After that flood, it destroyed ourfield. You couldn’t even walk across itwithout the mud coming up over yourshoelaces. (The new field) has been ablessing.”

Outside of the new fields’ practicalappeals, there is also the argument thatthat they create a new aesthetic appeal toeach school’s respective athletic facilities

— making each school have a newer feelto it.

“I like the way it makes our stadiumlook,” North Cobb coach Shane Queensaid. “I like the facility upgrade that itgives. It gives your program a differentlook.”

Regardless of why each school feelsthe new surface is better, each coach isin agreement that it will help with oneof the key components of football.

“Our whole county will be better atfootball just because of that,” Hockmansaid.

COBB’S TURF BEGINNING TO PAY FOR ITSELFEVERY COBB COUNTY SCHOOL NOW HAS ARTIFICIAL SURFACE; MARIETTA THE LONE PUBLIC SCHOOL WITHOUT

KICKOFF 2011


ETOWAH EAGLES

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


BERKMAR 56-21 WKELL 10-20 LWEST FORSYTH 41-14 WNORTH FORSYTH 17-6 WWALTON 19-3 WCHEROKEE 56-0 WWHEELER 38-0 WMARIETTA 36-29 WWOODSTOCK 17-14(OT) WLASSITER 48-21 WMILL CREEK 7-32 L

WON 9, LOST 2

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Bill StewartAge: 42Year at School: 6Record: 35-21Career Rec.: 35-21

Varsity Coaching Staff

Ed Koschewa — Off. CoordinatorStevie Jackson — QuarterbacksRodney Hunter — Running BacksKeith Roddy — ReceiversJeff Zmistowski — Def. LineJosh Shaw — Defensive Backs


ATBERKMARAUG. 26

ATKELL

SEPT. 2

VS.WEST FORSYTH

SEPT. 9

VS.NORTH FORSYTH

SEPT. 16

VS. WALTON

SEPT. 23

ATCHEROKEESEPT. 30

ATWHEELEROCT. 7

VS. MARIETTAOCT. 14

VS.WOODSTOCKOCT. 21

ATLASSITERNOV. 3

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 MIKE LANIER WR 12

2 TRE ASHFORD LB/WR 12

3 BARRETT BURNS WR/DB 12

4 V. WASHINGTON DB 12

5 RAHUL KASAN WR 12

6 M. MCCAULEY DB 11

7 REEVES JOHNSON QB 11

8 D. AWE-OLALEYE WR 12

9 AUSTIN FRANZEN WR/DB 11

10 C. CROLLEY WR 11

11 JESSE BROWN WR 11

12 TRE’ ATKINS WR 11

13 P. BLANCHARD DB 11

14 JOHN OLIVER QB 10

15 BLAKE BROWN WR 10

16 STEVEN ROBLES DB 11

17 BEN ROWELL DB 10

18 ZACH LORD DB 10

19 MATT WILLETT DB/WR 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.20 JAMES LIGON DB 11

22 KEVIN JEAN-BART

21 DALTON TROGSTAD DB 11

22 RYAN WILBORN LB/RB 12

23 BRANDON ENGLE DB/RB 10

24 D. WHEATON RB/DB 12

25 MARTYN DETZ WR/DB 12

26 RANDY GUTIERREZ WR 11

33 RANDY PRESMY

27 DAVID GUERRERO RB/LB 12

28 PIERRE LUBIN LB/RB 10

29 QUANDRE SMALL RB 10

30 AYDEN BONILLA DB 10

31 SEAN MCCONNELL DB 11

32 GENTRY CROMWELL K 10

33 JOE ELLIS LB 10

34 JESSE MULLINS RB 11

35 REED BLANCHARD LB 11

36 B. GOODMAN DB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.38 JESSE PHILLIPS LB/TE 11

39 MICHAEL HUNT DB/WR 11

40 RYAN HOPPER K 11

41 NICK ROWELL DL 12

42 BRYCE COROI LB/TE 11

43 JAMES ARNOLD LB 10

44 MATT BOWLING DL/RB 11

45 ZACH LOPEZ LB 11

46 TAYLOR CANTRELL LB 11

47 ZACK WILCOX LB/TE 12

50 M. RECHSTEINER OL 11

51 CARLOS FUENTES OL/DL 11

52 DALTON PORCHE DL/OL 12

53 DYLAN JENKINS DL 11

54 LANCE KELLY OL 12

55 KEITH GORDON DL/OL 10

56 JAKOB HASSAN OL 11

58 BRIAN CLARK OL 11

60 BRANDON CANNON OL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.61 JACOB HOLCOMBE OL 11

63 CHANDLER STEELE DL 10

64 TY RITCHEY OL 12

65 JAMES VARLEY DL 10

66 DYLAN HEROD OL/DL 12

67 MILES REVELS OL 11

68 EVAN BLOCK OL/DL 10

70 JACK SINGER OL 11

71 DEREK TAYLOR OL 11

72 AVERY DUNCAN OL 11

74 CHASE SAMMONS OL 10

75 NATHAN PARROTT OL 10

76 JULIUS RICHARDS OL 11

77 JAMES JONAS OL 10

78 ZAHER HISHMEH OL 10

80 ANDREW HUGHES TE 12

82 PRESTON WHITE DL 10

84 CONNOR JENSEN WR 10

88 DALTON PHILLIPS DL 11

Season Outlook

If there is one word to describe

Etowah’s football team under Bill

Stewart, it’s “consistent.”

Since taking over the pro-

gram in 2006, the Eagles have

made the playoffs every year

and, except for the 2009 cam-

paign when Etowah used an inel-

igible player and had to forfeit six

contests, they have won at least

seven games every season.

This year should be no different.

Etowah, which finished 9-2

last season, returns six starters

on offense and five on defense

for the 2011 campaign. Although

all-county quarterback Braden

Nolan is no longer under center,

the Eagles return their top run-

ning back in Devonte Wheaton

and their best receiver in Barrett

Burns on offense.

Last year’s question mark —

the offensive line — is also solid

with veterans Jakob Hassan,

Brandon Cannon and Ty Ritchey

back. Dalton Porche, who filled

in for an injured Ritchey along

the line, will also start.

“I feel like we’re going to

have some experience at run-

ning back this year with Devonte

coming back,” Stewart said.

“We’re replacing a quarterback,

but I think we’re replacing him

with a good one with Reeves

Johnson. We have a line that’s

intact with three returning, so

that gives us a little bit of a start

from there compared to last year

when we had to revamp the

entire line.

“Barrett Burns has emerged

as a guy that’s going to be a

weapon on the offensive side of

the ball at tight end and receiver.

I think our receiving corp, with

Damola (Awe-Olaleye) and

(Mike) Lanier and also Martyn

Detz, is a group of guys that we

can get the ball to and move it.”

Although there is an extra

hole to fill defensively, the cup-

board isn’t totally bare. Stewart

enacted a few position changes

to shore up that side of the ball,

which gave up 20 or more points

five times.

“Defensively, day by day,

we’re getting closer to rounding

off that group,” he said. We have

some guys like Tre Ashford who

has stepped up from the safety

position to play linebacker and

Ryan Wilborn, a linebacker, will

be returning.

“We moved some corners to

safety, with Brandon Goodman

and Vashaun Washington, so

that’s been a good fit, and the

two corners with Michael

McCauley and Brandon Engle

have done a good job, so I feel

comfortable that we’re going to

be able to slow people down.

“We’re looking forward to get-

ting after it.”

— By Carlton D. [email protected]


WHITEFIELD ACADEMY WOLFPACKABOUT THE WOLFPACKLocation: 1 Whitefield Drive, Mableton. Phone: (678) 305-3000. Home Field: Whitefield Stadium. Team Colors: Navy, Gold. Online: www.whitefieldacademy.com.

JUMPING BACKINTO FOOTBALL SEASON

By Greg [email protected]

It was a good spring for WhitefieldAcademy’s John Alar, who capped off anoutstanding track and field season with aneighth-place finish in the Class A highjump at the state meet.

Alar hopes to enjoy similar success onthe gridiron this fall as he takes the field forhis senior season as a free safety and widereceiver for the Wolfpack football team.

Being a two-sport standout is nothingnew for Alar, who has been a key con-tributer for both Whitefield’s football andtrack teams since his freshman year.

But football is now the focus for Alar,who is excited about the Wolfpack’schances to rebound from a disappointing2-8 campaign.

“We got back from (a Fellowship ofChristian Athletes) camp (a week before thebeginning of fall practice) and we reallycame together as a team,” Alar said. “Theseniors are ready to step up and lead thisteam. Last year was disappointing for us,but I think we’re going to have a big yearthis year and get back to the state playoffs.”

Alar is entering the football seasoncoming off the momentum from a memo-rable spring on the track in which he wonthe Region 5A title and finished fourth atthe county meet in the high jump alongwith his eighth-place state finish.

He saved his best for last, jumping a per-sonal-best 6 feet, 1 inch at the region meet —breaking the 6-foot barrier for the first time —and leaping an even 6 feet at the state meet.

“Going into the state meet, I had justjumped my (personal-best) 6-1 at region,”said Alar, who finished second in 5A andfailed to place at the state meet in the highjump as a sophomore in 2010. “I was oneinch short (of my personal-best jump) at 6-0 at state, but I was still very pleased withmy performance. It was a great experienceto go to the state meet. Hopefully, I can doeven better next year.”

Football and track have been of equalimportance for Alar, who started playingfootball in the fifth grade and began trackas a sixth-grader.

Alar was introduced to track by hisfather, Paul, who is an avid runner and a

regular competitor in road races and mas-ters (30-and-over) track meets.

Alar competed in the 800-meter run asa freshman at Whitefield, but then movedto the high jump as a sophomore.

He has made great strides in his devel-opment as a high-jumper under the guid-ance of his personal coach, Hugo Munoz,who competed in the high jump for Peru atthe Summer Olympics in 1996 and 2000.

While Alar believes his future as a com-petitor on the college level lies in track, headds that he is equally dedicated to football.

“They are pretty much equal, though I dohave a shot to run track on the D-I level.” saidAlar, who is being recruited by Penn,Washington & Lee and Emory for track.

Alar will be a key performer in theWhitefield defensive backfield as a freesafety and will also see some time on theoffensive side of the ball as a wide receiver.

While Alar certaintly brings athleticability to the gridiron, he said it is his dili-gent and studious approach to the gamethat is just as big a key to his success.

“I’m very technical,” Alar said. “I’mgood at reading what the receiver is goingto do and I know where he will be. I studyfilm a lot and I learn as much as I canabout what the receivers do.”

Whitefield Academy football coachJimmy Fields acknowledged Alar’s atten-tion to detail as well as his work ethic.

“The thing that comes to mind aboutJohn is that he brings a strong work ethicto the field,” Fields said. “His work ethicis why he is so successful in track, achiev-ing the success he did at region and stateand its why he is successful in football. Heis very detailed oriented in track and thatcarries over into his football. He worksvery hard and is very coachable. He’ll be aleader for us this year and he’s a veryimportant part of this football team.”

WHTIEFIELD’S JOHN ALAR HOPES TO USE THE MOMENTUM

OF A STATE TRACK MEET BERTH HELP THE FOOTBALL TEAM

� Free Safety, Wide Receiver � Began playing football in fifthgrade� Finished eighth place in the ClassA state high jump

THE ALAR FILE

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanWhitefield Academy’s John Alar is hoping the success he found in track andfield last spring will be able to carry over to the football field this fall.

ABOUT JOHN ALAR

His favorite subject in school is math

He wants to pursue a business career

Has a small business with his younger brother landscaping lawns, along withdetailing and pressure-washing cars.


ETOWAH EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 6565 Putnam Ford Road, Woodstock. Phone: (770) 926-4411. Home Field: Eagle Stadium. Team Colors: Royal Blue, Gold. Online: etowaheaglesfootball.com

ROWELL, PORCHEPULL DOUBLE DUTY

By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

Unlike smaller privateschools, such as Mount ParanChristian in Kennesaw andWalker in Marietta, Etowahdoesn’t have to play many of itsstarters on offense and defensebecause the team has so muchdepth.

As many as 60-plus athletesjoin the Eagles’ varsity programevery year and, more often thannot, none of starters go bothways. So, to discover that NickRowell and Dalton Porche aretwo-way players, is a bit of ananomaly — that is, until afteryou speak with coach BillStewart.

“I’m really confident that theycan do the job on both sides ofthe football,” he said. “It doesn’ttake a lot for them to understand.They’re very coachable guys andthey pick it up. They’re skilledenough to go both ways.”

Rowell, a senior returningfrom a MCL injury to his rightknee during spring practice, is adefensive tackle who will seemore time at fullback this season.Dalton, another senior, starts atdefensive end and will also getthe starting nod at guard alongthe offensive line.

“These guys grew up playingfootball,” Stewart said. “They’retalented and, year after year, youcan tell by the way they play thatit’s a love and a passion for them.It keeps them going, and thatlove and passion allows them to

be more apt at understandingwhat needs to happen on bothsides of the ball.”

The 5-foot-9, 250-poundRowell is a three-year starter ondefense and a four-year varsityletterman. He played fullback inmiddle school, but was moved todefensive tackle when he got toEtowah. Following the kneeinjury last spring, he is stillworking himself back into shapeto play both ways.

“Coming off the knee injury, Ineed to get in better shape,”Rowell said. “I’m trying to dothe best I can and I’ll be readyfor it.

“I thought about havingsurgery first, but I found out thatI didn’t need it. I just worked mytail off in physical therapy duringthe offseason and it got bettertwo weeks before training camp.It was hard though workingthrough it.”

Despite the injury, Rowell islooking forward to his dual role.He understands what it will takeand is taking the proper steps tobe sure he succeeds at both posi-tions. Last season, he was oftenused at fullback in offensiveplays close to the end zone.

“Being mentally tough is real-ly the best thing to have whenyou play two positions,” he said.“I think I have that and it’swhat’s going to keep me going.

“I’m looking forward to hav-ing a bigger role at fullback. Itwill bring me back to my middle-

See Double, Page 39

ETOWAH SENIORS PREPARE TO PLAY BOTH

WAYS IN STATE’S HIGHEST CLASSIFICATION

Staff / Todd HullEtowah’s Dalton Porche, left, and Nick Rowell will be true 60-minute men this season whenthey start on offense and defense for the Eagles.

ABOUT NICK ROWELLSpanish is his favorite foreign language.

If he had superpowers, he would want to fly.

He was not a “Star Wars” fan.

KICKOFF 2011


WHITEFIELD ACADEMY WOLFPACK


WALKER 7-29 LPACE ACADEMY 10-31 LWILKINSON CO. 7-33 LSACA 21-6 WLANDMARK 7-28 LELCA 0-62 LFIRST PRES. 17-24 LSTRONG ROCK 42-6 WOUR LADY 27-33* LPINECREST ACD. 0-31 L

WON 2, LOST 8*OVERTIME

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Jimmy FieldsAge: 46Year at School: 5Record: 25-20Car. Record: 33-34

Varsity Coaching StaffAlex Livingston — Offensive LineKen Eaton — Def. CoordinatorLee Culp — Defensive LineLeslie Simpston — ReceiversSteven Wright — Running Backs


ATWALKERAUG. 26

VS. PACE ACADEMY

SEPT. 2

ATWILKINSON CO.

SEPT. 9

VS.SW ATL. CHR.

SEPT. 16

ATLANDMARK CHR.

SEPT. 23

VS.ELCA

SEPT. 30

ATFIRST PRES.

OCT. 7

ATSTRONG ROCK

OCT. 21

VS.OUR LADYOCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 R. SHERRELL RB/DB 112 KHALEN PINKETT RB/DB 103 JAY FIELDS TE/LB 124 MAX RIEVES WR/DB 115 CARTER FIVEASH WR/LB 116 ALEX MANNING WR/LB 107 DAVID BALLEW WR/DB 98 JOHN ALAR QB/WR 129 C. WASHINGTON WR/DL 1110 MAX KEMETHER QB/DB 1111 BAILEY COMBS QB/DB 912 THOMAS EAST DB/K 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

14 BRAELEN PHILLIPS WR/DB 1015 SKY DUPREE WR/DB 916 MATT OLSON WR/LB 918 NILE BALL RB/DB 919 MATT MILBURN WR/DB 1120 KRIS MARTIN WR/DB 1121 RYAN WESLEY WR/DB 922 RYAN JONES WR/DB 1224 IAN NASH RB/LB 925 LELAND MANNING WR/LB 1227 BRAD DAVIDSON WR/DB 928 MARCUS JONES RB/LB 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

33 LORENZO CARTER WR/LB 1034 JAY DESHONG WR/DB 936 BEN BRANNEN RB/LB 1140 JAMES SCHULTZ RB/LB 1144 JUSTIN BRENDEL WR/LB 1050 J.B. SOUTHERLAND OL/DL 1252 NICK PAPARELLI OL/DL 1253 SAM PERLEY OL/DL 1154 EVERETT JOINER OL/LB 1156 S. LEMASTERS OL/DL 1157 COLE BARBER OL/LB 958 S. GARRETT OL/DL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

59 JACK BRADLEY OL/DL 960 SAGE BLACKWOOD OL/DL 961 WILLIAM BELL OL/DL 964 ELLIS JONES OL/DL 1170 K. WITHARANA OL/DL 1171 MICHAEL HEBERT OL/LB 972 JAYLEN HUDSON OL/DL 1074 HUNTER HOLLIDAY OL/DL 1175 JAMES HARPER OL/DL 1276 BRENNAN SAUL OL/LB 1177 LIAM VIRRILL OL/DL 9

Season Outlook

Getting back on the winningtrack is the top priority for aWhitefield Academy team thatsuffered a rare losing season in2010.

While Whitefield has lost anumber of key players from lastyear’s team such as UAB signeeKennard Backman, quarter-back/wide receiver HarrisonGoudiss and runningback/linebacker Kyle Gutteridge,the Wolfpack will have anotherstrong senior group coming in tofill the leadership gap.

Jacob Southerland, a 6-foot-4,270-pound senior offensive line-man and Division I prospect,returns to anchor a strongsenior-laden offensive line thatalso includes James Harper, NickPapparelli, Spencer Garrett andLeland Manning.

The Wolfpack will alsoreceive strong senior leadershipfrom tight end/linebacker JayFields, wide receiver/defensiveback John Alar and defensiveback/running back Ryan Jones.

Sophomore Max Kemether

took the starting reins at quarter-back for the last few games of the2010 season and will be the start-ing signal-caller again this year.

While Whitefield will be experi-enced in the trenches, it will bemuch younger in both the offen-sive and defensive backfields.

The biggest key for Whitefieldthis season is simply to stayhealthy after a rash of injuriesdoomed the Wolfpack to a 2-8record last year, their worst sea-son since going 3-8 in 2006.

Improving the passing game

is another key as the Wolfpacktry to bolster their wide receivercorps, with Alar expected tomake an important contributionand provide a target forKemether to throw to.

If Whitefield can stay healthy,develop some wide receiversand their young offensive anddefensive backfields, theWolfpack could be back in thestate playoff hunt in Region 5A.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


HARRISON HOYAS


WEST FORSYTH 0-13 LWOODSTOCK 6-16 LMILTON 31-13 WPEBBLEBROOK 3-13 LHILLGROVE 0-21 LSOUTH COBB 10-7 WCAMPBELL 42-0 WKMHS 17-0 WMCEACHERN 10-28 LNORTH COBB 17-6 WM.L. KING 17-25 L

WON 5, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:David HinesAge: 41Year at School: 4Record: 19-13Career Rec.: 24-29

Varsity Coaching StaffMatt Moody — Asst. HCLee Rider — Offensive CoordinatorRich Robinson — Defensive LineDavid Reed — Tight EndsJamey Stiltz — Defensive BacksBobby Thompson — ReceiversBrent Haygood — Offensive LineJames Mathis — Defensive BacksRobert Jarvis — LinebackersTom Fiacco — Offensive Line


ATWEST FORSYTH

AUG. 26

VS. WOODSTOCK

SEPT. 2

ATMILTONSEPT. 9

VS.PEBBLEBROOK

SEPT. 16

ATHILLGROVESEPT. 30

VS. SOUTH COBB

OCT. 7

ATCAMPBELLOCT. 14

ATKMHSOCT. 21

VS.MCEACHERNOCT. 28

VS.NORTH COBB

NOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 JUSTIN BROOKS RB/DB 12

2 A.J. SMITH RB/DB 12

3 KYLE HOLMES WR/DB 12

4 JUDD HALEY LB 12

6 CULLEN MCCRITE WR 12

7 STEPHON ETIENNE RB/DB 11

8 COLLIN WILSON DL 12

9 MATT NELSON TE 12

10 ANDREW BROCK QB/DB 10

11 SUBBY ADETUJOYE WR/DB 12

12 C.J. POSEY RB/DB 11

13 ALEX ALRED WR/DB 11

15 TYLER CETRULO WR 12

16 DAMON COWAN DB 11

17 CLAY CHASTAIN QB/DB 12

18 TAYLOR SILLAY LB 12

19 LORENZO NUNEZ QB/DB 9

20 R.C. EUSTACE LS 12

21 ADDISON JACKSON WR/DB 12

22 JUSTIN MYRICKS WR/DB 12

23 DARREN PARKINSON K/P 12

24 TONNE’ OSAIGBOVO WR/DB 12

25 W. HUFFSTETLER RB/DB 11

26 ZACH MOORE RB/LB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

27 KYLER GILLESPIE WR/LB 11

28 CHATHAM CARTER RB/DB 11

29 DEMETRUS JONES DB/RB 12

30 JOSEPH PIEPER WR/DB 11

31 DUECE WHITE RB/DB 11

32 CHRIS MURPHY RB/DB 10

33 T. WILLIAMS RB/DB 12

34 TYLER BARNES TE/DE 12

35 RYAN WENDT DB 12

36 CARTER REED LB/RB 10

37 MICHAEL RYAN WR/DB 10

38 KEEGAN KARIM RB/DB 10

39 AVERY STIGALL RB/LB 11

40 JOEY REGISTER WR/LB 12

41 HUNTER JENS DB 10

42 CARSON HUGHEY LB 10

43 JONATHAN FISHER RB/LB 10

44 JAMES PEARSON LB 12

45 HUNTER FUQUA RB/LB 11

46 PARKER KELLEY WR/LB 10

47 TAYVON BENJAMIN DB/WR 10

48 TERRANCE DAVIS DL 11

49 RYAN MOORE RB/LB 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

50 JOHNATHAN DIXSON OL/DL 11

51 ANDREW BUEHLER OL/LB 12

52 BRADLEY FLOWERS OL 11

53 DAKOTA TATUM OL/DL 11

54 SAM LYONS OL/DL 11

55 CURTIS HUBER OL/LB 11

56 JORDAN WILLIAMS OL 12

57 SHAWN MADDEN OL/DL 11

58 JOEY CONNORS OL/DL 10

59 JALEN PENN OL/DL 10

60 JOSH ADAMS OL/DL 10

61 RYAN CAMPBELL OL 10

62 AARON CURRY DL 11

63 MARSHALL BARELA OL/DL 10

64 JAKE SHUMPERT OL/DL 12

65 HUNTER DAVIS OL/DL 11

66 BRADEN BARNES OL/LB 11

67 MITCHELL BENSON OL/DL 10

68 DAVID BERNER OL/DL 10

69 AL REINHARDT OL/DL 11

70 ZACH OSBORNE OL 12

71 AUSTIN O’NEIL OL/DL 11

72 J. AMERSON OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

73 WADE SHUBERT OL/DL 10

74 KEVIN NOBLE OL/DL 12

75 M. WENCLAWIAK OL/DL 10

76 JACKSON MORRIS OL/DL 11

77 CHRIS KLUCK OL/DL 10

78 WILL SICILIANO OL/DL 12

79 NICK SHY OL/DL 11

80 WYATT LOUCKS WR/DB 10

81 MATT EIDSON TE/DL 10

82 TOMMY OROK DL 12

83 CAMERON ISZLER TE/LB 11

84 JACOB MOSS WR/DB 11

85 JUSTIN NIXON TE/DL 11

86 DREVON JONES WR 10

87 VAFA PARSA DL 11

88 J. HUTCHINSON P/K 11

90 TIM JOHNSON DL 12

91 CHRIS KEEL LB/WR 10

94 JOE BARTON OL 10

95 NOBLE WHITE WR/DB 11

97 COOPER LARGENT K/P 11

98 AUSTIN EDENFIELD OL/DL 11

99 JONATHAN GRIMES DE 9

Season Outlook

After a slow start to the 2010

season, the Harrison Hoyas

found their rhythm and finished

the year strong, winning four of

their last five games to earn a

playoff spot in Region 4AAAAA.

The Hoyas are hoping to

carry over their winning ways to

2011 with a hope of challenging

for a region championship.

The key to making the jump

back to Cobb’s elite class will fall

to the hands of new starting

quarterback Clay Chastain.

Chastain has all the tools to be a

good quarterback — size, speed,

arm strength — now all he as to

do is prove he can do it in a

game. The Hoyas should give

him plenty of opportunities this

season.

Chastain will have a pair of 6-

foot-5 targets to throw to in the

likes of wide receiver Subby

Adetujoye and tight end Matt

Nelson. Fullback Zach Moore is

the top receiver out of the back-

field, junior C.J. Posey returns

as the main threat when Harrison

wants to run and they will oper-

ate behind an offensive line that

returns three starters.

The Hoyas were strongest on

the defensive side of the ball last

season, allowing only 11 points

per game. Six starters return on

defense, including their three

leading tacklers — linebackers

Judd Haley, James Pearson and

strong safety Tonne Osaigbovo.

A definite strength of the

squad will be the kicking game,

which returns kicker Darren

Parkinson and punter Jimmy

Hutchinson. After a breakout

showing at the Kohl’s National

Scholarship Camp, Hutchinson is

considered one of the nation’s

top high school punters in the

Class of 2013. Both players will

be able to help the Hoyas dictate

field position.

After a pair of five-win sea-

sons, Harrison appears to be on

the right track to improve in

2011. How much it improves will

depend on how productive the

offense is, and how well

Chastain plays as he settles into

the role of starting quarterback

and team leader.


[email protected]


WHEELER WILDCATSABOUT THE WILDCATSLocation: 375 Holt Road, Marietta. Phone: (770) 578-3266. Home field: Corky Kell Stadium. Colors: Navy, Blue, Gold. Online: www.wheelerfootball.com.

FINDING WHEELER’STEAM LEADER

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

It came as a shock whenJamal Bryant was asked to playquarterback last summer.

Bryant, who was a risingsophomore a year ago and listedat 5-foot-4 and 140 pounds, hadnever taken a snap under center.It was an unusual request, basedon Bryant’s size, but his decep-tive speed fit the mold of leadingthe triple-option offense thatcoach Mike Collins installed.

Bryant won the job and hadto lead a Wheeler offense thatwas just as inexperienced. Hestruggled at times but still laiddown a foundation on howWheeler will run its offenseunder Collins. Bryant also ledthe Wildcats to their first winsince 2007 with a 16-0 victoryover Meadowcreek, and Wheelerwas also in games againstMarietta and Cherokee.

Despite suffering a few over-whelming losses due to inexperi-ence and making a few rookiemistakes, Bryant looks back onhis first varsity season as a posi-tive experience. Now, he is enter-ing his junior season after takingadvantage of a full offseason tohone his skills.

“Me coming into it as a newquarterback, I wasn’t prepared forit really,” Bryant said. “Some ofthe coaches got me ready for it. Idid OK starting off as a sopho-more. I didn’t think I can do it. Iwasn’t expected to play that posi-

tion. I was expecting to play run-ning back, but it was good. I hada really good season.”

Bryant, who comes across ashumble and reserved, did provea year ago he had the leadershipto play quarterback. DespiteWheeler going 1-9, the offensemade strides from the previousyear behind Bryant, who usedhis speed to make several longruns.

“When you step in and every-body is looking at you, you haveno choice but to lead at thatpoint,” Collins said. “I think, attimes, when it got tough, theylooked for Jamal to make theplay for them and I think thathelped him to develop his leader-ship skills.”

Not only is Bryant expectedto lead again, he will have moreexperience around him. Unlike ayear ago, the Wildcats are moreset at their skill positions withsophomore running backDevontae Jackson and receiversKeshon Anderson and TommyLee. Bryant also has four of hisfive starting offensive linemenare returning — seniors GrantKisling and Heyward Angelettaand juniors Brandon Wood andKion Shaw.

Collins said Bryant is rapidlyshowing signs of being animproved quarterback.

“His numbers have increasedin the weight room,” Collins said.“He’s stronger in every lift thanhe was last year. He’s about a

See Bryant, Page 82

BRYANT READY TO TAKE NEXT STEP AS

IMPROVED QUARTERBACK GAINS CONFIDENCE

Staff / Laura MoonQuarterback Jamal Bryant took over Wheeler’s offense last year and helped lead the team toits first win in more than two years.

ABOUT JAMAL BRYANT

He loves macaroni and cheese.

His grandmother, Lotty Leftridge, inspired him to play football.

His favorite player is running back Reggie Bush because ofhis versatility.


HARRISON HOYASABOUT THE HOYASLocation: 4500 Due West Road, Kennesaw. Phone: (678) 594-8104. Home Field: Bruce Cobleigh Stadium. Colors: Navy Blue, Green, White. Online: harrisonhoyafootball.com

WHO IS THIS KID?By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

A high school quarterback that hasnever started a varsity game is heavilyrecruited by Division I programs.

It sounds a lot like Camden County’sBrice Ramsey, who has already committedto Georgia, but the future Bulldog isn’t theonly one garnering high praise from thecollege scouts. So is Harrison’s ClayChastain.

“Before his junior year, he went toFlorida’s passing camp,” said Chastain’sfather, Bruce, “and Urban Meyer fell inlove with him. He took him down to the‘Swamp’ and had a passing session andtold him he would be invited back to (the)Friday Night Lights (passing camp).

“It was shortly after that he began hear-ing from everyone.”

Heading into his senior season, Clay

Chastain already has Alabama, SouthCarolina, Virginia, East Carolina, Marshalland Tennessee showing serious interest.While attending the Crimson Tide’s pass-ing camp this summer, he even had theopportunity to sit in Nick Saban’s officeand talk to the very successful Alabamahead coach.

See Chastain, Page 39

HOYAS’ CHASTAIN HAS NO STARTS BUT LOTS OF ATTENTION

� Height: 6-4 � Weight: 220� Career varsity starts: 0� Career passing yards: less than 200� Colleges being recruited by:Alabama, Florida, South Carolina,Tennessee, Marshall, East Carolina,Virginia, VMI

THE CHASTAIN FILE

Harrison’s Clay Chastainwill finally lineup under center as the Hoyas’starting quarterback this season.Despite not having started a varsity game in his career, the new signal-caller is beingrecruited bysome of the bestcollege footballprograms in thecountry.

�Staff /

Erin Gray

• 12 hours of Instruction

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7 7 0 . 7 9 2 . 7 4 3 1Proven test taking strategies.

Analysis of all question types.

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Full-length practice tests with complete explanations.

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KICKOFF 2011


WHEELER WILDCATS

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


POPE 6-21 LSOUTH COBB 0-34 LMEADOWCREEK 16-0 WCENTENNIAL 0-32 LMARIETTA 34-41 LWOODSTOCK 0-48 LETOWAH 0-38 LLASSITER 0-31 LWALTON 12-37 LCHEROKEE 13-21 L

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Michael CollinsAge: 37Year at School: 2Record: 1-9Career Rec.: 33-34

Varsity Coaching StaffJeff Joiner/Davis Harvey — OCNick Anderson — ReceiversGary Roach — LinebackersMike Collins Sr. — LinebackersShakoor Bryant — Defensive LineJerry Mahon — Defensive LineAnthony Steele — Defensive Backs


VS.POPE

AUG. 26

ATSOUTH COBB

SEPT. 2

ATMEADOWCREEK

SEPT. 9

VS.CENTENNIALSEPT. 16

ATMARIETTASEPT. 23

ATWOODSTOCKSEPT. 30

VS.ETOWAHOCT. 7

VS. LASSITEROCT. 14

ATWALTONOCT. 21

VS.CHEROKEEOCT. 28

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 JAMAL BRYANT QB/DB 112 S. BRYANT DB 123 JEVAN SAMPLER LB 104 KAHLEM LOONEY DB/RB 115 RASHAD JENKINS WR/DB 126 JALEN WILSON DB 127 D. JACKSON RB/DB 108 EMANUEL BEAL WR 109 DAMETRIUS WEBB LB 1110 HAKIM CARTER LB/RB 1111 TOMMY LONG LB/TE 1212 ADRIAN MORRIS DB/WR 1113 RAHEEM PAYNE WR 1114 KYONTE MAXWELL RB/DB 1115 HAYDEN WHITMIRE TE/DL 1116 JACOBI GREEN QB/DB 918 TAYLOR WOLF QB 920 B. COTHRAN RB 1021 ALFONSO BALLARD DL 1223 MICHAEL SPENCE LB/RB 1224 SKIIE ALSTON DB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

25 QUINCYE PRICE LB/RB 1026 ALLEN ARTIS LB 1027 B. GLADNEY LB 1228 MARCUS JACKSON DB 1229 ISAIAH BANKS LB 1130 XAVIER WOMACK WR 1031 COREY BUNKLEY WR 1033 ALI BILAL DB 1034 DOUG LIPSCOMB TE 1235 TY WALKER FB 936 MILAN WOOD DB 1037 ELYJAH MARROW RB 1138 REGINALD JAMES DB 939 DEVIN SMITH DB 940 JACOB LAVAN K/P 1041 JAMIL COLEMAN DB 1042 ANTONEO WEST DB 1043 LUCAS MENDONCA LB 1044 MAU MARTIN DL 1245 ELIJAH BROWN WR 946 BRIAN MAGEE WR 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

47 B. REDMOND LB 1048 JAMES JACKSON LB 1149 BRICE MURRAY DB 950 MONTRICE FILES DL 1051 RODERICK RILEY LB 1153 TRE HUNTER OL 1054 BRANDON WOOD OL/DL 1155 R. MCMATH OL 1156 BRANDON WOOD OL/DL 1157 TOMMY FEAZELL OL 1160 K. WASHINGTON OL 1061 GRANT KISLING OL 1263 GRANT KISLING OL 1264 J.B. SMITH OL 1165 K.J. RAWLES OL 1067 WILLIE BYRD OL 969 JACKSON BLAND DL/OL 1270 K.C. SHAW OL 1171 DARRYL PRICE OL 972 H. ANGELLETTA OL 1273 BRITTON JONES OL 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

75 DASHAWN SNEED OL 1176 MALIK FIELDS OL/DL 977 MIKLE FIELDS OL/DL 978 JULIUS TOLLIVER DL/OL 979 NIGEL MORRIS DL 980 KEVIN HAWKINS WR 1281 BILLY POLAKOWSKI WR 1082 M. ARCENEAUX WR 1083 K. ANDERSON WR 1284 MARK MORAN WR 1085 JESSE KEARSE TE 1086 MICHAEL GORDON WR 987 HARLAND HOWELL WR 988 SAM YAPKOWITZ TE 989 KEYSHAN COLLIER WR 990 JOHN MENZIES DL 991 MICHAEL PINERO OL/DL 1093 J.D. BARRON K/P 1194 VICTOR ALVES K/P 1098 DONOVAN FIELDS DL 12

Season Outlook

Wheeler may be a couple ofyears away from getting thisthing turned around, but it didwin a game for the first time inthree seasons and has enoughexperience returning to take itsprogram to another level.

Wheeler did got that victoryin three seasons againstMeadowcreek and came closeto beating Marietta andCherokee in Region 5AAAAAcompetition.

Based on how they pro-gressed during the spring and

summer, the Wildcats may addto their win total.

“There are several other bar-riers we have to crawl over and,hopefully, we can jump over afew more this year,” second-year coach Mike Collins said.“Breaking old habits and startingnew ones is never an easyprocess. Our focus is on theprocess of getting rid of oldhabits that contribute to you notbeing a successful program andestablishing the habits of a win-ning program.”

Building programs often startwith a quarterback. Junior JamalBryant already has a year ofvarsity experience on hisresume.

He has four returningstarters on the offensive line,two senior receivers in KeshonAnderson and Tommy Long, andappears to have sophomorerunning back in DevontaeJackson.

Wheeler also has experienceon the defensive side of the ball.The Wildcats have two returning

defensive ends in seniorJackson Bland and juniorDametrius Webb.

Senior Alfonso Ballard isback to lead Wheeler’s line-backer unit and the Wildcatsare also welcoming back juniorAdrian Morris in the defensivebackfield along with seniorSantavious Bryant, who missedmost of the 2010 campaign withan injury.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


HILLGROVE HAWKS

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


SPRAYBERRY 23-14 WMARIETTA 17-14 WNORTH FORSYTH 42-28 WSOUTH COBB 19-20 LHARRISON 21-0 WMCEACHERN 48-64 LNORTH COBB 39-27 WPEBBLEBROOK 21-3 WKMHS 34-7 WCAMPBELL 35-16 WSTEPHENSON 28-23 WCAMDEN CO. 28-26 WBROOKWOOD 35-45 L

WON 10, LOST 3

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Phil IronsideAge: 43Year at School: 6Record: 33-15Career Rec.: 51-38

Varsity Coaching StaffJohn Moson — Def. CoordinatorTarve Riggins — Running BacksLugman Salam — ReceiversJoe Gerda —Defensive LineAntoine Prince — Def. TacklesKen Nix — Defensive BacksZack Cook — LinebackersJeffrey Wishon — Offensive Line


ATSPRAYBERRY

AUG. 26

VS. MARIETTASEPT. 2

ATNORTH FORSYTH

SEPT. 9

VSSOUTH COBB

SEPT. 16

VS. HARRISONSEPT. 30

ATMCEACHERN

OCT. 7

ATNORTH COBB

OCT. 14

VS. PEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 21

ATKMHS

OCT. 28

VS.CAMPBELLNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 EVAN ENGRAM WR 11

2 ELIJAH IRONSIDE QB 10

3 TRAVON SIMMONS CB 11

4 IKE EREGE RB 12

5 JOHN SILAS LB 12

6 JOJO MARSHALL WR 12

7 OMAR BLACK WR 10

8 ZACH KATZ RB 10

9 JUSTIN HANEY WR 11

10 TO. CLEVELAND CB 11

11 TROY THOMPSON QB 11

12 TYRUS PARKS WR 12

13 DEVIN KNIGHT DB 10

14 KEYANTE BECKHAM WR 12

15 ERROL BREAUX WR 10

16 CONNER BECK QB 10

17 KENYAN DRAKE RB 12

18 PLACID AJOKU DE 12

19 JULIAN ROBINSON FS 11

20 RYAN KNIGHT FS 11

21 KORBIN SANDERS CB 11

22 DERRICK EVANS RB 10

23 RICHARDRE BAGLEY RB 10

24 BAKARI OXENDINE RB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.25 BRADLEY CHUBB LB 10

26 NAKEVION LESLIE WR 12

27 LEMARKUS BAILEY DB 10

28 KELVIN CAMERON WR 12

29 JORDAN PINNER K/P 12

30 ANDREW GAUGHN K/P 10

31 COTY HAYWOOD

32 BR. EBODAGHE 10

33 JUSTIN CONE LB 12

34 FRANK SPAIN 11

35 MITCHELL HARDING DB 11

36 ROBBIE COLEMAN OLB 12

37 LEONARD GRIER 10

38 KENDALL MCGEE WR 11

39 CHRIS HOUSE LB 11

41 JORDAN ADAMS OLB 11

43 J.T. JACKSON 10

44 JORDAN HELTON TE 12

45 QUINCEY NELSON WR 10

46 JIM. WITHEROW WR 11

47 DALTON SIGMAN LB 12

48 VICTOR SANCHEZ LB 11

49 RICKY POWELL 10

50 ZACK WILLIAMS DE 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.51 DYLAN MITCHELL LB 12

52 PEYTON HEWITT DE 11

53 MASON MCCURDY OL 11

54 DAKOTA GROVES OL 11

55 CARTER FITZGERALD OL 11

56 CODY COLLINS OL 11

57 JUSTIN WARD OL 11

58 TYLER YOUNG DE 10

59 MACEN HOWELLS OL 12

60 AN. COLAPINTO OL 11

61 C. KOWALEWSKI DE 10

62 CODY JOHNSON 10

63 DAGAN ABRAHAM OL 11

64 FERNANDO BENTLEY DT 12

65 GRANT FAGAN 10

66 SETH TRULL OL 11

67 BRADY YODER DL 11

68 MITCH STAPLES OL 10

69 TYLER COX OL 10

70 MITCHELL WINDOM DL 11

71 JACK COWART DT 11

72 MATT BREAUX OL 10

73 TREY SMITH OL 10

74 ERIC BREITWEISER OL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.75 JAYLAN REID DT 10

76 CHRISTIAN HALL

77 UGO ANIKPE OL 12

78 WARREN TERRY DL 10

79 JOSH RYAN OL 10

80 JUSTIN DENTON WR 10

81 SAM PETERSON TE 11

82 ERIC NEWMAN TE 10

83 OSY EGBUZIEM WR 12

84 MARCUS ESTES WR 12

85 DESEAN COLLINS WR 12

86 TREVOR DONALD TE 11

87 JAMAL GOOLSBY WR 10

88 TANNER HALEY WR 10

89 PAUL HALEY WR 12

90 COLE DYKSTRA DE 11

91 ALEX GARLAND DE 10

92 AARON AGHAI K 11

93 PAUL BAIN DL 10

94 JACARI GRIGSBY DL 12

95 SCOTTY BROUSSARD DL 12

98 CHARLES TAYLOR DE 12

99 AUSTIN SHIPPAM DT 12

Season Outlook

Hillgrove is going to play this

season with a large chip on its

shoulder — not because it nar-

rowly missed its goal last sea-

son, not because it under-

achieved, but because so many

around the program are con-

vinced that nobody else thinks

that they can do it again.

“I put a picture on facebook,

and some random kid comment-

ed, ‘Ya’ll got lucky last year.

We’re going to beat you this

year,’” Hillgrove linebacker John

Silas said. “I just ignored it

because I know that we are

going to keep working hard to

try and have a better season

than we had last season.

“It seems like we are playing

with a chip on our

shoulder.”

With players such as quar-

terback Gage Henry, lineback-

ers Brandon Chubb and Jabari

Hunt-Days, and defensive line-

man Ira McCune all gone due to

graduation, the Hawks, on paper

at least, appear to be depleted.

However, there is also reason to

believe that this team has

reloaded with talent.

Offensively, the offense will

be turned over to junior Troy

Thompson. Sophomore Elijah

Ironside, coach Phil Ironside’s

son, has game experience and

could compete for playing time.

The team’s offense will be

carried by senior running back

Kenyan Drake and senior wide

receiver JoJo Marshall, while

the defense’s leader will be

linebacker John Silas. All three

players will be relied on for the

experience and leadership nec-

essary to get the proverbial

chip off of the team’s collective

shoulder.

— By William [email protected]


WALTON RAIDERSABOUT THE RAIDERSLocation: 1590 Bill Murdock Road, Marietta. Phone: (770) 578-3226. Home Field: Raider Valley. Team Colors: Red, White, Blue. Online: www.raidersfb.org.

NEXT IN LINEBy Greg [email protected]

Walton’s Koty Allen will bedoing more than assuming a keyrole in the Raiders’ defense thisseason.

The 6-foot-2, 225-pounddefensive end also hopes to takehis place among the number ofstandout defensive linemen thatWalton has had over the last fewyears.

Allen hopes to join 2010graduates Kyle Woestmann(Vanderbilt), Brandon Burrows(Georgia) and Chris Mooney(Columbia), 2008 graduate ChaseThomas (Stanford) and 2006

graduate Nick Hartnett (WesternKentucky) on the list of Waltondefensive linemen who havemoved on successfully to careerson the Division I level.

See Next, Page 79

WALTON’S KOTY ALLEN COULD BE LATEST

IN STRING OF RAIDERS’ DIVISION I LINEMEN

Walton’sKoty Allenwould be thelatest of along line ofRaidersdefensivelinemen if hesigns with aDivision Ifootball program inFebruary.

�

Staff / Jon-Michael

Sullivan

� Height: 6-2� Weight: 225

2010 Season Stats� 69 tackles, 7.5 sacks� Being recruited by:Kentucky, Tennessee, Ole Miss, UCF

THE ALLEN FILE

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HILLGROVE HAWKSABOUT THE HAWKSLocation: 4165 Luther Ward Road, Powder Springs. Phone: (678) 594-8127. Home Field: Cobb Energy/Hillgrove Stadium. Team Colors: Crimson and Silver. Online: www.hillgrovefootball.org.

Staff / Samantha M. ShalHillgrove’s JoJo Marshall is a big play waiting to happen fromany point on the football field.

SMALL FRAME, BIG LEADERBy William Bretherton

[email protected]

At first glance, Hillgrove widereceiver Jordan “JoJo” Marshalldoesn’t look like the type of guythat would step up to lead againstopposing defenses.

At 5-foot-8, 163 pounds,Marshall is often lighter andshorter than the cornerbacks thathe faces, even in the high schoolranks. Regardless, Marshall isable to make plays and has devel-oped into the Hawks’ top receiver.

“He’s not a big kid, but hehas been a big-time player,”Hillgrove coach Phil Ironside

said. “He’s gone up and caughtthe ball over people. He’s done agreat job in the screen game. Hisblocking is second-to-none. Idon’t think people look at himand say, ‘Oh, my.’ But after theywatch film, they are looking for

where No. 6 is.”Marshall’s numbers from last

season also bear that fact out. Hefinished third in the county inreceiving yards with 703 includ-ing an average of 17.5 per catch.Marshall caught seven touchdownpasses, though all of these num-bers were stymied at times by thenumber of players who got theirhands on the football last season,including senior running backKenyan Drake, who committed toAlabama over the summer.

So, how has Marshall becomeone of the Hawks’ top offensivethreats?

See JoJo, Page 46

HILLGROVE’S JOJO MARSHALL A LARGE PART OF THE GAME PLAN

� Wide Receiver� Height: 5-8� Weight: 163

2010 Season Stats� 40 receptions, 703 yards,7 touchdowns

THE MARSHALL FILE

KICKOFF 2011


WALTON RAIDERS


BROOKWOOD 10-27 LMILTON 41-14 WCAMPBELL 34-7 WROSWELL 13-24 LETOWAH 3-19 LLASSITER 31-27 WCHEROKEE 45-21 WWHEELER 37-12 WMARIETTA 59-28 WWOODSTOCK 20-0 WNORCROSS 3-28 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Rocky HidalgoAge: 38Year at School: 3Record: 13-8Career Rec.: 13-8

Varsity Coaching StaffTripp Allen — Asst. HC/OCChuck Goddard — Def. CoordinatorShane Amos — Defensive BacksChris Van Zelfden — LinebackersPatrick Ray — LinebackersJoe Goydish — ReceiversJeff Imperial — Special TeamsJohn Evans — Offensive LineMike Davidson — Offensive LineBill Bellus — Running BacksRob Nichols — Defensive BacksPete Murphy — UtilityErik Klein — Kickers


DOMEP’TREE RIDGE

AUG. 20

ATMILTONSEPT. 2

ATCAMPBELLSEPT. 9

VS.ROSWELLSEPT. 16

ATETOWAH

SEPT. 23

VS.LASSITERSEPT. 30

ATCHEROKEEOCT. 14

VS. WHEELEROCT. 21

VS.MARIETTAOCT. 28

ATWOODSTOCK

NOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 TYREN JONES RB 112 D. RICHARDSON WR/DB 123 T’QWAN ROBINSON WR/DB 114 CHANDLER DEASE DB 125 MYLES HOWARD WR/DB 126 STONE ROMBERG CB/WR 117 MAURICE GIBSON WR 118 DARON BLAYLOCK DB/RB 129 ZACH WILLIAMS RB 1010 LUCAS ARNOLD LB 1011 JIM HOGUE RB/LB 1212 PARKER MCLEOD QB 1113 HUTTON SPITLER QB 1014 PRICE WILSON QB 1015 JACK WHITTAKER DB 1016 BLAKE MONTZ LB 1117 JAMES WILLIAMS WR 1118 ZACH BLAYLOCK FS 1219 MATT WILSON FS 1220 JACOB MURPHY DB 1021 DJ SMITH RB/DB 1022 RYAN CRAIG WR 1123 R. MCCARTHY CB 1124 BILLY MEREDITH DB/WR 1125 RYAN JOHNSON LB/RB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

26 JORDAN VORSTER LB 1027 COLBY BILLINGSLY 1128 AJ COLLINS DB 1229 CHRISTIAN BURLOCK 1130 HENRY ROWLING FB 1031 JARRETT BYERS RB 1232 JUSTICE BAILEY RB/DB 1133 ZACH HOADLEY LB 1234 DAVID SEWELL DB 1035 ZACH CHRYSTAL DB 1036 MATT KENNEY LB 1137 DANNY BOARDMAN DE 1238 RYAN LABAN DB 1039 WILL HOLT WR/DB 1040 THOMAS LYNCH LB/RB 1141 SAM BURSTEIN LB/RB 1142 JUSTIN BROOKS LB 1243 RIDGE GIBSON LB 1044 KELLY BROOKS RB/DE 1245 DALTON HALL LB 1246 COLLIN FANT WR 1047 WILL MCMAHAN RB/DL 1248 DEDRIC SUNDBY LB 1249 NICK GOODWIN LB 1050 CHRIS WEBB DT 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

51 KOTY ALLEN OL 1252 CONNER HOFFMAN DE 1053 RICHARD SUYDAM 1054 GRIFFIN WILKINSON C/DT 1155 JOE COOK LB 1156 GLENN PANTER DE 1057 KYLE WHITAKER DE 1058 MICHAELKRAEMER OL/DL 1059 LUKE HENDON OL/DL 1160 ANDREW MEAUX OL 1161 JACK SHOEMAKER OL 1062 TIM MATTUS C 1063 MITCHELL PAIR OL 1064 MICHAEL LORD C/DE 1265 LOGAN BROWN OL 1166 SABASTIAN COVELO OL/DT 1167 MARCUS WILSON OL/DL 1068 JON FRANCE OL/DL 969 MICHAEL PAIR OL 1070 JESUS GONZALEZ OL 1071 JACK SCHAEFER OL/DE 1172 BEN BIRLEY OL/DE 1273 JAKE BOYNTON OL 1174 G. RADAKOVICH C 1275 HARRISON DAVIS OL/DT 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

76 EVAN BENNETT C 1277 THOMAS BESHARA OL 1278 KRISTIAN DEARMAS OL 1079 B. KUBLANOW OL/DT 1180 BRAD GREEN TE 1181 BEN SIBLEY WR 1282 LUKE HOLLEY WR 1083 JACKSON DONNELL WR 1084 DYLAN WELCH WR 1085 NAKAI POOLE K 1286 J. DAVOUDPOUR LB 1087 TIM DALTON TE/DE 1288 DAQUAN MOORE WR 1289 CORY GREENWALD 1290 ANDREW MASON OL/LB 1091 ANTHONY PRICE K 1192 CHRISTIAN LUCAS K 1093 R. BLAKENSHIP K 994 TREY THOMPSON OL/DL 1195 ELIJAH WEEMS WR 1096 BRANDON LUCCI LB 1197 TRENT WIRTZ K 1198 NATHAN DITTMER K 1299 S.P. HOLLMAN TE 10

SHAQUILLE EVANS

Season Outlook

While Walton lost top rusherKyle Vorster from last year’s 7-4state playoff team, the Raidersremain relatively intact as theyenter the 2011 season.

Walton is especially strong ondefense, where it returns ninestarters. Senior defensive backs,and twin brothers, Daron andZach Blaylock will lead theRaiders’ potent defense, alongwith senior defensive end KotyAllen and senior linebacker

Justin Brooks.While Walton lost Vorster,

who was one of the top rushersin the county with 1,358 yardsand 19 touchdowns, the Raiderswill have someone to step in andfill the gap immediately inLassiter transfer Tyren Jones,who was also among Cobb’s toprushers in 2010. Senior JimHogue is expected to be anotherkey contributor in the backfield.

The biggest question mark for

the Raiders is the offensive line,where they lost most of theirstarters from last year, but senioroffensive tackle Harrison Davisand junior offensive tackle JakeBoynton will provide veteranleadership for the young line.

Walton suffered its other bigloss at quarterback with thedeparture of Bradley Kilborn, butjunior Parker McLeod is in placeto fill the gap behind center.

The Raiders hope to get off to

a better start than they did in2010, when they went 2-3 in thefirst half of the season beforewinning their last five games toqualify for the state playoffs.

With a strong defense and thepresence of Jones in the back-field, Walton should once againbe one of the top contenders inRegion 5AAAAA this season.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


KELL LONGHORNS


GRAYSON 13-10 WETOWAH 20-10 WWOODSTOCK 17-10 WEAST PAULDING 20-13 WHIRAM 30-7 WPOPE 35-21 WOSBORNE 52-0 WN. PAULDING 55-30 WSPRAYBERRY 42-28 WCHAPEL HILL 30-7 WSOUTH FORSYTH 49-7 WFL. BRANCH 21-13 WSTATESBORO 7-17 L

WON 12, LOST 1

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Derek CookAge: 39Year at School: 4Record: 26-9Career Rec.: 35-21

Varsity Coaching StaffRichard Norman — Asst. HCDoug Orebaugh — Def. CoordinatorKirk Cross — Offensive Line Jonathan Gordon — ReceiversJoe Tousignaut — Defensive EndsKevin Clark — Defensive BacksRusty Gillespie — Kickers/Punters


DOMEGRAYSONAUG. 20

VS. ETOWAHSEPT. 2

ATWOODSTOCK

SEPT. 9

ATE. PAULDING

SEPT. 16

VS. HIRAM

SEPT. 23

ATPOPE

SEPT. 30

VS.OSBORNEOCT. 7

ATN. PAULDING

OCT. 21

VS.SPRAYBERRY

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 BRANDON LOUDER WR/LB 12

2 ORAN DAVIS WR/DB12

3 B.K. HUNDLEY WR 11

4 JULIAN BURRIS WR/DB10

5 JUSTIN PSIHOGIOS LB 12

6 KYLE NORMAN DL 12

7 A.J. REDWINE RB 12

8 MICHAEL VALERO TE/LB 11

9 GAGE ALLRED WR 12

10 CLAY DODSON QB 12

11 HUNTER MARSHALL WR/DB12

13 JAY MOXEY WR/DB10

14 CAPRII KNIGHTEN DB 12

15 KENDALL CRUTE QB 10

16 TYLER PRINCE K 12

17 KEITH MCCAIN RB/LB 12

18 AUSTIN WADE WR 11

19 TYLER FINKLEY WR/DB11

20 QUINCY MAUGER WR/DB11

NO. NAME POS. CL.21 BRENDAN LANGLEY WR/DB10

22 MICHAEL BALDWIN LB 12

23 SETH BROWN RB/DB 11

24 KEVIN HOLMES RB/DB 12

25 CHRIS GAINES RB/LB 12

26 TAYLOR HENKLE WR/DB10

27 CORSAIRE JOHNSON TE/LB 11

28 JORDAN GANTT WR/DB11

29 KHENJI HARRIS WR/DB10

30 TIMMY MURPHY K 11

31 KENDRICK BRUCE RB/LB 10

32 AARON GAINES WR/DB11

33 JORDAN CHAMBERSRB/LB 12

34 TRISTAN SMITH TE/LB 10

35 CLINTON ADAMS RB/LB 12

36 S. HAMMOND WR/DB10

38 TEVIN TWINE TE/DL 12

41 BRIAN LINK RB/LB 10

43 MATT ROSS WR/LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.44 ZACH CLOER RB/LB 11

45 KALEP COOK WR/DB10

47 DAVID HEIKKILA QB 10

49 J. FRANCO GOMEZ WR/DB10

50 NATHAN WALLER OL/DL 10

51 BRENDAN BARBER OL/DL 11

52 TYLER PINTUR OL/DL 11

53 ARIS MATTEIS OL/DL 11

54 CHRIS STILL OL/DL 11

55 JORDAN DWYER OL/DL 12

56 COREY SPENCER OL/DL 12

57 FAYIZ DABDOUB OL/DL 12

58 CARLTON KOUAME OL/DL 12

59 ETHAN ELLIOTT OL/DL 10

60 C. MENDELSON OL/DL 10

62 JUSTIN ROCHEZ OL/DL 10

64 J. SCARPANTONIO OL/DL 10

65 Z. VAN KAUWENBURG OL/DL 11

66 JULIAN JOHNSON OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.67 JACK LECROY OL/DL 10

68 CALEB BLOUNT OL/DL 12

69 ELI SEARCY OL/DL 10

71 SETH CROSS OL/DL 12

72 KHALIF KINNIE OL/DL 10

73 DAVID HALL OL/DL 12

75 TREY COWART OL/DL 10

76 YUYA KAWAKUBO OL/DL 10

77 KENNY LOUIS OL/DL 12

78 ROB HARRIS OL/DL 12

79 SAL HOGAN OL/DL 11

80 KYLE HINES WR/DB11

81 CURTIS STAMPS WR/DB10

82 BRANDON EMBY WR/DB11

83 CODY ASHWAY WR/DB10

85 LANDON KOONTZ WR/DB10

90 CAMERON MASSUNG K 10

95 AUSTIN LANZ DL 12

96 HENRY AGUIRRE DL 12

Season Outlook

After a record-setting season

last year that saw Kell earn its

first region title and reach the

state quarterfinals, the

Longhorns will have a hard time

duplicating that success with so

many players having graduated.

The goal, however, may be

far less on the side of perfection

this season though.

“Those types of seasons

don’t happen very often in high

school, if ever,” Kell coach Derek

Cook said. “It’s very rare. I can’t

think of one around here that’s

happened recently. I don’t know

if we are shooting to be 10-0

again. We’re shooting to be

region champions so that we can

have that home playoff game.”

Like most years at Kell, the

Longhorns’ leaders will come

from the backfield. This year,

however, there are three backs

who will all see comparable

playing time in A.J. Redwine,

Chris Gaines and Jordan

Chambers.

While it may be easier to

replace Brian Randolph in the

backfield, it will be more difficult

to replace the offensive line and

quarterback positions. The offen-

sive line will have five new

starters from last year, and could

include any combination of

seniors or sophomores.

At quarterback, there is a

duel between senior Clay

Dodson and sophomore Kendall

Crute. Dodson offers more expe-

rience in the program and a

strong arm, while Crute offers

more athleticism and more ability

to make plays on the run.

Defensively, Chambers and

Gaines will be important pieces

of the linebacker corps, while

Jonathan Dwyer’s younger broth-

er, Jordan, will anchor the defen-

sive line. The secondary adds a

key piece in Cherokee transfer

Quincy Mauger.



WALKER WOLVERINESABOUT THE WOLVERINESLocation: 700 Cobb Parkway North, Marietta. Phone: (770) 819-2521. Home Field: Robertson Field. Team Colors: Maroon, Gold. Online: thewalkerschool.org/athletics

PUMPED UPBy John [email protected]

Evan Kasian has meant a lotto the Walker athletic programs.

As a freshman he earnedClass A All-State honorablemention at defensive back forbursting on the scene with sixinterceptions. As a sophomore heled the Wolverines in rushing,receptions, touchdowns and start-ed on both sides of the ball. Healso was the leading scorer onWalker’s Class A state champi-onship soccer team.

On the Wolverines’ athleticfields, Kasian is proving thereisn’t much he can’t do, so nowhe is taking his talents nationally— in powerlifting.

In an effort to better preparehimself for the football and soc-cer seasons at Walker, in additionto the standard weight roomwork from his coaches, the 5-foot-9, 170-pound Kasian

began powerlifting on after asuggestion by former Wolverinesstrength and conditioning coachJerry Collett.

The powerlifting, similar tothe weightlifting seen duringthe summer Olympic games,consist of two moves — theclean-and-jerk and snatch. Theclean-and-jerk is when the lifterpulls the weight from the floorto across their chest, just belowthe chin. From there, the lifter

uses their legs to propel the barup over their head. When doingthe snatch move, the lifterbrings the weight from the floorabove his or her head in onemotion.

Thinking he could use thehelp, Collett took Kasian to seeRobert Hall at Iron ClutchFitness, and the results havebeen impressive. When Kasianstarted the powerlifting, hecould clean-and-jerk 175pounds and snatch 105 pounds.Since then, he has added morethan 100 pounds to each moveand recently qualified for nextFebruary’s U.S. Junior Nationalcompetition in Chicago.

“I had to lift 456 pounds(between the two moves) inorder to qualify,” Kasian said. “Ilifted 456 pounds exactly.”

More impressively, Kasianqualified for the national event inonly the second meet he has ever

See Pumped, Page 79

WALKER’S KASIAN TAKES POWERLIFTING TO ANOTHER LEVEL

� Running Back� Height: 5-9� Weight: 170

2010 Season Stats� 110 carries, 637 yards, 5 touchdowns� 36 receptions, 351 yards, 3 touchdowns

THE KASIAN FILE

Walker’s Evan Kasian has alwaysexcelled on the Wolverines’ footballand soccer fields. Now he is proving hecan be a weightlifter at the nationallevel.

�Staff / Jon-Michael Sullivan

ABOUT EVAN KASIAN

He qualified for the U.S. JuniorNational powerlifting lifting

tournament in only his second attempt

His brother, Justin Kasian, and friend,Jake Powers, could all qualify

for the national event, but in differentweight classes

COACH BEN WILLIAMSON

&

THE WALKER WOLVERINES

THE WALKER SCHOOL

700 Cobb Parkway North, Marietta

770-427-2689 • thewalkerschool.org

The Walker School is an independent college-preparatory school for children ingrades Pre-K - 12 and practices a non-discriminatory admission policy.


KELL LONGHORNSABOUT THE LONGHORNSLocation: 4770 Lee Waters Road, Marietta. Phone: (678) 494-7844. Home Field: Cobb Energy/Corky Kell Stadium. Team Colors: Copper, White, Black. Online: www.kellfootball.com

LONGHORNS GO TOBIG BACK ATTACK


[email protected]

Though Kell High School isjust eight years old, the Longhorns’football program has already devel-oped a strong tradition.

Outside of winning games,Kell has been able to output top-caliber running backs to DivisionI schools. Last year, Kell hadBrian Randolph, who traded inhis Kell colors for Tennessee’sburnt orange after running for1,068 rushing yards and 16touchdowns on 145 carries.Before that, the school turned outBrian’s older brother, Justin, andcurrent Pittsburgh SteelerJonathan Dwyer.

“With Kell football, and thetradition here, there is a wholerunning back tradition herethat’s been set,” Dwyer said.“Coach (Derek) Cook takespride in it, and I take pride in it.Whoever the running back ishas a lot of shoes to fill everyyear. I take pride in the fact thatI started the tradition here and,every year, there’s always beena running back here that’s had1,000 yards that has gone tocollege and been a top player inthe country.”

Though Brian Randolph setan example of what rushingmarks to shoot for, and of what

caliber player that every runningback wants to become, his valuemay have come from somethingfar more simple than that.

“Technique-wise, he didn’treally help as much,” ChrisGaines said of Randolph. “But hetaught us effort. They say youcan’t really teach effort, butwatching Brian work hard and dothings — he never quit andalways worked hard. He was atwo-way starter and never com-plained. He was a 60-minute guythat played every snap and onspecial teams. What I want tokeep going on into next year isthat effort.”

This year’s version of theLonghorns has a three-back sys-tem with Jordan Chambers, A.J.Redwine and Gaines. Eachbrings a different skill set to thetable, though there will need tobe some discretion in handingout footballs among the trio.

“The good thing is thatGaines and Chambers are defen-sive guys, too,” Cook said, “sothey are going to be on the field awhole bunch. It helps to haveRedwine as just an offensive guyto give those other guys abreather, so we can make surethat we are fresh on defense.”

Though Chambers has theappearance of being Kell’s

GAINES, CHAMBERS AND REDWINE PLAN

ON LEADING KELL BACK TO THE PLAYOFFS

ABOUT THE KELL RUNNING BACKS

In the winter, Chris Gaines competes in wrestling, which helps him with his technique, leverage and learning how to tackle

Gaines also enjoys cooking. Barbecue ribs are his favorite,and he said he could eat ribs all day

A.J. Redwine enjoys swimming, but if a pool isn’t handy, he likes to relax in the tub after a hard practice

Kell runningbacks, fromleft, JordanChambers,A.J. Redwineand ChrisGaines all waymore than200 poundsand can getthe Longhornsthe toughyards whenthey needthem.

�Staff /

Laura Moon

See Kell, Page 41

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KICKOFF 2011


WALKER WOLVERINES


WHITEFIELD 29-7 WCALVARY DAY 20-42 LPACE ACADEMY 3-28 LGORDON LEE 23-0 WBOWDON 21-42 LBREMEN 14-27 LTRION 0-42 LMOUNT PARAN 0-14 LDARLINGTON 14-48 LMOUNT ZION 46-0 W

WON 3, LOST 7

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Ben WilliamsonAge: 35Year at School: 4Record: 8-22Car. Record: 33-52

Varsity Coaching StaffMartez Graham

Pat HallDan Moorer

Bailey WoodsDavid Yarborough


VS.WHITEFIELDAUG. 26

ATCALVARY DAY

SEPT. 2

VS.PACE ACADEMY

SEPT. 9

ATGORDON LEESEPT. 16

VS. BOWDONSEPT. 23

ATBREMENOCT. 7

VS.TRION

OCT. 14

ATMT. PARANOCT. 21

VS.DARLINGTON

OCT. 28

ATMT. ZION-CAR.

NOV. 4

NAME POS. CL.

STEVEN WILSON WR/DB 12

JOSH LAMMERT OL/LB 12

KYLE IRWIN OL/LB 12

GARRETT JOHNSON WR/LB 12

DIXON BABB WR/DB 12

SCOTT SHOCKLEY WR/LB 12

A. J. JENNINGS RB/DB 11

EVAN KASIAN RB/DB 11

NAME POS. CL.

C. GRAHAM RB/DB 11

TYLER SUDDERTH WR/DB 11

MITCHELL BOYLAN RB/LB 11

JAKE SONSHEIN OL/DL 11

MIKE RAMSEY OL/LB 11

COLIN MITCHELL OL/DL 11

S. YARBOROUGH QB 11

JOSH MILLER WR/DB 11

NAME POS. CL.

JUSTIN DELBROOK RB/DB 10JACK JOHNSON RB/LB 10GAVIN CROUCH QB/LB 10BRADLEY MOORE OL/LB 10MICHAEL BERK OL/DL 10JOSH REINI OL/DL 10MATTHEW THOMAS OL/DL 10ERIK WARNER OL/DL 9

JAMES PITTINGER QB/DB 9

NAME POS. CL.

JOE REICH WR/DB 9SAMMY SMITH OL/LB 9GLENN STROTHER WR/DB 9JAKE REINI OL/DL 9J. T. WOOD RB/DB 9MATT WHEELER WR/LB 9A. REICHENBACH WR/DB 9NICHOLAS WRIGHT OL/DL 9

C. SUDDERTH WR/DB 9

Season Outlook

Walker continues to be awork in progress heading into the2011 season.

After a pair of 3-7 cam-paigns, the Wolverines areshort on numbers this year withonly 35 players. Even worse,two-year starting quarterbackJames Clements decided toforego his senior season on thegridiron and shift his focus tobaseball, and the entire 2010coaching staff, with the excep-tion of head coach BenWilliamson, has been changed.

Other than that, everything isthe same on the corner ofAllgood Road and CobbParkway.

As for what this means for theupcoming high school footballseason, Williamson said hesees all the changes as a posi-tive, but, after three full seasonson the job, even he expectedthe team to be farther along inits development.

“I feel like we’re off to a freshstart,” he said. “We’ve let go of alot of things we didn’t do well lastyear and, with the new coaches,players and new behaviors, Ithink we’re heading in the rightway.”

Much of the optimism lies in astrong junior class led by runningback Evan Kasian, offensive line-man Mike Ramsey and transfer

quarterback Sam Yarborough.Kasian has proved to be the

go-to guy on both sides of theball for the past two years, andhis workload doesn’t expect toget any less this season. Hewas the Wolverines’ leadingrusher with 637 yards and fivetouchdowns, caught 36 passesfor 351 yards, three touchdownsand started at defensive back.

Ramsey will anchor a linethat averages 6-foot-1, 220pounds with the hopes of open-ing holes for Kasian and keepingYarborough upright.

Yarborough, a 6-3, 210-pound left-hander, takes over forClements. In order to cater to his

talents, Walker will try to stretchthe field and be based out of aspread offense rather than its tra-ditional triple-option.

Defensively, the Wolverineswill depend on Ramsey, Kasian,linebacker Garrett Johnson andcornerback Steven Wilson toslow down their opponents. Theoverall success of the defensewill be connected to two things,how well the offense performsand how many injuries Walkercan avoid.

“If we stay healthy, we cancompete,” Williamson said.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


KENNESAW MOUNTAIN MUSTANGS


ALLATOONA 22-24 LPOPE 20-24 L SPRAYBERRY 16-23 LNORTH COBB 14-43 LPEBBLEBROOK 10-37 LCAMPBELL 25-3 WSOUTH COBB 6-24 LHARRISON 0-17 LHILLGROVE 7-34 LMCEACHERN 10-21 L

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Chad McGeheeAge: 35Year at School: 2Record: 1-9Career Rec.: 1-9

Varsity Coaching StaffJohn Poitevint — Def. CoordinatorDon Baker — Special TeamsJeff Bettis — Defensive LineMarcus Carter — LinebackersMark Carter — ReceiversRob Williams — Offensive Line


ATALLATOONAAUG. 26

ATPOPE

SEPT. 2

VS.SPRAYBERRY

SEPT. 9

VS.NORTH COBB

SEPT. 16

ATPEBBLEBROOK

SEPT. 30

VS.CAMPBELLOCT. 7

ATSOUTH COBB

OCT. 14

VS. HARRISONOCT. 21

VS.HILLGROVEOCT. 28

ATMCEACHERN

NOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 DEVON PUTMON WR/LB 11

3 LUKE LEWALLEN WR/DB 10

4 CHRISTIAN FLEMING DB 12

5 PARTICK APPIAH LB 12

6 LUCAS CARMEAN QB/LB 10

7 XAVIER EALY WR 12

8 G. MCGRUDER WR/DB 10

9 TYLER BOWMAN WR 12

10 DALIN FINLEY QB 11

11 CAMERON WILSON WR 11

12 DARWIN GILDON WR 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

14 RYAN CLAY WR 12

15 MAURICE PHILLIPS WR 11

16 T. RICHARDSON WR 11

17 DEJON GILDON WR 12

19 ZACH CHANDLER QB 10

20 H. BROOKS DB 12

21 ZACH BISHOP RB/DB 10

22 DARIUS GILDON DB 11

25 JACOBY SHIPMAN LB 11

28 WAYNE DOUGLAS RB/DB 11

30 BEN DOLENSKY K 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

31 NICK FREISER K 12

35 JUSTIN BECKER LB 12

42 RYAN MCGRAIL DB 10

43 JAMARI CARTER RB/DB 10

45 MARCUS BROWN RB 11

48 TYLER COOPER LB 11

50 LUIS SANCHEZ DL 12

52 ALEX HUBBARD OL 12

54 TREVER MCNEAL DL 12

55 LUIS MEDINA OL/LB 10

57 TYLER OZMENT OL 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

58 DREW MCCOLLUM OL/LB 11

60 TYRELL TURNER OL 12

63 TARIQ SHABAZZ OL/DL 10

68 DESMOND REID OL/DL 11

77 BEN HURD OL 12

79 KORDELL BROWN OL/DL 11

80 NICK BELL WR 11

83 MACEO INMAN WR/DB 10

85 A. GOODMAN WR 11

86 JAYSON TOWEH WR 11

91 SIDNEY HAMMOND DE 11

99 CARSON HALL DE 10

Season Outlook

Patience will be a key word

for the fans of Kennesaw

Mountain.

A year after going 1-9

behind new coach Chad

McGehee, the Mustangs are

still in a state of flux.

Last season, McGehee

started the remolding of the

team. He changed the

offense, defense and brought

in a number of his own coach-

es. That trend will continue in

2011.

Kennesaw Mountain enters

the season with only 12

seniors. It also has four new

coaches, including a new

defensive coordinator that

was hired in July, which

means the defense is learning

a new system on the fly, but

through it all, McGehee can

see improvement.

“We’re finally heading in the

direction we want things to be

going,” he said. “The kids are

doing the little things right.

We’re excited about the new

coaching staff, and we’re real

upbeat.”

However, improvement and

excitement can only carry a

team so far, and McGehee

knows this season will have its

challenges.

“(With only five returning

starters) there’s not a lot of

Friday night experience,” he

said. “We’re going to be under-

sized and we’re going to have

to overachieve. But we have

good chemistry and, if they

come and play that way, we

can compete.”

Offensively, McGehee

turns the reins of the up-

tempo unit over to Dalin

Finley.

At 5-foot-7, Finley is an

athletic quarterback who can

run. Because of his size, the

Mustangs will likely use a

rolling pocket to help open

space for him to see down-

field. But while Finley may

be on the smaller side,

McGehee said his quarter-

back’s toughness should

never be questioned.

“He’s a leader by exam-

ple,” McGehee said. “(During

a JV game, he) threw a

touchdown with a broken

collarbone. He came over to

the sideline and you could

see the bone sticking out.

(He was obviously done

for the night), but he still

wanted to go back into the

game.”

One of the biggest

returnees, and a vital cog in

the offense, is wide receiver

Ryan Clay. Clay caught 50

passes last season and will

be Finley’s go-to guy.

The defense will be led by

third-year starter Trever

McNeal, a real run-stuffer on

the defensive line, and middle

linebacker Tyler Cooper, some-

one McGehee says never

takes a play off.

“He’s everywhere,” McGehee

said.


[email protected]


the team, too. We became goodfriends and when I got to Osborne,Grady’s been looking out for me.”

Clay saw Height’s potentialearly on as he played for theWarriors and for the Cardinals’freshmen team. When Currybecame concerned that Heightmight not get recruited as a foot-ball player from Osborne andstarted looking at other schools,Grady stepped in and convincedher to keep Height as a member ofthe Cardinals.

“I knew about Nyiakki whenhe played for Milford and I methim and his aunt at Osborne in his

freshman year,” Clay said.“Osborne was losing kids to otherschools like McEachern andHillgrove went it was opening andhis aunt was going to moveNyiakki as well.

“I found out about him and hislife, and I made a commitment toher that if she stayed and kept himin Osborne, then I would make acommitment to her to make surehe gets recruited and stays on theright track.”

Height made his verbal com-mitment to UAB in mid-July.

“His talent is unbelievableand some of the stuff he does isperfect once you show him,”Clay said. “He picks up thingswell, and he’ll probably playeven better around kids with thesame level of talent that he has.They’ll push him.”


HeightsIn order to become all of

those things, Goodman had tobe given the opportunity tostrive with the Falcons early onin his career. As a sophomore,he was given that chance.

Since then, Goodman hastaken athletic gifts and evolvedthem into becoming the teamfield general.

“As a sophomore, you try toinstill mental toughness and youstay on him,” Smith said. “Youhope that they catch on to whatyou are doing and what you’rethinking. In (his) junior year,(we) cut him loose a little bit.

“At our 7-on-7s, he’llalmost call a play before I’llcall it. So, when you’ve hadsomeone that you’ve worked soclose with for three years andstart thinking alike, a lot oftimes good things happenbecause he is already thinkingabout what he needs to do forthe team to be successful.”

Goodman was thankful forhis early chance to succeed,knowing full well that few peo-ple get the same opportunity.

“I was really excited about get-ting that opportunity my sopho-more year,” he said. “so that now Ican grow as a person, as a playerand as a leader on the team.”

After nearly two years ofbeing a starter for Pebblebrook,Goodman has learned the play-book to the point where he canadjust to opposing defenses andensure that his teammates are allon the same page on every play.

“I can call a play, and even if Isend it in wrong, he fixes it and

tells everyone what to do,” Smithsaid. “As a sophomore, I wastelling him that you’re going to calla play and you’re going to look intheir eyes and see nine people withthat dumbfounded look and you’regoing to have to fix it whether it’s ablocking scheme or runningscheme. You have to learn whatthey’re doing. And he’s done that.”

Though Goodman hasproven his worth at the highschool level, he may not be thepro-style prototype that manyDivision I schools look for. Atjust 6 feet tall, he fits the billmore of a scrambling quarter-back or as an athlete that couldswitch positions.

Still, Ball State has alreadyoffered Goodman a scholarship,though he is starting to garnerinterest from other schools suchas Navy, Tennessee, GeorgiaSouthern.

Tennessee, however, seeshim in a different way.

“We went to a Tennesseecamp and they were really excitedabout his receiving abilities,”Smith said. “He may have a careeras a receiver at the next level. Wedon’t know, but we can’t wait forthe journey to see what he does.When you are the kind of athlete

he is and when you get to college,a lot of times are college wants a6-foot quarterback. They can han-dle (shorter quarterbacks) undercertain systems.”

More than his chances to playat the next level, Goodman alsohas the ability to relate to people.With fellow senior SertonuseHarris, Pebblebrook’s featurerunning back this season, he hasbuilt an important relationship.

“We built a strong bondbetween us and we understandeach other very much. That’swhy he’s (jersey) No. 1 and I’mNo. 2. We’ve been playingtogether since we were fresh-men and we are very close. Ithink that’s what will actuallyhelp the team get better — hav-ing C.J. and me together.”

Furthermore, that relation-ship may help add to theFalcons’ level of play on thefield. In practice and pastgames, the relationship hasalready had an impact.

“If he messes up, then Iknow what he messes up,”Harris said. “If I mess up, thenhe knows what I mess up.We’ve build that bond up strongenough to know when one isright and one is wrong.”

ABOUT C.J. GOODMAN

The main thing he has learned from his coaching staff isthat a team is a family and ,without the team, no one can

win

Teammate Kendrick Peeples has been a major influence outside the coaching staff

When it comes to playing on the next level, he would like toplay quarterback, but he can also play receiver


Hats

“It was a good year,” Ellissaid. “It was a little tough sinceit was my first varsity year, butI started getting used to it andI’m ready to go this year.”

Terrell and Ellis combinedfor 255 yards and three touch-downs in River Ridge’s 22-16victory over Lakeview Academy.Ellis led the way with 146 yards,while Terrell added 109 yards.

River Ridge coach RobertBraucht said Terrell and Ellistogether make for a potent combination.

“I think the big thing is thatthey work so well together,”Braucht said. “It’s kind ofunique. It’s good to have a 1-2punch like that in our backfield.”

Terrell is a straight-ahead

runner, who is capable of break-ing open a big run, but he most-ly uses his strength to grind outyards.

“Austin is a north-south kid,”Braucht said. “He runs mostlystraight ahead, though he doeshave some breakaway speed.He’s a pretty good athlete.

Ellis is more of an open-field runner who can cut backand break open a big run.

“E.J. can run north-south, buthe has the ability to get out inthe open field and break awayfrom the defenders,” Brauchtsaid. “He has good speed andhe’s a good zone back.”

While not particularly closeoff the field, Ellis said he andTerrell have a good relationshipon the gridiron.

“We have kind of a competi-tion,” Ellis said. “We sort ofcompete against each other, butwe help each other, too. We

push each other to be the bestthat we can be. We work welltogether.”

Added Terrell, “E.J. helps me alot with running the ball. When hecarries the ball, I block for him andwhen I carry the ball, he blocks forme. There is kind of a competitionbetween us, but we also help eachother to get better, too.”

Both Terrell and Ellis arenow ready to take the next stepin 2011 as they both make anoth-er stab at reaching the 1,000-yardmark and try to help River Ridgewin a few more games.

“I want to reach 1,000 yardsthis year,” Terrell said. “I wantto have a better season than lastyear and I want us to have abetter season as a team.”

Adds Ellis, “I want to get1,000 yards and win more gamesas a team. I had a good seasonlast year, but I can do better thisyear.”


Blocks

At your fingertips.

MARIETTADAILY JOURNAL

www.mdjonline.com

Chronicling Cobb County’s People and Events Since 1866Chronicling Cobb County’s People and Events Since 1866

www.mdjonline.com


KENNESAW MOUNTAIN MUSTANGSABOUT THE MUSTANGSLocation: 1898 Kennesaw Due West Road, Kennesaw. Phone: 770-594-8190. Home Field: Cobb Energy/Mustang Stadium. Team Colors: Black, Green, Silver. Online: kmhsfootball.com

FAMILY AFFAIRBy John Bednarowski

[email protected]

It was confusing at first forKennesaw Mountain coach ChadMcGehee. He had never coacheda team that had three brothers onit before, let alone having allthree in rotation at their posi-tions, so McGehee came up withhis own solution to the problem.

“For awhile, it was confusinglearning their names,” he said.“So they were Gildon 1, 2 and 3.”

As the Gildons prepare forthe 2011 season, they don’t haveto worry about McGehee notknowing their names. Dejon andDarwin will be on the field a lotat wide receiver trying to makeMcGehee’s up-tempo offense runlike the turbo-charged car thatshares the name of the KennesawMountain mascot. And while theother two are on the bench,Darius will be lining up at cor-nerback trying to get Dejon andDarwin the ball back.

Considering the brothers’positions, game preparation canget a little personal. Often in

practice, Darius lines up acrossthe line from one of his siblings,but just because they are family,neither Dejon nor Darwin gotany kind of a break.

“I usually start talking junk,”Darius said.

A similar action is usuallytaking place on the offensive sideof the ball, too.

“I love him off the field,”Darwin said. “But I mess withhim once we step on the field.”

But as far as being mischevi-ous, braggadocious or a disci-pline problem, a little siblingtrash talk is as close as it gets tothe trio causing problems.

“They always do what we askthem to do,” McGehee said. “If Itell them they have to be here at4 a.m., then that’s when they aregoing to be here.

“They are also no problem inthe classroom.”

Considering the lines of workthe brothers want to get into,they can’t afford to have issueswith the books.

Darius plans on attendingGeorgia Tech to become an engi-

neer, Dejon is heading toSouthern Poly as a computerdesigner so he can create videogames and Darwin wants to bean architect. And while thebrothers should be commendedfor doing the right thing, muchof the credit belongs to theirmother, Francine, who has had toraise the boys on her own for thelast few years.

Their father, Darrell GildonJr., was a career military man butdied in 2009 after suffering fromamyotrophic lateral sclerosis,also known as Lou Gehrig’sDisease. From that point on,Francine took on extra work andwas not home as much to carefor her sons, but she has morethan made up for it with supportin two areas — the kitchen andin the stands.

“With not being around asmuch, I always want to makesure they have a really goodweekend breakfast,” she said.“That usually means they’ll get18 eggs, two packs of bacon,pancakes and French toast.”

See Family, Page 46

GILDON BROTHERS LEAVING THEIR MARK ON KENNESAW MOUNTAIN

Kennesaw Mountain’s Gildon brothers— Darwin, left, Darius and Dejon — areoften confused for one another. One thing is for sure though, as agroup, the trio are making their markson the Mustangs

�Staff / Laura Moon

ABOUT THE GILDONS

Their favorite meal is fried chicken,collard greens, mashed potatoes,

macaroni and cheese and cornbread

Because they look alike, Darius andDarwin often play tricks on the

equipment managers

KICKOFF 2011


Our FBC Volunteer Pew Crew (50 members strong) has faithfully met

to prep Eppie the pew baby dolls to send to children in orphanages and

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to the "Eppie Everywhere" pages.

Enjoy the video called "Project Judy" which will explain this mission

project: www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDI_K74UzH4

You can donate or make a purchase online, call 770-479-9569, or

mail it to: EEF, Inc., 110 Pueblo Ct., Unit #1014, Waleska, GA

30183. Please make checks payable to Eppie Everywhere Foundation, Inc.

You will receive a tax deductible receipt for 2011.

We need volunteers to sew. You can sew at home. Call us at 770-479-9569.

We also need new retail locations for Eppie products to be offered in your area...call to

ask about getting started with us! Eppies are now available at Chamber House in

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Thank you so much for your every consideration of this mission. We covet your prayers for our volun-

teers and those who make trips to Haiti and around the world to serve orphanages and hospitals and

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I managed to make changes,”Colin said. “I like where I’m atright now and I wouldn’t want tobe anywhere but here. I havesome friends that are still overthere and it makes the rivalry alittle bit more fun.”

Even on the football field,Dozier has had to make changes.Prior to this season, the juniorhad played linebacker. Sequoyahcoach James Teter, however,thought that a move would bebest for the 5-foot-9½, 280-pound Dozier.

Despite Dozier’s numbers lastseason, including 34 solo tackles,18 assists, three tackles for loss,two sacks and one fumble recov-ery, Teter knew that Dozier would

adapt to a new position more eas-ily than anyone else due to hisattitude and leadership qualities.

“He’s a great kid as far as atti-tude,” Teter said. “He’s probablythe leader of our whole programand has been that way since hewas a sophomore. He started as asophomore at outside linebacker.We moved him to nose guard thisupcoming season. He likes beinga linebacker, but for the better-ment of our team moved. But Ithink he’s good at it.”

Moreso than just being goodfor the team, the move may alsobe better for Dozier’s future.

“Coach told me it would bethe best thing for my height toget a scholarship,” Dozier said,“so, if I can get a scholarship,then that would be OK.”

Dozier has clearly adjusted tolife on the line of scrimmage,though there have been some key

differences in adjusting to attack-ing opposing offenses.

“I would say my foot move-ment would be the biggestthing,” he said. “I try to read theplay, but I have to keep movingso I can get off the block. It’seasier to adjust on the defensiveline because you have less toworry about. You have to worryabout the man in front of youand the one next to you.”

On top of working on hisagility and breaking off opposinglinemen, Dozier has been work-ing on the cerebral part of beinga nose guard: timing the snap.

“That’s another key point,” hesaid. “I try to jump the snap oncertain plays and on certaindowns. Usually, on third down,especially on third and long youwant to try and get off the ballquick because most of the timethey are passing the ball.”

ABOUT COLIN DOZIER

He is a very competitive person whether it is on the football field or in the classroom

He likes when teams run right at him because they let him use his strength

His favorite college team is Clemson


Dozierand didn’t know anything,”said Kessler. “I was a realslow kid when I got here. Ichanged my whole mindsetbecause I never had to dealwith this before.”

Not only did the two quar-terbacks brush up on runningSprayberry’s offense during theoffseason, they also had tobrush up on their leadershipabilities. Jackson saidShackelford held a series ofleadership meetings last springto teach the two players how tolead.

Jackson made big playswhen he started the last fivegames of the 2010 season.He threw for 345 yards forSprayberry with 183 of themcoming against Kell. Allthree of Jackson’s touchdownpasses were 30 yards ormore.

But Jackson admitted hewent through a selfish phasebefore and during his starts atquarterback. He interactedmostly with his friends on the

team, he started getting impa-tient when he didn’t start lastseason on varsity and wasnever one to give encourage-ment during games.

Once Jackson learned thatpatience pays off, he changedhis ways.

He encourages all mem-bers of his team during workouts. He praises hisreceivers for making bigplays when he gets a chanceand shakes hands with theoffensive line for protectinghim.

“You can’t think thatyou’re not gong to go intothe game,” Jackson said. “Ihad no idea that I was goingto be where I am now. I got alittle down on myselfbecause I deserved to have achance to play on Fridaynights. When I got mychance when we playedHiram, it just showed me thatyou can’t down yourself .”

Kessler lacked leadership atthe varsity level when hearrived because he hadn’t beengiven a chance to perform atthe varsity level. He hardly gota chance as a backup for theRaiders.


QBs

KICKOFF 2011


LASSITER TROJANS


N. GWINNETT 14-34 LSPRAYBERRY 27-20 WNORTH COBB 14-18 LMILTON 35-28 WWALTON 27-31 LCHEROKEE 27-24 WWHEELER 31-0 WMARIETTA 21-7 WWOODSTOCK 14-30 LETOWAH 21-48 LN. GWINNETT 7-56 L

WON 5, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Jep IrwinAge: 38Year at School: 2Record: 5-6Career Rec.: 29-26

Varsity Coaching StaffButch Burden — LinebackersJosh Herring — Off. CoordinatorTommy Carroll — ReceiversChad Hicks — Offensive LineSean Gaines — Running BacksJim Rowell — Defensive CoordinatorCedric Dickerson — Def. BacksBob Lord — KickersTony Brown — Defensive Line


DOMEBROOKWOOD

AUG. 20

VS. SPRAYBERRY

SEPT. 2

ATNORTH COBB

SEPT. 9

VS.MILTON

SEPT. 16

ATWALTON

SEPT. 30

VS.CHEROKEEOCT. 7

ATWHEELEROCT. 14

VS. MARIETTAOCT. 21

ATWOODSTOCKOCT. 28

VSETOWAHNOV. 3

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 JUWAN DICKEY WR 11

3 MARQUICE BROWN S 12

4 MORGAN MCDANIEL WR 10

5 WILLIE POLICE RB 11

6 DONAVAN CREPSAC RB/DB 12

7 EDDIE PRINTZ QB 11

8 KENE ORJIOKE S 11

9 NILES CLARK CB 12

10 BLAKE PENTER WR 10

12 DUBY NWAUBI WR 10

13 GARRETT SHANKS 12

14 ALEX HANKS K 12

15 CHARLIE HEGEDUS WR 12

16 JIMMY ARCHER QB 11

19 JACK HAINES WR 10

20 ROBERT DOWLING DB 11

21 DERION CANNON RB 10

22 BLAKE WILSON QB/WR 10

23 DEVONTAE MOORE CB 11

24 PATRICK LEVANDOSKI CB 11

25 ISAIAH WILLIS RB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

26 C.J. JENKINS DB 11

27 CAMERON FLORES DB 12

28 MATT MCGUIRE WR 10

29 JAHAT ORAMAS CB 10

30 CLAY ROELLE S 10

31 TOM BARRE S 10

32 E. NWAKAEZE RB 10

34 JAMES ROWE LB 11

36 CALEB MAULDEN LB 10

37 BRYNDON PEACOCK LB 10

38 PETER BRIGNAC S 10

39 LUKE HARDIN PK 10

40 TRENTON GANTT DL 11

41 BENEDICT LEWIS DL 10

42 JACK MARCHAND LB 10

43 RYAN GILDEA LB 11

44 JOHNNY YODER LB 12

45 ZACH SPIES LB 10

46 AVEUS ANDERSON DL 10

47 CHRISTIAN CLARK DL 10

48 FERNANDO CORTEZ LB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

49 CALVIN ROBERTSON LB 12

51 AUTSIN CHEATUM DL 10

52 CARSON MOORE LB 10

53 CODY CHEEK OL 12

54 RASHAD DAVID LB 12

55 JOSH DANFORTH OL 11

57 SAM WOOD OL 10

58 MICHAEL FREEMAN OL 10

63 JACOB BRABANT OL 11

64 TYLER RYAN OL 11

66 CORY MAULDIN DT 12

67 ADAM HAMILTON DL 11

68 CHANDLER KROGHOL 10

69 BRENDAN CAMPBELLOL 12

70 CHRIS SOLTIS OL 10

71 STEPHAN CURREN OL 10

72 LUAN PEREIRA OL 10

74 MITCH REAVES DL 12

75 BRIAN MACDONALD OL 10

76 CROCKETT HAYES OL 10

77 DERRICK CRABB OL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

78 TIM HUNT OL 12

79 RAUL AGUIRRE OL 10

80 NICK SEWAKTE SN 11

81 JOSH BURKS CB 10

82 ZACH BEAVERSON WR 10

83 AARON JOHNSON WR 12

84 ADAM DOWELL WR 12

85 CAIN MCMILLAN PK 12

86 LANE JACKMAN WR 10

87 MATT GLATTSTEIN WR 12

88 JOHN BRANKS DE 10

89 S. FOOSE-KUTTY WR 10

91 C.J. AMANN DE 10

92 MOE NYANG DE 11

93 DARIUS REESE

95 COREY JOHN DL 10

96 MATTHEW HEARD DL 11

97 KANE MOORE DE 11

98 KRIS KU

99 MITCH WORD DT 12

Season Outlook

Ever since, Lassiter began

running a pass-oriented spread

offense, the Trojans made the

Class AAAAA state playoffs for

three straight years with a quar-

terfinal showing in 2009.

The Trojans have more than

enough tools to extend that

streak in 2011.

Their quarterback, Eddie

Printz, is only a junior and is get-

ting attention from many Division

I schools from the South. Their

success on offense this season

will hinge greatly on his arm and

decision making and having vet-

erans at the skilled positions will

only help.

Senior Charlie Hegedus, who

has committed to North Carolina

State, will likely be the go-to tar-

get. Hegedus and junior Juwan

Dickey, who led in catches with 45

last year, will line up on the out-

side spots, while senior Adam

Dowell and junior Willie Police will

line up at the slot positions. Coach

Jep Irwin opened up the running

game last season. Senior Isaiah

Willis is expected to both run and

catch out of the backfield as the

projected starter after Tyren Jones

transferred to Walton.

Lassiter lost quite a bit on

defense but has several key

starters coming back, which will

be key. Senior Niles Clark, who

led with four interceptions last

season at cornerback, is one of

them. Senior cornerback

Cameron Flores got ample play-

ing time last season, as did junior

defensive lineman Trent Gantt.

“I feel like we are more ath-

letic, faster and more skilled

(defensively) than we were last

year,” Irwin said. It seems like

we’re getting to the ball faster

and are more aggressive.”


[email protected]

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

Sprayberry senior quarterbackCorbin Jackson didn’t get varsityexperience until the latter half of lastseason. Fellow senior quarterbackJacob Kessler is still waiting for hisopportunity.

Their quarterback styles are polaropposites of each other. Jackson likesto scramble, while Kessler likes todrop back and throw the ball. Theymay be competing for a starting job,but they share the same goal of lead-ing a young Yellow Jacket team backinto the state playoffs after they cameup short in 2010.

“Most of the county is underesti-mating us because we lost most ofour offense and three of our starting

offensive linemen. On defense, welost everybody,”Jackson said. “Theteam started to grow (at SoutheastDefensive Camp at West Georgia). Ithink we are going to turn someheads this year.”

Sprayberry hasn’t decided whichone will earn the starting job becauseboth are showing talent in what to do.

When Jackson talked about thedaily grind of being a quarterbackpreparing for the 2011 season, theirto-do list appears endless. They meetwith coaches and the rest of the teamto talk about plays they are going torun. Then they head to the practicefield to run them before doing a vari-ety of passing drills. Later on, theypractice ground game managementbefore watching film and evaluatingtheir performances.

“They both bring something dif-ferent to the program,” Sprayberrycoach Billy Shackelford said.“Corbin is a moble quarterback andJake is a pure pocket guy and aheads-up guy. It’s good two have two(quarterbacks). These guys are soeaqual to what bring that it can be aweek-to-week postion.”

When it comes to playing quarter-back, Jackson has one advantage overKessler. He is familiar with theSprayberry offense, having startedfive games last season for the YellowJackets. Kessler had some catchingup to do after transferring fromWalton last winter. Although heappears up to speed, he’s stillunproven at the varsity level.

“I came in the middle of last season


SPRAYBERRY YELLOW JACKETSABOUT THE YELLOW JACKETSLocation: 2525 Sandy Plains Road, Marietta. Phone: 770-578-3200. Stadium: Jim Frazier Stadium. Colors: Black, Gold. Online: www.sprayberryfootball.com

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanCorbin Jackson, left, and Jacob Kessler giveSprayberry two options for starting quarterback.

STARTING QBS 1 AND 1A

See QBs, Page 68

SPRAYBERRY’S JACKSON AND KESSLER PROVIDE OPTIONS

ABOUT THESPRAYBERRY

QUARTERBACKS

The best gift Jackson everreceived was a go-kart for

Christmas.

Jackson’s favorite team isthe Oregon Ducks becausethey run the spread option

like Sprayberry.

Kessler is the second of fivechildren.

Kessler enjoys playing ten-nis when he’s not playing

football.

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LASSITER TROJANSABOUT THE TROJANSLocation: 2601 Shallowford Road, Marietta. Phone: (678) 494-7863. Home Field: Frank Fillmann Stadium. Colors: Maroon, Gold. Online: www.lassiterfootball.net.

TROJANS POSSESSTHE GIFT OF GRAB

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

It was only four short yearsago when Lassiter ran the option.How times have changed.

The Trojans now run a spreadoffense that heavily emphasizesthe pass. They’ve put up obscenepassing and receiving numbers,as well as points, during the lastthree seasons and have madethree straight trips to the stateplayoffs as a result. Three of thefour full-time Lassiter receiversare returning starters. They knowthey will be in the spotlight thisseason and they are loving theattention.

“It’s a really fun offensebecause it gives us all opportuni-ties to make good plays andcatch the ball,” said seniorreceiver Charlie Hegedus, whocommitted to North CarolinaState over the summer. “We’remaking big plays (during the pre-season), but we can’t finish thedrive yet. That’s what we have tobuild on.”

After winning their first play-off game in team history in 2008under then-coach Chip Lindsey,the Trojans took their passinggame to another level the follow-ing year. They averaged 41points per game en route to aRegion 6AAAAA championship

and a berth to the state quarterfi-nals for a total of 543 in 13 games.

Former quarterback HutsonMason, who is now backing upAaron Murray at Georgia, setnumerous state records andbecame heavily recruited afterfinishing with 4,560 yards and 54touchdowns.

Hegedus, who was one ofmany targets for Mason that sea-son, knows the spread offense alltoo well, and his experience willlikely make him the go-to targetthis season. He emerged asLassiter’s top receiver last seasonwith 38 catches for 554 yardsand seven touchdowns.

Hegedus, who is listed at 6-foot-2, will be working withanother strong-armed quarterbackwho is getting college attention inthe Southeast. Junior quarterbackEddie Printz, who has alreadyreceived offers from Kentucky,Cincinnati and North CarolinaState, led Cobb County in passinglast season with 2,142 passingyards and 18 touchdown passes.

Junior Juwan Dickey will lineup on the other side and isknown to be a downfield threatwith great hands. If this sum-mer’s 7-on-7 competitions areany indication, he knows how toget open, and use speed to hisadvantage. Dickey was also an

EXPERIENCED RECEIVING CORPS READY

TO TAKE LASSITER BACK TO THE PLAYOFFS

ABOUT THE LASSITER RECEIVERS

Juwan Dickey’s favorite receiver is Percy Harvin because he’s quick, fast and elusive.

Adam Dowell’s nickname is “A.D.” and he loves shopping at the Polo Outlet.

As a 10-year-old member of the Marietta Blue Eagles youthteam, Isaiah Willis broke a 70-yard touchdown run to lead

his team to victory.

Lassiter’sreceivingcrew of, from left,Isaiah Willis,Willie Police,Juwan Dickey,Adam Dowelland CharlieHegedus canexpect to seea lot of passesthis fall.

�Staff /

Samantha M.Shal

See Grab, Page 38






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KICKOFF 2011


SPRAYBERRY YELLOW JACKETS


HILLGROVE 14-23 LLASSITER 20-27 LKMHS 23-16 WN. PAULDING 22-27 LEAST PAULDING 26-22 WHIRAM 22-45 LPOPE 17-28 LOSBORNE 41-8 WKELL 28-42 LALEXANDER 28-13 W

WON 4, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Billy ShackelfordAge: 40Year at School: 5Record: 26-18Career Rec.: 26-18

Varsity Coaching StaffChris Stewart — Defensive BacksBilly Blizzard — Def. CoordinatorRobert Horn — Off. CoordinatorHal Gresham — Offensive LineChester Ransom Running BacksAntwan Toomer — ReceiversBrett Vavra — LBs/Special TeamsEmery Williams — Linebackers


VS.HILLGROVEAUG. 26

ATLASSITERSEPT. 2

ATKMHSSEPT. 9

VS.N. PAULDING

SEPT. 16

ATE. PAULDING

SEPT. 30

VS.HIRAMOCT. 7

ATPOPE

OCT. 13

VS.OSBORNEOCT. 21

ATKELL

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO.NAME CLASS

1 D. K. VEREEN 122 WILLY DORCIN 113 MILES WALLACE 124 PATRICK DUBOIS 125 SHANE KING 106 MATT BISHOP 117 JACOB CHESSER 128 TYE RICHARDSON 129 TEVIN MOORE 1110 VLADAMIR BENOIT 1211 DOUG GRANDBERRY 1212 JAMES SUMMERS 1113 HANK HARRIS 1114 DARIAN HARRIS 1115 BRYANT LONG 1216 TREY SCHULTZ 1117 CORBIN JACKSON 1218 KEITH HAMPTON 10

NO.NAME CLASS

19 SHON MELTON 1220 KHEVON STEWART 1221 MYLES ATKINS 1222 CAZIMON SURI 1223 SAWYER PAGE 1124 DARRYL FAGAN 1125 TERRELL BROWNRIDGE1226 RICKY DOVER 1027 JUWON ROBINSON 1028 ERIC WELLS 1029 CEDRIC ALEXANDER 1230 GRIFFIN DOMINO 1031 REN DANIEL 1232 ANTUAN JOHNSON 1233 JALEN WHOOTEN 1034 DERRIK JOHNSON 1035 NICHOLAS BANKSTON1136 JONATHAN PALMER 9

NO.NAME CLASS

37 CHARLES COOK 1038 AUSTIN STEWART 1140 JAREKQ ALOISIO 1242 COREY COOPER 1143 JULIAN FLYNN 1245 ERIC TEMPLE 1046 ERIC BISHOP 1047 KAVON SMITH 1048 ELLIOTT LAWSON 1152 MALIK YOUNG 1153 JOSH GIBSON 1055 KYLE THOMAS 1157 MAC GORDON 1158 COLIN RAMEY 1060 JALIL CREAS 1261 DEREK BINDBEUTEL 1262 NATE KELSEY 1063 ALEX GROVER 11

NO.NAME CLASS

66 CHRIS AUGUSTIN 12

67 ALEC DEFREITAS 11

68 PAUL JOHNSON 12

69 IAN FERRO 11

71 SKYLAR SHAW 10

75 NICK MORTENSON 10

76 JIBRIN LINGE 12

77 FRANTZLOU DAPHNIS 11

78 BRANDON DALTON 11

80 MATT LOVETT 12

81 VICTOR PIERCE 10

82 DALTON KESLER 10

83 KYAYREE HARDY 11

86 KEGAN MOORE 12

88 CHRIS MCKINNEY 10

89 SIDNEY LINDLEY 10

99 GARRETT HALL 10

Season Outlook

Sprayberry will be a team ofmostly new faces this season.Only a handful of starters returnon both sides of the ball.

After fnishing with a surprising4-6 record with an experiencedroster, coach Billy Shackelfordwill have to rely on many newfaces to lead Sprayberry backinto the state playoffs after theycame up short in 2010. His 2011roster has talent and ability, butthe experience isn’t there.

Senior quarterback Corbin

Jackson does have varsity expe-rience, having started five gameslast season, and return twomembers of the offensive line infront of him.

The skilled players on offensewill be new. Senior Shon Melton,junior Corey Cooper and sophomoreShane King are battling for the start-ing nod at tailback. Seniors Melton,Tye Richardson and D.K. Vereenare three of a corps of talentedreceivers who have the ability to bea stronger unit than a year ago.

“We only have two on theoffensive line that are back,”Shackelford said. “Everyone elseis new (offensively). We lost allof our skill guys. Our schedule isreally tough this team has a lot ofpotential.”

The Yellow Jackets lost abunch defensively but they areexpecting to get solid contributri-ons from senior TerrellBrownridge at linebacker.Brownridge finished with 101tackles and five sacks a year ago.

Other returning starters aresenior defensive back MylesAtkins and junior defensive line-man Mac Gordon. The remainingstarters on defense have little tono varsity experience. A fewdefenders expecting to step upare senior linebackers JarekQAloisio and Antuan Johnson andsenior defensive linemanVladamir Benoit.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


MARIETTA BLUE DEVILS


SOUTH COBB 17-13 WHILLGROVE 14-17 LMCEACHERN 24-52 LALPHARETTA 10-51 LWHEELER 41-34 WWOODSTOCK 7-42 LETOWAH 29-36 LLASSITER 7-21 LWALTON 28-59 LCHEROKEE 20-27 L

WON 2, LOST 8

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Scott BurtonAge: 38Year at School: 2Record: 2-8Career Rec.: 74-34

Varsity Coaching StaffJason Meade — Def. CoordinatorCris Bell/Greg Jackson — LinebackersKen Wakefield — Defensive BacksJaaran Nesbitt — Tight EndsJoe Montford — Defensive LineCharlie Crittendon — Off. CoordinatorJason Krug — Offensive LineLabrone Mitchell — ReceiversBrian Grundmeyer — Running BacksNick Houstoulakis — Defensive Backs


VS.SOUTH COBB

AUG. 26

ATHILLGROVESEPT. 2

ATMCEACHERN

SEPT. 9

VS.ALPHARETTASEPT. 16

VS. WHEELERSEPT. 23

VS.WOODSTOCK

OCT. 7

ATETOWAHOCT. 14

ATLASSITEROCT. 21

ATWALTONOCT. 28

VS.CHEROKEENOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL. 1 TYRELL TOMLIN LB 10

2 RONTREZ BARCLAY LB 12

3 PETER SAVIC CB 11

5 RO’MELLO PORTER RB 12

6 JALEN MCLAURIN RB 12

7 TYREE HARRIS WR 11

8 MARCUS BENNETT WR 10

9 AMANUEL GANTT CB 11

10 JAYLEN HILL DB 12

11 JORDAN MATHIS QB 10

12 ANTHONY JENNINGS QB 11

13 MYRON WASHINGTON LB 12

14 TJ BULOCK QB 10

16 KENNY NORWOOD WR 11

17 CARTER SMITH WR 11

18 LANDY PHILLIPS CB 12

19 CHAVEZ HEMPHILL WR 11

20 ASI WILSON LB 12

21 LAWTON WARD LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL. 22 DERRICK ROBINSON DE 12

23 JORDAN MARION DB 11

24 KHALLID WALLACE DB 12

25 ONTERRIO LAY LB 10

26 MONTREL HEARD CB 11

27 ZACH SULLIVAN WR 11

28 TAVIO HUTSON RB 10

29 SIMEYON BOBBETT DB 10

30 KARDELL GAINES LB 12

31 JALEN JONES DB 10

32 MALIK FRYE RB 10

33 JONATHAN LOGAN LB 11

34 CHRIS. FLOOD RB 10

35 BANKS MARTIN K 12

36 ALEX AMBIO LB 10

37 HANK HENDERSON WR 11

38 ZACH HARDEN DB 11

40 DAREON AGURS DB 10

41 DAVID CARRILLO DB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL. 42 MARQUES ROWE DL 12

43 JHAQUARIOUS REID DB 10

46 DARRIN HYPSHER LB 10

47 DAVID WILLIS DB 10

49 DANIEL CUYLER RB 11

50 JAMEL JOHNSON OL 11

51 ALEX WILKERSON OL 11

52 JOSH BOATENG OL 11

53 ISAIAH BORNE OL 10

54 DAVIS WILSON OL 11

55 LOU CELLINI OL 12

56 DREYON WILLIAMS DL 10

57 CJ WILSON OL 10

58 JELANI EASLEY OL 11

59 JOHN THOMAS OL 11

60 CHASE JOHNSON OL 11

61 SAMEER KHAN DL 10

63 BRANDON HILL OL 10

64 JERON HOLSEY OL 9

NO. NAME POS. CL. 65 ROSS FRIZZELL DL 10

68 TREY BARTLETT DL 11

71 TRISTAN HARKINS OL 10

72 MYLES BROWN DL 12

73 JARREN LEACH OL 12

74 TREVON THOMAS OL 11

75 ELLIS PHILLIPS OL 10

76 ALEX CHRISTENSEN OL 12

77 SEAN MOORE OL 11

78 CORY PETERS DL 12

79 JON PAUL VETTER DL 11

80 JAN ROBLES DE 11

81 SHOMARI HOLMES WR 11

84 TREY WARREN DE 11

85 DALTON BEE TE 11

87 ANDREW THOMAS LB 10

88 BRANDON MARTIN TE 12

92 CALVIN GRANT DL 10

95 MARTEZ SMITH DB 10

99 LOGAN MARSHALL DL 12

Season Outlook

Marietta returns five starters

on offense and three on defense

from a team that finished the sea-

son with a 2-8 overall record,

marking the Blue Devils’ third los-

ing season in five years after 18

straight non-losing campaigns.

According to second-year

coach Scott Burton, the keys to

improving Marietta’s season

must be in two areas — turnover

ratio and improving the running

game.

“Last season, (our offense)

did not protect the football well

and the defense did a poor job of

taking the ball away from its

opponents,” he said. “This pro-

duced a minus-14 turnover ratio,

something (we) are determined

to improve upon significantly.

“The offense must run the

ball more often and with more

effectiveness. (We) must also

improve on stopping the run.”

One player who shouldn’t

have a problem running with, or

passing, the ball will be junior

quarterback Anthony Jennings. A

dual threat, Jennings accounted

for nearly 2,300 yards of total

offense and 21 touchdowns and

his performance will be another

key to Marietta’s success.

Offensive linemen Davis

Wilson, Alex Wilkerson, Josh

Boateng, Jamel Johnson and

Lou Cellini have plenty of game

experience, while tight ends

Brandon Martin, Kenny Norwood

and Dalton Bee will contribute to

the running and passing game.

Tyree Harris is the top play-

maker at wide receiver, while

Ro’Mello Porter will see the bulk

of the carries at running back.

Defensively, Myles Brown,

Marques Rowe and Cory Peters

will anchor the line, while Myron

Washington, Kardell Gaines,

Lawton Ward and Tyrell Tomlin

should make significant contribu-

tions at linebacker.

According to Burton, the Blue

Devils will rely heavily on two

senior members of the sec-

ondary — Khallid Wallace and

Jaylen Hill.

“The key to (our success) on

offense is improved ball security,”

said Burton, who noted that

Marietta gave up 25 turnovers

last season. “The defense must

start with a solid defensive line,

who’s primary job is to stop the

run. This will force (our) oppo-

nents to attempt to throw the ball

and allow the defense to pres-

sure the passer.”



SOUTH COBB EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 1920 Clay Road, Austell. Phone: (770) 819-2611. Home Field: Clay Stadium. Team Colors: Blue, White. Online: leaguelineup.com/welcome.asp?urlsch.

TAKING THE TASKBy William [email protected]

Last season, South Cobb wasable to reach the postseason forthe first time since 2007 with theleadership of quarterbackJohntavious Mullins, linebackerWilliam Smalls and runningback Demarcus Adkins.

Those three, however, havesince departed for college, andtheir departure creates a void thatSouth Cobb believes will befilled by 5-foot-9 senior corner-back and wide receiver JamalThomas.

As one of two returningstarters for the Eagles’ defense,South Cobb coach Ed Koesterbelieves he has found a quietleader that could help the Eaglesreturn to the postseason.

“Thomas is the best exampleof leadership by example,” hesaid. “He’s here on time. Heworks hard. He’s a great lifter.He’s a real craftsman as a corner

and understands body position.Even as a sophomore, he waspushing for (playing) time. Ofcourse, last year, people lined uptheir tallest guys against him andhe did a heckuva job. We wishpeople would throw his waymore often.”

As a short cornerback, oppos-ing offenses often mistookThomas for a corner they couldthrow at. Though Thomas hadonly two interceptions last sea-son, Koester described him as acornerback that he could dependon. Koester went on to say thatThomas, playing at less than 6

feet tall, is something special ina different age of football.

“One of the things that goesunmentioned, I think, is that,with the rules changes in highschool football, with all of theblocking above the waist and therightful concern with safety, itreally has taken the game awayfrom the average-sized kid. Now,the little kid had better be spe-cial. And we feel like Jamal is.”

While Thomas provides goodcoverage in the secondary,Koester said he will need to bethe vocal leader as well on adefense that only has two return-ing starters from last year.Thomas will be relied on tomove players into position andkeep them motivated, which wasdone last year by the linebackercorps, or, more specifically,Smalls.

“That’s what we’re training,and it’s going to have to comefrom the back,” said Koester, of

See Task, Page 82

SOUTH COBB’S JAMAL THOMAS BECOMES LEADER OF EAGLE DEFENSE

As one of only two returning starters ondefense for South Cobb, Jamal Thomashas become an important leader fromhis cornerback position.


ABOUT JAMAL THOMAS

He’s been playing cornerback since he was 5.

He credits the team’s hunger for victories as the reason South Cobbhad a turnaround season in 2010

� Cornerback, Receiver� Height: 5-9� Weight: 160

2010 Season Stats� 2 Interceptions

THE THOMAS FILE

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By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

Marietta quarterback AnthonyJennings has some big shoes to fill.

Much like several other quarterbacksbefore him, Jennings has heard the sto-ries about former Blue Devils signal-caller Eric Zeier, who graduated from theprogram following the 1990 season ratedas the top quarterback in the country.

Zeier went on to become one of themost prolific passers in University ofGeorgia history, breaking several records,earning All-America honors and spendingsix seasons in the NFL.

But rather than feeling intimidated orhoping that he doesn’t fail to live up toZeier’s accomplishments, Jennings isembracing a different pathway to successat Marietta.

“I try to model myself after EricZeier,” he said. “Not only on the footballfield, but with my grade-point average,attitude on and off the field, supportingmy teammates and making sure I haverespect for others — just everything thatgoes into being a model student-athlete

and good person.“Even though I’ve never met him, I’ve

seen some of his highlights, and I knowhe went to UGA and had a great careerthere. Just looking at him on video, I cansee how good of a quarterback he wasand how well he operated a team.”

Zeier was a bit surprised by Jennings’comment.

“I truly appreciate that compliment(that Jennings would like to emulatehim),” said Zeier, the 1990 GatoradeGeorgia Player of the Year for football. “Itmeans a lot. It’s humbling when someonesays something like.”

As luck would have it Anthony’s father,Willie, played defensive tackle with Zeierduring the 1990 and 1991 seasons atGeorgia.

“I haven’t seen (Willie’s) son,” saidZeier, who now works as the color com-mentator on Georgia radio broadcasts.“I’m going to have to try to get out thereand see thim play.”

Based on his numbers, Jennings, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound junior who is enter-ing his second season as the Blue Devilsstarting quarterback, should be putting up

solid numbers whenever Zeier arrives.As a sophomore last year, Jennings,

who shares a last name but is not relatedto former Marietta quarterback StanleyJennings, did as much with his arm as hedid with his feet in leading Marietta to a2-8 record. He completed 124 of 240 passattempts for 1,578 yards and 15 touch-downs with 12 interceptions. He also ledthe Blue Devils in rushing with 154 car-ries for 673 yards and six touchdowns.

The numbers don’t mean a lot toJennings. He’s motivated by having therespect of his teammates and playing wellfor them.

“I was happy and excited to get thestarting quarterback job last year,” hesaid, “but I also didn’t want to let theteam down. There’s always more thingsfor me to work on, and I got better as theseason went on.”

Individually, Jennings has workedmore on his footwork and being a betterleader during practice and the offseason.However, as a team, it’s the intangibles —like hard work, dedication, leadership andcommitment to the team — that will helpMarietta improve.

“Without those intangibles, we won’tbe able to do things the right way,” hesaid. “Vision, arm strength and height, allof that stuff is important, but not asimportant as the intangibles.”

Zeier expressed a similar view.“The one big thing I hope (Jennings)

gets is to be a great teammate,” he said.“What I accomplished at Marietta wasbecause of my teammates and how wellwe stuck together. Football is truly a teamsport, and it’s about bringing the teamtogether and making sure everyone is onthe same page.

“Be great people on the field and evenbetter people in the hallways and stayfocused on your schoolwork.”

Jennings plans to do all of that andlooks forward to a successful season forthe Blue Devils.

“I’m honored to lead these guys intothe future but anything can happen,”Jennings said. “We have to keep work-ing hard in the classroom and on thefield to get the wins. We’ll be a goodteam if we can come together as a fami-ly and be cohesive at practice and atgames.”

MARIETTA BLUE DEVILSABOUT THE BLUE DEVILSLocation: 1171 Whitlock Avenue SW, Marietta. Phone: (770) 428-2631. Home Field: Northcutt Stadium. Team Colors: Blue, White. Online: bluedevil-football.com

JENNINGS READY TO MAKE MARIETTA RUNJUNIOR SIGNAL-CALLER GAINS INSPIRATION FROM FORMER BLUE DEVIL AND GEORGIA GREAT ZEIER

Marietta quarterback Anthony Jennings wantsto be the best and is not afraid to look up tothe best for inspiration. Jennings said he likesto model his game after former Blue Devilsand Georgia great Eric Zeier.

�Staff / Samantha M. Shal

� Height: 6-2 � Weight: 2002010 Season Stats� Passing: 124-of-240, 1,578 yards, 15 TD� Rushing: 154 carries, 673 yards, 6 TD

THE JENNINGS FILE

ABOUT ANTHONY JENNINGS

If he was an animal, he would be a lionbecause they’re fierce, competitive and want to

win and be the best

If he had a superpower, he would have superspeed so he could get anywhere as fast as possible

If you won $20 million, he would buy his parents something nice and invest the rest

KICKOFF 2011


SOUTH COBB EAGLES


MARIETTA 13-17 LWHEELER 34-0 WNORTHVIEW 27-13 WHILLGROVE 20-19 WMCEACHERN 23-56 LHARRISON 7-10 LKMHS 24-6 WCAMPBELL 27-0 WNORTH COBB 31-23 WPEBBLEBROOK 24-21 WNEWNAN 7-31 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Ed KoesterAge: 56Year at School: 4Record: 11-20Career Rec.: 126-99

Varsity Coaching StaffAllen Gordon — Def. CoordinatorKenneth Burchette — Off. Coord.Brad Trout — Running BacksMichael Johnston — Defensive LineShawn Carr — Offensive LineSherrod Rainge — ReceiversBrad Trout — Special TeamsChris Bright, Tripp Allen, GregGriffin, Malcolm Hall — Assistants


ATMARIETTAAUG. 26

VS. WHEELERSEPT. 2

VS.NORTHVIEWSEPT. 9

ATHILLGROVESEPT. 16

VS. MCEACHERNSEPT. 30

ATHARRISONOCT. 7

VS.KMHSOCT. 14

ATCAMPBELLOCT. 21

ATNORTH COBB

OCT. 28

VS.PEBBLEBROOK

NOV. 5

NO. NAME POS.

3 JOSH KIMBLE DB4 STEPHON MASHA QB5 GARY JONES WR6 KYLE PERKINS WR7 BRANDON WATSON S8 JOHN BROWN RB9 CHRISTOPHER SIMON WR11 RYAN SUMNER WR12 JEREMIAH ALPHABET WR15 ISAIH HUGHES LB16 SLYVESTER BRADLY WR17 OLADELE OSISAMI S

NO. NAME POS.

18 JORDAN HARTON S19 CARLOS ANDERSON WR20 WILLIAM REID S21 JAMAL THOMAS DB22 CHRISTOPHER BECK RB23 DENZELL VAUGHN DB24 JAVONTE KNIGHT DB26 LOUIS CALDWELL DB29 URIAH BAYETE’ LB40 CHAUNCEY INGRAM WR41 THADDEUS SHAW LB42 BERNARDO GOODE LB

NO. NAME POS.

45 JUSTIN SURRY LB46 KENNETH BAKER LB48 BRANDON WILCOX DB51 KINYARDA RILEY DE54 NICK HIBBERT LB55 ERIC BRANCH OL56 JASKARAN SAHDRA OL57 ALLEN HAWTHORNE LB58 DANIEL BONIFACE OL59 TAYLAR WILSON OL61 JALEN JOHNSON OL62 JARED JENKINS OL63 BRICE CONNER DE

NO. NAME POS.

64 JUSTIN EMEAFOR DE65 TERRANCE WELLS DL68 GRABEN HIGGINS LB69 TEVIN TICHENOR OL70 MICHAEL SCOTT OL71 JACOB MONROE OL72 RASHAD REDMOND DL73 ALPHONSO SIMMONS OL76 NILES HAMILTON OL77 MICHEAL EADDY OL78 GABRIEL ROSA DL80 MARSHALL PIERRE WR83 DENZELL SCOTT WR

Season Outlook

For the first time since 2006,South Cobb reached the stateplayoffs after a late-season runsaw the Eagles rattle off fourstraight wins.

That feat, however, will bedifficult to duplicate this season,as South Cobb will be withoutmany key facets of last year’srun. The team’s leader, quarter-

back Johntavious Mullins is nowat North Carolina A&T. So too, isleading rusher Demarcus Adkinsand top offensive lineman andleft tackle Garrison Ushery.

Defensively, the team will bewithout linebacker WilliamSmalls, who is now at FloridaA&M.

South Cobb does return five

starters on offense, and three ondefense leading the team to bemore optimistic in proving to therest of the county that last sea-son was not a fluke. Though theEagles will once again haveplenty of speed and athleticism,the team will have to deal with alack of experience and finding atrue leader on each side of the

ball to step up and make the keyplay — a void that did not existlast season. Also, South Cobb’soffensive line will be brand-new.During summer workouts, everyposition was up for grabs on theteam’s line.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


MCEACHERN INDIANS


P’TREE RIDGE 21-24 LLOWNDES 23-22 WMARIETTA 52-24 WCAMPBELL 54-15 WSOUTH COBB 56-23 WHILLGROVE 64-48 WPEBBLEBROOK 43-21 WNORTH COBB 31-28 WHARRISON 28-10 WKMHS 21-10 WEAST COWETA 31-19 WVALDOSTA 28-31 L

WON 10, LOST 2

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Kyle HockmanAge: 44Year at School: 4Record: 25-8Career Rec.: 65-35

Varsity Coaching StaffGeoff Pastrick — Assistant HCDave Likins — Def. CoordinatorVan Spence — Off. CoordinatorJon Osnowitz — Running BacksKen Hockman — ReceiversRich Foster — Tight EndsBryan Minish — Defensive LineCedric Corse — LinebackersPhil Hoskins — LinebackersTerrence Tarpley — Defensive BacksChris Cody — Defensive BacksRandy Taylor — Special Teams


DOMEN. GWINNETT

AUG. 20

ATLOWNDESSEPT. 2

VS.MARIETTASEPT. 9

VS.CAMPBELLSEPT. 16

ATSOUTH COBB

SEPT. 30

VS.HILLGROVE

OCT. 7

ATPEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 14

VS. NORTH COBB

OCT. 21

ATHARRISONOCT. 28

VS.KMHSNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 JALONI WELLS DB 12

2 CHRIS NWAGBARA RB 12

3 TRAY FLETCHER WR 12

4 EDWARD THOMAS DB 12

7 AMBA ETTA-TAWO WR 12

8 DARIUS ENGLISH DE 12

9 TY. CLEMONS QB 10

10 TRENT THOMPSON QB 12

12 CHASE JONES QB 10

13 WILLIAM CARTER WR 12

14 MIKE SHERMAN RB 11

15 MARLON PATTERSON WR 12

16 NICH. ST. GERMAIN PK/P 12

18 VICTOR BRANNON TE 12

19 MALIK WILLIAMS WR 10

20 CAMERON GAMBLE DB 12

DESMOND BATTLE DB 12

21 CJ CODY DB 12

22 DARYUS THOMPSON DB 10

23 DARRELL RENDER OLB 11

24 KELL PARHAM OLB 11

25 XAVIER JACKSON WR 12

DAVID PHILLIPS DB 10

26 JAMES BRICE RB 10

27 VICTOR HALL LB 12

28 SHAKEL HOLLMAN RB 12

DAQUAN BRANCH QB 11

29 JUSTIN MCDANIEL DB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.30 JONTE JACKSON WR 10

JOSHUA FARARA RB 11

31 RAHMOI PARSONS DB 10

NATHAN HOLT LB 12

32 JAYLYN WHITE DB 10

33 ALIZEE CHUBBS RB 10

MARQUISE BOYCE OLB 11

34 KEI-YON JOHNSON RB 10

DENNIS DOMINGUEZ DB 10

35 ELIJIAH VAN DORN WR 10

36 MICHAEL WILLIAMS DB 10

ANTONIO RICHARDSON LB 11

37 KAHLIL SMITH DB 12

38 RYAN SHERMAN RB 10

JERRY CADLEY RB 11

39 LUIS DELGADO OLB 11

DJ HENDRIX DB 11

40 LEON BOYCE LB 11

KEENAN STARNES LB 11

41 DA’QUAVIOUS LEWIS LB 12

42 JORDAN BURGE OLB 11

43 YOHANNAS MATHYAS OLB 12

45 SEAN CARTER RB 11

46 ANTOINE JONES LB 12

47 JUSTIN PENDLETON OLB 10

48 ANFERNEE LIVAS LB 10

JAMARCUS GRACE RB 11

49 TYLER SMITH PK/P 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.50 NAZIR WYNNE DE 11

51 GANT MORGAN DL 12

52 AZAR WILSON DL 12

53 CHRISTIAN WADE LB 10

54 MITCH LONG LB 12

55 GLENN FRAZIER LB 10

56 ZACH SMITH LB 10

57 DOLAPO OREKOYA LB 11

58 RANDY TRUESDALE DL 10

59 HUNTER BLOEDOW OL 10

FREDDIE BROWN WR 10

60 ANTONIO VANLENTINE OL 10

61 CHIDI ONWUZURVOHA OL 11

62 CHARLES THOMPSON OL 10

63 CJ NORRELL OL 10

64 DAQUAN OWENS DE 10

65 JONATHAN BOYKEN DL 11

66 TELVIN ROSSER DL 11

67 LORENZO FORTIN OL 10

68 RONDREZ SPICER DL 11

69 UCHE NKADI OL 10

70 DEMETRIUS GARNER OL 11

71 ROBERT WALLACE OL 12

72 TRAVIS FAIR OL 11

73 RASHAAD GRAHAM OL 12

74 MALCOM RICKS OL 12

75 KOFI AMICHIA OL 12

76 JUJUAN DULANEY OL 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.77 CHUMA EDOGA OL 9

78 SHERROD PITTMAN OL 11

79 CHANDLER JONES OL 9

80 ANDY CADLEY WR 10

81 CHRISITAN FORD DB 10

82 DEVON KIRKLAND TE 11

83 TREY SCOTT TE 10

DAVON PHILLIPS OLB 10

84 JAMAR JEFFEREY LB 10

MYLES EDE WR 10

85 RAJON WRIGHT WR 11

AKINOLA OSOTO DE 12

87 RASHEED GARMAN TE 11

88 CHRIS OKEH TE 11

89 HASSAN WILLIAMS TE 10

90 DARIEN EARLY TE 11

91 JERRY NWANKWOH OLB 10

92 DANIEL FREDRICK DL 11

93 STEVEN MURRAY DL 10

94 DEQUOUIS OWENS DE 10

JAMIE KINCAID WR 10

95 JAUN VENTURA PK/P 10

96 HENRY FAMUREWA DE 10

97 JUSTIN ANDERSON WR 10

TRE ALLEN DL 10

98 MCKENZIE BILLINGSLEA DE 10

99 JED NWANKWOH DL 12

Season Outlook

McEachern returns five offen-

sive starters and eight defensive

starters from a team that cap-

tured its second consecutive

region championship, went 10-2

and advanced to the second

round of the state playoffs.

A model of consistentcy over

the past two years, the Indians’

don’t appear to be showing any

signs of slowing down in 2011.

With an experienced defense

back as well as many of its offen-

sive skill players, McEachern

could very well see the type of

success it had last year.

Trent Thompson, who split

time with Dondre Purnell at quar-

terback the past two seasons,

takes over the position full time

this year as the starter. Chris

Nwagbara is also back at run-

ning back as are wide receivers

Amba Etta-Tawo and Tray

Fletcher and offensive lineman

Kofi Amichia.

“I think, offensively, we have

a chance to score like we did

last year,” McEachern coach

Kyle Hockman said. “We have

an inexperienced offensive line,

so it will take a while to hone in

on that, but as the season

goes, I think things will pick up

for us.”

Defense could be

McEachern’s strength right out of

the gate with so much experi-

ence and leadership on that side

of the ball. Back are linemen

Darius English and Jed

Nwankwoh, linebackers Mitch

Long and Victor Hall, safeties

Jaloni Wells and Edward

Thomas and defensive backs CJ

Cody and Cameron Gable.

“Our defense will be good,

but not in the sense that we’re

going have 10-3 games,”

Hockman said. “We’re going to

be physical and we’re going to

run the ball. We have a game

plan for our offense, defense

and special teams, and the flow

of the game will tell us how well

we’re doing and will dictate

play.”



SEQUOYAH CHIEFSABOUT THE CHIEFSAddress: 4485 Hickory Road, Canton. Phone: (770) 345-1474. Home Field: Skip Pope Stadium. Team Colors: Black and Gold. Online: www.sequoyahfootball.com.

Staff / Todd HullThere is plenty of sibling rivalry in the Dozier family. Marcus,left, graduated from Cherokee, but his brother, Colin, cur-rently plays defensive tackle for Sequoyah.

By William [email protected]

For Sequoyah defensive line-man Colin Dozier, his life hasbeen all about adapting tochange.

Before he was born, Dozier’sfather died, meaning that he andhis older brother, Marcus, had tobecome more responsible withouttheir father.

“My dad died before I wasborn,” Colin said. “Mom’s theonly that I’ve got. She’s a hard-working lady. (It’s hard) a little,but I’ve learned to deal with it.

My brother helped as much as hecan, and that helps a lot.

“Father’s Day, of course, ishard. But I try to hang out withmy friends and get my mind offof it a lot of times and have fun.(Football) helps a lot. It allows

me to work out my family prob-lems and any other problems. Ican focus on playing football andenjoying my time on the field.”

Prior to playing for Sequoyah,Dozier was a part of the Cherokeecommunity and Marcus, now 24years old, played for the Warriors.From an early age, Colin rootedon his brother at Tommy BakerField. Then, Colin played forCherokee’s middle-school teambefore his mother’s house wasmoved into Sequoyah’s districtvia the lines being shifted beforethe ninth grade.

“(It was) a little bit (hard), butSee Dozier, Page 68

ADAPTING TO CHANGEDOZIER ADJUSTS TO FATHER’S DEATH, CHANGE IN SCHOOL DISTRICT

� Defensive Lineman� Height: 5-9 1/2� Weight: 280

2010 Season Stats� 52 tackles, 34 solo, 2 sacks, fumble recovery

THE DOZIER FILE

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MACLAND BAPTIST CHURCH

Pastor: Dr. Richard Walker

SUNDAY:

8:15 a.m. - Early Worship • 9:45 a.m. - Sunday School

11:00 a.m. - Morning Worship • 6:00 p.m. - Evening Worship

WEDNESDAY

7:00 p.m. - Midweek Prayer Service

Children’s Ministry • Senior Activities

Southern Gospel Music • Student Ministry

“Faithful to the Call”

3732 Macland Road • Powder Springs, Georgia 30127

770.943.5511

www.maclandbaptist.org

MCEACHERN INDIANSABOUT THE INDIANSLocation: 2400 New Macland Road, Powder Springs. Phone: (770) 222-3710. Home Field: Walter Cantrell Stadium. Team Colors: Blue, Gold. Online: mceachernhigh.org/football.html

HE’S THE MAN NOWBy Carlton D. White

[email protected]

For the past two seasons,

McEachern coach Kyle Hockman

was faced with an interesting,

albeit, easy dilemma. The Indians’

mentor had two very good quar-

terbacks in Dondre Purnell and

Trent Thompson, and they found

that the best way to get them both

on the field was to have them split

time during games.

The idea worked well as

McEachern won 10 or more

games both seasons and finished

its region slate undefeated in cap-

turing back-to-back region titles.

Because Purnell was a year

ahead of Thompson, everyone

involved knew that at some point,

Purnell would graduate and the

offense would belong to

Thompson. Entering the 2011

campaign, that time is now for the

6-foot-2, 185 pound signal-caller,

and he’s ready to take the reins

full-time.

“It’s exciting,” Thompson

said. “There’s a lot more pressure

on me now, but I’m ready. My

job is to win games. I had help

with that before, but now it’s my

job. It will be a little bit more

nerve-racking, but I’m excited for

the opportunity.”

Thompson and Purnell were

both very good passing quarter-

backs. A lefty, Thompson complet-

ed 76 of 140 pass attempts last sea-

son for 1,023 yards and totaled 10

touchdowns with four interceptions.

See Man, Page 41

THOMPSON BECOMES MCEACHERN’S FULL-TIME SIGNAL-CALLER

After sharingquarterback

duties lastyear with

DondrePurnell,

TrentThompson

will be counted on

to leadMcEachern’s

offense onhis own in

2011.

�Staff /

Samantha M.Shal

� Quarterback � Height: 6-2� Weight: 185

2010 Season Stats� Passing: 76-of-140, 1,023yards, 10 TD

THE THOMPSON FILE

KICKOFF 2011



ATCREEKVIEWAUG. 26

VS. JOHNS CREEK

SEPT. 2

VS.NW WHITFIELD

SEPT. 9

ATCASS

SEPT. 16

VS. ROME

SEPT. 23

ATS. FORSYTHSEPT. 30

ATCHATTAHOOCHEE

OCT. 14

VS.LAMBERTOCT. 21

ATFORSYTH CEN.

OCT. 28

ATWOODLAND-BAR.

NOV. 4

SEQUOYAH CHIEFS


CREEKVIEW 13-17 LJOHNS CREEK 21-24 LNW WHITFIELD 27-14 WCASS 31-28 WROME 13-12 WSOUTH FORSYTH 32-35 LCHATTAHOOCHEE 7-45 LLAMBERT 10-3 WFORSYTH CENTRAL 35-17 WWOODLAND 39-42 L

WON 5, LOST 5

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:James TeterAge: 46Year at School: 3Record: 11-9Career Rec.: 111-76


Justin Bacile — Off. CoordinatorJeff Beinke/Matt Munday — OLCurtis Williams — ReceiversOwen Shaver — Running BacksGreg Key — LinebackersDerrick White/Travis Sheffield — DLRashid Gayle/Jeremy Law — DB

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 BLAKE INGLETON RB/LB 113 DUSTIN DAWSON RB/DB 114 FELIPE RESTREPO RB/DB 115 PETER ROHAN RB/LB 106 ALEX FUNDERBURK QB/DB 107 COLLIER RATCLIFF RB/LB 128 FRANK IBAR WR/DB 1111 TRENTON DORNER QB/DB 1112 JAMES HARRIS WR/K 1013 ALEX MILLER QB/DB 1214 LEX LAULETTA OB/DB 1016 WESLEY DELVEGA WR/DB 1117 BRIAN EXLEY QB/DB 1018 ZACHARY CLEAVER QB/DB 1119 SAM ROGERS RB/DB 1020 DJ AUSTIN RB/DB 1021 JAKE GARNER RB/LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

22 OBIE MYERS RB/DB 1223 NICK FALCO TE/LB 1024 COLE TEMPLES RB/LB 1225 JOSH DIETTER WR/DB 1126 KOREY HENKLE RB/DB 1127 JONATHAN KIRBY RB/DB 1028 STUART GLASSIC RB/DB 1129 C. VANDYKE WR/DB 1230 JUSTIN LUND RB/DB 1031 M. EUBANKS WR/DB 1032 S. WILLIAMS OL/DL 1233 DANIEL FABINIAK WR/DB 1034 JONATHAN TAMAYO RB/K 1035 ALEX SMITH WR/DB 1036 AHMAD BRATTON RB/DB 1038 WAYNE COOPER WR/DB 1139 MATT RUMP TE/LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

46 THOMAS PERRY TE/LB 1148 G. TERRIENTES RB/LB 1049 MITCHELL SMITH TE/DL 1250 LOGAN HONEA OL/DL 1151 A.J. BROWN OL/DL 1052 COLIN DOZIER OL/DL 1153 ALEX MAY OL/DL 1254 C.J. COLLINS OL/DL 1055 KYLE TAYLOR OL/DL 1256 CORY SHIRLEY OL/DL 1257 JOSH MENNICKE OL/LB 1158 ADAM FREE OL/LB 1159 THOMAS SPEARS OL/DL 1160 BRAD LASELVA OL/LB 1061 GABRIEL CLARK OL/LB 1162 DALTON ANDERSON OL/DL 1163 W. MCFARLAND OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

64 CHRIS RIDDLE OL/LB 1065 C. SOUTHERLAND OL/DL 1066 AUSTIN OUDEANS OL/DL 1267 DANIEL MCKUNE OL/DL 1068 BLAKE VINCENT OL/DL 1069 PRESLEY TURNER OL/DL 1070 MALCOLM SIMPSON TE/DL 1271 JEAN LEGRAND OL/DL 1172 NOAH POPE OL/DL 1073 WYATT JACOBS OL/DL 1074 JOHN BRANGAN OL/DL 1175 ZACK BELANGER OL/DL 1276 D. PICKELSIMER OL/LB 1079 ELI WARE OL/DL 1084 LOGAN WALTERS WR/DB 1085 N. DEDEMONICUS WR/DB 1288 KYLE WISNIEWSKI TE/LB 1089 WOODY PIERRE WR/LB 10

Season Outlook

With the loss of its entireoffensive line, quarterback BenRogers and defensive captainand linebacker BrandonAlexander to graduation, it’sclear Sequoyah will have somequestion marks going into theseason.

Offensively, the Chiefs willhave three returning starterswith most in the backfield.With that Sequoyah believesits tradition of running thefootball will keep the offense

running smoothly.“Most people look at (the

departures) and don’t think itmeans a lot of good things,”Sequoyah coach James Tetersaid. “But our running backs aregood enough that if they canget some creases in the line,then they should help the quar-terback. If they can do that,then we won’t have to worryabout throwing it a lot and allowour young men to grow.”

Sequoyah’s returners at run-

ning back include senior ObieMyers and junior BlakeIngleton. At quarterback, theChiefs have six players listed,though only one was listed inlast year’s preseason roster —sophomore Lex Lauletta. Itsonly senior Alex Miller is theelder of the group.

As much as the offensiveline has question, the defensiveline has answers. In the Chiefs’3-4 defensive scheme, MitchellSmith, Colin Dozier and

Malcolm Simpson are theteam’s anchors. Outside of theline, senior Collier Ratcliff willlead the linebackers, and theremainder of the group will becomprised of players from lastyear’s JV team. The secondarywill have speed and athleticismto burn, but will lack experience.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN EAGLES


PACE ACADEMY 34-36 LN. COBB CHR. 54-6 WHARALSON CO. 28-19 WTRION 7-20 LDARLINGTON 14-31 LGORDON LEE 14-13 WBREMEN 7-28 LWALKER 14-0 WMT. ZION 48-0 WBOWDON 34-27 WATHENS ACAD. 7-34 L

WON 6, LOST 5

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Mitch JordanAge: 44Year at School: 4Record: 16-14Career Rec.: 16-14

Varsity Coaching StaffKenny Palmer — Running BacksTab Griffin — Assistant HCGreg Steele — Defensive LineJack LaPrad — Offensive LineJoel Hazard — ReceiversGreg Stephens — Defensive BacksConnie Arnold — Defensive BacksDavid Lowery — Special TeamsWill Durrett — Defensive LineKyle Reese — Linebackers


ATPACE ACADEMY

AUG. 26

VS. N. COBB CHR.

SEPT. 2

ATHARALSON CO.

SEPT. 9

ATTRION

SEPT. 16

VS.DARLINGTONSEPT. 23

ATGORDON LEE

OCT. 7

VS.BREMENOCT. 14

VS. WALKEROCT. 21

ATMT. ZION-CAR.

OCT. 28

VS.BOWDONNOV. 4

NAME CLASS

CONNOR CLAUSSEN 12

MASON COX 12

COLBY DOZIER 12

MATT EBERT 12

ELSBREE CONNOR 12

JED HARRIS 12

DANIEL LOPERA 12

JP MCKAY 12

CARTER MCKINNON 12

SAM ROGERS 12

NAME CLASS

RYAN SHEFFIELD 12

JAY THOMAS 12

AUSTIN WATT 12

DEVON YEAGER 12

WES BROOKS 11

JAKE JEANS 11

KEITH JOHNSON 11

DOUGLAS LEGG 11

MATT MCKENSIE 11

LAWSON REEVES 11

NAME CLASS

DREW RENNO 11

MATT SMITH 11

DANE STEVENS 11

SCOTTY VALIANI 11

ROBERT WILSON 11

BRYAN BELL 10

DENNIS BELL 10

IAN BERRYMAN 10

DILLON HARRIS 10

DALLAS KEPLER 10

NAME CLASS

CONNOR LEONARD 10

JACOB RAMSEY 10

MICHAEL YOUNG 10

PHILLIP ADDISON 9

JAKE ALLEN 9

BRANDON BARNES 9

STETSON CLAPP 9

JOHN LOHER 9

NICK SBRAVATI 9

COLE WAGGONER 9

Season Outlook

Mount Paran will try to

take another step forward in

the development of its young

football program after enjoy-

ing a breakthrough season

that included the school’s

first-ever state playoff berth.

Doing so with be a chal-

lenge, however, after the

Eagles lost a large senior

class that played an impor-

tant role in securing their spot

in the state playoffs a year

ago

Mount Paran will have

some big holes to fill after

losing three-year starting

quarterback and two-time

team most valuable player

Zack Greenwell, as well as

three-year starters David Ian

(running back/linebacker) and

Landon Bentley (running

back/free safety).

The Eagles will also have

to rebuild their offensive line

after losing four standout

starters.

Finding a new quarterback

is the top priority for coach

Mitch Jordan, with sopho-

mores Dennis Bell and Ian

Berryman and junior Robert

Wilson the candidates.

Mount Paran will rely on

the senior leadership of

inside linebacker/fullback J.P.

McKay center/defensive end

Colby Dozier, running

back/strong safety Connor

Claussen, defensive

back/wide receiver Ryan

Sheffield, wide receiver

Mason Cox and offensive

lineman/defensive end Sam

Rogers.

The Eagles will be espe-

cially strong in special teams,

with sophomore Dallas

Kepler — considered to be

one of the best kickers in the

state — leading the way.

Making things even more

difficult is competing in a

tough Region 6A that

includes Darlington — a state

semifinalist two years ago —

and Bremen, as well as

Bowdon.

Despite the losses of key

personal, Mount Paran still

has the talent to contend for

a state playoff spot and if the

Eagles can fill those holes in

the offensive line and play

solid defense, they could find

themselves back in the post-

season for a second straight

year.

— By Greg [email protected]


EXPECTATIONS HIGH FOR CHEROKEE SUPER SIXETOWAH LEADS THE WAY WITH THREE LIKELY COLLEGE SIGNEES

If recent success is any indicator, this year’s Cherokee Super Six is in for a great season. Last year, Etowahsent Christian Harris and Jason Holdway to the next level, and this year it could be the trio of Barrett Burns,Brandon Goodman and Devonte Wheaton. Cherokee has Tunde Ayinla for two more seasons, Woodstock’sJonathan Wiener grabs the reins of the Wolverines and Mitchell Smith patrols the defense for Sequoyah.DEVONTEWHEATON, ETOWAH

POSITION: RUNNING BACK

HEIGHT: 5-9

WEIGHT: 175

40-TIME: 4.38

COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY:

GEORGIA, AUBURN, MISSISSIPPI

STATE, OLE MISS, MIDDLE

TENNESSEE, GEORGIA SOUTHERN,

SOUTH ALABAMA

LAST YEAR, DEVONTE

WHEATON, WHO IS ENTERING HIS

THIRD VARSITY SEASON AND SEC-

OND YEAR AS A STARTER, RUSHED

FOR 765 YARDS AND 10 TOUCH-

DOWNS WHILE HELPING ETOWAH

TO A 9-2 RECORD AND A REGION

5AAAAA CHAMPIONSHIP.

WHILE HIS NUMBERS WERE

SOLID, WHEATON, WHO IS BEING

RECRUITED BY MISSISSIPPI,

MISSISSIPPI STATE, AUBURN AND

MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE, HOPES

TO HAVE EVEN MORE OF A PRES-

ENCE ON OFFENSE THIS SEASON.

WITH 4.38 SPEED IN THE 40-YARD

DASH, WHEATON’S SPEED IS DEFI-

NITELY HIS STRENGTH.

JONATHANWIENER, WOODSTOCK

POSITION: QUARTERBACK

HEIGHT: 5-11

WEIGHT: 170

40-TIME: 4.44


WOFFORD, GEORGIA SOUTHERN,

HARVARD, FURMAN, GEORIGA TECH

LAST SEASON, JONATHAN

WIENER DID EVERYTHING FOR THE

WOLVERINES EXCEPT FOR STRIP-

ING THE FIELD AND MIXING UP THE

GATORADE. IN ALL, WIENER

SERVED AS THE TEAM’S PLACE-

KICKER, KICKOFF SPECIALIST,

QUARTERBACK, WIDE RECEIVER

AND DEFENSIVE BACK.

THIS YEAR, HE WILL SIMILARLY

BE MOVED AROUND THE FIELD,

THOUGH QUARTERBACK DUTIES

WILL BE SPLIT WITH PRYCE WASH-

INGTON. WHEN HE’S NOT AT QUAR-

TERBACK, WIENER WILL PLAY AT

WIDE RECEIVER AND VICE VERSA.

BRANDON GOODMAN,ETOWAHPOSITION: DEFENSIVE BACK

HEIGHT: 5-10 WEIGHT: 165 40-TIME: 4.5

COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: BALL STATE, NAVY

BRANDON GOODMAN WILL HAVE A LITTLE

MORE RESPONSIBILITY AS PART OF THE ETOWAH

DEFENSE THIS SEASON.GOODMAN WILL GET TO CALL MORE OF THE

ACTION AS THE EAGLES’ STARTING SAFETY. THE

5-FOOT-10, 165-POUND SENIOR, WILL HAVE HIS

FOCUS WILL BE ON CALLING COVERAGES AS

OPPOSED TO REACTING TO WHAT’S CALLED.

TUNDE AYINLA, CHEROKEE

POSITION: DEFENSIVE LINE


COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: GEORGIA TECH,

GEORGIA SOUTHERN

CHEROKEE JUNIOR NOSE TACKLE TUNE AYINLA

IS STILL GROWING IN SIZE, AS WELL AS POTENTIAL.

AS THE LEADER OF THE WARRIOR DEFENSIVE

LINE, AYINLA HAS THE ABILITY TO SLOW DOWN THE

RUN AND RUSH THE PASSER. HE‘S ALSO EFFICIENT

IN READING THE OPPOSING TENDENCIES BEFORE A

PLAY GETS OFF.

MITCHELL SMITH,SEQUOYAH

POSITION: DEFENSIVE BACK


COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: GEORGIA

SOUTHERN, SOUTH ALABAMA, EASTERN KENTUCKY,

EAST CAROLINA

SMITH IS ABLE TO SEPARATE HIMSELF FROM

OTHER LINEMEN VIA HIS AGILITY. SMITH DOESN’T CON-

SUME GAPS AS A NEARLY 300 POUND LINEMAN MIGHT,

BUT HE IS ABLE TO MOVE TO THE BALL QUICKLY.

BARRETT BURNS, ETOWAH

POSITION: WIDE RECEIVER


COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: WAKE FOREST,

AUBURN, AIR FORCE, RICE, ARKANSAS STATE, BALL

STATE, GEORGIA SOUTHERN, GEORGIA STATE

BURNS’S PRODUCTION WILL STILL BE HIGH DESPITE

BRADEN NOLAN’S GRADUATION. HE WAS THE TEAM’S

LEADING RECEIVER LAST YEAR WITH 30 CATCHES FOR

405 YARDS, AND HIS BIG FRAME SHOULD MAKE HIM AN

EASY TARGET FOR JUNIOR REEVES JOHNSON, WHO

TAKES OVER THE SIGNAL-CALLING DUTIES FROM NOLAN.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011

PAGE 37 �KICKOFF 2011

MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 1275 Stanley Road, Kennesaw, 30152. Phone: (770) 578-0182. Home Field: Mount Paran Stadium. Team Colors: Royal Blue, White. Online: mtparanschool.com/athsport.php?s=ath&p=football.

POWERING THE DEFENSEBy Greg Oshust

[email protected]

J.P. McKay leads the way in

the weight room for Mount

Paran, setting a number of team

weightlifting records.

The 6-foot-1, 230-pound

senior linebacker also leads the

Eagles on the field as well, using

the strength he has gained in the

weight room to anchor the

defense.

McKay will be a senior leader

on a Mount Paran defense that

helped lead the Eagles to a 6-5

record and their first state playoff

berth in 2010.

“Last year was a great year

for the team, making the state

playoffs for the first time,”

McKay said. “Our goal is to

make it back to the state playoffs

and we’re confident that we can

do that.”

McKay played only six games

last year after suffering a strained

MCL halfway through the season.

But he came back in time to help

get Mount Paran in the state play-

offs, returning to the lineup for

the regular-season finale against

Bowdon, and he proceeded to

make the game-clinching inter-

ception in the fourth quarter that

sealed the Ea-gles’ first trip to the

postseason.

“It was a very exciting

moment,” McKay said. “I was

happy to come back and get the

interception that helped put us in

the state playoffs. It was a

moment I will never forget.”

While his season was cut

somewhat short, McKay was still

able to put up some impressive

numbers.

McKay, who had 103 tackles

as a sophomore in 2009, was still

See McKay, Page 41

J.P. MCKAY SETTING THE STANDARD AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN

� Linebacker� Height: 6-1� Weight: 230� Bench Press: 330 � Squat: 485

2009 Season Stats� 10 Games, 103 Tackles


THE MCKAY FILE

J.P. McKayleads the

team in theweight room,

now it’s histime to lead

the Eagles onthe field and

take MountParan

Christianback to the

Class A playoffs.

�Staff /

Jon-MichaelSullivan

2011

CHE

ROKE

ESU

PER

SIX

KICKOFF 2011


academics and athletics seriously.Rainbow believes Houston willbe the key to Campbell’s defense.

“He’s going to anchor ourdefense,” Rainbow said. “We runa 3-3 stack, which is three downlinemen and five linebackers.He’s our nose guard, and withouta great nose guard, our defensedoesn’t go. He’s shown he’s astarter for us from the get-go, andas the center of our defense, hemakes us go.

“He does everything well. Hehas good footwork, good handsand demands double teamsbecause of his size. He’s a greatyoung man and a quiet leaderwho does everything you ask. Heleads without saying a lot.”

Houston does, however, say alot on the field. He loves to hitpeople, and according to him, themost exciting part of playingfootball is getting off the “block,”making tackles and hitting some-one every play.

“I’m excited to get the seasongoing,” Houston said. “I like whatcoach Rainbow has us doing toprepare and I think it will be apretty good year.”

Coming off a 1-9 season in 2010and 2-8 mark in 2009, all of thecoaching changes that have takenplace at Campbell over the past fewyears have had a negative effect.

“I had coach (Shawn)Campbell my freshman year andthen coach (T.K.) Dodd the lasttwo years,” Houston said. “It’sbeen tough changing things upevery year. Personally, it didn’taffect me much as a freshmanbecause I didn’t play much. But Istarted with coach Dodd, and nowwe have another change goinginto my senior year.

“That’s three coaches in fouryears, so us older guys have beenaffected the most. But they’ve allbeen good coaches in their own way,and I think coach Harris will be, too.”

Caleb Edmonds helmed thequarterback role for Campbell thepast two seasons, but there will be anew player under center for 2011 insophomore Austin Green. Houstonsaid he has enjoyed what he’s seenof Green during spring practice andthinks the young quarterback canhelp the Spartans win games.

“He’s a good athlete and agood leader for a guy his age,”Houston said. “He has a goodchance to excel in this offense,which is what we need.”

Houston’s lone personal goalis to make all-state.

“I feel like I can do it,” he said.“It will take some hard work, butas long as I run the schemes it willgive me a chance to make plays.”

While, his team goals aren’tas ambitious.

“I just want the team to com-pete in every game,” he said. “It’dbe nice to make the playoffsbecause I haven’t been therebefore, so we’ll see.”


Houston

than 300-pounds. Three project-ed starters — Mitchelli, andjuniors Levi Satterfield andJacob Crowley — are in the 275-pound range. Returning starterTyler Ratcliff, who is a senior, isthe smallest lineman at 250.

After attending two summercamps, Cherokee’s linemen areready to get their hands dirty asthey attempt to create runningroom for the Warriors’ triple-option offense.

Cherokee’s offensive line-men spent the entire offseasongetting their hands dirty, but theturning point came at theGilmer County LinemanChallenge, where they tookthird place out of 19 teams.

The Warriors participated indrills that included the benchpress, flipping tires, running20-yard dashes while pulling a100-pound sled and playingtug-of-war. The camp also hada one-on-one tug-of-war tour-nament, which Collett won.

Their next big test was

attending SoutheasternDefensive Camp at WestGeorgia in late July.

“Coach Dameron said it waslike a glorified practice,”Mitchelli said. “We like to treatit more than that.”

Although the camp wascatered to the defenders, whoperformed drills to learn tech-nique, Cherokee’s linemen usedthis opportunity to get theirtiming down and create differ-ent ways to open up the runninggame. According to Collett, itwas the camp where “men weremade.”

“It a good time to pound onother people that you don’t careto abuse,” Collett said. “That’sthe way I look at it. I go into ittrying to abuse people.”

Now Cherokee is ready forits next challenge, and that’s tofinish in the top four in5AAAAA to earn a spot in thestate playoffs. Collett,Mitchelli, Ratcliff andSatterfield have at least oneyear’s experience blocking forthe triple option and say itrequires a lot of aggression andattitude to create openings.

“We’re a different breed oflinemen (from other types ofoffenses),” Collett said. “Whenyou go up against option line-men, it’s the tough of the tough.We’re on our knees crawlingand scratching to get the jobdone. It’s not about openingholes, it’s about killing people.In football, it’s a war zone.”


Wall

ABOUT TYLER HOUSTON

ABOUT THE CHEROKEE OFFENSIVE LINE

If he won $20 million, Houston would donate some of it to

charity and keep the rest for himself.

Hunter Collett is workingon a political

rock band project.

Nick Michelli loves to eat pizza.

Jacob Crowley studies forat least 2 hours every day

after practice.

Levi Satterfield participates in

motorcross during the offseason.

Tyler Ratcliff can catch catfish with his

bare hands.

instrumental part of the Trojanoffense last season with 45 catch-es for 384 yards and four scores.

“They are definitely guyswe’re counting on to make plays,”Irwin said. “We need them tomake plays in the passing game.We need them to block on theperimeter. They have to play reallywell in order for us to do the otherthings we want to do, which is runthe ball. They both got bigger andstronger in the offseason.”

The Trojans will also be target-ing their catch-and-run receiverswho will line up in the slot.

Senior Adam Dowell was pro-jected to back up Hegedus afterspring drills but an impressive

summer playing 7-on-7 earnedhim a starting job. The 6-2Dowell proved he could work themiddle of the field during 7-on-7 drills and knows how toplay against man coverage.

Junior Willie Police, whoplayed some running back lastseason, will act as a full-timereceiver with junior starter IsaiahWillis taking his place in thebackfield.

Police, who got some starts lastseason, is described as a shiftyplayer who can make plays in openspace. He will continue to makecatches for Lassiter as well asrotate with Willis in the backfield.

“Adam has been steady for us,he is able to make plays againstlinebackers,” Irwin said. Willie isable to catch the ball out of thebackfield. He is able to blockpretty good and can make playswhen he catches the ball short.”


GrabSUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 59 �

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RIVER RIDGE KNIGHTSABOUT THE KNIGHTSLocation: 400 Arnold Mill Road, Woodstock. Phone: (770) 591-8450. Home Field: River Ridge Stadium. Team Colors: Navy and Gold. Online: www.riverridgeknights.com

BUILDING BLOCKSBy Greg Oshust

[email protected]

River Ridge went through theusual growing pains of a fledg-ling high school program as theKnights went 3-7 — with onewin coming against the BerkmarJV — in their inaugural varsityseason last year.

However, Austin Terrell andE.J. Ellis gave River Ridge a lotof hope for the future.

Terrell and the 5-7, 165-pound Ellis provided a potent 1-2punch in the backfield, combin-ing for more than 1,600 yardsand 19 touchdowns.

Terrell led River Ridge inrushing with 820 yards and 10touchdowns, while Ellis was

right behind his teammate with806 yards and nine touchdowns.

Now, both are ready to sur-pass their impressive 2010accomplishments and moveRiver Ridge football ahead anotch as they look forward to the’11 season.

“We’ve been working hard allsummer, and we’re ready to havea successful season,” said Terrell,who is entering his junior season.

Added Ellis, a sophomore,“Everything has gone well in theoffseason. I’ve been working outall summer and I’ve gotten big-ger and faster, so I’m lookingforward to having an even betterseason.”

Terrell came up with severalbig performances last year for

River Ridge, rushing for 225yards on 24 carries and twotouchdowns against Cross Keysand gaining 198 yards on 14 car-ries, including a game-winning65-yard touchdown run, againstLakeview-Fort Oglethorpe.

“Everything went really well,especially with it being our firstyear as a varsity team,” Terrellsaid. “I wanted to get 1,000yards, but 820 yards is still prettygood.”

Ellis also had several stronggames for the Knights, startingthe season with 209 yards on 21carries and three touchdowns ina 20-2 victory over the BerkmarJV team and 94 yards and atouchdown against Social Circle.

See Blocks, Page 69

ELLIS AND TERRELL GIVE RIVER RIDGE A SOLID 1-2 RUNNING PUNCH

Heading into their second varsity seasonat River Ridge, Knights running backsAustin Terrell, left, and E.J. Ellis areready to put their school on the map.

�Staff / Todd Hull

ABOUT THE RIVER RIDGE

RUNNING BACKS

Terrell’s favorite subject in school ismath, Ellis’ is English literature

Following his football playing days,Terrell wants to be an engineer

If he doesn’t coach later in life, Elliswants to be a psychiatrist

Terrell’s favorite color is orange, whileEllis’ is blue


taught me the game,” Davis said.He’s an all around great guy. If Ihave problems, I can go to himand he can help me sort it out.He keeps us in mind and keepsus out of trouble. If I had to ratehim, he’s a 10-out-of-10 coach.”

And Morrell shares a fewpositive qualities about havingDavis as a member of his team.

“We first saw him at morningworkouts last January, and heimpressed me with his ability,quickness and the ability to changedirection,” Morrell said. “I thinkhe’s going to be a real deal and agood asset to this football team.”

Davis, who has been putting onpads since the age of 11, doesn’tmind contributing both ways. Heenjoys playing both positions,which are similar to each other.

Davis is known for being apossession receiver with goodhands. He’s not a downfieldthreat, even though he wants toimprove upon his time of 4.6 sec-onds in the 40, but knows how toget open and make plays. Anotherattribute he brought in his years

playing private-school footballwas shaking off tackles.

When playing safety, Davis’strengths are reading the keysand anticipating where opposingquarterbacks are going to throwthe ball.

“(Playing safety) is a high-riskgame for me,” Davis said. “I go forit and, if it’s there, I make the play.”

As much as Davis wants to bea team player, he said playing forCreekview may put him underthe college radar. He wouldn’tmind follwing in the steps of hisolder brother, Robert, who is aninside linebacker at Georgia.

Davis is aware of Creekview’scurrent situation. He knows theGrizzlies are in rebuilding mode,even after finishing with a 3-7record in a tough Region7AAAA that has defending statechampion Chattahoochee in it.

Projected starting quarterbackHaden Hall is coming up fromthe JV team. Fellow receiverDanny Wright is also getting hisbearings at the varsity level andCreekview’s offensive line isinexperienced.

“We’re young and inexperi-enced, but we’re not going tobreak down,” Davis said. “We’regoing to play as a team and havea good year this year.”


Intensity

ABOUT RILEY DAVIS

school days and I can’t wait.I’ve been out of the grooveplaying it consistently for awhile, but I’m really lookingforward to it this year.”

The 5-foot-11, 220-poundPorche is also a four-year varsi-ty letterman at Etowah. He wasan occasional starter as asophomore, but has since heldthe defensive end position full-time. He also started at tacklethe final three games last seasonafter Ty Ritchey was lost to

injury. But, substituting forRitchey was the least ofPorche’s worries.

“I was the second string forthe whole offensive line lastyear,” he said. “If any one gothurt, I filled in.

“It’s rough (knowing somany positions). I had to lookat the playbook every game andduring practice so that itbecame more and more naturalfor me.”

Porche’s play at defensiveend became second nature tohim, but getting use to theoffensive line procedures tookmore time.

“It was difficult to switchback-and-forth,” he said.

“When you’re defensive end,there’s a lot of pursuing andreading your blocks, but onoffense, you have to read thesnap count, know the directionof the play and how and whento pull — it’s a different mind-set on offense when the ballsnaps.

“It will be great to focus on(guard). It’ll make it easier tonot mix things up.”

While their jobs may besimpler, Stewart doesn’t expectRowell and Porche to makethings simple.

“They’re going to both playa major role on defense and bea spark for us on offense,” hesaid.

ABOUT DALTON PORCHE


Double

If he was an animal, he would want to be a lazy dog

If he had a superpower, he would want to read minds

Watching Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher gets himpumped up.

He enjoys bonding with his brother, Robert Davis, an insidelinebacker at Georgia.

He’s an Atlanta sports guy and a big fan of the Hawks.

Obviously, the collegiate

coaches see great potential, but

now it’s time to see what

Chastain can do under the lights.

“All of (the coaches) said,

athletically, he can play for them

right now,” said Harrison coach

David Hines. “Now they want to

see if he can make plays.”

For a 17-year-old that has

fewer than 200 passing yards in

a limited varsity career, the idea

of playing for a major Division

I program would be pretty

heady stuff. But for Chastain, to

this point, he has taken it in

stride.

“I’m going to go out, relax

and have fun,” he said about his

senior season. “If I do that, it’s

all going to turn out well.”

Chastain has all the tools

college coaches drool over.

He’s 6-foot-4, 220 pounds with

the ability to run a sub-4.6-sec-

ond 40-yard dash. Chastain

looks every part of a quarter-

back — and he has the arm to

match. But it wasn’t always

football that was at the fore-

front of his athletic goals. It

may have had something to do

with the ability to throw a 90

mph fastball.

“I’ve always wanted to play

baseball,” Chastain said. “I’ve

always loved baseball. I lived

and breathed baseball.”

Unfortunately, the way high

school sports have become spe-

cialized, it has become harder

to be a two or three-sport star in

high school. Because of that,

Chastain had to make the deci-

sion between the two sports if

he wanted to be the Hoyas’

quarterback.

At least one of his teammates

is convinced he made the right

choice, and linebacker Judd

Haley learned it the hard way.

“If you reach in to try and

break up one of his passes, he’ll

break your hand,” Haley said

about how hard Chastain can

throw the ball, but he realizes it

will be a weapon the Hoyas

will definitely be able to use to

their advantage. “We were run-

ning a 7-on-7 drill and he threw

a ball down the middle. We had

two defenders in good position

to make a play. How he got it in

there I have no idea.”

Hines said Chastain has a

gunslinger mentality that will

remind Harrison fans of another

former Hoya quarterback that

wasn’t afraid to make a play —

Zach MacDowall, who went on

to play at Wake Forest and

Coastal Carolina.

MacDowall, as a two-year

starter, threw for 4,085 yards,

completed 64 percent of his

passes and connected for 52

touchdowns over the course of

the 2004-05 seasons, with the

latter also including a region

championship.

Chastain, however, would

like to characterize his game

based on the professional quar-

terbacks he watches every

Sunday.

“I’d like to say my game is

like (Tom) Brady or (Peyton)

Manning,” he said, “but I’d

have to say it’s more like Brett

Favre. I’m a pocket passer that

is a threat to run. Actually, I

always thought I’d be a line-

backer because I love to hit

people.”

It’s that kind of mentality

that will have people willing to

follow Chastain into any situa-

tion on the field, and Haley said

his new quarterback is making

sure that he’s earned the team’s

respect.

“He’s made big steps from

last year,” Haley said. “It’s

obvious he’s more of a leader,

he’s more vocal and he’s done

the work.”

Now, it’s time for the

Harrison fans — and the col-

lege coaches — to see Chastain

perform.


Chastain ABOUT CLAY CHASTAIN

The first position he played when he started junior football was center

As a child, he always played in the age group above his because of his size

His brother, Butch Chastain, is a former Harrison punter

S I G N TAU R E PA RT N E R SEach Keller Williams® Office is Independently Owned and Operated

Call

RONNIE MYRICK

Your Full Time, Full Service Agent

770-883-0647 • 678-631-1700

Best of luck for a WINNING 2011 Season!

KICKOFF 2011


RIVER RIDGE KNIGHTS

1-year record: 2-7

MT. PISGAH 0-26 LTEMPLE 14-20 LMODEL 21-52 LCROSS KEYS 19-37 LGORDON LEE 0-16 LLAKEVIEW ACD. 22-16 WTOWNS CO. 7-14 LSOCIAL CIRCLE 28-42 LLFO 21-14 W

WON 2, LOST 7

* VARSITY GAMES ONLY

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Robert BrauchtAge: 38Year at School: 3Record: 2-7Career Rec.: 20-19

Varsity Coaching StaffBarry Lakes — Assistant HCKeith Manus — Def. CoordinatorTyler Wynn — Off. CoordinatorJoel Roth — Running BacksJoe Tousignaut — LinebackersDontavious Smith — ReceiversRussell Amristead — Def. Backs


VS.MOUNT PISGAH

SEPT. 2

ATTEMPLESEPT. 9

VS.MODEL

SEPT. 16

ATCROSS KEYSSEPT. 23


VSLAKEVIEW ACAD.

OCT. 7

VS.TOWNS CO.OCT. 14

VS.LANIER

OCT. 21

VS.SOCIAL CIRCLE

OCT. 28

ATREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME

1 MICHAEL LEWIS

2 E. J. ELLIS

3 STEVEN SPEARS

5 MICHAEL AGAR

7 AUBREY THOMPSON

8 OMARI REEVES-MILLER

9 NATHAN TETLEY

10 TYLER KEENEY

11 MIGUEL CASTILLO

12 JACKSON WEEG

14 HUNTER GRIFFIN

15 SETH NAMA

17 BRIAN HILBURN

NO. NAME

19 KYLE COLLINS

21 VINCE NJOKU

22 ANTHONY JOHNSON

23 WILL REDDING

24 CHRIS ROBINSON

25 DEVANTAE MCINTOSH

27 LEONARD JONES

31 WILLIAM MATELLO

36 AUSTIN TERRELL

37 COLE DERY

38 TOMASZ KOWALSKI

40 JAYLIN MCCRAY

41 DESHAWN FRANKLIN

NO. NAME

44 RAY STEPHENSON

45 DEVON MOREE

47 DALTON RICHARDS

50 AUSTIN BENNETT

51 MASON LINER

52 AUSTIN DILLIARD

53 DYLAN GATES

54 DAVIS MACKENZIE

55 ALEX GEE

57 JACKSON TANNER

58 BEN MUSIC

59 JUSTIN PORTER

60 GAGE RHODEN

NO. NAME

64 JAKE LAFSER

65 CHANDLER HAGAN

67 MARK WOOD

70 WILEY RAINES

71 SEAN SMITH

72 JD SMITH

73 DYLAN STEELE

74 RYAN SAILOR

75 JAMES EGAN

77 ALEX MIROSHKIN

78 VASILIY DIVACHUK

79 BRANDON STEPHENSON

81 WES BEARDEN

84 BLAKE JUBERG

Season Outlook

River Ridge will continue the

building process of its young pro-

gram as it begins its second sea-

son of varsity play.

The Knights come in with a

valuable year of experience

under their belts and will also be

a physically bigger team after an

offseason in the weight room as

they try to improve on last year’s

2-7 record in varsity play.

One big advantage in River

Ridge’s favor is that it lost no

players to graduation, with the

school scheduled to graduate its

first class of seniors in 2013, so

the Knights enter the ’11 cam-

paign virtually intact.

The key to success for River

Ridge is in its proficient back-

field, which features the danger-

ous running back tandem of

sophomore E.J. Ellis and junior

Austin Terrell, as well as junior

quarterback Jackson Weeg and

junior running back Will Redding.

The Knights will still be young

on defense as well, but sopho-

more free safety Steven Spears

and sophomore defensive line-

man James Egan show a lot of

promise.

Also giving River Ridge a

boost will be junior Michael Agar,

a move-in from North Carolina

who is expected to step in and

play a key role in a number of

positions on both sides of the ball.

Once again, the Knights will

be playing a non-region schedule

against a mix of established and

new programs.

While it is likely that a still

young River Ridge team will take

a few more lumps and learn

some more lessons on its way to

establishing itself on the varsity

level, the Knights have enough

talent on hand and have learned

enough from last year’s first var-

sity season to take another step

forward and win a few more

games in 2011.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011



[email protected]

With the Corky Kell Classic’sfinish on Saturday, four ofCobb’s schools (Kell, Lassiter,McEachern, Walton) have allpicked up their first televisionexposure of the year, thanks toGeorgia Public Broadcasting.

However, television exposureis expanding this season, asWSB-TV will be broadcastingThursday night games on its dig-ital cable outlet (Comcast Cablechannel 248), starting this weekwith Dacula at Norcross.Similarly, GPB will have twogames per week on Friday nightsthe rest of the season, with onegame being broadcast on televi-sion, and one being shown bywebcast online.

For Cobb, the next televisedgame will be one of East Cobb’sfierce rivalries — Lassiter atWalton on Sept. 30 on GPB.

“As a football coach, you aretrying to find a way (to get onTV),” Lassiter coach Jep Irwinsaid. “You’re interfacing withcommunity trying to find a wayto increase fan base, support andwhat your program has to offer.Any high school football coachthat doesn’t feel like he needscommunity support, I’d like tosee that program. We want to bea program that gets recognizedaround the state. We want anexciting brand of football that wecan put on TV.”

With the added games ontelevision, there comes more

exposure for the programs beingpresented on TV, more excite-ment for the games from the fansand participants, as well as thechance to make additional rev-enue for the schools through cor-porate sponsorship opportunitiesfrom that exposure.

“I think it’s great for highschool football,” Irwin said. “I likeit. I know that the Corky KellClassic, the first year they decidedto (broadcast games), there wassome concern with ticket salesbeing hurt. But I think it’s great. Itgives more of a college feel to(games). It helps with corporatesponsorship. Anything that createsmore excitement or more buzz willbe good. I think we’re at the pointwith high school athletics wherewe need to reach out and makepartnerships. We’re trying to becompetitive and trying to find moreways you brand your product.”

But that’s just it. With everyadditional game added to the tele-vision docket, it creates the poten-tial for games to become moreabout business than about football.

“Everything revolves aroundmoney these days,” McEacherncoach Kyle Hockman said. “ Iknow that as it becomes moreprevalent that these games are onTV.”

McEachern declined anopportunity to move one of itsFriday games to Thursday due toconcerns about selling tickets.

“(WSB) offered to move oneof our games to a Thursdaynight,” Hockman said. “It wouldbe nice, but we thought that we

would lose money in hosting agame on Thursday night.”

On top of that, any mistake orinjury that happens on air will bemagnified that much more due tothe microscope that televisedgames put on football.

“We’re in that kind of a soci-ety where everything is at yourfingertips,” Pope coach MattKemper said. “You can pull upanything on the Internet instant-ly. But I think we’re a ways offfrom that sort of thing. It is agreat opportunity and we want toact right, do right when peoplesee on television.

“But it’s like anything else.It’s a great privilege to have thisopportunity. But at the sametime, it’s a huge responsibility.”

Also, the advent of Thursdaynight games, that means highschools will have shorter weeksto practice between games,though that’s less of a concernfor some than it is for others.

“To me, we did this when Iwas coaching in Alabama,” Irwinsaid of Thursday night games.“It’s not really a tremendousloss. The only problem is if youhave a large number of injuriesand are trying to move peoplearound and are scrambling to fillholes at the end of the season.

“In Week 11 (when we hostEtowah), it’s the last week, so Idon’t see it as a big issue. We aretrying to shorten practice bythen. If we don’t have it down bythen with what we need work on,then I don’t see that being a bigloss for us.”

WSB-TV Thursday Schedule:(NOTE: Live on Comcast channel 248;

replayed 1 a.m. Saturday mornings on WSB)

Aug. 18 Dacula @ NorcrossAug. 25 SW DeKalb @ TuckerSept. 1 South Gwinnett @ M.L. KingSept. 8 Lovejoy @ North ClaytonSept. 15 Heritage @ Rockdale CountySept. 22 East Paulding @ North PauldingSept. 29 Milton @ CentennialOct. 6 SW DeKalb @ DunwoodyOct. 13 Sprayberry @ PopeOct. 20 Dutchtown @ GriffinOct. 27 Chattahoochee @ South ForsythNov. 3 Etowah @ Lassiter

Georgia Public Broadcasting Schedule

2011 Corky Kell ClassicAug. 20 TV — Grayson @ Kell

TV — Brookwood @ LassiterTV — North Gwinnett @ McEachernTV — Peachtree Ridge @ Walton

Aug. 26 TV — Collins Hill @ RoswellWEB — St. Pius X @ Westminster

Sept. 2 TV — Lambert at ChattahoocheeWEB — Blessed Trinity @ Grady

Sept. 9 TV — Newnan @ Peachtree RidgeWEB — Colquitt Co. @ Westlake

Sept. 16 TV — Southwest DeKalb @ MaristWEB — Wesleyan @ Holy Innocents

Sept. 23 TV — Mill Creek @ NorcrossWEB — Lovett @ Buford

Sept. 30 TV — Lassiter @ Walton WEB — Ringgold @ Heritage

Oct. 7 TV — Hillgrove at McEachernWEB — LaGrange @ Carrollton

Oct. 14 TV — Thomas Co. Cen. @ Northside-WRWEB — Mary Persons @ Peach Co.

Oct. 21 TV — Woodstock @ EtowahWEB — North Forsyth @ Centennial

Oct. 28 TV — Brookwood @ Grayson WEB — Sandy Creek @ Fayette Co.

Nov. 4 TV — Stephenson @ M.L. KingWEB — Chattahoochee @ Rome

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTIONTHURSDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL

IS AS CLOSE TO YOU AS YOUR TELEVISION REMOTE

Kell andGrayson

kicked offthe Corky

Kell Classicon Saturdayand a largeschedule ofhigh schoolgames that

can be seenon WSB

and GBP in2011 .

�Staff /

Laura Moon


POPE GREYHOUNDSABOUT THE GREYHOUNDSLocation: 13001 Hembree Road, Marietta. Phone (770) 578-7900. Home Field: Pope Multi-Sport Complex. Colors: Blue and Gray. Online: popefootball.com

FOREVER 70POPE’S ZACH HANSHAW EARNS THE HONOR

OF THE ANNUAL MATT HOBBY JERSEY AWARD

ABOUT ZACH HANSHAW

He’s always dreamed about playing football for the University of Miami

He started playing football in the fourth grade

For every team he has ever been on, he’s always played center

Staff / Laura MoonPope’s Zach Hanshaw was honored this year by receiving the Matt Hobby Jersey Award.Hanshaw will wear No. 70 this season in honor of Hobby. The award is voted on by his team-mates for the player that best exudes the toughness and determination Hobby was know for.

By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

Pope coach Matt Kemper washanding out game jerseys inpreparation for the Greyhounds2011 team photo but pausedwhen he came to the No. 70.

The offensive and defensivelineman in the room had theirinterest peaked. It was a bigmoment. For the players on thatline there is no bigger recognitionthan being able to say they woreMatt Hobby’s number, and thisyear, Pope center Zach Hanshawearned that responsibility.

“It’s the biggest honor I’ve

ever received,” the 6-foot-1, 265pound Hanshaw said. “I realizethe footsteps I have to follow in.”

Matt Hobby was an offensivelineman for the Greyhoundswhen he was stricken with anaggressive form of child-hoodcancer called Ewing’s Sarcoma— a malignant bone tumor whichdevelops during puberty and isusually found in the pelvis, arms,legs or chest. Once diagnosed,the patient has a 5-year survivalrate of 70 to 80 percent withchemo-therapy, but long termsurvival is less than 10 percent.

This was the case with

See 70, Page 82

GOOD LUCKTEAMS!

Cobb Chamber Small Business of the Year


largest back, and thus one beingprone to a more hard-nosed,downhill style of running, Cooksaid that he has the quickest feetof the three backs.

“In middle school, I was alwaystrucking people,” Chambers said.“Then, I got to high school and Ijust started juking and stuff. I gotso much agility that I started usingit. I never used it before because Iwas always bigger and faster. I’velearned to go around.”

Meanwhile, Redwine has thefastest straight line speed of thethree backs, while Gaines is anall-around back that is the mostdurable of the three.

Along with figuring out whomto give the football to next oneach play, each running back

would like to make sure that theyare no longer playing under theshadow of Randolph.

“The last couple of years,there are people that have saidthat we were all nothing withoutBrian,” Gaines said. “I wouldn’tsay that’s true. Brian isn’t some-one that you can replace, butBrian understood that we were allpart of a team and we workedtogether. No one man can do it byhimself, so we’re going to have todo it without him this year.”

Though each back would liketo make a name for him, it’s clearthat the ultimate goal has more todo with the final score than finalrushing totals.

“To me, it doesn’t really mat-ter,” Redwine said. “Whoever ishot or feeling it, I’d rather havethem in place over someone thatisn’t feeling it. As long as we arewinning games, I want to take ashot at state instead of beinggreedy about the ball.”


Kell

able to get 57 tackles, averaging10 a game, and getting four tack-les for loss in the six games hedid play in ’10.

“If he could have played thewhole season, he could have got-ten over 100 tackles,” MountParan coach Mitch Jordan said.“But, getting 57 tackles in the sixgames he did play is still prettyimpressive.”

While McKay’s stats on thefield are certainly strong, thenumbers that he achieves in theweight room are every bit asimpressive.

McKay has established him-self as the team’s top lifter in theweight room, currently holdingteam records in the bench press(330 pounds) and the squat (485pounds).

“Strength is a big part of foot-ball,” McKay said. “We have agreat weight lifting coach whohas really helped me a lot. I workhard in the weight room and ithas really helped me on thefield.”

Jordan praised McKay for hishard work in the weight room aswell as the field.

“J.P. is the first guy in theweight room and the last guy toleave,” Jordan said. “He workedvery hard in the weight room toget stronger, and that hard workis paying off. He is our strongestplayer, and that is largely due toall the work he has put in in theweight room.”

Footwork and speed werethe main things that McKayworked to improve on over thepostseason, including workoutswith the Mount Paran trackteam among his preseasonpreparations.

“I need to get my feet upmore,” McKay said. “To getready for the upcoming season, Iworked with the track team dur-ing the spring, and I am a lotfaster as a result.”

McKay has attracted theattention of a number of smallerDivision I schools, withJacksonville State and CharlestonSouthern among the top candi-dates at this point.

However, he is focused on hisfinal high school football seasonat Mount Paran as he looks tohelp the Eagles return to the stateplayoffs and help them advanceeven farther in 2011.

“I want to get 100 tackles andhelp our team get past the firstround in state,” McKay said.


McKay

ABOUT J.P. MCKAY

His favorite subject in school is History

Cam Newton is his favorite player

His favorite football team is the Auburn Tigers

His counterpart, Purnell, was67-of-111 for 1,392 yards with19 touchdowns and two inter-ceptions. Purnell, however, wasable to do a little more with hisfeet as he rushed 44 times for363 yards and scored fivetouchdowns.

Those differences aren’t loston Thompson, a senior. He planson doing the things that madehim successful last year and usehis years of experience to helpguide his decision-making.

“Dondre was a playmaker,”he said. “He was athletic andcould do his own thing with hisfeet as well as his arm. I’mmore of a distributor. My job isto read the defense and get theball into the hands of our play-makers and the athletes we haveon the team.”

Hockman agrees.“Trent’s main job will be as

a distributor,” he said. “He’sgoing to get the ball to our

speed guys and our athletes.Don’t be fooled, though. Trentcan surprise you and break off arun here or there and scramble.But it’s definitely his team, andhe’s going to thrive.

“Instead of taking 50 per-cent of the snaps like he did lastyear, he’s going to take 80 to 85percent. He’ll be our guy in thepocket making the decisions.One of his best assets is he’sreally good in the red zone.He’ll put the ball where it needsto be to score touchdowns. Ithink he’ll take off and be evenbetter than he was last season.He should be fun to watch.”

Having played inMcEachern’s offense for twoseasons already, Thompson’slearning curve is short.

“The experience over thepast two years has been great,”he said. “I don’t get as nervousnow. I’m better prepared, Iunderstand how to watch filmand things are easier than it useto be. I play the game morewith my mind.

“There’s always stuff to doas far as reading defenses andexecuting.”

While his learning curve isshort, Thompson continues towork on being a better leader.

“Coach has talked to meabout leading,” he said. “I’mnot much of a vocal guy, but Ineed to be able to take com-mand. I’m still getting use tothat aspect of things, but I’mgetting better.”

Thompson acknowledgedthat it was going to feel differ-ent when he stepped onto thefield Saturday in the GeorgiaDome against North Gwinnettat the Corky Kell Classic.

“I was use dto all of theswitching out between Dondreand me,” he said. “But, some-times it could be frustratingbecause it broke my rhythm.But sometimes it took thepressure off me. If I had a badgame, he could come in andtry to do better to help theteam. That won’t happen anymore.

“I’ll need to buckle down.My job as the quarterback is towin games, and I’ll do what Ihave to do to make that happen.My teammates will trust me toget the job done.”


Man

ABOUT TRENT THOMPSON

If he was an animal, he would be a dog because they are not crazy, don’t do a lot of stuff and just hang out

If he had a super power he would want to run fast and be like the Flash

If he won $20 million, he would save it for his kids until he got old

finished ahead of him at thestate meet graduated, Hesterwill be the top returning finish-er in the Class AAAAA 400dash, putting him in prime posi-tion to win the state title nextspring.

“I definitely want to win thestate title in the 400 and I wantto help North Cobb do well inthe (400 relay),” Hester said.

Hester didn’t take long tocelebrate his success at the statemeet before he began his prepa-rations for the 2011 footballseason, which included bulkingup with hard workouts in theweight room.

Hester has also been boostedphysically by his experienceson the track, saying that it hashelped him with his physicaland mental toughness as muchas his speed.

“Track has helped me get

faster, but it’s also made mestronger and tougher,” Hestersaid. “The 400 is a tough eventand it has helped me gettougher. Track has definitelyhelped me be a better footballplayer.”

For Shane Queen, Hester isthe complete package.

“Martez has size at 6-3, 185,

and he has a great work ethic,”Queen said. “He’s done a greatjob in our defensive backfield,and he’s filling the shoes left by(Georgia Tech signee) DarrenWaller as far as the leadershiprole on defense is concerned, sohe has some big shoes to fill.He finished third in the state inthe 400, so he’s got somespeed, too.”

Hester has attracted atten-tion from a number of DivisionI schools, with Arkansas State,Ball State, Air Force, Ohio andCharlotte among the candidates,though he is hoping to get somelooks from SoutheasternConference schools.

While Hester is looking todo well individually, his focusis on helping North Cobb win astate title as well as a Region4AAAAA crown.

“I want to help North Cobbwin state — I feel like we havea very good team and we have agood chance,” Hester said. “Butbefore that, we want to winregion, and we have a goodchance to do that.”


Hester ABOUT MARTEZ HESTER

His favorite subjects inschool is Government and

Economics

When he goes to collegehe wants to study either business

or communications

His favorite color is orange

KICKOFF 2011


POPE GREYHOUNDS


WHEELER 21-6 WKMHS 24-20 WVILLA RICA 21-7 WOSBORNE 28-6 WKELL 21-35 LNORTH PAULDING 48-17 WSPRAYBERRY 28-17 WEAST PAULDING 13-14 LHIRAM 7-19 LSOUTH PAULDING 35-28 WCHATTAHOOCHEE 14-42 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Matt KemperAge: 45Year at School: 4Record: 17-14Career Rec.: 17-14

Varsity Coaching StaffGerald Climmons — Def. BacksTom Flugum — LinebackersMatt Fox — Special TeamsHeath Green — Running BacksJerad Johnson — QuarterbacksMatt Jones — Defensive LineMike Kennedy — ReceiversChris LaFeve — Defensive Backs


ATWHEELERAUG. 26

VS. KMHSSEPT. 2

ATVILLA RICASEPT. 9

ATOSBORNESEPT. 23

VS. KELL

SEPT. 30

ATN. PAULDING

OCT. 7

VS.SPRAYBERRY

OCT. 13

ATE. PAULDING

OCT. 21

VS.HIRAM

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME CL.

2 MYLES EVERETT 12

3 RONALD WOODS 10

4 KEEGAN PUIS 11

5 JAY KOO 12

6 BRAXTON PHIPPS 11

7 ITABARI MASON 9

8 JACOB CULBERSON 10

9 DAVID BOHN 12

10 JERAD PARKER 11

11 CAMERON VICTOR 12

12 BRIAN ROGERS 12

13 MASON SHIFLETT 10

14 BROOKS CLIMMONS 11

15 STEPHEN SKRUCK 10

16 HOLLAND FROST 12

17 JACK ZEGERS 10

18 MURPHY DAVIS 11

19 SCOTT WALKER 11

20 RYAN HANLEY 11

NO. NAME CL.

21 JAKE HENSON 10

22 DANIEL MAPLES 12

23 RICHARD BECKER 11

24 MIGUEL SANCHEZ 12

25 YOSHIKI HARAOKA 12

26 JOSH METZINGER 11

28 DANNY TARQUINIO 11

29 LOGAN CARR 10

32 SEAN HAYDEN 10

33 BLAYNE BURGETT 10

34 KELVIN HAU 11

36 CARSON DAY 9

37 SEAN HATCHER 11

38 GREG KEEL 12

39 CHRISTIAN BUHR 12

42 CURRAN MCMAHON 11

43 JOSEPH RICHARDSON 12

44 ZACH MCCOWWN 11

45 MICHAEL KEMPER 9

NO. NAME CL.

46 CHRISTIAN BATTAGLIA 12

47 THOMAS MOLLOY 12

48 JOEY TABACHINO 10

49 EUGENE GRAY 12

50 MARKUS SHIFLETT 12

51 PAUL DAHLHAUSER 10

52 CHRIS BLAKE 12

53 BOBACK KALANTARIAN 11

54 MARCO VAHOUA 12

55 BRANDT MARTIN 12

57 CODY POLFKA 10

59 WILLIAM WETTER 12

60 CHRIS HAYDEN 11

62 PRESTON SMITH 12

63 TREVOR STEVENS 11

64 OLIVER PREDA 10

65 DJ PHELPS 11

66 LUKE HORNOR 11

67 CONNER WHEALTON 11

NO. NAME CL.

68 GLENN SHADDEN 12

70 ZACH HANSHAW 12

72 SEAN ALEXANDER 12

73 ALEXANDER HOEPFNER 11

74 CODY AMON 11

75 HARRISON HOLMES 10

76 TAYLOR HOWARD 11

78 LUCAS KRULL 12

79 MAXWELL KEMPER 9

82 JARED WALTON 12

83 BEN DORAN 10

85 MARSHALL HANSEN 10

88 BEN HART 11

89 JR HUDGINS 11

91 BRADY WALSH 11

92 PEYTON GRIFFIN 11

95 JAKE NEMEROFF 12

97 ALEXANDER PARKER 11

Season Outlook

After a decade-long absence,

the Pope Greyhounds returned

to the playoffs in 2010.

The lone drawback was that

their first opponent was eventual

Class AAAA state champion

Chattahoochee.

That aside, the resurgence of

the Greyhounds has helped build

a sense of team pride and now,

community expectations.

Pope will try to live up to the

higher expectations behind quar-

terback Holland Frost. Frost, who

earned Class AAAA All-State

honorable mention last season

after more than 2,000 yards

passing and 1,000 yards rushing,

will again be the trigger man that

made the offense go.

“Nobody has the concept of

what he’s doing for us,” Pope

coach Matt Kemper said about

Frost’s ability to manage a game.

But while Frost will continue

to manage the game he will have

to depend on different players to

make plays for him.

“We’re going to take (Navy,

Air Force) approach,” Kemper

said. “We’re going to run the

option and chew the clock.”

Pope will go with a committee

of running backs and Myles

Everett will try to fill the big

shoes left by Garrett Brown and

his 85 receptions. Everett caught

20 passes last season and will

likely need to increase that num-

ber to the 60-plus range.

Defensively, the Greyhounds

will be young on the defensive

line, but they will have strength in

the linebacking corps led by

junior Brooks Climmons, a state

champion wrestler. If the sec-

ondary can hold up, Pope will

have a chance to be in the mix in

Region 5AAAA.

The two key contests for the

Greyhounds will be the same as

last season — North Paulding

and Sprayberry. If Pope can win

those two games, it will allow

the Greyhounds to go after last

year’s top trio from the region

— Kell, Hiram and East

Paulding. This, however, could

also be a year where the team

improves, but doesn’t have as

many victories.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


NORTH COBB WARRIORS


ALPHARETTA 19-42 LCENTENNIAL 21-14 WLASSITER 18-14 WKMHS 43-14 WCAMPBELL 34-6 WPEBBLEBROOK 25-21 WHILLGROVE 27-39 LMCEACHERN 28-31 LSOUTH COBB 23-31 LHARRISON 6-17 L

WON 5, LOST 5

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Shane QueenAge: 39Year at School: 6Record: 29-23Career Rec.: 59-46

Varsity Coaching StaffTom Clark — Off. CoordinatorSam Fraundorf — Def. CoordinatorRuss Isham — Defensive BacksScott Jones — Running BacksRobbie Robertson — ReceiversJustin Ernest — Defensive LineBob Clark — LinebackersJohn Speeney — Defensive Backs


VS.ALPHARETTAAUG. 26

ATCENTENNIAL

SEPT. 2

VS.LASSITERSEPT. 9

ATKMHS

SEPT. 16

ATCAMPBELLSEPT. 30

VS.PEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 7

VS.HILLGROVEOCT. 14

ATMCEACHERN

OCT. 21

VS.SOUTH COBBOCT. 28

ATHARRISONNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 JALEN WILLIAMS WR 12

2 DARIUS CONOWAY DB 12

3 QUINTEN JAMES RB 11

4 TRE GRIFFIN DE 12

5 NICK JOHNSON DB 12

6 MARTEZ HESTER DB 12

7 DEMETRIUS HILL RB 12

8 T. BODENHAMMER WR 12

9 JAMES KING DB 11

10 TY GRIFFIN QB 11

11 LEON JORDAN WR 11

12 XAVIER BORISHADE WR 11

13 NICK MILLER WR 11

14 CAMERON ALBRIGHT QB 10

15 DEONTE NEAL LB 12

16 JACOB MCKEE WR 11

17 PARIS COOK LB 12

18 KEIONNE RIVES DB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

19 TYLER QUEEN QB 9

20 KYLER WILSON WR 11

21 NICK SOLOMON DB 11

22 J’VONTE HERROD RB 10

23 ISAIAH LYLES WR 11

24 LATRELL GIBBS DB 10

25 TONY MOORE RB 11

26 CJ BRYE DB 11

27 TOBI ADELAJA RB 10

28 JONATHON HARMON LB 11

30 BRENT CROWDER LB 11

31 ELIJAH SLAUGHTER LB 12

32 JUWAN TAYLOR LB 12

33 JEREMY KIRK WR 10

34 E. SLAUGHTER LB 11

35 HAKEEM SAWYER LB 11

36 ANTOINE COLE LB 12

38 KYLE DUNCAN LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

39 JORDAN KIRK WR 10

40 CHRISTIAN INGRAM DB 10

41 TRENTON PRUETT LB 11

43 SHAUN DANIELS LB 11

48 JALIL KUKU LB 10

49 DEQUAN JEUNE LB 10

50 JUSTIN SEIVERS OL 12

51 ERNIE MCQUADE OL 10

52 KELVIN UME DL 11

53 ASHLON MINNOTT OL 11

54 AUSTIN HARRIS OL 12

55 TANNER ROSHAK OL 12

56 EDUVIE OJEGBA DL 11

58 JOHN HOWELL OL 11

63 NICHOLAS ORTIZ OL 10

64 MORGAN DAVIS OL 11

65 ANDRAKO SMITH OL 10

66 DAMION ADDISON OL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

70 MORGAN WELCH OL 10

73 SHAREEF SCOTT OL 10

74 WILLIAM CHATMON OL 11

75 DALTON CZAR OL 11

77 JOE FARAJ OL 11

80 FRED WATKINS WR 10

82 MATHIAS ABIEY WR 10

83 DEQUAN FULLER WR 10

84 DOMINIC DENNIS WR 11

85 CHAD MCCLANAHAN DL 10

87 BRANDON SCOTT WR 10

90 ELIJAH VALENTIN DL 10

92 E. AGBONGHAE DL 11

93 ALEX MEDINA K 11

94 AJ BOUDIN K 11

95 BYRON ALEXANDER K 10

96 B. ALEXANDER DL 12

97 JERRY MCQUADE DL 11

98 GREGORY THOMAS K 10

Season Outlook

North Cobb enters the sea-

son determined to bounce back

from a 2010 campaign that ended

on a nightmarish note with four

straight losses after a 5-1 start.

While having some big holes

to fill with the departure of

Division I signees Troy Gray,

Darren Waller and Max Mason,

the Warriors have plenty of talent

on hand to fill those gaps.

It will be an experienced

North Cobb squad that will take

the field this fall, with a large

group of seniors ready to take

charge and lead the way.

The defense looks especially

strong, with senior defensive end

and Vanderbilt commitment Tre

Griffn leading a unit that includes

such standouts as free safety

Martez Hester, defensive back

Darius Conoway, cornerback

Nick Johnson and linebackers

Paris Cook, Elijah Slaughter and

Deonte Neal.

North Cobb will have some

weapons to work with on offense

as well, with junior running back

Quenten James, junior quarter-

back Ty Griffin and senior wide

receiver Jalen Williams the key

figures and Demetrius Hill provid-

ing some speed and athleticism at

running back and wide receiver

and as a punt and kickoff returner.

The Warriors will be solid on

the offensive line with a senior

group that includes Justin

Seivers and Austin Harris and

juniors William Chatmon and Joe

Faraj.

North Cobb coach Shane

Queen is encouraged by the

physical condition of his players

after an offseason of hard work

in the weight room, adding that

his team is stronger than it has

been in the last couple of years.

With the talent on hand,

North Cobb should be back in

the hunt for a state playoff berth

in Region 4AAAAA in 2011.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]


PEBBLEBROOK FALCONSABOUT THE FALCONSLocation: 991 Old Alabama Road, Mableton. Phone: (770) 819-2521. Home Field: Falcon Stadium. Team Colors: Maroon, White and Blue. Online: www.cobbk12.org/pebblebrook/athletics.aspx

MAN OF MANY HATSBy William Bretherton

[email protected]

In three years, quarterback C.J.Goodman has become more than aveteran quarterback.

To senior running back SertonuseHarris, Goodman has become family.To Pebblebrook coach RandallSmith, Goodman has become a sec-ond head coach on the field. To histeammates, he has become a mentorfor a team filled with many inexperi-enced players.

See Hats, Page 69

GOODMAN ASSUMES MULTIPLE LEADERSHIP ROLES

Pebblebrook’sC. J.

Goodmanhas become

the leader of the

Falcons as he

prepares forhis third

season asthe starting

quarterback.

�

Staff /Samantha M.

Shal

� Height: 6-0 � Weight: 180

2010 Season Stats� Passing: 33-of-69, 612yards, 6 touchdowns � Rushing: 43 carries, 278yards, 3 touchdowns

THE GOODMAN FILE


NORTH COBB WARRIORSABOUT THE WARRIORSLocation: 3400 Highway 293 North, Kennesaw. Phone: (770) 975-6685. Home Field: Emory Sewell Stadium. Team Colors: Orange, Blue, White. Online: www.northcobbfootball.com.

HEALTHY HESTERBACK ON GRIDIRON

By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Before this year, NorthCobb’s Martez Hester wasknown primarily for his abilitieson the football field.

As he enters this football sea-son, Hester is now known asmuch for his accomplishments onthe track as he is for what he hasdone on the gridiron.

The senior free safety/widereceiver added track and field tohis repertoire last spring and, as aresult, finished third in ClassAAAAA in the 400-meter dashat the state meet in Jefferson.

Fresh off of his track and fieldsuccess, as well as a productiveoffseason of football preparation,Hester is excited about NorthCobb’s prospects in ’11 as theWarriors attempt to earn a returntrip to the state playoffs for thefirst time since 2007.

“I feel real good,” Hester said.“We’ve got a good team andwe’ve trained real hard duringthe offseason. I feel like I’m ingreat shape and I’m ready to go.”

Hester will try to bounce backfrom a season in which hemissed the last four games aftersuffering a torn meniscus in hisknee during North Cobb’s 25-21victory over Pebblebrook.

North Cobb was 5-1 after thatwin, but it proceeded to lose itslast four games without Hester inthe lineup.

Fortunately for Hester, theinjury wasn’t serious and he wasfully rehabilitated after only 2½months.

“I was definintely scared atfirst, but it turned out not to betoo bad and I healed up realquick,” he said.

Just in time, in fact, for thebeginning of track season.

Hester’s coaches, seeing hispotential as a track athlete andknowing the sport would further

develop his speed, had been try-ing to persuade him to join theNorth Cobb track team for thelast few years but to no avail.

But head coach Shane Queenand running backs coach ScottJones, who is also the NorthCobb track coach, finally per-suaded Hester to give track a shotlast year.

“Coach Queen and coachJones brought me into a roomand they told me that track wouldhelp me with my football,”Hester said. “I never ran trackbefore, but I decided to do it.”

After a slow start as helearned the sport, Hester finallycaught fire at the Region4AAAAA meet, where he fin-ished second in the 400 with atime of 48.97 seconds — break-ing the 49-second barrier for thefirst time — to earn a trip to thestate meet in his first year oftrack competition

Hester saved his best for last,however, as he surprised evenhimself with a third-place finishin the Class AAAAA 400 dash,running a personal-best time of48.91 and finishing ahead ofCampbell’s Corey Ashbourne,who beat Hester at the 4AAAAAmeet.

“I felt great,” Hester said.“Finishing third was really goodand I finished ahead of the guywho beat me at region. I was sur-prised I finished third. I thought Iwould finish fifth or sixth.”

For Hester, the increasedtraining load that he undertook inthe final month of track seasonhelped lift his performance up anotch.

“We started doing some extratraining before region and state,”Hester said. “We were doingsome hard workouts at the end ofthe track season and that definite-ly helped me improve.”

With both of the athletes who

NORTH COBB DEFENSIVE BACK RETURNS

TO ADD SPEED TO WARRIORS’ SECONDARY

North Cobb was 5-1 last season before Martez Hesterwas injured. The Warriors losttheir last four games withouthim.

�Staff / Erin Gray

See Hester, Page 41

� Wide Receiver, Defensive Back


2010 Season Stats� 2 Interceptions� Ran 48.91 seconds in the400-meter dash to finish thirdin the Class AAAAA statetrack meet

THE HESTER FILE

KICKOFF 2011


PEBBLEBROOK FALCONS


LOWNDES 7-47 LEAST COWETA 5-13 LCHAPEL HILL 34-3 WHARRISON 13-3 WKMHS 37-10 WNORTH COBB 21-25 LMCEACHERN 21-43 LHILLGROVE 3-21 LCAMPBELL 28-0 WSOUTH COBB 21-24 L

WIN 4, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Randall SmithAge: 50Year at School: 4Record: 13-17Career Rec.: 13-17

Varsity Coaching StaffTommy Macon — Assistant HCGeorge Washington — LinebackersAdrian Billingsley — Def. LineCharles Swann — ReceiversPerry Parks — Running BacksJacob Smith — Offensive Line


ATLOWNDESAUG. 26

VS. EAST COWETA

SEPT. 2

ATCHAPEL HILL

SEPT. 9

ATHARRISONSEPT. 16

VS. KMHS

SEPT. 30

ATNORTH COBB

OCT. 7

VS.MCEACHERN

OCT. 14

ATHILLGROVEOCT. 21

VSCAMPBELLOCT. 28

ATSOUTH COBB

NOV. 5

NO. NAME CL.

1 C. J. GOODMAN 12

2 SERTONUSE HARRIS 12

4 TYLER PARHAM 12

5 PERRY SELDON 10

7 ANTONIO PASS 10

8 A. J. QUARLES 11

9 DEZMON HUNTLEY 10

10 NICHOLAS MCLAREN 12

12 BRAIN GRANISON 11

13 JARRETT SHARP 10

14 JARVIS RUFF 10

15 GERARD MAKUNTAE 12

20 DERRICK LLOYD 10

21 TREY YOUNG 11

22 KHALID HENDERSON 12

NO. NAME CL.

23 DOMINIQUE CUMMINGS12

24 KENNETH BURKE 10

25 SHUNTEZ SMITH 10

27 AKIL SCOTT 12

30 CARL BEXLEY 11

31 DAVID JOHNSON 12

33 STEVEN HEROD 10

34 TYBERIUS CRAVENS 11

35 MICHEAL ASYEMAN 12

40 EDWARD ODEMAH 10

41 YANNI OUK 11

42 EDWIN MCCOLLEY 10

45 MARK MANSANTO 10

50 TREY BENJAMIN 10

51 KASEY RICHARDSON 11

NO. NAME CL.

52 CASEY GORMAN 12

53 ANTON DUNN 12

54 CHARLES MCCLINE 12

55 THOMAS DIMASSIMO 12

56 KHALIL GEORGE 10

57 BRANDON BROWN 12

58 JUSTIN GRAYSON 11

59 GARRY DOBSON 10

60 CHRISTOPHER WEEMS 11

61 RACHIIM SIMMONS 10

62 JAMES GLENN 11

63 JERRY SHARPE 12

64 JAMAR FARSIAR 11

65 JOHN PITTS 12

66 MOURICE COUCH 10

NO. NAME CL.

67 JABARE SCOTT 10

68 ALEX WASHINGTON 12

69 DIAMONTE THOMAS 12

70 TIM PARKER 12

71 ALBERTO MUNGUIA 10

73 AMONE BRINSON 12

74 AVERY GLASS 12

76 LEDELL MOORE 12

80 JUSTIS MULLINS 10

81 JUSTIN SIMMS 10

82 SHANE THOMAS 10

83 JONATHAN HEMPHILL 10

84 LANCE WATERS 10

85 RODNEY ROSS 11

Season Outlook

Over the past two sea-sons, Pebblebrook has beenon the precipice of reachingthe state playoffs for the firsttime since 2007 when MikeCollins, now coaching atWheeler, helped the Falconsto a 7-4 record and a first-round appearance.

Pebblebrook will be with-out Darian Stewart, who wasthe team’s star linebackerlast season, running backKendrick Peeples and two-way lineman Brian Uzomba,along with a host of seniors.

As the junior class was asmall one last year, the

Falcons’ team will mostly befilled with juniors and under-classmen, meaning there willbe a sharp learning curvegoing into this season.

The team will certainlygrow up fast once again, asSmith scheduled an ambitiousstart to the schedule with a

second road trip to Lowndesopening the year, followed bygames at home against EastCoweta and at Chapel Hillbefore the Falcons’ Region4AAAAA slate begins.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN EAGLES

4-year record: 2-26

MT. ZION 26-8 WMOUNT PARAN 6-54 LFELLOWSHIP 6-34 LCROSS KEYS 18-54 LST. FRANCIS 46-35 WTOWNS COUNTY 18-48 LGLASCOCK CO. 28-61 LLAKEVIEW ACD. 21-49 LHEBRON 13-47 LGA. MILITARY 0-48 L

WON 2, LOST 8

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Harry MilesAge: 33Year at School: 3Record: 2-17Career Rec.: 2-17

Varsity Coaching StaffJason Roquemore — Def. Coord.Wade Ellis — Offensive LineJason Aldridge — LinebackersTerry Luck — Off. CoordinatorMike Timms — ReceiversDave Dorsey — Defensive Backs


VS.MT. ZION-CAR.

AUG. 26

ATMT. PARAN

SEPT. 2

VS.FELLOWSHIP

SEPT. 9

VS.CROSS KEYSSEPT. 16

ATST. FRANCISSEPT. 23

ATTOWNS CO.SEPT. 30

VS.GLASCOCK CO.

OCT. 7

ATLAKE. ACAD.

OCT. 14

VS.HEBRONOCT. 21

ATGA. MILITARY

OCT. 28

NAME CLASS

ALEX DYKSTRA 12

LEON HARALAMBUS 12

CALEB KEITT 12

COREY HARRIS 12

MICHAEL MOORE 12

GRANT TITUS 12

ROD MITCHELL 12

NAME CLASS

MATT HOLLEY 12

ALEX HO-ON 11

TRIP ROSS 11

ZACH SCHNIEDER 11

ANDREW NUCKS 11

RABON MARTIN 10

TREVOR HOURIGAN 10

NAME CLASS

OSCAR LARES 10

CHANDLER NELSON 10

DANIEL GALANOS 10

GARRETT STEVENS 10

ZACH PRUITT 10

TREVOR MARTIN 10

ALEX TIDWELL 9

NAME CLASS

TYLER IMSAND 9

CARSON MASTERS 9

ZACH BROWN 9

ADAM MORRIS 9

CHRIS SFERRA 9

CONNOR KAILEY 9

CLARKE MYERS 9

Season Outlook

North Cobb Christian took

a step forward in 2010 as it

earned its first two varsity

wins in the school’s brief foot-

ball history.

But there’s still plenty of

work to be doned for the

young program as the Eagles

look for the further develop-

ment of a young lineup that

gained some valuable, and

hard-earned, experience a

year ago.

The Eagles hope their

new 3-4 defense, installed by

new defensive coordinator

Jason Roquemore — who

held the same position at

Kennesaw Mountain last year

— will give them a boost on

the defensive side of the ball.

Also helping out on the

defensive end is a strong vet-

eran unit, where of the seven

of the eight starters up front

are seniors, including defen-

sive end Leon Haralambus.

Once again, Corey Harris

will be the go-to threat and a

jack-of-all-trades as he is

expected to see action at quar-

terback, running back, wide

receiver and kick returner.

Harris provided offensive

firepower in both the run-

ning and passing games for

North Cobb Christian, gain-

ing 608 yards on the

ground, 573 yards receiving

and scoring 17 touchdowns.

The Eagles will also need

help from quarterback Alex

Ho-on, senior wide receiver

Rod Mitchell and sophomore

Daniel Galanos on the offen-

sive side to complement

Harris.

North Cobb Christian will

have a very young offensive

line coming back, featuring

two freshmen, two sopho-

mores and a junior, but what

the Eagles for experience on

the Line, they will more than

make up for size as they will

be bigger up front than a

year ago.



OSBORNE CARDINALSABOUT THE CARDINALSLocation: 2451 Favor Road, Marietta. Phone: (770) 437-5900. Home Field: Cardinal Stadium. Team Colors: Red, White. Online: osbornefootball.com

TAKING HIS GAME AND LIFE TO NEW HEIGHTSBy Carlton D. [email protected]

Born in Atlanta, Osbornewide receiver Nyiakki Heightgot his wish at a young age toone day head to Marietta andlive with his aunt for a while.

“I always wanted to livewith my aunt,” he said. “Shealways spoiled me when I wasyoung.”

Unfortunately, his wishcame at a price and his life hasbeen different ever since.

“I’ve lived in the Osbornedistrict since the sixth grade,”Height said. “My mom sufferedan aneurysm late in the schoolyear, around Thanksgiving.While she was in the hospital, Icame to live with my aunt, andI’ve been here ever since.

“My mom recovered though

and she’s doing well. I stillhave a great relationship withher and she comes to some ofmy games.”

A four-year letterman andthree-year starter with theCardinals, Height has turnedhis past near-tragedy into a tri-umph. The 6-foot-1, 185-poundsenior is looking forward tohaving a strong final season. Heenjoys the fact that his accom-plishments help to bring notori-ety to Osborne, and he hopesthat recognition spurs successfor future teams.

“It makes me feel special,”said Height, who has commit-ted to play collegiatelely atUAB. “I can help the programget on the right path and helplead the guys who come behindme. They’ll see the kind of suc-cess I had and maybe try to

duplicate it.”Height’s road to success,

however, has been a rocky one.Not only did he almost lose hismother, Onita, to the aneurysm,eight months prior his father,Terrence, died of a heart attack.His oldest brother, Angelo, dieddue to his involvement withdrugs when Nyiakki was a

baby. Another brother, QuartezArmour, also died due to drugsafter his mother’s aneurysm.His brother, Kelvin Armour,and 16-year-old sister, Yoceena,who lives with her mom, avoid-ed falling down that path.

Fortunately for the 17-year-old, Nyiakki’s painful past hashelped spur his future.

“I get my drive to succeedfrom my brothers,” Height said.“They got caught up in the druglife. I want to make my familyproud and be the first person toreally do something.”

Height has certainly done alot. He enters the 2011 seasonas one of the top receivers inCobb after totaling 36 recep-tions for 722 yards and fourtouchdowns last year. Hisexpectations now are to per-form even better.

“I feel like now I’m livingup to my own expectations,” hesaid. “I have good grades, Ididn’t drop out of school andI’m looking out for my littlesister, my aunt and my mom. Iwant to be the best leader I canbe for them.”

According to Height, hisaunt, Yolanda Curry, “hasalways treated me like her ownson.” Curry, who is a singleguardian to Height, often worksthe concession stands atOsborne. It was there where shemet Grady Clay, a man whowould take Height under hiswing and help keep him on thestraight and narrow.

“When I first moved uphere, I played football for theMilford Warriors youth leagueand (Clay’s) son, Corey, was on

OSBORNE’S NYIAKKI HEIGHT OVERCOMES HARD KNOCKS TO BE ONE OF BEST RECEIVERS IN COBB COUNTY

After surviving a life full oftragedy, things are starting tolook up for Osborne’s Nyiakki

Height. Earlier this summer,Height committed to UAB,

and he enters the 2011 sea-son as one of the top

receivers in Cobb County.



2010 season stats� 36 receptions, 722 yards,4 touchdowns� Committed to UAB

THE HEIGHT FILE

ABOUT NYIAKKI HEIGHT

If he was a car, he would bea Lamborghini

If he won $20 million hewould make sure his familywas taken care of and then

put the rest in the bank

See Heights, Page 69


NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 4500 Lakeview Drive, Kennesaw, 30144. Phone: (770) 975-0252. Home Field: Jacob Dennis Field. Team Colors: Navy, White. Online: www.ncchristian.org/athletics/boys_sports/football.

TITUS PRODUCINGGAMES AND WINS

By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Grant Titus has already madehis mark in the video game worldas a successful producer of anumber of online games.

But every Friday night thisfall Titus will assume his otheridentity — that of North CobbChristian’s fullback and linebacker.

Titus has played a big role inthe establishment of North CobbChristian’s fledgling football pro-gram the last few years, whilemaintaining a highly successfulstint as a video game producerwho has sold his games to com-panies like Disney andNickelodeon.

Right now, football is the pri-ority for Titus, who is embarkingon his senior season at NorthCobb Christian and will try tohelp the Eagles improve on lastyear’s 2-8 record.

“I feel like we have a betterteam this year,” Titus said. “Wehave a solid defense, and weworked really hard during theoffseason, so I’m really excitedabout the season.”

Football has been a big partof Titus’ life since he began play-ing the game in the eighth grade,starting all four years he hasplayed at North Cobb Christian.

Video games have been, if notmore than, just as important forTitus, who has been a passionate

gamer since he was 4 years old.Titus’ passion for video

games went from merely playingthem to producing them when hewas 13.

“I had been playing games fora long time and I really lovedthem,” he said. “My dad gave mea program where you can pro-gram your own video games, andthat showed me how it can getdone. I was hooked and I’ve beendoing it ever since.”

Within a couple of years,Titus began to establish himselfas a video game producer.

To this day, Titus has pub-lished nine game titles and hasreceived more than 15 millionplays of his games online.

While Titus has enjoyed suc-cess in the video game world,he has also been productive onthe gridiron on both the defen-sive and offensive sides of thefootball for North CobbChristian.

As a junior in 2010, Titus hadnine tackles to lead North CobbChristian to its first varsity victo-ry — a 28-6 win over MountZion-Carroll. He also had 7.5tackles and two forced fum-blesagainst Cross Keys and six tack-les — including two for loss —and a blocked punt againstFellowship Christian.

For Titus, his experience andthe knowledge of the game arehis biggest assets for the Eagles.

NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN LINEBACKER

TACKLING FOOTBALL AND VIDEO GAMES

North Cobb Christian’s GrantTitus is getting a head starton his career as a video gameproducer. To date, he has published nine games thathave been played more than15 million times combined.


� Linebacker, Fullback� Has published nine videogame titles� His games have beenplayed online more than 15million times� Has sold games to Disneyand Nickelodeon

THE TITUS FILE

ABOUT GRANT TITUS


He wants to work in technology and programming in the video game industry


See Titus, Page 46

KICKOFF 2011


OSBORNE CARDINALS

5-year record: 8-42

HUGHES 24-27 LWOODWARD 0-47 LMCNAIR 28-2 WHIRAM 6-52 LPOPE 6-28 LKELL 0-52 LN. PAULDING 12-42 LSPRAYBERRY 8-41 LEAST PAULDING 6-61 LPAULDING CO. 0-31 L

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Xarvia SmithYear at School: 1Record: 0-0Career Rec.: 17-35

Varsity CoachingStaff

Derek Russell — Def. CoordinatorMatt Anderson — Off. CoordinatorChris Van Meter — QuarterbacksDavid Godwin — ReceiversMike Hewett — Defensive LineDustin Root — Tight EndsChris Barbee — Offensive Line


ATHUGHESAUG. 26

ATWOOD. ACAD.

SEPT. 2

VS.MCNAIRSEPT. 9

ATHIRAM

SEPT. 16

VS. POPE

SEPT. 23

ATKELL

OCT. 7

VS.N. PAUDLING

OCT. 14

ATSPRAYBERRY

OCT. 21

VS.E. PAULDING

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME POS. CL.

4 GUSTAVO GOMEZ K 125 PATRICK KEELEY RB 106 AKING ISHMAEL DB/SE 127 CHI ACHIBUEM DE 108 NYIAKKI HEIGHT SE 1213 RANDY NGUYEN SE 1114 NIGEL WILLIAMS DB/SE 918 SCOTT ONUAHA TE 1220 JAY’WON CHISTAIN FB/P 1221 JAHMARI TOWNES DB 1222 HERBERT BRABSON LB/FB 1224 TIMOTHY HARRIS RB/DB 1125 MATTHEW RAMSAY FS 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

31 XAVIER EVANS DB 1140 JAUAN EASON DE/TE 1041 SHANOY LESTER DL 1144 KHALIL MCINTYRE LB 1145 DIJION TALLEY TE/DE 1148 NICHOLAS REAUX RB/DL 1050 JESUS ESTRADA OL/DL 1151 BLADE CLONTS LB/FB 1152 KEVIN LEE LB 1154 KHA HUYNH LB 1255 COREY CLAY OL 1256 OMAR SALEM OL/DL 1259 ALEX MEALING P/LB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

60 ISIAH BRANCH LB/FB 1261 KING NGUYEN OL 1063 BEN PHAM OL 1264 WAYNE ALJOE OL/DL 1270 ALEX CASTILLO OL 1172 TONI CASTILLO OL 1074 DARIAN MOORE OL/DL 1277 CHRISTIAN PARKS OL 1078 TIM CRAWFORD OL 1079 QUENTIN VILLAFANE OL 1180 ANDREW HALLUMS TE/LB 1282 JAVIER JAIME SE 1185 MARCUS GRAY SE 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

JOSEPH CROWLEY 9JUSTIN EWEN RB/FS 9BRANDON KINKLEA 9NEQUAN GILMORE 9MALIK HARRIS RB 9DONTAE LECORN QB 9SEAN LOFLAND 9AMARU SMITH 9CHRISTIAN SMITH DE 9JAYLIN STALLWORTH 9ALEX THOMPSON 9MAMADOU TOURE SE 9KENDALL WALKER 9

Season Outlook

Getting used to its third coachin three seasons, Osborne is ateam in transition.

Osborne, which posted a 1-9record last season under interimcoach Keary Dias, will put itsfuture in the hands of new headcoach Xarvia Smith, who helmedprograms at Centennial andCedar Shoals prior to his arrivalat Osborne.

Smith, a former Pebblebrookand McEachern assistant, looksto provide more stability duringthe upcoming years as he returnsto Cobb County to help build theCardinals into a winning program.

What he’s seen so far in practicetells him that he has several play-ers who are coachable pieces inplace to make things difficult foropposing teams.

“The fact that these kids workhard and want to be successfulhas been as good as adver-tised,” Smith said. You can’tteach that attitude. It has tocome naturally.”

Smith will break in a new quar-terback to help the team run hisWing-T. Jahmari Townes, a con-verted defensive back, will helmthe quarterbacking duties as Smithtries to fill out his starting unit.

“Jahmari has stepped up anddone a good job,” Smith said.“Aking Ishmael, who’ll be our run-ning back and defen-sive back, haslooked good at running back so far.”

Smith’s offense will utilize a‘Wing-gun’ formation which will“get the ball into the hands of ourplaymakers,” he said. “We wantto get them in space and getthem the ball quickly.”

Defensively, the Cardinals willplay a 3-5 man front and everyonehas been tasked to “run to the ball.”

“We’re going to try to playgreat defense and special teamsand let the offense control clock,”

he said.Newcomer Damian Moore at

defensive end and MatthewRamsay at safety have had goodpractices. Outside line-backerAlex Mealing has also been solid.

“The kids and the coaches willhave to work hard everyday tomake this work,” Smith said. “We’regoing to have to out work peopleand the players are going to haveto trust the coaching staff. It willtake time, but as long as we keepour nose to the ground it will work.”


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


“Experience is my biggeststrength,” Titus said. “I’ve beenplaying football for five yearsand this is a young program, so Ican provide some leadership andadd my knowledge of the game.”

Titus adds that his experiencewith video game production hasalso helped him become a betterfootball player.

“It makes me diligent,” hesaid. “I’m a lot more disciplinedand focused mentally on thefield. You have to work with a lotof details when you are produc-ing a video game, and that hashelped me become more detail-

oriented when I play football.”After this season, Titus will

not be pursuing a career in col-lege football, instead choosing tofocus completely on pursuing acareer in video game production.

“I really want a career in thevideo game industry,” Titus said.“I am really interested in technol-ogy and programming, and that’swhat I want to pursue.”

As he closes out his highschool football career this fall,Titus’ main focus is helping putNorth Cobb Christian on the win-ning track.

“My main goal is to help ushave a winning season,” he said.“I want to help make North CobbChristian a strong program, andthis year, we have the potential tobe more successful.”


Titus

“I play with heart,” Marshallsaid. “I try to work on my speedand technique. We sprint off theball pretty hard and make (defen-sive backs) think we are runninga specific route, then run some-thing different.”

Outside of route-running andlearning the fundamentals of passcatching, Marshall has alsobecome better at his position bybecoming more in tune with hisquarterback.

“Me and (former Hillgrovequarterback) Gage (Henry) workedoutside of school a lot, too,” hesaid of working on timing. “But sodid me and Troy (Thompson), theupcoming quarterback. We’ve beenworking together.”

Marshall learned to play hisposition despite playing outside ofhis natural position from his mid-dle school and younger years,which was running back anddefensive back. Coming into highschool, Marshall spent most of histime at running back, but hisdiminutive stature prevented himfrom playing the position out ofhigh school, especially consideringthe Hawks were then running atriple-option offense. So, Marshall

was moved to defensive back, butthat didn’t last very long either.

“We were at a 7-on-7 (tourna-ment) last (summer),” Ironside said.“We were short on defensive backs.We had two kids transfer that hadstarted for us and we were reallyyoung back then. (When Marshallwas in) at defensive back, the offen-sive kid always caught the ball.

“At wide receiver, he alwayscatches the ball. I told my defensivecoordinator, ‘I’m sorry but he’scoming over to the offense.’ I knewthat he was good and we liked him.”

On top of working on route-running, timing and being bettersuited to catching passes thanbatting them away, much of thenatural skills, such as the abilityto outleap opposing cornerbacks,that Marshall possesses to excelat his position come from train-ing at an early age.

“I ran track when I was littleand did long jump,” Marshall said.“But in the weight room, the coachI have now have been working onexplosion with my legs by doing alot of squats and squat jumps.”

More than his ability to playfootball, though, Ironsidedescribed Marshall as a highcharacter person.

“He’s a good student and he putsin good work in the weight room,”he said. “I don’t have to ask him todo things. He just does them.”

ABOUT JOJO MARSHALL

Off the field he liks to go swimming and play video games

He takes a ski trip every year to Tennessee and usually goesto Panama City, Fla. during spring break.

He learned a lot from former teammates Synjyn Days and Jabari Hunt-Days about effort in the weight room and work ethic


JoJoAmazingly, Francine is able

to keep up with her sons’ eatinghabits, but only after a $1,000monthly grocery bill. But its allthat food that helps get thebrothers out on the field.

Darius was the first of thebrothers to suit up on the field.Starting in the fourth grade, hebegan his career as a defensiveend but it wasn’t long until hemoved to defensive back.Darwin followed two yearslater, and when Dejon couldn’tfullfil his athletic appetite withbasketball alone, he gave foot-ball a shot once he got into sev-enth grade.

With all three brothers in thesame location every night afterschool, it didn’t take long forFrancine to follow — sometimesto the displeasure of the boys.

“Oh, yeah, we can hear herloud and clear,” Darwin said.“She’s louder than the wholestands.”

Francine’s reputation pre-cedes her every Friday night.

“Everybody calls me MamaGildon,” Francine said.“Mama’s always yelling in thestands, ‘Make sure you getlower,’ or other things.”

As the 2011 season getsunder way, the Gildon brothersare well aware that this will bethe final year the three of themwill likely play on the samefootball team ever again. Dejonwill graduate at the end of the

school year leaving, Darius andDarwin behind to carry on thefamily football business.

“It’s been an honor to playwith my brothers,” Dejon said.“I want to make sure they knowthat I gave my heart and theyplayed their hearts out.”

It won’t be the same forDarius or Darwin withoutDejon next year, so they wantto make the most of their finalseason together with two simplegoals in mind — help turn theKennesaw Mountain footballprogram in the right direction,and then leave somethingbehind that other futureMustangs can live up to.

“We want to make it so thesophomores and juniors can telleveryone that the Gildons weresomething as seniors.” Darius said.


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BIG TIME BECKONS FOR 2011 DYNAMITE DOZENSIX PLAYERS ALREADY COMMITTED TO DIVSION I SCHOOLS, SIX MORE ARE LIKELY

Its a big year already for Cobb County players heading to the Southeastern Conference.So far, players have committed to Alabama, South Carolina, Vanderbilt and Kentucky — twice. By the

time National Signing Day rolls around, Cobb could have eight or more heading to the SEC, and all 12 of the Dynamite Dozen could find themselves at BCS schools with national championship dreams.

KENYAN DRAKE, HILLGROVEPOSITION: RUNNING BACK

HEIGHT: 6-1

WEIGHT: 195

40-TIME: 4.4

COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO ALABAMA

WITH THE DEPARTURE OF QUAR-

TERBACK GAGE HENRY, KENYAN

DRAKE WILL BE RELIED ON TO A

GREATER DEGREE TO CARRY THE

HAWKS’ OFFENSE. AS A KEY PART OF

HILLGROVE’S RUN TO THE CLASS

AAAAA QUARTERFINALS LAST YEAR,

HILLGROVE WILL TAKE GREAT

STRIDES TOWARD PUTTING THE BALL

IN HIS CAPABLE HANDS AS MANY

TIMES AS POSSIBLE THIS SEASON.

OPPOSING DEFENSES MAY

HAVE MORE DIFFICULTY KEYING ON

HIM THIS SEASON BECAUSE DRAKE

CAN LINE UP AT MULTIPLE POSI-

TIONS. WITH CAPABLE HANDS AND

A TALENT FOR RUNNING PASS

ROUTES, DRAKE ALSO MATCHES

UP WELL OUT OF THE BACKFIELD.

WHEN HE IS LINED UP BEHIND

CENTER, HE CAN CREATE PLAYS

WITH THE BALL IN HIS HANDS.

ON TOP OF BEING A TALENTED

PLAYER, DRAKE IS ALSO A

GROUNDED PERSON, ACCORDING

TO HILLGROVE COACH PHIL

IRONSIDE, AND HE HASN’T ALLOWED

HIMSELF TO ACT “BIG TIME.”

DARIUS ENGLISH, MCEACHERNPOSITION: DEFENSIVE END

HEIGHT: 6-6

WEIGHT: 218

40-TIME: 4.65

COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO SOUTH

CAROLINA

DARIUS ENGLISH WASN’T

ALWAYS 6-FOOT-6 OR A TALENTED

FOOTBALL PLAYER.

A GOOD ATHLETE WHO HAS

ALSO EXCELLED IN BASKETBALL,

ENGLISH’S GROWTH SPURT BEGAN

AT A YOUNG AGE AND, WHEN HE EN-

TERED MCEACHERN, HE CONTINUED

TO GET TALLER TO THE DELIGHT OF

HIMSELF AND HIS COACHES.

THE 218-POUND ENGLISH, A

THREE-YEAR VARSITY LETTERMAN

AND TWO-YEAR STARTER, HAS USED

HIS SKILLS TO BECOME ONE OF THE

INDIANS’ BEST DEFENDERS.

ENGLISH, WHO FINISHED THE SEA-

SON WITH A COUNTY-BEST 15 SACKS,

CREDITS HIS PASS-RUSHING SKILLS AND

ABILITY TO GET AFTER THE QUARTER-

BACK AS HIS BIGGEST STRENGTHS. HE

ALSO TOTALED 73 TACKLES.

ENGLISH, WHO HAS COMMITTED

TO SOUTH CAROLINA, WILL JOIN FOR-

MER INDIANS’ TEAMMATES MARCQUIS

ROBERTS AND RORY ANDERSON AS

MEMBERS OF THE GAMECOCKS.

HOLLAND FROST, POPE




GEORGIA SOUTHERN NAVY, AIR FORCE

THE GREYHOUNDS’ SIGNAL-CALLER THREW

FOR MORE THAN 2,000 YARDS AND RUSHED FOR

MORE THAN 1,000 IN LEADING POPE BACK TO THE

PLAYOFFS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A DECADE. HIS

EFFORTS EARNED HIM CLASS AAAA ALL-STATE

HONORABLE MENTION.

TRE GRIFFIN, NORTH COBB

POSITION: DEFENSIVE END


COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO VANDERBILT

TRE GRIFFIN IS JOINING THAT IMPRESSIVE LIST OF

NORTH COBB DEFENDERS WHO HAVE MOVED UP TO

THE NEXT LEVEL AFTER COMMITTING TO VANDERBILT.

THE 6-FOOT-1, 235-POUND DEFENSIVE END

ALSO CONSIDERED GEORGIA TECH, SOUTH

CAROLINA, NORTH CAROLINA AND PURDUE, BUT

HE WAS SWAYED BY VANDERBILT’S COMBINATION

OF ACADEMICS AND ATHLETICS.

ZACK BLAYLOCK, WALTON



COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO KENTUCKY

THE 6-FOOT, 195-POUND FREE SAFETY

RECORDED 76 TACKLES AND HAD FOUR INTERCEP-

TIONS — TYING FOR THIRD IN THE COUNTY — TO

ANCHOR THE WALTON DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD

HE COMMITTED WITH HIS TWIN BROTHER,

DARON, TO KENTUCKY, BUT HE ALSO CONSIDERED

LOUISVILLE, DUKE, MARYLAND AND CINCINNATI.

JORDAN CHAMBERS, KELL

POSITION: LINEBACKER



SOUTHERN MISS, TROY

CHAMBERS PATROLS THE MIDDLE OF THE LINE-

BACKING CORPS IN KELL’S 4-3 DEFENSE.

HE PLAYS WITH A DIRECT, FIERCE APPROACH,

USING HIS SIZE AND STRENGTH TO TAKE DOWN

BALL-CARRIERS IN THE RUN GAME, PUT FEAR INTO

WIDE RECEIVERS COMING ACROSS THE MIDDLE IN

PASS COVERAGE OR CHASING DOWN THE QUAR-

TERBACK ON BLITZ PACKAGES.

KICKOFF 2011



MILES JONES, ALLATOONAPOSITION: RUNNING BACK

HEIGHT: 5-10

WEIGHT: 205

40-TIME: 4.47


MISSISSIPPI STATE, KENTUCKY,

MARYLAND

THANKS TO A SEASON IN

WHICH JONES RUSHED FOR 1,939

YARDS AND 19 TOUCHDOWNS,

ALLATOONA ADVANCED TO THE

STATE PLAYOFFS FOR THE FIRST

TIME IN SCHOOL HISTORY. IN THE

PROCESS, JONES MADE HIS MARK

EARNING CLASS AAA FIRST-TEAM

ALL-STATE HONORS.

AS HE HEADS INTO HIS SENIOR

SEASON, JONES HAS ADDED AS

MUCH AS 20 POUNDS OF MUSCLE

SINCE THE 2010 CAMPAIGN ENDED,

YET HE STILL RAN HIS FASTEST 40-

YARD DASH TO DATE DURING A

CAMP AT MISSISSIPPI STATE.

THE ADDED SIZE SHOULD HELP

HIM GOING FORWARD IF THE

BUCCANEERS NEED TO USE HIM

LIKE THEY DID LAST YEAR, WHEN

HE CARRIED THE BALL 304 TIMES.

DARON BLAYLOCK,WALTONPOSITION: DEFENSIVE BACK

HEIGHT: 6-0

WEIGHT: 215

40-TIME: 4.48


DARON BLAYLOCK IS THE COM-

PLETE PACKAGE AS A DEFENSIVE BACK.

THE WALTON STRONG SAFETY

COMBINES A HARD-HITTING PHYSI-

CAL STYLE WITH THE EXPLOSIVE

SPEED AND QUICKNESS TO SUC-

CESSFULLY COVER WIDE

RECEIVERS.

IT IS THIS POTENT COMBINA-

TION THAT HAS MADE BLAYLOCK

ONE OF THE TOP DIVISION I

DEFENSIVE BACK PROSPECTS IN

THE NATION AND EARNED HIM A

SCHOLARSHIP OFFER FROM

KENTUCKY.

HE WAS ALSO CONSIDERING

LOUISVILLE, DUKE, MARYLAND

AND CINCINNATI.

AFTER RECORDING 69 TACK-

LES IN 2010, BLAYLOCK SAID HE

HAS WORKED HARD TO IMPROVE

HIS COVERAGE SKILLS DURING THE

OFFSEASON.

AS HE ENTERS HIS FINAL HIGH

SCHOOL SEASON, BLAYLOCK AIMS

TO LEAD WALTON IN BOTH TACK-

LES AND INTERCEPTIONS.

NILES CLARK, LASSITER



COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO NORTH CAROLINA STATE

THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE COMMITMENT

HAS GREAT TECHNIQUE AND ANTICIPATION, AND

QUICKNESS TO GO WITH THEM. HE ALSO KNOWS

WHERE TO BE AT THE RIGHT TIMES.

HE CAME AWAY WITH FOUR INTERCEPTIONS

LAST SEASON WITH TWO COMING AGAINST NORTH

COBB. HE ALSO FINISHED WITH 47 TACKLES AFTER

THE REGULAR SEASON AND ADDED FOUR TACKLES

FOR LOSS.

JACOB SOUTHERLAND,WHITEFIELD ACADEMYPOSITION: OFFENSIVE LINE

HEIGHT: 6-FOOT-4 WEIGHT: 280 LBS 40-TIME: 5.0

COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: GEORGIA, UCF,

TENNESSEE, WAKE FOREST, CLEMSON, VANDERBILT,

UAB, EAST CAROLINA, NAVY

WITH HIS SIZE, STRENGTH AND AGGRESSIVE

STYLE OF PLAY, SOUTHERLAND HAS EMERGED AS A

STRONG DIVISION I PROSPECT.

NAVY, UCF, EAST CAROLINA AND UAB HAVE MADE

OFFERS TO SOUTHERLAND, AND HE IS CONFIDENT LARG-

ER SCHOOLS WILL EVENTUALLY BID FOR HIS SERVICES.

NICHOLAS ST. GERMAIN,MCEACHERNPOSITION: KICKER



SOUTH CAROLINA, KENTUCKY, IOWA STATE,

HOUSTON, EAST CAROLINA

AS THE PLACE-KICKER AT MCEACHERN, ST.

GERMAIN CONVERTED 51 OF 53 EXTRA POINTS AND

WAS 9-FOR-13 ON HIS FIELD GOALS — INCLUDING

TWO 50-YARDERS IN ONE GAME — TO EARN FIRST-

TEAM ALL-STATE HONORS A YEAR AGO.

JOHN SILAS, HILLGROVE




BALL STATE, AIR FORCE, NAVY, GEORGIA STATE

IT IS TIME FOR JOHN SILAS TO BECOME THE

HILLGROVE’S DEFENSIVE LEADER.

SILAS IS OUT TO PROVE THAT HE CAN STEP IN

AND PICK UP THE SLACK LEFT BEHIND BY JABARI

HUNT-DAYS AND BRANDON CHUBB. A SIMILAR

YEAR AND SILAS WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO FIND HIM-

SELF IN THE ACC LIKE HIS FORMER TEAMMATES.

2011 MARIETTA DAILY JOURNAL

DYNAMITE DOZEN

Staff / Laura Moon

2011 MARIETTA DAILY JOURNAL

DYNAMITE DOZEN

Staff / Laura Moon



Its a big year already for Cobb County players heading to the Southeastern Conference.So far, players have committed to Alabama, South Carolina, Vanderbilt and Kentucky — twice. By the

time National Signing Day rolls around, Cobb could have eight or more heading to the SEC, and all 12 of the Dynamite Dozen could find themselves at BCS schools with national championship dreams.

KENYAN DRAKE, HILLGROVEPOSITION: RUNNING BACK

HEIGHT: 6-1

WEIGHT: 195

40-TIME: 4.4

COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO ALABAMA

WITH THE DEPARTURE OF QUAR-

TERBACK GAGE HENRY, KENYAN

DRAKE WILL BE RELIED ON TO A

GREATER DEGREE TO CARRY THE

HAWKS’ OFFENSE. AS A KEY PART OF

HILLGROVE’S RUN TO THE CLASS

AAAAA QUARTERFINALS LAST YEAR,

HILLGROVE WILL TAKE GREAT

STRIDES TOWARD PUTTING THE BALL

IN HIS CAPABLE HANDS AS MANY

TIMES AS POSSIBLE THIS SEASON.

OPPOSING DEFENSES MAY

HAVE MORE DIFFICULTY KEYING ON

HIM THIS SEASON BECAUSE DRAKE

CAN LINE UP AT MULTIPLE POSI-

TIONS. WITH CAPABLE HANDS AND

A TALENT FOR RUNNING PASS

ROUTES, DRAKE ALSO MATCHES

UP WELL OUT OF THE BACKFIELD.

WHEN HE IS LINED UP BEHIND

CENTER, HE CAN CREATE PLAYS

WITH THE BALL IN HIS HANDS.

ON TOP OF BEING A TALENTED

PLAYER, DRAKE IS ALSO A

GROUNDED PERSON, ACCORDING

TO HILLGROVE COACH PHIL

IRONSIDE, AND HE HASN’T ALLOWED

HIMSELF TO ACT “BIG TIME.”

DARIUS ENGLISH, MCEACHERNPOSITION: DEFENSIVE END

HEIGHT: 6-6

WEIGHT: 218

40-TIME: 4.65

COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO SOUTH

CAROLINA

DARIUS ENGLISH WASN’T

ALWAYS 6-FOOT-6 OR A TALENTED

FOOTBALL PLAYER.

A GOOD ATHLETE WHO HAS

ALSO EXCELLED IN BASKETBALL,

ENGLISH’S GROWTH SPURT BEGAN

AT A YOUNG AGE AND, WHEN HE EN-

TERED MCEACHERN, HE CONTINUED

TO GET TALLER TO THE DELIGHT OF

HIMSELF AND HIS COACHES.

THE 218-POUND ENGLISH, A

THREE-YEAR VARSITY LETTERMAN

AND TWO-YEAR STARTER, HAS USED

HIS SKILLS TO BECOME ONE OF THE

INDIANS’ BEST DEFENDERS.

ENGLISH, WHO FINISHED THE SEA-

SON WITH A COUNTY-BEST 15 SACKS,

CREDITS HIS PASS-RUSHING SKILLS AND

ABILITY TO GET AFTER THE QUARTER-

BACK AS HIS BIGGEST STRENGTHS. HE

ALSO TOTALED 73 TACKLES.

ENGLISH, WHO HAS COMMITTED

TO SOUTH CAROLINA, WILL JOIN FOR-

MER INDIANS’ TEAMMATES MARCQUIS

ROBERTS AND RORY ANDERSON AS

MEMBERS OF THE GAMECOCKS.

HOLLAND FROST, POPE




GEORGIA SOUTHERN NAVY, AIR FORCE

THE GREYHOUNDS’ SIGNAL-CALLER THREW

FOR MORE THAN 2,000 YARDS AND RUSHED FOR

MORE THAN 1,000 IN LEADING POPE BACK TO THE

PLAYOFFS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A DECADE. HIS

EFFORTS EARNED HIM CLASS AAAA ALL-STATE

HONORABLE MENTION.

TRE GRIFFIN, NORTH COBB

POSITION: DEFENSIVE END


COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO VANDERBILT

TRE GRIFFIN IS JOINING THAT IMPRESSIVE LIST OF

NORTH COBB DEFENDERS WHO HAVE MOVED UP TO

THE NEXT LEVEL AFTER COMMITTING TO VANDERBILT.

THE 6-FOOT-1, 235-POUND DEFENSIVE END

ALSO CONSIDERED GEORGIA TECH, SOUTH

CAROLINA, NORTH CAROLINA AND PURDUE, BUT

HE WAS SWAYED BY VANDERBILT’S COMBINATION

OF ACADEMICS AND ATHLETICS.

ZACK BLAYLOCK, WALTON




THE 6-FOOT, 195-POUND FREE SAFETY

RECORDED 76 TACKLES AND HAD FOUR INTERCEP-

TIONS — TYING FOR THIRD IN THE COUNTY — TO

ANCHOR THE WALTON DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD

HE COMMITTED WITH HIS TWIN BROTHER,

DARON, TO KENTUCKY, BUT HE ALSO CONSIDERED

LOUISVILLE, DUKE, MARYLAND AND CINCINNATI.

JORDAN CHAMBERS, KELL




SOUTHERN MISS, TROY

CHAMBERS PATROLS THE MIDDLE OF THE LINE-

BACKING CORPS IN KELL’S 4-3 DEFENSE.

HE PLAYS WITH A DIRECT, FIERCE APPROACH,

USING HIS SIZE AND STRENGTH TO TAKE DOWN

BALL-CARRIERS IN THE RUN GAME, PUT FEAR INTO

WIDE RECEIVERS COMING ACROSS THE MIDDLE IN

PASS COVERAGE OR CHASING DOWN THE QUAR-

TERBACK ON BLITZ PACKAGES.

KICKOFF 2011



MILES JONES, ALLATOONAPOSITION: RUNNING BACK

HEIGHT: 5-10

WEIGHT: 205

40-TIME: 4.47


MISSISSIPPI STATE, KENTUCKY,

MARYLAND

THANKS TO A SEASON IN

WHICH JONES RUSHED FOR 1,939

YARDS AND 19 TOUCHDOWNS,

ALLATOONA ADVANCED TO THE

STATE PLAYOFFS FOR THE FIRST

TIME IN SCHOOL HISTORY. IN THE

PROCESS, JONES MADE HIS MARK

EARNING CLASS AAA FIRST-TEAM

ALL-STATE HONORS.

AS HE HEADS INTO HIS SENIOR

SEASON, JONES HAS ADDED AS

MUCH AS 20 POUNDS OF MUSCLE

SINCE THE 2010 CAMPAIGN ENDED,

YET HE STILL RAN HIS FASTEST 40-

YARD DASH TO DATE DURING A

CAMP AT MISSISSIPPI STATE.

THE ADDED SIZE SHOULD HELP

HIM GOING FORWARD IF THE

BUCCANEERS NEED TO USE HIM

LIKE THEY DID LAST YEAR, WHEN

HE CARRIED THE BALL 304 TIMES.

DARON BLAYLOCK,WALTONPOSITION: DEFENSIVE BACK

HEIGHT: 6-0

WEIGHT: 215

40-TIME: 4.48


DARON BLAYLOCK IS THE COM-

PLETE PACKAGE AS A DEFENSIVE BACK.

THE WALTON STRONG SAFETY

COMBINES A HARD-HITTING PHYSI-

CAL STYLE WITH THE EXPLOSIVE

SPEED AND QUICKNESS TO SUC-

CESSFULLY COVER WIDE

RECEIVERS.

IT IS THIS POTENT COMBINA-

TION THAT HAS MADE BLAYLOCK

ONE OF THE TOP DIVISION I

DEFENSIVE BACK PROSPECTS IN

THE NATION AND EARNED HIM A

SCHOLARSHIP OFFER FROM

KENTUCKY.

HE WAS ALSO CONSIDERING

LOUISVILLE, DUKE, MARYLAND

AND CINCINNATI.

AFTER RECORDING 69 TACK-

LES IN 2010, BLAYLOCK SAID HE

HAS WORKED HARD TO IMPROVE

HIS COVERAGE SKILLS DURING THE

OFFSEASON.

AS HE ENTERS HIS FINAL HIGH

SCHOOL SEASON, BLAYLOCK AIMS

TO LEAD WALTON IN BOTH TACK-

LES AND INTERCEPTIONS.

NILES CLARK, LASSITER



COLLEGE: COMMITTED TO NORTH CAROLINA STATE

THE NORTH CAROLINA STATE COMMITMENT

HAS GREAT TECHNIQUE AND ANTICIPATION, AND

QUICKNESS TO GO WITH THEM. HE ALSO KNOWS

WHERE TO BE AT THE RIGHT TIMES.

HE CAME AWAY WITH FOUR INTERCEPTIONS

LAST SEASON WITH TWO COMING AGAINST NORTH

COBB. HE ALSO FINISHED WITH 47 TACKLES AFTER

THE REGULAR SEASON AND ADDED FOUR TACKLES

FOR LOSS.

JACOB SOUTHERLAND,WHITEFIELD ACADEMYPOSITION: OFFENSIVE LINE

HEIGHT: 6-FOOT-4 WEIGHT: 280 LBS 40-TIME: 5.0

COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: GEORGIA, UCF,

TENNESSEE, WAKE FOREST, CLEMSON, VANDERBILT,

UAB, EAST CAROLINA, NAVY

WITH HIS SIZE, STRENGTH AND AGGRESSIVE

STYLE OF PLAY, SOUTHERLAND HAS EMERGED AS A

STRONG DIVISION I PROSPECT.

NAVY, UCF, EAST CAROLINA AND UAB HAVE MADE

OFFERS TO SOUTHERLAND, AND HE IS CONFIDENT LARG-

ER SCHOOLS WILL EVENTUALLY BID FOR HIS SERVICES.

NICHOLAS ST. GERMAIN,MCEACHERNPOSITION: KICKER



SOUTH CAROLINA, KENTUCKY, IOWA STATE,

HOUSTON, EAST CAROLINA

AS THE PLACE-KICKER AT MCEACHERN, ST.

GERMAIN CONVERTED 51 OF 53 EXTRA POINTS AND

WAS 9-FOR-13 ON HIS FIELD GOALS — INCLUDING

TWO 50-YARDERS IN ONE GAME — TO EARN FIRST-

TEAM ALL-STATE HONORS A YEAR AGO.

JOHN SILAS, HILLGROVE




BALL STATE, AIR FORCE, NAVY, GEORGIA STATE

IT IS TIME FOR JOHN SILAS TO BECOME THE

HILLGROVE’S DEFENSIVE LEADER.

SILAS IS OUT TO PROVE THAT HE CAN STEP IN

AND PICK UP THE SLACK LEFT BEHIND BY JABARI

HUNT-DAYS AND BRANDON CHUBB. A SIMILAR

YEAR AND SILAS WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO FIND HIM-

SELF IN THE ACC LIKE HIS FORMER TEAMMATES.

KICKOFF 2011


“Experience is my biggeststrength,” Titus said. “I’ve beenplaying football for five yearsand this is a young program, so Ican provide some leadership andadd my knowledge of the game.”

Titus adds that his experiencewith video game production hasalso helped him become a betterfootball player.

“It makes me diligent,” hesaid. “I’m a lot more disciplinedand focused mentally on thefield. You have to work with a lotof details when you are produc-ing a video game, and that hashelped me become more detail-

oriented when I play football.”After this season, Titus will

not be pursuing a career in col-lege football, instead choosing tofocus completely on pursuing acareer in video game production.

“I really want a career in thevideo game industry,” Titus said.“I am really interested in technol-ogy and programming, and that’swhat I want to pursue.”

As he closes out his highschool football career this fall,Titus’ main focus is helping putNorth Cobb Christian on the win-ning track.

“My main goal is to help ushave a winning season,” he said.“I want to help make North CobbChristian a strong program, andthis year, we have the potential tobe more successful.”


Titus

“I play with heart,” Marshallsaid. “I try to work on my speedand technique. We sprint off theball pretty hard and make (defen-sive backs) think we are runninga specific route, then run some-thing different.”

Outside of route-running andlearning the fundamentals of passcatching, Marshall has alsobecome better at his position bybecoming more in tune with hisquarterback.

“Me and (former Hillgrovequarterback) Gage (Henry) workedoutside of school a lot, too,” hesaid of working on timing. “But sodid me and Troy (Thompson), theupcoming quarterback. We’ve beenworking together.”

Marshall learned to play hisposition despite playing outside ofhis natural position from his mid-dle school and younger years,which was running back anddefensive back. Coming into highschool, Marshall spent most of histime at running back, but hisdiminutive stature prevented himfrom playing the position out ofhigh school, especially consideringthe Hawks were then running atriple-option offense. So, Marshall

was moved to defensive back, butthat didn’t last very long either.

“We were at a 7-on-7 (tourna-ment) last (summer),” Ironside said.“We were short on defensive backs.We had two kids transfer that hadstarted for us and we were reallyyoung back then. (When Marshallwas in) at defensive back, the offen-sive kid always caught the ball.

“At wide receiver, he alwayscatches the ball. I told my defensivecoordinator, ‘I’m sorry but he’scoming over to the offense.’ I knewthat he was good and we liked him.”

On top of working on route-running, timing and being bettersuited to catching passes thanbatting them away, much of thenatural skills, such as the abilityto outleap opposing cornerbacks,that Marshall possesses to excelat his position come from train-ing at an early age.

“I ran track when I was littleand did long jump,” Marshall said.“But in the weight room, the coachI have now have been working onexplosion with my legs by doing alot of squats and squat jumps.”

More than his ability to playfootball, though, Ironsidedescribed Marshall as a highcharacter person.

“He’s a good student and he putsin good work in the weight room,”he said. “I don’t have to ask him todo things. He just does them.”

ABOUT JOJO MARSHALL

Off the field he liks to go swimming and play video games

He takes a ski trip every year to Tennessee and usually goesto Panama City, Fla. during spring break.

He learned a lot from former teammates Synjyn Days and Jabari Hunt-Days about effort in the weight room and work ethic


JoJoAmazingly, Francine is able

to keep up with her sons’ eatinghabits, but only after a $1,000monthly grocery bill. But its allthat food that helps get thebrothers out on the field.

Darius was the first of thebrothers to suit up on the field.Starting in the fourth grade, hebegan his career as a defensiveend but it wasn’t long until hemoved to defensive back.Darwin followed two yearslater, and when Dejon couldn’tfullfil his athletic appetite withbasketball alone, he gave foot-ball a shot once he got into sev-enth grade.

With all three brothers in thesame location every night afterschool, it didn’t take long forFrancine to follow — sometimesto the displeasure of the boys.

“Oh, yeah, we can hear herloud and clear,” Darwin said.“She’s louder than the wholestands.”

Francine’s reputation pre-cedes her every Friday night.

“Everybody calls me MamaGildon,” Francine said.“Mama’s always yelling in thestands, ‘Make sure you getlower,’ or other things.”

As the 2011 season getsunder way, the Gildon brothersare well aware that this will bethe final year the three of themwill likely play on the samefootball team ever again. Dejonwill graduate at the end of the

school year leaving, Darius andDarwin behind to carry on thefamily football business.

“It’s been an honor to playwith my brothers,” Dejon said.“I want to make sure they knowthat I gave my heart and theyplayed their hearts out.”

It won’t be the same forDarius or Darwin withoutDejon next year, so they wantto make the most of their finalseason together with two simplegoals in mind — help turn theKennesaw Mountain footballprogram in the right direction,and then leave somethingbehind that other futureMustangs can live up to.

“We want to make it so thesophomores and juniors can telleveryone that the Gildons weresomething as seniors.” Darius said.


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NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 4500 Lakeview Drive, Kennesaw, 30144. Phone: (770) 975-0252. Home Field: Jacob Dennis Field. Team Colors: Navy, White. Online: www.ncchristian.org/athletics/boys_sports/football.

TITUS PRODUCINGGAMES AND WINS

By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Grant Titus has already madehis mark in the video game worldas a successful producer of anumber of online games.

But every Friday night thisfall Titus will assume his otheridentity — that of North CobbChristian’s fullback and linebacker.

Titus has played a big role inthe establishment of North CobbChristian’s fledgling football pro-gram the last few years, whilemaintaining a highly successfulstint as a video game producerwho has sold his games to com-panies like Disney andNickelodeon.

Right now, football is the pri-ority for Titus, who is embarkingon his senior season at NorthCobb Christian and will try tohelp the Eagles improve on lastyear’s 2-8 record.

“I feel like we have a betterteam this year,” Titus said. “Wehave a solid defense, and weworked really hard during theoffseason, so I’m really excitedabout the season.”

Football has been a big partof Titus’ life since he began play-ing the game in the eighth grade,starting all four years he hasplayed at North Cobb Christian.

Video games have been, if notmore than, just as important forTitus, who has been a passionate

gamer since he was 4 years old.Titus’ passion for video

games went from merely playingthem to producing them when hewas 13.

“I had been playing games fora long time and I really lovedthem,” he said. “My dad gave mea program where you can pro-gram your own video games, andthat showed me how it can getdone. I was hooked and I’ve beendoing it ever since.”

Within a couple of years,Titus began to establish himselfas a video game producer.

To this day, Titus has pub-lished nine game titles and hasreceived more than 15 millionplays of his games online.

While Titus has enjoyed suc-cess in the video game world,he has also been productive onthe gridiron on both the defen-sive and offensive sides of thefootball for North CobbChristian.

As a junior in 2010, Titus hadnine tackles to lead North CobbChristian to its first varsity victo-ry — a 28-6 win over MountZion-Carroll. He also had 7.5tackles and two forced fum-blesagainst Cross Keys and six tack-les — including two for loss —and a blocked punt againstFellowship Christian.

For Titus, his experience andthe knowledge of the game arehis biggest assets for the Eagles.

NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN LINEBACKER

TACKLING FOOTBALL AND VIDEO GAMES

North Cobb Christian’s GrantTitus is getting a head starton his career as a video gameproducer. To date, he has published nine games thathave been played more than15 million times combined.


� Linebacker, Fullback� Has published nine videogame titles� His games have beenplayed online more than 15million times� Has sold games to Disneyand Nickelodeon

THE TITUS FILE

ABOUT GRANT TITUS


He wants to work in technology and programming in the video game industry


See Titus, Page 46

KICKOFF 2011


OSBORNE CARDINALS

5-year record: 8-42

HUGHES 24-27 LWOODWARD 0-47 LMCNAIR 28-2 WHIRAM 6-52 LPOPE 6-28 LKELL 0-52 LN. PAULDING 12-42 LSPRAYBERRY 8-41 LEAST PAULDING 6-61 LPAULDING CO. 0-31 L

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Xarvia SmithYear at School: 1Record: 0-0Career Rec.: 17-35

Varsity CoachingStaff

Derek Russell — Def. CoordinatorMatt Anderson — Off. CoordinatorChris Van Meter — QuarterbacksDavid Godwin — ReceiversMike Hewett — Defensive LineDustin Root — Tight EndsChris Barbee — Offensive Line


ATHUGHESAUG. 26

ATWOOD. ACAD.

SEPT. 2

VS.MCNAIRSEPT. 9

ATHIRAM

SEPT. 16

VS. POPE

SEPT. 23

ATKELL

OCT. 7

VS.N. PAUDLING

OCT. 14

ATSPRAYBERRY

OCT. 21

VS.E. PAULDING

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME POS. CL.

4 GUSTAVO GOMEZ K 125 PATRICK KEELEY RB 106 AKING ISHMAEL DB/SE 127 CHI ACHIBUEM DE 108 NYIAKKI HEIGHT SE 1213 RANDY NGUYEN SE 1114 NIGEL WILLIAMS DB/SE 918 SCOTT ONUAHA TE 1220 JAY’WON CHISTAIN FB/P 1221 JAHMARI TOWNES DB 1222 HERBERT BRABSON LB/FB 1224 TIMOTHY HARRIS RB/DB 1125 MATTHEW RAMSAY FS 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

31 XAVIER EVANS DB 1140 JAUAN EASON DE/TE 1041 SHANOY LESTER DL 1144 KHALIL MCINTYRE LB 1145 DIJION TALLEY TE/DE 1148 NICHOLAS REAUX RB/DL 1050 JESUS ESTRADA OL/DL 1151 BLADE CLONTS LB/FB 1152 KEVIN LEE LB 1154 KHA HUYNH LB 1255 COREY CLAY OL 1256 OMAR SALEM OL/DL 1259 ALEX MEALING P/LB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

60 ISIAH BRANCH LB/FB 1261 KING NGUYEN OL 1063 BEN PHAM OL 1264 WAYNE ALJOE OL/DL 1270 ALEX CASTILLO OL 1172 TONI CASTILLO OL 1074 DARIAN MOORE OL/DL 1277 CHRISTIAN PARKS OL 1078 TIM CRAWFORD OL 1079 QUENTIN VILLAFANE OL 1180 ANDREW HALLUMS TE/LB 1282 JAVIER JAIME SE 1185 MARCUS GRAY SE 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

JOSEPH CROWLEY 9JUSTIN EWEN RB/FS 9BRANDON KINKLEA 9NEQUAN GILMORE 9MALIK HARRIS RB 9DONTAE LECORN QB 9SEAN LOFLAND 9AMARU SMITH 9CHRISTIAN SMITH DE 9JAYLIN STALLWORTH 9ALEX THOMPSON 9MAMADOU TOURE SE 9KENDALL WALKER 9

Season Outlook

Getting used to its third coachin three seasons, Osborne is ateam in transition.

Osborne, which posted a 1-9record last season under interimcoach Keary Dias, will put itsfuture in the hands of new headcoach Xarvia Smith, who helmedprograms at Centennial andCedar Shoals prior to his arrivalat Osborne.

Smith, a former Pebblebrookand McEachern assistant, looksto provide more stability duringthe upcoming years as he returnsto Cobb County to help build theCardinals into a winning program.

What he’s seen so far in practicetells him that he has several play-ers who are coachable pieces inplace to make things difficult foropposing teams.

“The fact that these kids workhard and want to be successfulhas been as good as adver-tised,” Smith said. You can’tteach that attitude. It has tocome naturally.”

Smith will break in a new quar-terback to help the team run hisWing-T. Jahmari Townes, a con-verted defensive back, will helmthe quarterbacking duties as Smithtries to fill out his starting unit.

“Jahmari has stepped up anddone a good job,” Smith said.“Aking Ishmael, who’ll be our run-ning back and defen-sive back, haslooked good at running back so far.”

Smith’s offense will utilize a‘Wing-gun’ formation which will“get the ball into the hands of ourplaymakers,” he said. “We wantto get them in space and getthem the ball quickly.”

Defensively, the Cardinals willplay a 3-5 man front and everyonehas been tasked to “run to the ball.”

“We’re going to try to playgreat defense and special teamsand let the offense control clock,”

he said.Newcomer Damian Moore at

defensive end and MatthewRamsay at safety have had goodpractices. Outside line-backerAlex Mealing has also been solid.

“The kids and the coaches willhave to work hard everyday tomake this work,” Smith said. “We’regoing to have to out work peopleand the players are going to haveto trust the coaching staff. It willtake time, but as long as we keepour nose to the ground it will work.”


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN EAGLES

4-year record: 2-26

MT. ZION 26-8 WMOUNT PARAN 6-54 LFELLOWSHIP 6-34 LCROSS KEYS 18-54 LST. FRANCIS 46-35 WTOWNS COUNTY 18-48 LGLASCOCK CO. 28-61 LLAKEVIEW ACD. 21-49 LHEBRON 13-47 LGA. MILITARY 0-48 L

WON 2, LOST 8

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Harry MilesAge: 33Year at School: 3Record: 2-17Career Rec.: 2-17

Varsity Coaching StaffJason Roquemore — Def. Coord.Wade Ellis — Offensive LineJason Aldridge — LinebackersTerry Luck — Off. CoordinatorMike Timms — ReceiversDave Dorsey — Defensive Backs


VS.MT. ZION-CAR.

AUG. 26

ATMT. PARAN

SEPT. 2

VS.FELLOWSHIP

SEPT. 9

VS.CROSS KEYSSEPT. 16

ATST. FRANCISSEPT. 23

ATTOWNS CO.SEPT. 30

VS.GLASCOCK CO.

OCT. 7

ATLAKE. ACAD.

OCT. 14

VS.HEBRONOCT. 21

ATGA. MILITARY

OCT. 28

NAME CLASS

ALEX DYKSTRA 12

LEON HARALAMBUS 12

CALEB KEITT 12

COREY HARRIS 12

MICHAEL MOORE 12

GRANT TITUS 12

ROD MITCHELL 12

NAME CLASS

MATT HOLLEY 12

ALEX HO-ON 11

TRIP ROSS 11

ZACH SCHNIEDER 11

ANDREW NUCKS 11

RABON MARTIN 10

TREVOR HOURIGAN 10

NAME CLASS

OSCAR LARES 10

CHANDLER NELSON 10

DANIEL GALANOS 10

GARRETT STEVENS 10

ZACH PRUITT 10

TREVOR MARTIN 10

ALEX TIDWELL 9

NAME CLASS

TYLER IMSAND 9

CARSON MASTERS 9

ZACH BROWN 9

ADAM MORRIS 9

CHRIS SFERRA 9

CONNOR KAILEY 9

CLARKE MYERS 9

Season Outlook

North Cobb Christian took

a step forward in 2010 as it

earned its first two varsity

wins in the school’s brief foot-

ball history.

But there’s still plenty of

work to be doned for the

young program as the Eagles

look for the further develop-

ment of a young lineup that

gained some valuable, and

hard-earned, experience a

year ago.

The Eagles hope their

new 3-4 defense, installed by

new defensive coordinator

Jason Roquemore — who

held the same position at

Kennesaw Mountain last year

— will give them a boost on

the defensive side of the ball.

Also helping out on the

defensive end is a strong vet-

eran unit, where of the seven

of the eight starters up front

are seniors, including defen-

sive end Leon Haralambus.

Once again, Corey Harris

will be the go-to threat and a

jack-of-all-trades as he is

expected to see action at quar-

terback, running back, wide

receiver and kick returner.

Harris provided offensive

firepower in both the run-

ning and passing games for

North Cobb Christian, gain-

ing 608 yards on the

ground, 573 yards receiving

and scoring 17 touchdowns.

The Eagles will also need

help from quarterback Alex

Ho-on, senior wide receiver

Rod Mitchell and sophomore

Daniel Galanos on the offen-

sive side to complement

Harris.

North Cobb Christian will

have a very young offensive

line coming back, featuring

two freshmen, two sopho-

mores and a junior, but what

the Eagles for experience on

the Line, they will more than

make up for size as they will

be bigger up front than a

year ago.



OSBORNE CARDINALSABOUT THE CARDINALSLocation: 2451 Favor Road, Marietta. Phone: (770) 437-5900. Home Field: Cardinal Stadium. Team Colors: Red, White. Online: osbornefootball.com

TAKING HIS GAME AND LIFE TO NEW HEIGHTSBy Carlton D. [email protected]

Born in Atlanta, Osbornewide receiver Nyiakki Heightgot his wish at a young age toone day head to Marietta andlive with his aunt for a while.

“I always wanted to livewith my aunt,” he said. “Shealways spoiled me when I wasyoung.”

Unfortunately, his wishcame at a price and his life hasbeen different ever since.

“I’ve lived in the Osbornedistrict since the sixth grade,”Height said. “My mom sufferedan aneurysm late in the schoolyear, around Thanksgiving.While she was in the hospital, Icame to live with my aunt, andI’ve been here ever since.

“My mom recovered though

and she’s doing well. I stillhave a great relationship withher and she comes to some ofmy games.”

A four-year letterman andthree-year starter with theCardinals, Height has turnedhis past near-tragedy into a tri-umph. The 6-foot-1, 185-poundsenior is looking forward tohaving a strong final season. Heenjoys the fact that his accom-plishments help to bring notori-ety to Osborne, and he hopesthat recognition spurs successfor future teams.

“It makes me feel special,”said Height, who has commit-ted to play collegiatelely atUAB. “I can help the programget on the right path and helplead the guys who come behindme. They’ll see the kind of suc-cess I had and maybe try to

duplicate it.”Height’s road to success,

however, has been a rocky one.Not only did he almost lose hismother, Onita, to the aneurysm,eight months prior his father,Terrence, died of a heart attack.His oldest brother, Angelo, dieddue to his involvement withdrugs when Nyiakki was a

baby. Another brother, QuartezArmour, also died due to drugsafter his mother’s aneurysm.His brother, Kelvin Armour,and 16-year-old sister, Yoceena,who lives with her mom, avoid-ed falling down that path.

Fortunately for the 17-year-old, Nyiakki’s painful past hashelped spur his future.

“I get my drive to succeedfrom my brothers,” Height said.“They got caught up in the druglife. I want to make my familyproud and be the first person toreally do something.”

Height has certainly done alot. He enters the 2011 seasonas one of the top receivers inCobb after totaling 36 recep-tions for 722 yards and fourtouchdowns last year. Hisexpectations now are to per-form even better.

“I feel like now I’m livingup to my own expectations,” hesaid. “I have good grades, Ididn’t drop out of school andI’m looking out for my littlesister, my aunt and my mom. Iwant to be the best leader I canbe for them.”

According to Height, hisaunt, Yolanda Curry, “hasalways treated me like her ownson.” Curry, who is a singleguardian to Height, often worksthe concession stands atOsborne. It was there where shemet Grady Clay, a man whowould take Height under hiswing and help keep him on thestraight and narrow.

“When I first moved uphere, I played football for theMilford Warriors youth leagueand (Clay’s) son, Corey, was on

OSBORNE’S NYIAKKI HEIGHT OVERCOMES HARD KNOCKS TO BE ONE OF BEST RECEIVERS IN COBB COUNTY

After surviving a life full oftragedy, things are starting tolook up for Osborne’s Nyiakki

Height. Earlier this summer,Height committed to UAB,

and he enters the 2011 sea-son as one of the top

receivers in Cobb County.



2010 season stats� 36 receptions, 722 yards,4 touchdowns� Committed to UAB

THE HEIGHT FILE

ABOUT NYIAKKI HEIGHT

If he was a car, he would bea Lamborghini

If he won $20 million hewould make sure his familywas taken care of and then

put the rest in the bank

See Heights, Page 69


NORTH COBB WARRIORSABOUT THE WARRIORSLocation: 3400 Highway 293 North, Kennesaw. Phone: (770) 975-6685. Home Field: Emory Sewell Stadium. Team Colors: Orange, Blue, White. Online: www.northcobbfootball.com.

HEALTHY HESTERBACK ON GRIDIRON

By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Before this year, NorthCobb’s Martez Hester wasknown primarily for his abilitieson the football field.

As he enters this football sea-son, Hester is now known asmuch for his accomplishments onthe track as he is for what he hasdone on the gridiron.

The senior free safety/widereceiver added track and field tohis repertoire last spring and, as aresult, finished third in ClassAAAAA in the 400-meter dashat the state meet in Jefferson.

Fresh off of his track and fieldsuccess, as well as a productiveoffseason of football preparation,Hester is excited about NorthCobb’s prospects in ’11 as theWarriors attempt to earn a returntrip to the state playoffs for thefirst time since 2007.

“I feel real good,” Hester said.“We’ve got a good team andwe’ve trained real hard duringthe offseason. I feel like I’m ingreat shape and I’m ready to go.”

Hester will try to bounce backfrom a season in which hemissed the last four games aftersuffering a torn meniscus in hisknee during North Cobb’s 25-21victory over Pebblebrook.

North Cobb was 5-1 after thatwin, but it proceeded to lose itslast four games without Hester inthe lineup.

Fortunately for Hester, theinjury wasn’t serious and he wasfully rehabilitated after only 2½months.

“I was definintely scared atfirst, but it turned out not to betoo bad and I healed up realquick,” he said.

Just in time, in fact, for thebeginning of track season.

Hester’s coaches, seeing hispotential as a track athlete andknowing the sport would further

develop his speed, had been try-ing to persuade him to join theNorth Cobb track team for thelast few years but to no avail.

But head coach Shane Queenand running backs coach ScottJones, who is also the NorthCobb track coach, finally per-suaded Hester to give track a shotlast year.

“Coach Queen and coachJones brought me into a roomand they told me that track wouldhelp me with my football,”Hester said. “I never ran trackbefore, but I decided to do it.”

After a slow start as helearned the sport, Hester finallycaught fire at the Region4AAAAA meet, where he fin-ished second in the 400 with atime of 48.97 seconds — break-ing the 49-second barrier for thefirst time — to earn a trip to thestate meet in his first year oftrack competition

Hester saved his best for last,however, as he surprised evenhimself with a third-place finishin the Class AAAAA 400 dash,running a personal-best time of48.91 and finishing ahead ofCampbell’s Corey Ashbourne,who beat Hester at the 4AAAAAmeet.

“I felt great,” Hester said.“Finishing third was really goodand I finished ahead of the guywho beat me at region. I was sur-prised I finished third. I thought Iwould finish fifth or sixth.”

For Hester, the increasedtraining load that he undertook inthe final month of track seasonhelped lift his performance up anotch.

“We started doing some extratraining before region and state,”Hester said. “We were doingsome hard workouts at the end ofthe track season and that definite-ly helped me improve.”

With both of the athletes who

NORTH COBB DEFENSIVE BACK RETURNS

TO ADD SPEED TO WARRIORS’ SECONDARY

North Cobb was 5-1 last season before Martez Hesterwas injured. The Warriors losttheir last four games withouthim.

�Staff / Erin Gray

See Hester, Page 41

� Wide Receiver, Defensive Back


2010 Season Stats� 2 Interceptions� Ran 48.91 seconds in the400-meter dash to finish thirdin the Class AAAAA statetrack meet

THE HESTER FILE

KICKOFF 2011


PEBBLEBROOK FALCONS


LOWNDES 7-47 LEAST COWETA 5-13 LCHAPEL HILL 34-3 WHARRISON 13-3 WKMHS 37-10 WNORTH COBB 21-25 LMCEACHERN 21-43 LHILLGROVE 3-21 LCAMPBELL 28-0 WSOUTH COBB 21-24 L

WIN 4, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Randall SmithAge: 50Year at School: 4Record: 13-17Career Rec.: 13-17

Varsity Coaching StaffTommy Macon — Assistant HCGeorge Washington — LinebackersAdrian Billingsley — Def. LineCharles Swann — ReceiversPerry Parks — Running BacksJacob Smith — Offensive Line


ATLOWNDESAUG. 26

VS. EAST COWETA

SEPT. 2

ATCHAPEL HILL

SEPT. 9

ATHARRISONSEPT. 16

VS. KMHS

SEPT. 30

ATNORTH COBB

OCT. 7

VS.MCEACHERN

OCT. 14

ATHILLGROVEOCT. 21

VSCAMPBELLOCT. 28

ATSOUTH COBB

NOV. 5

NO. NAME CL.

1 C. J. GOODMAN 12

2 SERTONUSE HARRIS 12

4 TYLER PARHAM 12

5 PERRY SELDON 10

7 ANTONIO PASS 10

8 A. J. QUARLES 11

9 DEZMON HUNTLEY 10

10 NICHOLAS MCLAREN 12

12 BRAIN GRANISON 11

13 JARRETT SHARP 10

14 JARVIS RUFF 10

15 GERARD MAKUNTAE 12

20 DERRICK LLOYD 10

21 TREY YOUNG 11

22 KHALID HENDERSON 12

NO. NAME CL.

23 DOMINIQUE CUMMINGS12

24 KENNETH BURKE 10

25 SHUNTEZ SMITH 10

27 AKIL SCOTT 12

30 CARL BEXLEY 11

31 DAVID JOHNSON 12

33 STEVEN HEROD 10

34 TYBERIUS CRAVENS 11

35 MICHEAL ASYEMAN 12

40 EDWARD ODEMAH 10

41 YANNI OUK 11

42 EDWIN MCCOLLEY 10

45 MARK MANSANTO 10

50 TREY BENJAMIN 10

51 KASEY RICHARDSON 11

NO. NAME CL.

52 CASEY GORMAN 12

53 ANTON DUNN 12

54 CHARLES MCCLINE 12

55 THOMAS DIMASSIMO 12

56 KHALIL GEORGE 10

57 BRANDON BROWN 12

58 JUSTIN GRAYSON 11

59 GARRY DOBSON 10

60 CHRISTOPHER WEEMS 11

61 RACHIIM SIMMONS 10

62 JAMES GLENN 11

63 JERRY SHARPE 12

64 JAMAR FARSIAR 11

65 JOHN PITTS 12

66 MOURICE COUCH 10

NO. NAME CL.

67 JABARE SCOTT 10

68 ALEX WASHINGTON 12

69 DIAMONTE THOMAS 12

70 TIM PARKER 12

71 ALBERTO MUNGUIA 10

73 AMONE BRINSON 12

74 AVERY GLASS 12

76 LEDELL MOORE 12

80 JUSTIS MULLINS 10

81 JUSTIN SIMMS 10

82 SHANE THOMAS 10

83 JONATHAN HEMPHILL 10

84 LANCE WATERS 10

85 RODNEY ROSS 11

Season Outlook

Over the past two sea-sons, Pebblebrook has beenon the precipice of reachingthe state playoffs for the firsttime since 2007 when MikeCollins, now coaching atWheeler, helped the Falconsto a 7-4 record and a first-round appearance.

Pebblebrook will be with-out Darian Stewart, who wasthe team’s star linebackerlast season, running backKendrick Peeples and two-way lineman Brian Uzomba,along with a host of seniors.

As the junior class was asmall one last year, the

Falcons’ team will mostly befilled with juniors and under-classmen, meaning there willbe a sharp learning curvegoing into this season.

The team will certainlygrow up fast once again, asSmith scheduled an ambitiousstart to the schedule with a

second road trip to Lowndesopening the year, followed bygames at home against EastCoweta and at Chapel Hillbefore the Falcons’ Region4AAAAA slate begins.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


NORTH COBB WARRIORS


ALPHARETTA 19-42 LCENTENNIAL 21-14 WLASSITER 18-14 WKMHS 43-14 WCAMPBELL 34-6 WPEBBLEBROOK 25-21 WHILLGROVE 27-39 LMCEACHERN 28-31 LSOUTH COBB 23-31 LHARRISON 6-17 L

WON 5, LOST 5

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Shane QueenAge: 39Year at School: 6Record: 29-23Career Rec.: 59-46

Varsity Coaching StaffTom Clark — Off. CoordinatorSam Fraundorf — Def. CoordinatorRuss Isham — Defensive BacksScott Jones — Running BacksRobbie Robertson — ReceiversJustin Ernest — Defensive LineBob Clark — LinebackersJohn Speeney — Defensive Backs


VS.ALPHARETTAAUG. 26

ATCENTENNIAL

SEPT. 2

VS.LASSITERSEPT. 9

ATKMHS

SEPT. 16

ATCAMPBELLSEPT. 30

VS.PEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 7

VS.HILLGROVEOCT. 14

ATMCEACHERN

OCT. 21

VS.SOUTH COBBOCT. 28

ATHARRISONNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 JALEN WILLIAMS WR 12

2 DARIUS CONOWAY DB 12

3 QUINTEN JAMES RB 11

4 TRE GRIFFIN DE 12

5 NICK JOHNSON DB 12

6 MARTEZ HESTER DB 12

7 DEMETRIUS HILL RB 12

8 T. BODENHAMMER WR 12

9 JAMES KING DB 11

10 TY GRIFFIN QB 11

11 LEON JORDAN WR 11

12 XAVIER BORISHADE WR 11

13 NICK MILLER WR 11

14 CAMERON ALBRIGHT QB 10

15 DEONTE NEAL LB 12

16 JACOB MCKEE WR 11

17 PARIS COOK LB 12

18 KEIONNE RIVES DB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

19 TYLER QUEEN QB 9

20 KYLER WILSON WR 11

21 NICK SOLOMON DB 11

22 J’VONTE HERROD RB 10

23 ISAIAH LYLES WR 11

24 LATRELL GIBBS DB 10

25 TONY MOORE RB 11

26 CJ BRYE DB 11

27 TOBI ADELAJA RB 10

28 JONATHON HARMON LB 11

30 BRENT CROWDER LB 11

31 ELIJAH SLAUGHTER LB 12

32 JUWAN TAYLOR LB 12

33 JEREMY KIRK WR 10

34 E. SLAUGHTER LB 11

35 HAKEEM SAWYER LB 11

36 ANTOINE COLE LB 12

38 KYLE DUNCAN LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

39 JORDAN KIRK WR 10

40 CHRISTIAN INGRAM DB 10

41 TRENTON PRUETT LB 11

43 SHAUN DANIELS LB 11

48 JALIL KUKU LB 10

49 DEQUAN JEUNE LB 10

50 JUSTIN SEIVERS OL 12

51 ERNIE MCQUADE OL 10

52 KELVIN UME DL 11

53 ASHLON MINNOTT OL 11

54 AUSTIN HARRIS OL 12

55 TANNER ROSHAK OL 12

56 EDUVIE OJEGBA DL 11

58 JOHN HOWELL OL 11

63 NICHOLAS ORTIZ OL 10

64 MORGAN DAVIS OL 11

65 ANDRAKO SMITH OL 10

66 DAMION ADDISON OL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

70 MORGAN WELCH OL 10

73 SHAREEF SCOTT OL 10

74 WILLIAM CHATMON OL 11

75 DALTON CZAR OL 11

77 JOE FARAJ OL 11

80 FRED WATKINS WR 10

82 MATHIAS ABIEY WR 10

83 DEQUAN FULLER WR 10

84 DOMINIC DENNIS WR 11

85 CHAD MCCLANAHAN DL 10

87 BRANDON SCOTT WR 10

90 ELIJAH VALENTIN DL 10

92 E. AGBONGHAE DL 11

93 ALEX MEDINA K 11

94 AJ BOUDIN K 11

95 BYRON ALEXANDER K 10

96 B. ALEXANDER DL 12

97 JERRY MCQUADE DL 11

98 GREGORY THOMAS K 10

Season Outlook

North Cobb enters the sea-

son determined to bounce back

from a 2010 campaign that ended

on a nightmarish note with four

straight losses after a 5-1 start.

While having some big holes

to fill with the departure of

Division I signees Troy Gray,

Darren Waller and Max Mason,

the Warriors have plenty of talent

on hand to fill those gaps.

It will be an experienced

North Cobb squad that will take

the field this fall, with a large

group of seniors ready to take

charge and lead the way.

The defense looks especially

strong, with senior defensive end

and Vanderbilt commitment Tre

Griffn leading a unit that includes

such standouts as free safety

Martez Hester, defensive back

Darius Conoway, cornerback

Nick Johnson and linebackers

Paris Cook, Elijah Slaughter and

Deonte Neal.

North Cobb will have some

weapons to work with on offense

as well, with junior running back

Quenten James, junior quarter-

back Ty Griffin and senior wide

receiver Jalen Williams the key

figures and Demetrius Hill provid-

ing some speed and athleticism at

running back and wide receiver

and as a punt and kickoff returner.

The Warriors will be solid on

the offensive line with a senior

group that includes Justin

Seivers and Austin Harris and

juniors William Chatmon and Joe

Faraj.

North Cobb coach Shane

Queen is encouraged by the

physical condition of his players

after an offseason of hard work

in the weight room, adding that

his team is stronger than it has

been in the last couple of years.

With the talent on hand,

North Cobb should be back in

the hunt for a state playoff berth

in Region 4AAAAA in 2011.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]


PEBBLEBROOK FALCONSABOUT THE FALCONSLocation: 991 Old Alabama Road, Mableton. Phone: (770) 819-2521. Home Field: Falcon Stadium. Team Colors: Maroon, White and Blue. Online: www.cobbk12.org/pebblebrook/athletics.aspx

MAN OF MANY HATSBy William Bretherton

[email protected]

In three years, quarterback C.J.Goodman has become more than aveteran quarterback.

To senior running back SertonuseHarris, Goodman has become family.To Pebblebrook coach RandallSmith, Goodman has become a sec-ond head coach on the field. To histeammates, he has become a mentorfor a team filled with many inexperi-enced players.

See Hats, Page 69

GOODMAN ASSUMES MULTIPLE LEADERSHIP ROLES

Pebblebrook’sC. J.

Goodmanhas become

the leader of the

Falcons as he

prepares forhis third

season asthe starting

quarterback.

�

Staff /Samantha M.

Shal

� Height: 6-0 � Weight: 180

2010 Season Stats� Passing: 33-of-69, 612yards, 6 touchdowns � Rushing: 43 carries, 278yards, 3 touchdowns

THE GOODMAN FILE


largest back, and thus one beingprone to a more hard-nosed,downhill style of running, Cooksaid that he has the quickest feetof the three backs.

“In middle school, I was alwaystrucking people,” Chambers said.“Then, I got to high school and Ijust started juking and stuff. I gotso much agility that I started usingit. I never used it before because Iwas always bigger and faster. I’velearned to go around.”

Meanwhile, Redwine has thefastest straight line speed of thethree backs, while Gaines is anall-around back that is the mostdurable of the three.

Along with figuring out whomto give the football to next oneach play, each running back

would like to make sure that theyare no longer playing under theshadow of Randolph.

“The last couple of years,there are people that have saidthat we were all nothing withoutBrian,” Gaines said. “I wouldn’tsay that’s true. Brian isn’t some-one that you can replace, butBrian understood that we were allpart of a team and we workedtogether. No one man can do it byhimself, so we’re going to have todo it without him this year.”

Though each back would liketo make a name for him, it’s clearthat the ultimate goal has more todo with the final score than finalrushing totals.

“To me, it doesn’t really mat-ter,” Redwine said. “Whoever ishot or feeling it, I’d rather havethem in place over someone thatisn’t feeling it. As long as we arewinning games, I want to take ashot at state instead of beinggreedy about the ball.”


Kell

able to get 57 tackles, averaging10 a game, and getting four tack-les for loss in the six games hedid play in ’10.

“If he could have played thewhole season, he could have got-ten over 100 tackles,” MountParan coach Mitch Jordan said.“But, getting 57 tackles in the sixgames he did play is still prettyimpressive.”

While McKay’s stats on thefield are certainly strong, thenumbers that he achieves in theweight room are every bit asimpressive.

McKay has established him-self as the team’s top lifter in theweight room, currently holdingteam records in the bench press(330 pounds) and the squat (485pounds).

“Strength is a big part of foot-ball,” McKay said. “We have agreat weight lifting coach whohas really helped me a lot. I workhard in the weight room and ithas really helped me on thefield.”

Jordan praised McKay for hishard work in the weight room aswell as the field.

“J.P. is the first guy in theweight room and the last guy toleave,” Jordan said. “He workedvery hard in the weight room toget stronger, and that hard workis paying off. He is our strongestplayer, and that is largely due toall the work he has put in in theweight room.”

Footwork and speed werethe main things that McKayworked to improve on over thepostseason, including workoutswith the Mount Paran trackteam among his preseasonpreparations.

“I need to get my feet upmore,” McKay said. “To getready for the upcoming season, Iworked with the track team dur-ing the spring, and I am a lotfaster as a result.”

McKay has attracted theattention of a number of smallerDivision I schools, withJacksonville State and CharlestonSouthern among the top candi-dates at this point.

However, he is focused on hisfinal high school football seasonat Mount Paran as he looks tohelp the Eagles return to the stateplayoffs and help them advanceeven farther in 2011.

“I want to get 100 tackles andhelp our team get past the firstround in state,” McKay said.


McKay

ABOUT J.P. MCKAY

His favorite subject in school is History

Cam Newton is his favorite player

His favorite football team is the Auburn Tigers

His counterpart, Purnell, was67-of-111 for 1,392 yards with19 touchdowns and two inter-ceptions. Purnell, however, wasable to do a little more with hisfeet as he rushed 44 times for363 yards and scored fivetouchdowns.

Those differences aren’t loston Thompson, a senior. He planson doing the things that madehim successful last year and usehis years of experience to helpguide his decision-making.

“Dondre was a playmaker,”he said. “He was athletic andcould do his own thing with hisfeet as well as his arm. I’mmore of a distributor. My job isto read the defense and get theball into the hands of our play-makers and the athletes we haveon the team.”

Hockman agrees.“Trent’s main job will be as

a distributor,” he said. “He’sgoing to get the ball to our

speed guys and our athletes.Don’t be fooled, though. Trentcan surprise you and break off arun here or there and scramble.But it’s definitely his team, andhe’s going to thrive.

“Instead of taking 50 per-cent of the snaps like he did lastyear, he’s going to take 80 to 85percent. He’ll be our guy in thepocket making the decisions.One of his best assets is he’sreally good in the red zone.He’ll put the ball where it needsto be to score touchdowns. Ithink he’ll take off and be evenbetter than he was last season.He should be fun to watch.”

Having played inMcEachern’s offense for twoseasons already, Thompson’slearning curve is short.

“The experience over thepast two years has been great,”he said. “I don’t get as nervousnow. I’m better prepared, Iunderstand how to watch filmand things are easier than it useto be. I play the game morewith my mind.

“There’s always stuff to doas far as reading defenses andexecuting.”

While his learning curve isshort, Thompson continues towork on being a better leader.

“Coach has talked to meabout leading,” he said. “I’mnot much of a vocal guy, but Ineed to be able to take com-mand. I’m still getting use tothat aspect of things, but I’mgetting better.”

Thompson acknowledgedthat it was going to feel differ-ent when he stepped onto thefield Saturday in the GeorgiaDome against North Gwinnettat the Corky Kell Classic.

“I was use dto all of theswitching out between Dondreand me,” he said. “But, some-times it could be frustratingbecause it broke my rhythm.But sometimes it took thepressure off me. If I had a badgame, he could come in andtry to do better to help theteam. That won’t happen anymore.

“I’ll need to buckle down.My job as the quarterback is towin games, and I’ll do what Ihave to do to make that happen.My teammates will trust me toget the job done.”


Man

ABOUT TRENT THOMPSON

If he was an animal, he would be a dog because they are not crazy, don’t do a lot of stuff and just hang out

If he had a super power he would want to run fast and be like the Flash

If he won $20 million, he would save it for his kids until he got old

finished ahead of him at thestate meet graduated, Hesterwill be the top returning finish-er in the Class AAAAA 400dash, putting him in prime posi-tion to win the state title nextspring.

“I definitely want to win thestate title in the 400 and I wantto help North Cobb do well inthe (400 relay),” Hester said.

Hester didn’t take long tocelebrate his success at the statemeet before he began his prepa-rations for the 2011 footballseason, which included bulkingup with hard workouts in theweight room.

Hester has also been boostedphysically by his experienceson the track, saying that it hashelped him with his physicaland mental toughness as muchas his speed.

“Track has helped me get

faster, but it’s also made mestronger and tougher,” Hestersaid. “The 400 is a tough eventand it has helped me gettougher. Track has definitelyhelped me be a better footballplayer.”

For Shane Queen, Hester isthe complete package.

“Martez has size at 6-3, 185,

and he has a great work ethic,”Queen said. “He’s done a greatjob in our defensive backfield,and he’s filling the shoes left by(Georgia Tech signee) DarrenWaller as far as the leadershiprole on defense is concerned, sohe has some big shoes to fill.He finished third in the state inthe 400, so he’s got somespeed, too.”

Hester has attracted atten-tion from a number of DivisionI schools, with Arkansas State,Ball State, Air Force, Ohio andCharlotte among the candidates,though he is hoping to get somelooks from SoutheasternConference schools.

While Hester is looking todo well individually, his focusis on helping North Cobb win astate title as well as a Region4AAAAA crown.

“I want to help North Cobbwin state — I feel like we havea very good team and we have agood chance,” Hester said. “Butbefore that, we want to winregion, and we have a goodchance to do that.”


Hester ABOUT MARTEZ HESTER

His favorite subjects inschool is Government and

Economics

When he goes to collegehe wants to study either business

or communications


KICKOFF 2011


POPE GREYHOUNDS


WHEELER 21-6 WKMHS 24-20 WVILLA RICA 21-7 WOSBORNE 28-6 WKELL 21-35 LNORTH PAULDING 48-17 WSPRAYBERRY 28-17 WEAST PAULDING 13-14 LHIRAM 7-19 LSOUTH PAULDING 35-28 WCHATTAHOOCHEE 14-42 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Matt KemperAge: 45Year at School: 4Record: 17-14Career Rec.: 17-14

Varsity Coaching StaffGerald Climmons — Def. BacksTom Flugum — LinebackersMatt Fox — Special TeamsHeath Green — Running BacksJerad Johnson — QuarterbacksMatt Jones — Defensive LineMike Kennedy — ReceiversChris LaFeve — Defensive Backs


ATWHEELERAUG. 26

VS. KMHSSEPT. 2

ATVILLA RICASEPT. 9

ATOSBORNESEPT. 23

VS. KELL

SEPT. 30

ATN. PAULDING

OCT. 7

VS.SPRAYBERRY

OCT. 13

ATE. PAULDING

OCT. 21

VS.HIRAM

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME CL.

2 MYLES EVERETT 12

3 RONALD WOODS 10

4 KEEGAN PUIS 11

5 JAY KOO 12

6 BRAXTON PHIPPS 11

7 ITABARI MASON 9

8 JACOB CULBERSON 10

9 DAVID BOHN 12

10 JERAD PARKER 11

11 CAMERON VICTOR 12

12 BRIAN ROGERS 12

13 MASON SHIFLETT 10

14 BROOKS CLIMMONS 11

15 STEPHEN SKRUCK 10

16 HOLLAND FROST 12

17 JACK ZEGERS 10

18 MURPHY DAVIS 11

19 SCOTT WALKER 11

20 RYAN HANLEY 11

NO. NAME CL.

21 JAKE HENSON 10

22 DANIEL MAPLES 12

23 RICHARD BECKER 11

24 MIGUEL SANCHEZ 12

25 YOSHIKI HARAOKA 12

26 JOSH METZINGER 11

28 DANNY TARQUINIO 11

29 LOGAN CARR 10

32 SEAN HAYDEN 10

33 BLAYNE BURGETT 10

34 KELVIN HAU 11

36 CARSON DAY 9

37 SEAN HATCHER 11

38 GREG KEEL 12

39 CHRISTIAN BUHR 12

42 CURRAN MCMAHON 11

43 JOSEPH RICHARDSON 12

44 ZACH MCCOWWN 11

45 MICHAEL KEMPER 9

NO. NAME CL.

46 CHRISTIAN BATTAGLIA 12

47 THOMAS MOLLOY 12

48 JOEY TABACHINO 10

49 EUGENE GRAY 12

50 MARKUS SHIFLETT 12

51 PAUL DAHLHAUSER 10

52 CHRIS BLAKE 12

53 BOBACK KALANTARIAN 11

54 MARCO VAHOUA 12

55 BRANDT MARTIN 12

57 CODY POLFKA 10

59 WILLIAM WETTER 12

60 CHRIS HAYDEN 11

62 PRESTON SMITH 12

63 TREVOR STEVENS 11

64 OLIVER PREDA 10

65 DJ PHELPS 11

66 LUKE HORNOR 11

67 CONNER WHEALTON 11

NO. NAME CL.

68 GLENN SHADDEN 12

70 ZACH HANSHAW 12

72 SEAN ALEXANDER 12

73 ALEXANDER HOEPFNER 11

74 CODY AMON 11

75 HARRISON HOLMES 10

76 TAYLOR HOWARD 11

78 LUCAS KRULL 12

79 MAXWELL KEMPER 9

82 JARED WALTON 12

83 BEN DORAN 10

85 MARSHALL HANSEN 10

88 BEN HART 11

89 JR HUDGINS 11

91 BRADY WALSH 11

92 PEYTON GRIFFIN 11

95 JAKE NEMEROFF 12

97 ALEXANDER PARKER 11

Season Outlook

After a decade-long absence,

the Pope Greyhounds returned

to the playoffs in 2010.

The lone drawback was that

their first opponent was eventual

Class AAAA state champion

Chattahoochee.

That aside, the resurgence of

the Greyhounds has helped build

a sense of team pride and now,

community expectations.

Pope will try to live up to the

higher expectations behind quar-

terback Holland Frost. Frost, who

earned Class AAAA All-State

honorable mention last season

after more than 2,000 yards

passing and 1,000 yards rushing,

will again be the trigger man that

made the offense go.

“Nobody has the concept of

what he’s doing for us,” Pope

coach Matt Kemper said about

Frost’s ability to manage a game.

But while Frost will continue

to manage the game he will have

to depend on different players to

make plays for him.

“We’re going to take (Navy,

Air Force) approach,” Kemper

said. “We’re going to run the

option and chew the clock.”

Pope will go with a committee

of running backs and Myles

Everett will try to fill the big

shoes left by Garrett Brown and

his 85 receptions. Everett caught

20 passes last season and will

likely need to increase that num-

ber to the 60-plus range.

Defensively, the Greyhounds

will be young on the defensive

line, but they will have strength in

the linebacking corps led by

junior Brooks Climmons, a state

champion wrestler. If the sec-

ondary can hold up, Pope will

have a chance to be in the mix in

Region 5AAAA.

The two key contests for the

Greyhounds will be the same as

last season — North Paulding

and Sprayberry. If Pope can win

those two games, it will allow

the Greyhounds to go after last

year’s top trio from the region

— Kell, Hiram and East

Paulding. This, however, could

also be a year where the team

improves, but doesn’t have as

many victories.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011



[email protected]

With the Corky Kell Classic’sfinish on Saturday, four ofCobb’s schools (Kell, Lassiter,McEachern, Walton) have allpicked up their first televisionexposure of the year, thanks toGeorgia Public Broadcasting.

However, television exposureis expanding this season, asWSB-TV will be broadcastingThursday night games on its dig-ital cable outlet (Comcast Cablechannel 248), starting this weekwith Dacula at Norcross.Similarly, GPB will have twogames per week on Friday nightsthe rest of the season, with onegame being broadcast on televi-sion, and one being shown bywebcast online.

For Cobb, the next televisedgame will be one of East Cobb’sfierce rivalries — Lassiter atWalton on Sept. 30 on GPB.

“As a football coach, you aretrying to find a way (to get onTV),” Lassiter coach Jep Irwinsaid. “You’re interfacing withcommunity trying to find a wayto increase fan base, support andwhat your program has to offer.Any high school football coachthat doesn’t feel like he needscommunity support, I’d like tosee that program. We want to bea program that gets recognizedaround the state. We want anexciting brand of football that wecan put on TV.”

With the added games ontelevision, there comes more

exposure for the programs beingpresented on TV, more excite-ment for the games from the fansand participants, as well as thechance to make additional rev-enue for the schools through cor-porate sponsorship opportunitiesfrom that exposure.

“I think it’s great for highschool football,” Irwin said. “I likeit. I know that the Corky KellClassic, the first year they decidedto (broadcast games), there wassome concern with ticket salesbeing hurt. But I think it’s great. Itgives more of a college feel to(games). It helps with corporatesponsorship. Anything that createsmore excitement or more buzz willbe good. I think we’re at the pointwith high school athletics wherewe need to reach out and makepartnerships. We’re trying to becompetitive and trying to find moreways you brand your product.”

But that’s just it. With everyadditional game added to the tele-vision docket, it creates the poten-tial for games to become moreabout business than about football.

“Everything revolves aroundmoney these days,” McEacherncoach Kyle Hockman said. “ Iknow that as it becomes moreprevalent that these games are onTV.”

McEachern declined anopportunity to move one of itsFriday games to Thursday due toconcerns about selling tickets.

“(WSB) offered to move oneof our games to a Thursdaynight,” Hockman said. “It wouldbe nice, but we thought that we

would lose money in hosting agame on Thursday night.”

On top of that, any mistake orinjury that happens on air will bemagnified that much more due tothe microscope that televisedgames put on football.

“We’re in that kind of a soci-ety where everything is at yourfingertips,” Pope coach MattKemper said. “You can pull upanything on the Internet instant-ly. But I think we’re a ways offfrom that sort of thing. It is agreat opportunity and we want toact right, do right when peoplesee on television.

“But it’s like anything else.It’s a great privilege to have thisopportunity. But at the sametime, it’s a huge responsibility.”

Also, the advent of Thursdaynight games, that means highschools will have shorter weeksto practice between games,though that’s less of a concernfor some than it is for others.

“To me, we did this when Iwas coaching in Alabama,” Irwinsaid of Thursday night games.“It’s not really a tremendousloss. The only problem is if youhave a large number of injuriesand are trying to move peoplearound and are scrambling to fillholes at the end of the season.

“In Week 11 (when we hostEtowah), it’s the last week, so Idon’t see it as a big issue. We aretrying to shorten practice bythen. If we don’t have it down bythen with what we need work on,then I don’t see that being a bigloss for us.”

WSB-TV Thursday Schedule:(NOTE: Live on Comcast channel 248;

replayed 1 a.m. Saturday mornings on WSB)

Aug. 18 Dacula @ NorcrossAug. 25 SW DeKalb @ TuckerSept. 1 South Gwinnett @ M.L. KingSept. 8 Lovejoy @ North ClaytonSept. 15 Heritage @ Rockdale CountySept. 22 East Paulding @ North PauldingSept. 29 Milton @ CentennialOct. 6 SW DeKalb @ DunwoodyOct. 13 Sprayberry @ PopeOct. 20 Dutchtown @ GriffinOct. 27 Chattahoochee @ South ForsythNov. 3 Etowah @ Lassiter

Georgia Public Broadcasting Schedule

2011 Corky Kell ClassicAug. 20 TV — Grayson @ Kell

TV — Brookwood @ LassiterTV — North Gwinnett @ McEachernTV — Peachtree Ridge @ Walton

Aug. 26 TV — Collins Hill @ RoswellWEB — St. Pius X @ Westminster

Sept. 2 TV — Lambert at ChattahoocheeWEB — Blessed Trinity @ Grady

Sept. 9 TV — Newnan @ Peachtree RidgeWEB — Colquitt Co. @ Westlake

Sept. 16 TV — Southwest DeKalb @ MaristWEB — Wesleyan @ Holy Innocents

Sept. 23 TV — Mill Creek @ NorcrossWEB — Lovett @ Buford

Sept. 30 TV — Lassiter @ Walton WEB — Ringgold @ Heritage

Oct. 7 TV — Hillgrove at McEachernWEB — LaGrange @ Carrollton

Oct. 14 TV — Thomas Co. Cen. @ Northside-WRWEB — Mary Persons @ Peach Co.

Oct. 21 TV — Woodstock @ EtowahWEB — North Forsyth @ Centennial

Oct. 28 TV — Brookwood @ Grayson WEB — Sandy Creek @ Fayette Co.

Nov. 4 TV — Stephenson @ M.L. KingWEB — Chattahoochee @ Rome

LIGHTS, CAMERA, ACTIONTHURSDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL

IS AS CLOSE TO YOU AS YOUR TELEVISION REMOTE

Kell andGrayson

kicked offthe Corky

Kell Classicon Saturdayand a largeschedule ofhigh schoolgames that

can be seenon WSB

and GBP in2011 .

�Staff /

Laura Moon


POPE GREYHOUNDSABOUT THE GREYHOUNDSLocation: 13001 Hembree Road, Marietta. Phone (770) 578-7900. Home Field: Pope Multi-Sport Complex. Colors: Blue and Gray. Online: popefootball.com

FOREVER 70POPE’S ZACH HANSHAW EARNS THE HONOR

OF THE ANNUAL MATT HOBBY JERSEY AWARD

ABOUT ZACH HANSHAW

He’s always dreamed about playing football for the University of Miami

He started playing football in the fourth grade

For every team he has ever been on, he’s always played center

Staff / Laura MoonPope’s Zach Hanshaw was honored this year by receiving the Matt Hobby Jersey Award.Hanshaw will wear No. 70 this season in honor of Hobby. The award is voted on by his team-mates for the player that best exudes the toughness and determination Hobby was know for.

By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

Pope coach Matt Kemper washanding out game jerseys inpreparation for the Greyhounds2011 team photo but pausedwhen he came to the No. 70.

The offensive and defensivelineman in the room had theirinterest peaked. It was a bigmoment. For the players on thatline there is no bigger recognitionthan being able to say they woreMatt Hobby’s number, and thisyear, Pope center Zach Hanshawearned that responsibility.

“It’s the biggest honor I’ve

ever received,” the 6-foot-1, 265pound Hanshaw said. “I realizethe footsteps I have to follow in.”

Matt Hobby was an offensivelineman for the Greyhoundswhen he was stricken with anaggressive form of child-hoodcancer called Ewing’s Sarcoma— a malignant bone tumor whichdevelops during puberty and isusually found in the pelvis, arms,legs or chest. Once diagnosed,the patient has a 5-year survivalrate of 70 to 80 percent withchemo-therapy, but long termsurvival is less than 10 percent.

This was the case with

See 70, Page 82

GOOD LUCKTEAMS!

Cobb Chamber Small Business of the Year


taught me the game,” Davis said.He’s an all around great guy. If Ihave problems, I can go to himand he can help me sort it out.He keeps us in mind and keepsus out of trouble. If I had to ratehim, he’s a 10-out-of-10 coach.”

And Morrell shares a fewpositive qualities about havingDavis as a member of his team.

“We first saw him at morningworkouts last January, and heimpressed me with his ability,quickness and the ability to changedirection,” Morrell said. “I thinkhe’s going to be a real deal and agood asset to this football team.”

Davis, who has been putting onpads since the age of 11, doesn’tmind contributing both ways. Heenjoys playing both positions,which are similar to each other.

Davis is known for being apossession receiver with goodhands. He’s not a downfieldthreat, even though he wants toimprove upon his time of 4.6 sec-onds in the 40, but knows how toget open and make plays. Anotherattribute he brought in his years

playing private-school footballwas shaking off tackles.

When playing safety, Davis’strengths are reading the keysand anticipating where opposingquarterbacks are going to throwthe ball.

“(Playing safety) is a high-riskgame for me,” Davis said. “I go forit and, if it’s there, I make the play.”

As much as Davis wants to bea team player, he said playing forCreekview may put him underthe college radar. He wouldn’tmind follwing in the steps of hisolder brother, Robert, who is aninside linebacker at Georgia.

Davis is aware of Creekview’scurrent situation. He knows theGrizzlies are in rebuilding mode,even after finishing with a 3-7record in a tough Region7AAAA that has defending statechampion Chattahoochee in it.

Projected starting quarterbackHaden Hall is coming up fromthe JV team. Fellow receiverDanny Wright is also getting hisbearings at the varsity level andCreekview’s offensive line isinexperienced.

“We’re young and inexperi-enced, but we’re not going tobreak down,” Davis said. “We’regoing to play as a team and havea good year this year.”


Intensity

ABOUT RILEY DAVIS

school days and I can’t wait.I’ve been out of the grooveplaying it consistently for awhile, but I’m really lookingforward to it this year.”

The 5-foot-11, 220-poundPorche is also a four-year varsi-ty letterman at Etowah. He wasan occasional starter as asophomore, but has since heldthe defensive end position full-time. He also started at tacklethe final three games last seasonafter Ty Ritchey was lost to

injury. But, substituting forRitchey was the least ofPorche’s worries.

“I was the second string forthe whole offensive line lastyear,” he said. “If any one gothurt, I filled in.

“It’s rough (knowing somany positions). I had to lookat the playbook every game andduring practice so that itbecame more and more naturalfor me.”

Porche’s play at defensiveend became second nature tohim, but getting use to theoffensive line procedures tookmore time.

“It was difficult to switchback-and-forth,” he said.

“When you’re defensive end,there’s a lot of pursuing andreading your blocks, but onoffense, you have to read thesnap count, know the directionof the play and how and whento pull — it’s a different mind-set on offense when the ballsnaps.

“It will be great to focus on(guard). It’ll make it easier tonot mix things up.”

While their jobs may besimpler, Stewart doesn’t expectRowell and Porche to makethings simple.

“They’re going to both playa major role on defense and bea spark for us on offense,” hesaid.

ABOUT DALTON PORCHE


Double

If he was an animal, he would want to be a lazy dog

If he had a superpower, he would want to read minds

Watching Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher gets himpumped up.

He enjoys bonding with his brother, Robert Davis, an insidelinebacker at Georgia.

He’s an Atlanta sports guy and a big fan of the Hawks.

Obviously, the collegiate

coaches see great potential, but

now it’s time to see what

Chastain can do under the lights.

“All of (the coaches) said,

athletically, he can play for them

right now,” said Harrison coach

David Hines. “Now they want to

see if he can make plays.”

For a 17-year-old that has

fewer than 200 passing yards in

a limited varsity career, the idea

of playing for a major Division

I program would be pretty

heady stuff. But for Chastain, to

this point, he has taken it in

stride.

“I’m going to go out, relax

and have fun,” he said about his

senior season. “If I do that, it’s

all going to turn out well.”

Chastain has all the tools

college coaches drool over.

He’s 6-foot-4, 220 pounds with

the ability to run a sub-4.6-sec-

ond 40-yard dash. Chastain

looks every part of a quarter-

back — and he has the arm to

match. But it wasn’t always

football that was at the fore-

front of his athletic goals. It

may have had something to do

with the ability to throw a 90

mph fastball.

“I’ve always wanted to play

baseball,” Chastain said. “I’ve

always loved baseball. I lived

and breathed baseball.”

Unfortunately, the way high

school sports have become spe-

cialized, it has become harder

to be a two or three-sport star in

high school. Because of that,

Chastain had to make the deci-

sion between the two sports if

he wanted to be the Hoyas’

quarterback.

At least one of his teammates

is convinced he made the right

choice, and linebacker Judd

Haley learned it the hard way.

“If you reach in to try and

break up one of his passes, he’ll

break your hand,” Haley said

about how hard Chastain can

throw the ball, but he realizes it

will be a weapon the Hoyas

will definitely be able to use to

their advantage. “We were run-

ning a 7-on-7 drill and he threw

a ball down the middle. We had

two defenders in good position

to make a play. How he got it in

there I have no idea.”

Hines said Chastain has a

gunslinger mentality that will

remind Harrison fans of another

former Hoya quarterback that

wasn’t afraid to make a play —

Zach MacDowall, who went on

to play at Wake Forest and

Coastal Carolina.

MacDowall, as a two-year

starter, threw for 4,085 yards,

completed 64 percent of his

passes and connected for 52

touchdowns over the course of

the 2004-05 seasons, with the

latter also including a region

championship.

Chastain, however, would

like to characterize his game

based on the professional quar-

terbacks he watches every

Sunday.

“I’d like to say my game is

like (Tom) Brady or (Peyton)

Manning,” he said, “but I’d

have to say it’s more like Brett

Favre. I’m a pocket passer that

is a threat to run. Actually, I

always thought I’d be a line-

backer because I love to hit

people.”

It’s that kind of mentality

that will have people willing to

follow Chastain into any situa-

tion on the field, and Haley said

his new quarterback is making

sure that he’s earned the team’s

respect.

“He’s made big steps from

last year,” Haley said. “It’s

obvious he’s more of a leader,

he’s more vocal and he’s done

the work.”

Now, it’s time for the

Harrison fans — and the col-

lege coaches — to see Chastain

perform.


Chastain ABOUT CLAY CHASTAIN

The first position he played when he started junior football was center

As a child, he always played in the age group above his because of his size

His brother, Butch Chastain, is a former Harrison punter

S I G N TAU R E PA RT N E R SEach Keller Williams® Office is Independently Owned and Operated

Call

RONNIE MYRICK

Your Full Time, Full Service Agent

770-883-0647 • 678-631-1700

Best of luck for a WINNING 2011 Season!

KICKOFF 2011


RIVER RIDGE KNIGHTS

1-year record: 2-7

MT. PISGAH 0-26 LTEMPLE 14-20 LMODEL 21-52 LCROSS KEYS 19-37 LGORDON LEE 0-16 LLAKEVIEW ACD. 22-16 WTOWNS CO. 7-14 LSOCIAL CIRCLE 28-42 LLFO 21-14 W

WON 2, LOST 7

* VARSITY GAMES ONLY

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Robert BrauchtAge: 38Year at School: 3Record: 2-7Career Rec.: 20-19

Varsity Coaching StaffBarry Lakes — Assistant HCKeith Manus — Def. CoordinatorTyler Wynn — Off. CoordinatorJoel Roth — Running BacksJoe Tousignaut — LinebackersDontavious Smith — ReceiversRussell Amristead — Def. Backs


VS.MOUNT PISGAH

SEPT. 2

ATTEMPLESEPT. 9

VS.MODEL

SEPT. 16

ATCROSS KEYSSEPT. 23


VSLAKEVIEW ACAD.

OCT. 7

VS.TOWNS CO.OCT. 14

VS.LANIER

OCT. 21

VS.SOCIAL CIRCLE

OCT. 28

ATREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME

1 MICHAEL LEWIS

2 E. J. ELLIS

3 STEVEN SPEARS

5 MICHAEL AGAR

7 AUBREY THOMPSON

8 OMARI REEVES-MILLER

9 NATHAN TETLEY

10 TYLER KEENEY

11 MIGUEL CASTILLO

12 JACKSON WEEG

14 HUNTER GRIFFIN

15 SETH NAMA

17 BRIAN HILBURN

NO. NAME

19 KYLE COLLINS

21 VINCE NJOKU

22 ANTHONY JOHNSON

23 WILL REDDING

24 CHRIS ROBINSON

25 DEVANTAE MCINTOSH

27 LEONARD JONES

31 WILLIAM MATELLO

36 AUSTIN TERRELL

37 COLE DERY

38 TOMASZ KOWALSKI

40 JAYLIN MCCRAY

41 DESHAWN FRANKLIN

NO. NAME

44 RAY STEPHENSON

45 DEVON MOREE

47 DALTON RICHARDS

50 AUSTIN BENNETT

51 MASON LINER

52 AUSTIN DILLIARD

53 DYLAN GATES

54 DAVIS MACKENZIE

55 ALEX GEE

57 JACKSON TANNER

58 BEN MUSIC

59 JUSTIN PORTER

60 GAGE RHODEN

NO. NAME

64 JAKE LAFSER

65 CHANDLER HAGAN

67 MARK WOOD

70 WILEY RAINES

71 SEAN SMITH

72 JD SMITH

73 DYLAN STEELE

74 RYAN SAILOR

75 JAMES EGAN

77 ALEX MIROSHKIN

78 VASILIY DIVACHUK

79 BRANDON STEPHENSON

81 WES BEARDEN

84 BLAKE JUBERG

Season Outlook

River Ridge will continue the

building process of its young pro-

gram as it begins its second sea-

son of varsity play.

The Knights come in with a

valuable year of experience

under their belts and will also be

a physically bigger team after an

offseason in the weight room as

they try to improve on last year’s

2-7 record in varsity play.

One big advantage in River

Ridge’s favor is that it lost no

players to graduation, with the

school scheduled to graduate its

first class of seniors in 2013, so

the Knights enter the ’11 cam-

paign virtually intact.

The key to success for River

Ridge is in its proficient back-

field, which features the danger-

ous running back tandem of

sophomore E.J. Ellis and junior

Austin Terrell, as well as junior

quarterback Jackson Weeg and

junior running back Will Redding.

The Knights will still be young

on defense as well, but sopho-

more free safety Steven Spears

and sophomore defensive line-

man James Egan show a lot of

promise.

Also giving River Ridge a

boost will be junior Michael Agar,

a move-in from North Carolina

who is expected to step in and

play a key role in a number of

positions on both sides of the ball.

Once again, the Knights will

be playing a non-region schedule

against a mix of established and

new programs.

While it is likely that a still

young River Ridge team will take

a few more lumps and learn

some more lessons on its way to

establishing itself on the varsity

level, the Knights have enough

talent on hand and have learned

enough from last year’s first var-

sity season to take another step

forward and win a few more

games in 2011.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


academics and athletics seriously.Rainbow believes Houston willbe the key to Campbell’s defense.

“He’s going to anchor ourdefense,” Rainbow said. “We runa 3-3 stack, which is three downlinemen and five linebackers.He’s our nose guard, and withouta great nose guard, our defensedoesn’t go. He’s shown he’s astarter for us from the get-go, andas the center of our defense, hemakes us go.

“He does everything well. Hehas good footwork, good handsand demands double teamsbecause of his size. He’s a greatyoung man and a quiet leaderwho does everything you ask. Heleads without saying a lot.”

Houston does, however, say alot on the field. He loves to hitpeople, and according to him, themost exciting part of playingfootball is getting off the “block,”making tackles and hitting some-one every play.

“I’m excited to get the seasongoing,” Houston said. “I like whatcoach Rainbow has us doing toprepare and I think it will be apretty good year.”

Coming off a 1-9 season in 2010and 2-8 mark in 2009, all of thecoaching changes that have takenplace at Campbell over the past fewyears have had a negative effect.

“I had coach (Shawn)Campbell my freshman year andthen coach (T.K.) Dodd the lasttwo years,” Houston said. “It’sbeen tough changing things upevery year. Personally, it didn’taffect me much as a freshmanbecause I didn’t play much. But Istarted with coach Dodd, and nowwe have another change goinginto my senior year.

“That’s three coaches in fouryears, so us older guys have beenaffected the most. But they’ve allbeen good coaches in their own way,and I think coach Harris will be, too.”

Caleb Edmonds helmed thequarterback role for Campbell thepast two seasons, but there will be anew player under center for 2011 insophomore Austin Green. Houstonsaid he has enjoyed what he’s seenof Green during spring practice andthinks the young quarterback canhelp the Spartans win games.

“He’s a good athlete and agood leader for a guy his age,”Houston said. “He has a goodchance to excel in this offense,which is what we need.”

Houston’s lone personal goalis to make all-state.

“I feel like I can do it,” he said.“It will take some hard work, butas long as I run the schemes it willgive me a chance to make plays.”

While, his team goals aren’tas ambitious.

“I just want the team to com-pete in every game,” he said. “It’dbe nice to make the playoffsbecause I haven’t been therebefore, so we’ll see.”


Houston

than 300-pounds. Three project-ed starters — Mitchelli, andjuniors Levi Satterfield andJacob Crowley — are in the 275-pound range. Returning starterTyler Ratcliff, who is a senior, isthe smallest lineman at 250.

After attending two summercamps, Cherokee’s linemen areready to get their hands dirty asthey attempt to create runningroom for the Warriors’ triple-option offense.

Cherokee’s offensive line-men spent the entire offseasongetting their hands dirty, but theturning point came at theGilmer County LinemanChallenge, where they tookthird place out of 19 teams.

The Warriors participated indrills that included the benchpress, flipping tires, running20-yard dashes while pulling a100-pound sled and playingtug-of-war. The camp also hada one-on-one tug-of-war tour-nament, which Collett won.

Their next big test was

attending SoutheasternDefensive Camp at WestGeorgia in late July.

“Coach Dameron said it waslike a glorified practice,”Mitchelli said. “We like to treatit more than that.”

Although the camp wascatered to the defenders, whoperformed drills to learn tech-nique, Cherokee’s linemen usedthis opportunity to get theirtiming down and create differ-ent ways to open up the runninggame. According to Collett, itwas the camp where “men weremade.”

“It a good time to pound onother people that you don’t careto abuse,” Collett said. “That’sthe way I look at it. I go into ittrying to abuse people.”

Now Cherokee is ready forits next challenge, and that’s tofinish in the top four in5AAAAA to earn a spot in thestate playoffs. Collett,Mitchelli, Ratcliff andSatterfield have at least oneyear’s experience blocking forthe triple option and say itrequires a lot of aggression andattitude to create openings.

“We’re a different breed oflinemen (from other types ofoffenses),” Collett said. “Whenyou go up against option line-men, it’s the tough of the tough.We’re on our knees crawlingand scratching to get the jobdone. It’s not about openingholes, it’s about killing people.In football, it’s a war zone.”


Wall

ABOUT TYLER HOUSTON

ABOUT THE CHEROKEE OFFENSIVE LINE

If he won $20 million, Houston would donate some of it to

charity and keep the rest for himself.

Hunter Collett is workingon a political

rock band project.

Nick Michelli loves to eat pizza.

Jacob Crowley studies forat least 2 hours every day

after practice.

Levi Satterfield participates in

motorcross during the offseason.

Tyler Ratcliff can catch catfish with his

bare hands.

instrumental part of the Trojanoffense last season with 45 catch-es for 384 yards and four scores.

“They are definitely guyswe’re counting on to make plays,”Irwin said. “We need them tomake plays in the passing game.We need them to block on theperimeter. They have to play reallywell in order for us to do the otherthings we want to do, which is runthe ball. They both got bigger andstronger in the offseason.”

The Trojans will also be target-ing their catch-and-run receiverswho will line up in the slot.

Senior Adam Dowell was pro-jected to back up Hegedus afterspring drills but an impressive

summer playing 7-on-7 earnedhim a starting job. The 6-2Dowell proved he could work themiddle of the field during 7-on-7 drills and knows how toplay against man coverage.

Junior Willie Police, whoplayed some running back lastseason, will act as a full-timereceiver with junior starter IsaiahWillis taking his place in thebackfield.

Police, who got some starts lastseason, is described as a shiftyplayer who can make plays in openspace. He will continue to makecatches for Lassiter as well asrotate with Willis in the backfield.

“Adam has been steady for us,he is able to make plays againstlinebackers,” Irwin said. Willie isable to catch the ball out of thebackfield. He is able to blockpretty good and can make playswhen he catches the ball short.”


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RIVER RIDGE KNIGHTSABOUT THE KNIGHTSLocation: 400 Arnold Mill Road, Woodstock. Phone: (770) 591-8450. Home Field: River Ridge Stadium. Team Colors: Navy and Gold. Online: www.riverridgeknights.com

BUILDING BLOCKSBy Greg Oshust

[email protected]

River Ridge went through theusual growing pains of a fledg-ling high school program as theKnights went 3-7 — with onewin coming against the BerkmarJV — in their inaugural varsityseason last year.

However, Austin Terrell andE.J. Ellis gave River Ridge a lotof hope for the future.

Terrell and the 5-7, 165-pound Ellis provided a potent 1-2punch in the backfield, combin-ing for more than 1,600 yardsand 19 touchdowns.

Terrell led River Ridge inrushing with 820 yards and 10touchdowns, while Ellis was

right behind his teammate with806 yards and nine touchdowns.

Now, both are ready to sur-pass their impressive 2010accomplishments and moveRiver Ridge football ahead anotch as they look forward to the’11 season.

“We’ve been working hard allsummer, and we’re ready to havea successful season,” said Terrell,who is entering his junior season.

Added Ellis, a sophomore,“Everything has gone well in theoffseason. I’ve been working outall summer and I’ve gotten big-ger and faster, so I’m lookingforward to having an even betterseason.”

Terrell came up with severalbig performances last year for

River Ridge, rushing for 225yards on 24 carries and twotouchdowns against Cross Keysand gaining 198 yards on 14 car-ries, including a game-winning65-yard touchdown run, againstLakeview-Fort Oglethorpe.

“Everything went really well,especially with it being our firstyear as a varsity team,” Terrellsaid. “I wanted to get 1,000yards, but 820 yards is still prettygood.”

Ellis also had several stronggames for the Knights, startingthe season with 209 yards on 21carries and three touchdowns ina 20-2 victory over the BerkmarJV team and 94 yards and atouchdown against Social Circle.

See Blocks, Page 69

ELLIS AND TERRELL GIVE RIVER RIDGE A SOLID 1-2 RUNNING PUNCH

Heading into their second varsity seasonat River Ridge, Knights running backsAustin Terrell, left, and E.J. Ellis areready to put their school on the map.

�Staff / Todd Hull

ABOUT THE RIVER RIDGE

RUNNING BACKS

Terrell’s favorite subject in school ismath, Ellis’ is English literature

Following his football playing days,Terrell wants to be an engineer

If he doesn’t coach later in life, Elliswants to be a psychiatrist

Terrell’s favorite color is orange, whileEllis’ is blue

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011

PAGE 37 �KICKOFF 2011

MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 1275 Stanley Road, Kennesaw, 30152. Phone: (770) 578-0182. Home Field: Mount Paran Stadium. Team Colors: Royal Blue, White. Online: mtparanschool.com/athsport.php?s=ath&p=football.

POWERING THE DEFENSEBy Greg Oshust

[email protected]

J.P. McKay leads the way in

the weight room for Mount

Paran, setting a number of team

weightlifting records.

The 6-foot-1, 230-pound

senior linebacker also leads the

Eagles on the field as well, using

the strength he has gained in the

weight room to anchor the

defense.

McKay will be a senior leader

on a Mount Paran defense that

helped lead the Eagles to a 6-5

record and their first state playoff

berth in 2010.

“Last year was a great year

for the team, making the state

playoffs for the first time,”

McKay said. “Our goal is to

make it back to the state playoffs

and we’re confident that we can

do that.”

McKay played only six games

last year after suffering a strained

MCL halfway through the season.

But he came back in time to help

get Mount Paran in the state play-

offs, returning to the lineup for

the regular-season finale against

Bowdon, and he proceeded to

make the game-clinching inter-

ception in the fourth quarter that

sealed the Ea-gles’ first trip to the

postseason.

“It was a very exciting

moment,” McKay said. “I was

happy to come back and get the

interception that helped put us in

the state playoffs. It was a

moment I will never forget.”

While his season was cut

somewhat short, McKay was still

able to put up some impressive

numbers.

McKay, who had 103 tackles

as a sophomore in 2009, was still

See McKay, Page 41

J.P. MCKAY SETTING THE STANDARD AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN

� Linebacker� Height: 6-1� Weight: 230� Bench Press: 330 � Squat: 485



THE MCKAY FILE

J.P. McKayleads the

team in theweight room,

now it’s histime to lead

the Eagles onthe field and

take MountParan

Christianback to the

Class A playoffs.

�Staff /

Jon-MichaelSullivan

2011

CHE

ROKE

ESU

PER

SIX

KICKOFF 2011


MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN EAGLES


PACE ACADEMY 34-36 LN. COBB CHR. 54-6 WHARALSON CO. 28-19 WTRION 7-20 LDARLINGTON 14-31 LGORDON LEE 14-13 WBREMEN 7-28 LWALKER 14-0 WMT. ZION 48-0 WBOWDON 34-27 WATHENS ACAD. 7-34 L

WON 6, LOST 5

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Mitch JordanAge: 44Year at School: 4Record: 16-14Career Rec.: 16-14

Varsity Coaching StaffKenny Palmer — Running BacksTab Griffin — Assistant HCGreg Steele — Defensive LineJack LaPrad — Offensive LineJoel Hazard — ReceiversGreg Stephens — Defensive BacksConnie Arnold — Defensive BacksDavid Lowery — Special TeamsWill Durrett — Defensive LineKyle Reese — Linebackers


ATPACE ACADEMY

AUG. 26

VS. N. COBB CHR.

SEPT. 2

ATHARALSON CO.

SEPT. 9

ATTRION

SEPT. 16

VS.DARLINGTONSEPT. 23

ATGORDON LEE

OCT. 7

VS.BREMENOCT. 14

VS. WALKEROCT. 21

ATMT. ZION-CAR.

OCT. 28

VS.BOWDONNOV. 4

NAME CLASS

CONNOR CLAUSSEN 12

MASON COX 12

COLBY DOZIER 12

MATT EBERT 12

ELSBREE CONNOR 12

JED HARRIS 12

DANIEL LOPERA 12

JP MCKAY 12

CARTER MCKINNON 12

SAM ROGERS 12

NAME CLASS

RYAN SHEFFIELD 12

JAY THOMAS 12

AUSTIN WATT 12

DEVON YEAGER 12

WES BROOKS 11

JAKE JEANS 11

KEITH JOHNSON 11

DOUGLAS LEGG 11

MATT MCKENSIE 11

LAWSON REEVES 11

NAME CLASS

DREW RENNO 11

MATT SMITH 11

DANE STEVENS 11

SCOTTY VALIANI 11

ROBERT WILSON 11

BRYAN BELL 10

DENNIS BELL 10

IAN BERRYMAN 10

DILLON HARRIS 10

DALLAS KEPLER 10

NAME CLASS

CONNOR LEONARD 10

JACOB RAMSEY 10

MICHAEL YOUNG 10

PHILLIP ADDISON 9

JAKE ALLEN 9

BRANDON BARNES 9

STETSON CLAPP 9

JOHN LOHER 9

NICK SBRAVATI 9

COLE WAGGONER 9

Season Outlook

Mount Paran will try to

take another step forward in

the development of its young

football program after enjoy-

ing a breakthrough season

that included the school’s

first-ever state playoff berth.

Doing so with be a chal-

lenge, however, after the

Eagles lost a large senior

class that played an impor-

tant role in securing their spot

in the state playoffs a year

ago

Mount Paran will have

some big holes to fill after

losing three-year starting

quarterback and two-time

team most valuable player

Zack Greenwell, as well as

three-year starters David Ian

(running back/linebacker) and

Landon Bentley (running

back/free safety).

The Eagles will also have

to rebuild their offensive line

after losing four standout

starters.

Finding a new quarterback

is the top priority for coach

Mitch Jordan, with sopho-

mores Dennis Bell and Ian

Berryman and junior Robert

Wilson the candidates.

Mount Paran will rely on

the senior leadership of

inside linebacker/fullback J.P.

McKay center/defensive end

Colby Dozier, running

back/strong safety Connor

Claussen, defensive

back/wide receiver Ryan

Sheffield, wide receiver

Mason Cox and offensive

lineman/defensive end Sam

Rogers.

The Eagles will be espe-

cially strong in special teams,

with sophomore Dallas

Kepler — considered to be

one of the best kickers in the

state — leading the way.

Making things even more

difficult is competing in a

tough Region 6A that

includes Darlington — a state

semifinalist two years ago —

and Bremen, as well as

Bowdon.

Despite the losses of key

personal, Mount Paran still

has the talent to contend for

a state playoff spot and if the

Eagles can fill those holes in

the offensive line and play

solid defense, they could find

themselves back in the post-

season for a second straight

year.



EXPECTATIONS HIGH FOR CHEROKEE SUPER SIXETOWAH LEADS THE WAY WITH THREE LIKELY COLLEGE SIGNEES

If recent success is any indicator, this year’s Cherokee Super Six is in for a great season. Last year, Etowahsent Christian Harris and Jason Holdway to the next level, and this year it could be the trio of Barrett Burns,Brandon Goodman and Devonte Wheaton. Cherokee has Tunde Ayinla for two more seasons, Woodstock’sJonathan Wiener grabs the reins of the Wolverines and Mitchell Smith patrols the defense for Sequoyah.DEVONTEWHEATON, ETOWAH

POSITION: RUNNING BACK

HEIGHT: 5-9

WEIGHT: 175

40-TIME: 4.38


GEORGIA, AUBURN, MISSISSIPPI

STATE, OLE MISS, MIDDLE

TENNESSEE, GEORGIA SOUTHERN,

SOUTH ALABAMA

LAST YEAR, DEVONTE

WHEATON, WHO IS ENTERING HIS

THIRD VARSITY SEASON AND SEC-

OND YEAR AS A STARTER, RUSHED

FOR 765 YARDS AND 10 TOUCH-

DOWNS WHILE HELPING ETOWAH

TO A 9-2 RECORD AND A REGION

5AAAAA CHAMPIONSHIP.

WHILE HIS NUMBERS WERE

SOLID, WHEATON, WHO IS BEING

RECRUITED BY MISSISSIPPI,

MISSISSIPPI STATE, AUBURN AND

MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE, HOPES

TO HAVE EVEN MORE OF A PRES-

ENCE ON OFFENSE THIS SEASON.

WITH 4.38 SPEED IN THE 40-YARD

DASH, WHEATON’S SPEED IS DEFI-

NITELY HIS STRENGTH.

JONATHANWIENER, WOODSTOCK


HEIGHT: 5-11

WEIGHT: 170

40-TIME: 4.44


WOFFORD, GEORGIA SOUTHERN,

HARVARD, FURMAN, GEORIGA TECH

LAST SEASON, JONATHAN

WIENER DID EVERYTHING FOR THE

WOLVERINES EXCEPT FOR STRIP-

ING THE FIELD AND MIXING UP THE

GATORADE. IN ALL, WIENER

SERVED AS THE TEAM’S PLACE-

KICKER, KICKOFF SPECIALIST,

QUARTERBACK, WIDE RECEIVER

AND DEFENSIVE BACK.

THIS YEAR, HE WILL SIMILARLY

BE MOVED AROUND THE FIELD,

THOUGH QUARTERBACK DUTIES

WILL BE SPLIT WITH PRYCE WASH-

INGTON. WHEN HE’S NOT AT QUAR-

TERBACK, WIENER WILL PLAY AT

WIDE RECEIVER AND VICE VERSA.

BRANDON GOODMAN,ETOWAHPOSITION: DEFENSIVE BACK


COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: BALL STATE, NAVY

BRANDON GOODMAN WILL HAVE A LITTLE

MORE RESPONSIBILITY AS PART OF THE ETOWAH

DEFENSE THIS SEASON.GOODMAN WILL GET TO CALL MORE OF THE

ACTION AS THE EAGLES’ STARTING SAFETY. THE

5-FOOT-10, 165-POUND SENIOR, WILL HAVE HIS

FOCUS WILL BE ON CALLING COVERAGES AS

OPPOSED TO REACTING TO WHAT’S CALLED.

TUNDE AYINLA, CHEROKEE

POSITION: DEFENSIVE LINE



GEORGIA SOUTHERN

CHEROKEE JUNIOR NOSE TACKLE TUNE AYINLA

IS STILL GROWING IN SIZE, AS WELL AS POTENTIAL.

AS THE LEADER OF THE WARRIOR DEFENSIVE

LINE, AYINLA HAS THE ABILITY TO SLOW DOWN THE

RUN AND RUSH THE PASSER. HE‘S ALSO EFFICIENT

IN READING THE OPPOSING TENDENCIES BEFORE A

PLAY GETS OFF.

MITCHELL SMITH,SEQUOYAH



COLLEGE(S) BEING RECRUITED BY: GEORGIA

SOUTHERN, SOUTH ALABAMA, EASTERN KENTUCKY,

EAST CAROLINA

SMITH IS ABLE TO SEPARATE HIMSELF FROM

OTHER LINEMEN VIA HIS AGILITY. SMITH DOESN’T CON-

SUME GAPS AS A NEARLY 300 POUND LINEMAN MIGHT,

BUT HE IS ABLE TO MOVE TO THE BALL QUICKLY.

BARRETT BURNS, ETOWAH

POSITION: WIDE RECEIVER



AUBURN, AIR FORCE, RICE, ARKANSAS STATE, BALL

STATE, GEORGIA SOUTHERN, GEORGIA STATE

BURNS’S PRODUCTION WILL STILL BE HIGH DESPITE

BRADEN NOLAN’S GRADUATION. HE WAS THE TEAM’S

LEADING RECEIVER LAST YEAR WITH 30 CATCHES FOR

405 YARDS, AND HIS BIG FRAME SHOULD MAKE HIM AN

EASY TARGET FOR JUNIOR REEVES JOHNSON, WHO

TAKES OVER THE SIGNAL-CALLING DUTIES FROM NOLAN.


MACLAND BAPTIST CHURCH

Pastor: Dr. Richard Walker

SUNDAY:

8:15 a.m. - Early Worship • 9:45 a.m. - Sunday School

11:00 a.m. - Morning Worship • 6:00 p.m. - Evening Worship

WEDNESDAY

7:00 p.m. - Midweek Prayer Service

Children’s Ministry • Senior Activities

Southern Gospel Music • Student Ministry

“Faithful to the Call”

3732 Macland Road • Powder Springs, Georgia 30127

770.943.5511

www.maclandbaptist.org

MCEACHERN INDIANSABOUT THE INDIANSLocation: 2400 New Macland Road, Powder Springs. Phone: (770) 222-3710. Home Field: Walter Cantrell Stadium. Team Colors: Blue, Gold. Online: mceachernhigh.org/football.html

HE’S THE MAN NOWBy Carlton D. White

[email protected]

For the past two seasons,

McEachern coach Kyle Hockman

was faced with an interesting,

albeit, easy dilemma. The Indians’

mentor had two very good quar-

terbacks in Dondre Purnell and

Trent Thompson, and they found

that the best way to get them both

on the field was to have them split

time during games.

The idea worked well as

McEachern won 10 or more

games both seasons and finished

its region slate undefeated in cap-

turing back-to-back region titles.

Because Purnell was a year

ahead of Thompson, everyone

involved knew that at some point,

Purnell would graduate and the

offense would belong to

Thompson. Entering the 2011

campaign, that time is now for the

6-foot-2, 185 pound signal-caller,

and he’s ready to take the reins

full-time.

“It’s exciting,” Thompson

said. “There’s a lot more pressure

on me now, but I’m ready. My

job is to win games. I had help

with that before, but now it’s my

job. It will be a little bit more

nerve-racking, but I’m excited for

the opportunity.”

Thompson and Purnell were

both very good passing quarter-

backs. A lefty, Thompson complet-

ed 76 of 140 pass attempts last sea-

son for 1,023 yards and totaled 10

touchdowns with four interceptions.

See Man, Page 41

THOMPSON BECOMES MCEACHERN’S FULL-TIME SIGNAL-CALLER

After sharingquarterback

duties lastyear with

DondrePurnell,

TrentThompson

will be counted on

to leadMcEachern’s

offense onhis own in

2011.

�Staff /

Samantha M.Shal

� Quarterback � Height: 6-2� Weight: 185

2010 Season Stats� Passing: 76-of-140, 1,023yards, 10 TD

THE THOMPSON FILE

KICKOFF 2011



ATCREEKVIEWAUG. 26

VS. JOHNS CREEK

SEPT. 2

VS.NW WHITFIELD

SEPT. 9

ATCASS

SEPT. 16

VS. ROME

SEPT. 23

ATS. FORSYTHSEPT. 30

ATCHATTAHOOCHEE

OCT. 14

VS.LAMBERTOCT. 21

ATFORSYTH CEN.

OCT. 28

ATWOODLAND-BAR.

NOV. 4

SEQUOYAH CHIEFS


CREEKVIEW 13-17 LJOHNS CREEK 21-24 LNW WHITFIELD 27-14 WCASS 31-28 WROME 13-12 WSOUTH FORSYTH 32-35 LCHATTAHOOCHEE 7-45 LLAMBERT 10-3 WFORSYTH CENTRAL 35-17 WWOODLAND 39-42 L

WON 5, LOST 5

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:James TeterAge: 46Year at School: 3Record: 11-9Career Rec.: 111-76


Justin Bacile — Off. CoordinatorJeff Beinke/Matt Munday — OLCurtis Williams — ReceiversOwen Shaver — Running BacksGreg Key — LinebackersDerrick White/Travis Sheffield — DLRashid Gayle/Jeremy Law — DB

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 BLAKE INGLETON RB/LB 113 DUSTIN DAWSON RB/DB 114 FELIPE RESTREPO RB/DB 115 PETER ROHAN RB/LB 106 ALEX FUNDERBURK QB/DB 107 COLLIER RATCLIFF RB/LB 128 FRANK IBAR WR/DB 1111 TRENTON DORNER QB/DB 1112 JAMES HARRIS WR/K 1013 ALEX MILLER QB/DB 1214 LEX LAULETTA OB/DB 1016 WESLEY DELVEGA WR/DB 1117 BRIAN EXLEY QB/DB 1018 ZACHARY CLEAVER QB/DB 1119 SAM ROGERS RB/DB 1020 DJ AUSTIN RB/DB 1021 JAKE GARNER RB/LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

22 OBIE MYERS RB/DB 1223 NICK FALCO TE/LB 1024 COLE TEMPLES RB/LB 1225 JOSH DIETTER WR/DB 1126 KOREY HENKLE RB/DB 1127 JONATHAN KIRBY RB/DB 1028 STUART GLASSIC RB/DB 1129 C. VANDYKE WR/DB 1230 JUSTIN LUND RB/DB 1031 M. EUBANKS WR/DB 1032 S. WILLIAMS OL/DL 1233 DANIEL FABINIAK WR/DB 1034 JONATHAN TAMAYO RB/K 1035 ALEX SMITH WR/DB 1036 AHMAD BRATTON RB/DB 1038 WAYNE COOPER WR/DB 1139 MATT RUMP TE/LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

46 THOMAS PERRY TE/LB 1148 G. TERRIENTES RB/LB 1049 MITCHELL SMITH TE/DL 1250 LOGAN HONEA OL/DL 1151 A.J. BROWN OL/DL 1052 COLIN DOZIER OL/DL 1153 ALEX MAY OL/DL 1254 C.J. COLLINS OL/DL 1055 KYLE TAYLOR OL/DL 1256 CORY SHIRLEY OL/DL 1257 JOSH MENNICKE OL/LB 1158 ADAM FREE OL/LB 1159 THOMAS SPEARS OL/DL 1160 BRAD LASELVA OL/LB 1061 GABRIEL CLARK OL/LB 1162 DALTON ANDERSON OL/DL 1163 W. MCFARLAND OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

64 CHRIS RIDDLE OL/LB 1065 C. SOUTHERLAND OL/DL 1066 AUSTIN OUDEANS OL/DL 1267 DANIEL MCKUNE OL/DL 1068 BLAKE VINCENT OL/DL 1069 PRESLEY TURNER OL/DL 1070 MALCOLM SIMPSON TE/DL 1271 JEAN LEGRAND OL/DL 1172 NOAH POPE OL/DL 1073 WYATT JACOBS OL/DL 1074 JOHN BRANGAN OL/DL 1175 ZACK BELANGER OL/DL 1276 D. PICKELSIMER OL/LB 1079 ELI WARE OL/DL 1084 LOGAN WALTERS WR/DB 1085 N. DEDEMONICUS WR/DB 1288 KYLE WISNIEWSKI TE/LB 1089 WOODY PIERRE WR/LB 10

Season Outlook

With the loss of its entireoffensive line, quarterback BenRogers and defensive captainand linebacker BrandonAlexander to graduation, it’sclear Sequoyah will have somequestion marks going into theseason.

Offensively, the Chiefs willhave three returning starterswith most in the backfield.With that Sequoyah believesits tradition of running thefootball will keep the offense

running smoothly.“Most people look at (the

departures) and don’t think itmeans a lot of good things,”Sequoyah coach James Tetersaid. “But our running backs aregood enough that if they canget some creases in the line,then they should help the quar-terback. If they can do that,then we won’t have to worryabout throwing it a lot and allowour young men to grow.”

Sequoyah’s returners at run-

ning back include senior ObieMyers and junior BlakeIngleton. At quarterback, theChiefs have six players listed,though only one was listed inlast year’s preseason roster —sophomore Lex Lauletta. Itsonly senior Alex Miller is theelder of the group.

As much as the offensiveline has question, the defensiveline has answers. In the Chiefs’3-4 defensive scheme, MitchellSmith, Colin Dozier and

Malcolm Simpson are theteam’s anchors. Outside of theline, senior Collier Ratcliff willlead the linebackers, and theremainder of the group will becomprised of players from lastyear’s JV team. The secondarywill have speed and athleticismto burn, but will lack experience.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


MCEACHERN INDIANS


P’TREE RIDGE 21-24 LLOWNDES 23-22 WMARIETTA 52-24 WCAMPBELL 54-15 WSOUTH COBB 56-23 WHILLGROVE 64-48 WPEBBLEBROOK 43-21 WNORTH COBB 31-28 WHARRISON 28-10 WKMHS 21-10 WEAST COWETA 31-19 WVALDOSTA 28-31 L

WON 10, LOST 2

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Kyle HockmanAge: 44Year at School: 4Record: 25-8Career Rec.: 65-35

Varsity Coaching StaffGeoff Pastrick — Assistant HCDave Likins — Def. CoordinatorVan Spence — Off. CoordinatorJon Osnowitz — Running BacksKen Hockman — ReceiversRich Foster — Tight EndsBryan Minish — Defensive LineCedric Corse — LinebackersPhil Hoskins — LinebackersTerrence Tarpley — Defensive BacksChris Cody — Defensive BacksRandy Taylor — Special Teams


DOMEN. GWINNETT

AUG. 20

ATLOWNDESSEPT. 2

VS.MARIETTASEPT. 9

VS.CAMPBELLSEPT. 16

ATSOUTH COBB

SEPT. 30

VS.HILLGROVE

OCT. 7

ATPEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 14

VS. NORTH COBB

OCT. 21

ATHARRISONOCT. 28

VS.KMHSNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 JALONI WELLS DB 12

2 CHRIS NWAGBARA RB 12

3 TRAY FLETCHER WR 12

4 EDWARD THOMAS DB 12

7 AMBA ETTA-TAWO WR 12

8 DARIUS ENGLISH DE 12

9 TY. CLEMONS QB 10

10 TRENT THOMPSON QB 12

12 CHASE JONES QB 10

13 WILLIAM CARTER WR 12

14 MIKE SHERMAN RB 11

15 MARLON PATTERSON WR 12

16 NICH. ST. GERMAIN PK/P 12

18 VICTOR BRANNON TE 12

19 MALIK WILLIAMS WR 10

20 CAMERON GAMBLE DB 12

DESMOND BATTLE DB 12

21 CJ CODY DB 12

22 DARYUS THOMPSON DB 10

23 DARRELL RENDER OLB 11

24 KELL PARHAM OLB 11

25 XAVIER JACKSON WR 12

DAVID PHILLIPS DB 10

26 JAMES BRICE RB 10

27 VICTOR HALL LB 12

28 SHAKEL HOLLMAN RB 12

DAQUAN BRANCH QB 11

29 JUSTIN MCDANIEL DB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.30 JONTE JACKSON WR 10

JOSHUA FARARA RB 11

31 RAHMOI PARSONS DB 10

NATHAN HOLT LB 12

32 JAYLYN WHITE DB 10

33 ALIZEE CHUBBS RB 10

MARQUISE BOYCE OLB 11

34 KEI-YON JOHNSON RB 10

DENNIS DOMINGUEZ DB 10

35 ELIJIAH VAN DORN WR 10

36 MICHAEL WILLIAMS DB 10

ANTONIO RICHARDSON LB 11

37 KAHLIL SMITH DB 12

38 RYAN SHERMAN RB 10

JERRY CADLEY RB 11

39 LUIS DELGADO OLB 11

DJ HENDRIX DB 11

40 LEON BOYCE LB 11

KEENAN STARNES LB 11

41 DA’QUAVIOUS LEWIS LB 12

42 JORDAN BURGE OLB 11

43 YOHANNAS MATHYAS OLB 12

45 SEAN CARTER RB 11

46 ANTOINE JONES LB 12

47 JUSTIN PENDLETON OLB 10

48 ANFERNEE LIVAS LB 10

JAMARCUS GRACE RB 11

49 TYLER SMITH PK/P 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.50 NAZIR WYNNE DE 11

51 GANT MORGAN DL 12

52 AZAR WILSON DL 12

53 CHRISTIAN WADE LB 10

54 MITCH LONG LB 12

55 GLENN FRAZIER LB 10

56 ZACH SMITH LB 10

57 DOLAPO OREKOYA LB 11

58 RANDY TRUESDALE DL 10

59 HUNTER BLOEDOW OL 10

FREDDIE BROWN WR 10

60 ANTONIO VANLENTINE OL 10

61 CHIDI ONWUZURVOHA OL 11

62 CHARLES THOMPSON OL 10

63 CJ NORRELL OL 10

64 DAQUAN OWENS DE 10

65 JONATHAN BOYKEN DL 11

66 TELVIN ROSSER DL 11

67 LORENZO FORTIN OL 10

68 RONDREZ SPICER DL 11

69 UCHE NKADI OL 10

70 DEMETRIUS GARNER OL 11

71 ROBERT WALLACE OL 12

72 TRAVIS FAIR OL 11

73 RASHAAD GRAHAM OL 12

74 MALCOM RICKS OL 12

75 KOFI AMICHIA OL 12

76 JUJUAN DULANEY OL 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.77 CHUMA EDOGA OL 9

78 SHERROD PITTMAN OL 11

79 CHANDLER JONES OL 9

80 ANDY CADLEY WR 10

81 CHRISITAN FORD DB 10

82 DEVON KIRKLAND TE 11

83 TREY SCOTT TE 10

DAVON PHILLIPS OLB 10

84 JAMAR JEFFEREY LB 10

MYLES EDE WR 10

85 RAJON WRIGHT WR 11

AKINOLA OSOTO DE 12

87 RASHEED GARMAN TE 11

88 CHRIS OKEH TE 11

89 HASSAN WILLIAMS TE 10

90 DARIEN EARLY TE 11

91 JERRY NWANKWOH OLB 10

92 DANIEL FREDRICK DL 11

93 STEVEN MURRAY DL 10

94 DEQUOUIS OWENS DE 10

JAMIE KINCAID WR 10

95 JAUN VENTURA PK/P 10

96 HENRY FAMUREWA DE 10

97 JUSTIN ANDERSON WR 10

TRE ALLEN DL 10

98 MCKENZIE BILLINGSLEA DE 10

99 JED NWANKWOH DL 12

Season Outlook

McEachern returns five offen-

sive starters and eight defensive

starters from a team that cap-

tured its second consecutive

region championship, went 10-2

and advanced to the second

round of the state playoffs.

A model of consistentcy over

the past two years, the Indians’

don’t appear to be showing any

signs of slowing down in 2011.

With an experienced defense

back as well as many of its offen-

sive skill players, McEachern

could very well see the type of

success it had last year.

Trent Thompson, who split

time with Dondre Purnell at quar-

terback the past two seasons,

takes over the position full time

this year as the starter. Chris

Nwagbara is also back at run-

ning back as are wide receivers

Amba Etta-Tawo and Tray

Fletcher and offensive lineman

Kofi Amichia.

“I think, offensively, we have

a chance to score like we did

last year,” McEachern coach

Kyle Hockman said. “We have

an inexperienced offensive line,

so it will take a while to hone in

on that, but as the season

goes, I think things will pick up

for us.”

Defense could be

McEachern’s strength right out of

the gate with so much experi-

ence and leadership on that side

of the ball. Back are linemen

Darius English and Jed

Nwankwoh, linebackers Mitch

Long and Victor Hall, safeties

Jaloni Wells and Edward

Thomas and defensive backs CJ

Cody and Cameron Gable.

“Our defense will be good,

but not in the sense that we’re

going have 10-3 games,”

Hockman said. “We’re going to

be physical and we’re going to

run the ball. We have a game

plan for our offense, defense

and special teams, and the flow

of the game will tell us how well

we’re doing and will dictate

play.”



SEQUOYAH CHIEFSABOUT THE CHIEFSAddress: 4485 Hickory Road, Canton. Phone: (770) 345-1474. Home Field: Skip Pope Stadium. Team Colors: Black and Gold. Online: www.sequoyahfootball.com.

Staff / Todd HullThere is plenty of sibling rivalry in the Dozier family. Marcus,left, graduated from Cherokee, but his brother, Colin, cur-rently plays defensive tackle for Sequoyah.

By William [email protected]

For Sequoyah defensive line-man Colin Dozier, his life hasbeen all about adapting tochange.

Before he was born, Dozier’sfather died, meaning that he andhis older brother, Marcus, had tobecome more responsible withouttheir father.

“My dad died before I wasborn,” Colin said. “Mom’s theonly that I’ve got. She’s a hard-working lady. (It’s hard) a little,but I’ve learned to deal with it.

My brother helped as much as hecan, and that helps a lot.

“Father’s Day, of course, ishard. But I try to hang out withmy friends and get my mind offof it a lot of times and have fun.(Football) helps a lot. It allows

me to work out my family prob-lems and any other problems. Ican focus on playing football andenjoying my time on the field.”

Prior to playing for Sequoyah,Dozier was a part of the Cherokeecommunity and Marcus, now 24years old, played for the Warriors.From an early age, Colin rootedon his brother at Tommy BakerField. Then, Colin played forCherokee’s middle-school teambefore his mother’s house wasmoved into Sequoyah’s districtvia the lines being shifted beforethe ninth grade.

“(It was) a little bit (hard), butSee Dozier, Page 68

ADAPTING TO CHANGEDOZIER ADJUSTS TO FATHER’S DEATH, CHANGE IN SCHOOL DISTRICT

� Defensive Lineman� Height: 5-9 1/2� Weight: 280

2010 Season Stats� 52 tackles, 34 solo, 2 sacks, fumble recovery

THE DOZIER FILE

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By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

Marietta quarterback AnthonyJennings has some big shoes to fill.

Much like several other quarterbacksbefore him, Jennings has heard the sto-ries about former Blue Devils signal-caller Eric Zeier, who graduated from theprogram following the 1990 season ratedas the top quarterback in the country.

Zeier went on to become one of themost prolific passers in University ofGeorgia history, breaking several records,earning All-America honors and spendingsix seasons in the NFL.

But rather than feeling intimidated orhoping that he doesn’t fail to live up toZeier’s accomplishments, Jennings isembracing a different pathway to successat Marietta.

“I try to model myself after EricZeier,” he said. “Not only on the footballfield, but with my grade-point average,attitude on and off the field, supportingmy teammates and making sure I haverespect for others — just everything thatgoes into being a model student-athlete

and good person.“Even though I’ve never met him, I’ve

seen some of his highlights, and I knowhe went to UGA and had a great careerthere. Just looking at him on video, I cansee how good of a quarterback he wasand how well he operated a team.”

Zeier was a bit surprised by Jennings’comment.

“I truly appreciate that compliment(that Jennings would like to emulatehim),” said Zeier, the 1990 GatoradeGeorgia Player of the Year for football. “Itmeans a lot. It’s humbling when someonesays something like.”

As luck would have it Anthony’s father,Willie, played defensive tackle with Zeierduring the 1990 and 1991 seasons atGeorgia.

“I haven’t seen (Willie’s) son,” saidZeier, who now works as the color com-mentator on Georgia radio broadcasts.“I’m going to have to try to get out thereand see thim play.”

Based on his numbers, Jennings, a 6-foot-2, 200-pound junior who is enter-ing his second season as the Blue Devilsstarting quarterback, should be putting up

solid numbers whenever Zeier arrives.As a sophomore last year, Jennings,

who shares a last name but is not relatedto former Marietta quarterback StanleyJennings, did as much with his arm as hedid with his feet in leading Marietta to a2-8 record. He completed 124 of 240 passattempts for 1,578 yards and 15 touch-downs with 12 interceptions. He also ledthe Blue Devils in rushing with 154 car-ries for 673 yards and six touchdowns.

The numbers don’t mean a lot toJennings. He’s motivated by having therespect of his teammates and playing wellfor them.

“I was happy and excited to get thestarting quarterback job last year,” hesaid, “but I also didn’t want to let theteam down. There’s always more thingsfor me to work on, and I got better as theseason went on.”

Individually, Jennings has workedmore on his footwork and being a betterleader during practice and the offseason.However, as a team, it’s the intangibles —like hard work, dedication, leadership andcommitment to the team — that will helpMarietta improve.

“Without those intangibles, we won’tbe able to do things the right way,” hesaid. “Vision, arm strength and height, allof that stuff is important, but not asimportant as the intangibles.”

Zeier expressed a similar view.“The one big thing I hope (Jennings)

gets is to be a great teammate,” he said.“What I accomplished at Marietta wasbecause of my teammates and how wellwe stuck together. Football is truly a teamsport, and it’s about bringing the teamtogether and making sure everyone is onthe same page.

“Be great people on the field and evenbetter people in the hallways and stayfocused on your schoolwork.”

Jennings plans to do all of that andlooks forward to a successful season forthe Blue Devils.

“I’m honored to lead these guys intothe future but anything can happen,”Jennings said. “We have to keep work-ing hard in the classroom and on thefield to get the wins. We’ll be a goodteam if we can come together as a fami-ly and be cohesive at practice and atgames.”

MARIETTA BLUE DEVILSABOUT THE BLUE DEVILSLocation: 1171 Whitlock Avenue SW, Marietta. Phone: (770) 428-2631. Home Field: Northcutt Stadium. Team Colors: Blue, White. Online: bluedevil-football.com

JENNINGS READY TO MAKE MARIETTA RUNJUNIOR SIGNAL-CALLER GAINS INSPIRATION FROM FORMER BLUE DEVIL AND GEORGIA GREAT ZEIER

Marietta quarterback Anthony Jennings wantsto be the best and is not afraid to look up tothe best for inspiration. Jennings said he likesto model his game after former Blue Devilsand Georgia great Eric Zeier.

�Staff / Samantha M. Shal

� Height: 6-2 � Weight: 2002010 Season Stats� Passing: 124-of-240, 1,578 yards, 15 TD� Rushing: 154 carries, 673 yards, 6 TD

THE JENNINGS FILE

ABOUT ANTHONY JENNINGS

If he was an animal, he would be a lionbecause they’re fierce, competitive and want to

win and be the best

If he had a superpower, he would have superspeed so he could get anywhere as fast as possible

If you won $20 million, he would buy his parents something nice and invest the rest

KICKOFF 2011


SOUTH COBB EAGLES


MARIETTA 13-17 LWHEELER 34-0 WNORTHVIEW 27-13 WHILLGROVE 20-19 WMCEACHERN 23-56 LHARRISON 7-10 LKMHS 24-6 WCAMPBELL 27-0 WNORTH COBB 31-23 WPEBBLEBROOK 24-21 WNEWNAN 7-31 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Ed KoesterAge: 56Year at School: 4Record: 11-20Career Rec.: 126-99

Varsity Coaching StaffAllen Gordon — Def. CoordinatorKenneth Burchette — Off. Coord.Brad Trout — Running BacksMichael Johnston — Defensive LineShawn Carr — Offensive LineSherrod Rainge — ReceiversBrad Trout — Special TeamsChris Bright, Tripp Allen, GregGriffin, Malcolm Hall — Assistants


ATMARIETTAAUG. 26

VS. WHEELERSEPT. 2

VS.NORTHVIEWSEPT. 9

ATHILLGROVESEPT. 16

VS. MCEACHERNSEPT. 30

ATHARRISONOCT. 7

VS.KMHSOCT. 14

ATCAMPBELLOCT. 21

ATNORTH COBB

OCT. 28

VS.PEBBLEBROOK

NOV. 5

NO. NAME POS.

3 JOSH KIMBLE DB4 STEPHON MASHA QB5 GARY JONES WR6 KYLE PERKINS WR7 BRANDON WATSON S8 JOHN BROWN RB9 CHRISTOPHER SIMON WR11 RYAN SUMNER WR12 JEREMIAH ALPHABET WR15 ISAIH HUGHES LB16 SLYVESTER BRADLY WR17 OLADELE OSISAMI S

NO. NAME POS.

18 JORDAN HARTON S19 CARLOS ANDERSON WR20 WILLIAM REID S21 JAMAL THOMAS DB22 CHRISTOPHER BECK RB23 DENZELL VAUGHN DB24 JAVONTE KNIGHT DB26 LOUIS CALDWELL DB29 URIAH BAYETE’ LB40 CHAUNCEY INGRAM WR41 THADDEUS SHAW LB42 BERNARDO GOODE LB

NO. NAME POS.

45 JUSTIN SURRY LB46 KENNETH BAKER LB48 BRANDON WILCOX DB51 KINYARDA RILEY DE54 NICK HIBBERT LB55 ERIC BRANCH OL56 JASKARAN SAHDRA OL57 ALLEN HAWTHORNE LB58 DANIEL BONIFACE OL59 TAYLAR WILSON OL61 JALEN JOHNSON OL62 JARED JENKINS OL63 BRICE CONNER DE

NO. NAME POS.

64 JUSTIN EMEAFOR DE65 TERRANCE WELLS DL68 GRABEN HIGGINS LB69 TEVIN TICHENOR OL70 MICHAEL SCOTT OL71 JACOB MONROE OL72 RASHAD REDMOND DL73 ALPHONSO SIMMONS OL76 NILES HAMILTON OL77 MICHEAL EADDY OL78 GABRIEL ROSA DL80 MARSHALL PIERRE WR83 DENZELL SCOTT WR

Season Outlook

For the first time since 2006,South Cobb reached the stateplayoffs after a late-season runsaw the Eagles rattle off fourstraight wins.

That feat, however, will bedifficult to duplicate this season,as South Cobb will be withoutmany key facets of last year’srun. The team’s leader, quarter-

back Johntavious Mullins is nowat North Carolina A&T. So too, isleading rusher Demarcus Adkinsand top offensive lineman andleft tackle Garrison Ushery.

Defensively, the team will bewithout linebacker WilliamSmalls, who is now at FloridaA&M.

South Cobb does return five

starters on offense, and three ondefense leading the team to bemore optimistic in proving to therest of the county that last sea-son was not a fluke. Though theEagles will once again haveplenty of speed and athleticism,the team will have to deal with alack of experience and finding atrue leader on each side of the

ball to step up and make the keyplay — a void that did not existlast season. Also, South Cobb’soffensive line will be brand-new.During summer workouts, everyposition was up for grabs on theteam’s line.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


MARIETTA BLUE DEVILS


SOUTH COBB 17-13 WHILLGROVE 14-17 LMCEACHERN 24-52 LALPHARETTA 10-51 LWHEELER 41-34 WWOODSTOCK 7-42 LETOWAH 29-36 LLASSITER 7-21 LWALTON 28-59 LCHEROKEE 20-27 L

WON 2, LOST 8

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Scott BurtonAge: 38Year at School: 2Record: 2-8Career Rec.: 74-34

Varsity Coaching StaffJason Meade — Def. CoordinatorCris Bell/Greg Jackson — LinebackersKen Wakefield — Defensive BacksJaaran Nesbitt — Tight EndsJoe Montford — Defensive LineCharlie Crittendon — Off. CoordinatorJason Krug — Offensive LineLabrone Mitchell — ReceiversBrian Grundmeyer — Running BacksNick Houstoulakis — Defensive Backs


VS.SOUTH COBB

AUG. 26

ATHILLGROVESEPT. 2

ATMCEACHERN

SEPT. 9

VS.ALPHARETTASEPT. 16

VS. WHEELERSEPT. 23

VS.WOODSTOCK

OCT. 7

ATETOWAHOCT. 14

ATLASSITEROCT. 21

ATWALTONOCT. 28

VS.CHEROKEENOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL. 1 TYRELL TOMLIN LB 10

2 RONTREZ BARCLAY LB 12

3 PETER SAVIC CB 11

5 RO’MELLO PORTER RB 12

6 JALEN MCLAURIN RB 12

7 TYREE HARRIS WR 11

8 MARCUS BENNETT WR 10

9 AMANUEL GANTT CB 11

10 JAYLEN HILL DB 12

11 JORDAN MATHIS QB 10

12 ANTHONY JENNINGS QB 11

13 MYRON WASHINGTON LB 12

14 TJ BULOCK QB 10

16 KENNY NORWOOD WR 11

17 CARTER SMITH WR 11

18 LANDY PHILLIPS CB 12

19 CHAVEZ HEMPHILL WR 11

20 ASI WILSON LB 12

21 LAWTON WARD LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL. 22 DERRICK ROBINSON DE 12

23 JORDAN MARION DB 11

24 KHALLID WALLACE DB 12

25 ONTERRIO LAY LB 10

26 MONTREL HEARD CB 11

27 ZACH SULLIVAN WR 11

28 TAVIO HUTSON RB 10

29 SIMEYON BOBBETT DB 10

30 KARDELL GAINES LB 12

31 JALEN JONES DB 10

32 MALIK FRYE RB 10

33 JONATHAN LOGAN LB 11

34 CHRIS. FLOOD RB 10

35 BANKS MARTIN K 12

36 ALEX AMBIO LB 10

37 HANK HENDERSON WR 11

38 ZACH HARDEN DB 11

40 DAREON AGURS DB 10

41 DAVID CARRILLO DB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL. 42 MARQUES ROWE DL 12

43 JHAQUARIOUS REID DB 10

46 DARRIN HYPSHER LB 10

47 DAVID WILLIS DB 10

49 DANIEL CUYLER RB 11

50 JAMEL JOHNSON OL 11

51 ALEX WILKERSON OL 11

52 JOSH BOATENG OL 11

53 ISAIAH BORNE OL 10

54 DAVIS WILSON OL 11

55 LOU CELLINI OL 12

56 DREYON WILLIAMS DL 10

57 CJ WILSON OL 10

58 JELANI EASLEY OL 11

59 JOHN THOMAS OL 11

60 CHASE JOHNSON OL 11

61 SAMEER KHAN DL 10

63 BRANDON HILL OL 10

64 JERON HOLSEY OL 9

NO. NAME POS. CL. 65 ROSS FRIZZELL DL 10

68 TREY BARTLETT DL 11

71 TRISTAN HARKINS OL 10

72 MYLES BROWN DL 12

73 JARREN LEACH OL 12

74 TREVON THOMAS OL 11

75 ELLIS PHILLIPS OL 10

76 ALEX CHRISTENSEN OL 12

77 SEAN MOORE OL 11

78 CORY PETERS DL 12

79 JON PAUL VETTER DL 11

80 JAN ROBLES DE 11

81 SHOMARI HOLMES WR 11

84 TREY WARREN DE 11

85 DALTON BEE TE 11

87 ANDREW THOMAS LB 10

88 BRANDON MARTIN TE 12

92 CALVIN GRANT DL 10

95 MARTEZ SMITH DB 10

99 LOGAN MARSHALL DL 12

Season Outlook

Marietta returns five starters

on offense and three on defense

from a team that finished the sea-

son with a 2-8 overall record,

marking the Blue Devils’ third los-

ing season in five years after 18

straight non-losing campaigns.

According to second-year

coach Scott Burton, the keys to

improving Marietta’s season

must be in two areas — turnover

ratio and improving the running

game.

“Last season, (our offense)

did not protect the football well

and the defense did a poor job of

taking the ball away from its

opponents,” he said. “This pro-

duced a minus-14 turnover ratio,

something (we) are determined

to improve upon significantly.

“The offense must run the

ball more often and with more

effectiveness. (We) must also

improve on stopping the run.”

One player who shouldn’t

have a problem running with, or

passing, the ball will be junior

quarterback Anthony Jennings. A

dual threat, Jennings accounted

for nearly 2,300 yards of total

offense and 21 touchdowns and

his performance will be another

key to Marietta’s success.

Offensive linemen Davis

Wilson, Alex Wilkerson, Josh

Boateng, Jamel Johnson and

Lou Cellini have plenty of game

experience, while tight ends

Brandon Martin, Kenny Norwood

and Dalton Bee will contribute to

the running and passing game.

Tyree Harris is the top play-

maker at wide receiver, while

Ro’Mello Porter will see the bulk

of the carries at running back.

Defensively, Myles Brown,

Marques Rowe and Cory Peters

will anchor the line, while Myron

Washington, Kardell Gaines,

Lawton Ward and Tyrell Tomlin

should make significant contribu-

tions at linebacker.

According to Burton, the Blue

Devils will rely heavily on two

senior members of the sec-

ondary — Khallid Wallace and

Jaylen Hill.

“The key to (our success) on

offense is improved ball security,”

said Burton, who noted that

Marietta gave up 25 turnovers

last season. “The defense must

start with a solid defensive line,

who’s primary job is to stop the

run. This will force (our) oppo-

nents to attempt to throw the ball

and allow the defense to pres-

sure the passer.”



SOUTH COBB EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 1920 Clay Road, Austell. Phone: (770) 819-2611. Home Field: Clay Stadium. Team Colors: Blue, White. Online: leaguelineup.com/welcome.asp?urlsch.

TAKING THE TASKBy William [email protected]

Last season, South Cobb wasable to reach the postseason forthe first time since 2007 with theleadership of quarterbackJohntavious Mullins, linebackerWilliam Smalls and runningback Demarcus Adkins.

Those three, however, havesince departed for college, andtheir departure creates a void thatSouth Cobb believes will befilled by 5-foot-9 senior corner-back and wide receiver JamalThomas.

As one of two returningstarters for the Eagles’ defense,South Cobb coach Ed Koesterbelieves he has found a quietleader that could help the Eaglesreturn to the postseason.

“Thomas is the best exampleof leadership by example,” hesaid. “He’s here on time. Heworks hard. He’s a great lifter.He’s a real craftsman as a corner

and understands body position.Even as a sophomore, he waspushing for (playing) time. Ofcourse, last year, people lined uptheir tallest guys against him andhe did a heckuva job. We wishpeople would throw his waymore often.”

As a short cornerback, oppos-ing offenses often mistookThomas for a corner they couldthrow at. Though Thomas hadonly two interceptions last sea-son, Koester described him as acornerback that he could dependon. Koester went on to say thatThomas, playing at less than 6

feet tall, is something special ina different age of football.

“One of the things that goesunmentioned, I think, is that,with the rules changes in highschool football, with all of theblocking above the waist and therightful concern with safety, itreally has taken the game awayfrom the average-sized kid. Now,the little kid had better be spe-cial. And we feel like Jamal is.”

While Thomas provides goodcoverage in the secondary,Koester said he will need to bethe vocal leader as well on adefense that only has two return-ing starters from last year.Thomas will be relied on tomove players into position andkeep them motivated, which wasdone last year by the linebackercorps, or, more specifically,Smalls.

“That’s what we’re training,and it’s going to have to comefrom the back,” said Koester, of

See Task, Page 82

SOUTH COBB’S JAMAL THOMAS BECOMES LEADER OF EAGLE DEFENSE

As one of only two returning starters ondefense for South Cobb, Jamal Thomashas become an important leader fromhis cornerback position.


ABOUT JAMAL THOMAS

He’s been playing cornerback since he was 5.

He credits the team’s hunger for victories as the reason South Cobbhad a turnaround season in 2010

� Cornerback, Receiver� Height: 5-9� Weight: 160

2010 Season Stats� 2 Interceptions

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LASSITER TROJANSABOUT THE TROJANSLocation: 2601 Shallowford Road, Marietta. Phone: (678) 494-7863. Home Field: Frank Fillmann Stadium. Colors: Maroon, Gold. Online: www.lassiterfootball.net.

TROJANS POSSESSTHE GIFT OF GRAB

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

It was only four short yearsago when Lassiter ran the option.How times have changed.

The Trojans now run a spreadoffense that heavily emphasizesthe pass. They’ve put up obscenepassing and receiving numbers,as well as points, during the lastthree seasons and have madethree straight trips to the stateplayoffs as a result. Three of thefour full-time Lassiter receiversare returning starters. They knowthey will be in the spotlight thisseason and they are loving theattention.

“It’s a really fun offensebecause it gives us all opportuni-ties to make good plays andcatch the ball,” said seniorreceiver Charlie Hegedus, whocommitted to North CarolinaState over the summer. “We’remaking big plays (during the pre-season), but we can’t finish thedrive yet. That’s what we have tobuild on.”

After winning their first play-off game in team history in 2008under then-coach Chip Lindsey,the Trojans took their passinggame to another level the follow-ing year. They averaged 41points per game en route to aRegion 6AAAAA championship

and a berth to the state quarterfi-nals for a total of 543 in 13 games.

Former quarterback HutsonMason, who is now backing upAaron Murray at Georgia, setnumerous state records andbecame heavily recruited afterfinishing with 4,560 yards and 54touchdowns.

Hegedus, who was one ofmany targets for Mason that sea-son, knows the spread offense alltoo well, and his experience willlikely make him the go-to targetthis season. He emerged asLassiter’s top receiver last seasonwith 38 catches for 554 yardsand seven touchdowns.

Hegedus, who is listed at 6-foot-2, will be working withanother strong-armed quarterbackwho is getting college attention inthe Southeast. Junior quarterbackEddie Printz, who has alreadyreceived offers from Kentucky,Cincinnati and North CarolinaState, led Cobb County in passinglast season with 2,142 passingyards and 18 touchdown passes.

Junior Juwan Dickey will lineup on the other side and isknown to be a downfield threatwith great hands. If this sum-mer’s 7-on-7 competitions areany indication, he knows how toget open, and use speed to hisadvantage. Dickey was also an

EXPERIENCED RECEIVING CORPS READY

TO TAKE LASSITER BACK TO THE PLAYOFFS

ABOUT THE LASSITER RECEIVERS

Juwan Dickey’s favorite receiver is Percy Harvin because he’s quick, fast and elusive.

Adam Dowell’s nickname is “A.D.” and he loves shopping at the Polo Outlet.

As a 10-year-old member of the Marietta Blue Eagles youthteam, Isaiah Willis broke a 70-yard touchdown run to lead

his team to victory.

Lassiter’sreceivingcrew of, from left,Isaiah Willis,Willie Police,Juwan Dickey,Adam Dowelland CharlieHegedus canexpect to seea lot of passesthis fall.

�Staff /

Samantha M.Shal

See Grab, Page 38






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KICKOFF 2011


SPRAYBERRY YELLOW JACKETS


HILLGROVE 14-23 LLASSITER 20-27 LKMHS 23-16 WN. PAULDING 22-27 LEAST PAULDING 26-22 WHIRAM 22-45 LPOPE 17-28 LOSBORNE 41-8 WKELL 28-42 LALEXANDER 28-13 W

WON 4, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Billy ShackelfordAge: 40Year at School: 5Record: 26-18Career Rec.: 26-18

Varsity Coaching StaffChris Stewart — Defensive BacksBilly Blizzard — Def. CoordinatorRobert Horn — Off. CoordinatorHal Gresham — Offensive LineChester Ransom Running BacksAntwan Toomer — ReceiversBrett Vavra — LBs/Special TeamsEmery Williams — Linebackers


VS.HILLGROVEAUG. 26

ATLASSITERSEPT. 2

ATKMHSSEPT. 9

VS.N. PAULDING

SEPT. 16

ATE. PAULDING

SEPT. 30

VS.HIRAMOCT. 7

ATPOPE

OCT. 13

VS.OSBORNEOCT. 21

ATKELL

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO.NAME CLASS

1 D. K. VEREEN 122 WILLY DORCIN 113 MILES WALLACE 124 PATRICK DUBOIS 125 SHANE KING 106 MATT BISHOP 117 JACOB CHESSER 128 TYE RICHARDSON 129 TEVIN MOORE 1110 VLADAMIR BENOIT 1211 DOUG GRANDBERRY 1212 JAMES SUMMERS 1113 HANK HARRIS 1114 DARIAN HARRIS 1115 BRYANT LONG 1216 TREY SCHULTZ 1117 CORBIN JACKSON 1218 KEITH HAMPTON 10

NO.NAME CLASS

19 SHON MELTON 1220 KHEVON STEWART 1221 MYLES ATKINS 1222 CAZIMON SURI 1223 SAWYER PAGE 1124 DARRYL FAGAN 1125 TERRELL BROWNRIDGE1226 RICKY DOVER 1027 JUWON ROBINSON 1028 ERIC WELLS 1029 CEDRIC ALEXANDER 1230 GRIFFIN DOMINO 1031 REN DANIEL 1232 ANTUAN JOHNSON 1233 JALEN WHOOTEN 1034 DERRIK JOHNSON 1035 NICHOLAS BANKSTON1136 JONATHAN PALMER 9

NO.NAME CLASS

37 CHARLES COOK 1038 AUSTIN STEWART 1140 JAREKQ ALOISIO 1242 COREY COOPER 1143 JULIAN FLYNN 1245 ERIC TEMPLE 1046 ERIC BISHOP 1047 KAVON SMITH 1048 ELLIOTT LAWSON 1152 MALIK YOUNG 1153 JOSH GIBSON 1055 KYLE THOMAS 1157 MAC GORDON 1158 COLIN RAMEY 1060 JALIL CREAS 1261 DEREK BINDBEUTEL 1262 NATE KELSEY 1063 ALEX GROVER 11

NO.NAME CLASS

66 CHRIS AUGUSTIN 12

67 ALEC DEFREITAS 11

68 PAUL JOHNSON 12

69 IAN FERRO 11

71 SKYLAR SHAW 10

75 NICK MORTENSON 10

76 JIBRIN LINGE 12

77 FRANTZLOU DAPHNIS 11

78 BRANDON DALTON 11

80 MATT LOVETT 12

81 VICTOR PIERCE 10

82 DALTON KESLER 10

83 KYAYREE HARDY 11

86 KEGAN MOORE 12

88 CHRIS MCKINNEY 10

89 SIDNEY LINDLEY 10

99 GARRETT HALL 10

Season Outlook

Sprayberry will be a team ofmostly new faces this season.Only a handful of starters returnon both sides of the ball.

After fnishing with a surprising4-6 record with an experiencedroster, coach Billy Shackelfordwill have to rely on many newfaces to lead Sprayberry backinto the state playoffs after theycame up short in 2010. His 2011roster has talent and ability, butthe experience isn’t there.

Senior quarterback Corbin

Jackson does have varsity expe-rience, having started five gameslast season, and return twomembers of the offensive line infront of him.

The skilled players on offensewill be new. Senior Shon Melton,junior Corey Cooper and sophomoreShane King are battling for the start-ing nod at tailback. Seniors Melton,Tye Richardson and D.K. Vereenare three of a corps of talentedreceivers who have the ability to bea stronger unit than a year ago.

“We only have two on theoffensive line that are back,”Shackelford said. “Everyone elseis new (offensively). We lost allof our skill guys. Our schedule isreally tough this team has a lot ofpotential.”

The Yellow Jackets lost abunch defensively but they areexpecting to get solid contributri-ons from senior TerrellBrownridge at linebacker.Brownridge finished with 101tackles and five sacks a year ago.

Other returning starters aresenior defensive back MylesAtkins and junior defensive line-man Mac Gordon. The remainingstarters on defense have little tono varsity experience. A fewdefenders expecting to step upare senior linebackers JarekQAloisio and Antuan Johnson andsenior defensive linemanVladamir Benoit.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


LASSITER TROJANS


N. GWINNETT 14-34 LSPRAYBERRY 27-20 WNORTH COBB 14-18 LMILTON 35-28 WWALTON 27-31 LCHEROKEE 27-24 WWHEELER 31-0 WMARIETTA 21-7 WWOODSTOCK 14-30 LETOWAH 21-48 LN. GWINNETT 7-56 L

WON 5, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Jep IrwinAge: 38Year at School: 2Record: 5-6Career Rec.: 29-26

Varsity Coaching StaffButch Burden — LinebackersJosh Herring — Off. CoordinatorTommy Carroll — ReceiversChad Hicks — Offensive LineSean Gaines — Running BacksJim Rowell — Defensive CoordinatorCedric Dickerson — Def. BacksBob Lord — KickersTony Brown — Defensive Line


DOMEBROOKWOOD

AUG. 20

VS. SPRAYBERRY

SEPT. 2

ATNORTH COBB

SEPT. 9

VS.MILTON

SEPT. 16

ATWALTON

SEPT. 30

VS.CHEROKEEOCT. 7

ATWHEELEROCT. 14

VS. MARIETTAOCT. 21

ATWOODSTOCKOCT. 28

VSETOWAHNOV. 3

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 JUWAN DICKEY WR 11

3 MARQUICE BROWN S 12

4 MORGAN MCDANIEL WR 10

5 WILLIE POLICE RB 11

6 DONAVAN CREPSAC RB/DB 12

7 EDDIE PRINTZ QB 11

8 KENE ORJIOKE S 11

9 NILES CLARK CB 12

10 BLAKE PENTER WR 10

12 DUBY NWAUBI WR 10

13 GARRETT SHANKS 12

14 ALEX HANKS K 12

15 CHARLIE HEGEDUS WR 12

16 JIMMY ARCHER QB 11

19 JACK HAINES WR 10

20 ROBERT DOWLING DB 11

21 DERION CANNON RB 10

22 BLAKE WILSON QB/WR 10

23 DEVONTAE MOORE CB 11

24 PATRICK LEVANDOSKI CB 11

25 ISAIAH WILLIS RB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

26 C.J. JENKINS DB 11

27 CAMERON FLORES DB 12

28 MATT MCGUIRE WR 10

29 JAHAT ORAMAS CB 10

30 CLAY ROELLE S 10

31 TOM BARRE S 10

32 E. NWAKAEZE RB 10

34 JAMES ROWE LB 11

36 CALEB MAULDEN LB 10

37 BRYNDON PEACOCK LB 10

38 PETER BRIGNAC S 10

39 LUKE HARDIN PK 10

40 TRENTON GANTT DL 11

41 BENEDICT LEWIS DL 10

42 JACK MARCHAND LB 10

43 RYAN GILDEA LB 11

44 JOHNNY YODER LB 12

45 ZACH SPIES LB 10

46 AVEUS ANDERSON DL 10

47 CHRISTIAN CLARK DL 10

48 FERNANDO CORTEZ LB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

49 CALVIN ROBERTSON LB 12

51 AUTSIN CHEATUM DL 10

52 CARSON MOORE LB 10

53 CODY CHEEK OL 12

54 RASHAD DAVID LB 12

55 JOSH DANFORTH OL 11

57 SAM WOOD OL 10

58 MICHAEL FREEMAN OL 10

63 JACOB BRABANT OL 11

64 TYLER RYAN OL 11

66 CORY MAULDIN DT 12

67 ADAM HAMILTON DL 11

68 CHANDLER KROGHOL 10

69 BRENDAN CAMPBELLOL 12

70 CHRIS SOLTIS OL 10

71 STEPHAN CURREN OL 10

72 LUAN PEREIRA OL 10

74 MITCH REAVES DL 12

75 BRIAN MACDONALD OL 10

76 CROCKETT HAYES OL 10

77 DERRICK CRABB OL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

78 TIM HUNT OL 12

79 RAUL AGUIRRE OL 10

80 NICK SEWAKTE SN 11

81 JOSH BURKS CB 10

82 ZACH BEAVERSON WR 10

83 AARON JOHNSON WR 12

84 ADAM DOWELL WR 12

85 CAIN MCMILLAN PK 12

86 LANE JACKMAN WR 10

87 MATT GLATTSTEIN WR 12

88 JOHN BRANKS DE 10

89 S. FOOSE-KUTTY WR 10

91 C.J. AMANN DE 10

92 MOE NYANG DE 11

93 DARIUS REESE

95 COREY JOHN DL 10

96 MATTHEW HEARD DL 11

97 KANE MOORE DE 11

98 KRIS KU

99 MITCH WORD DT 12

Season Outlook

Ever since, Lassiter began

running a pass-oriented spread

offense, the Trojans made the

Class AAAAA state playoffs for

three straight years with a quar-

terfinal showing in 2009.

The Trojans have more than

enough tools to extend that

streak in 2011.

Their quarterback, Eddie

Printz, is only a junior and is get-

ting attention from many Division

I schools from the South. Their

success on offense this season

will hinge greatly on his arm and

decision making and having vet-

erans at the skilled positions will

only help.

Senior Charlie Hegedus, who

has committed to North Carolina

State, will likely be the go-to tar-

get. Hegedus and junior Juwan

Dickey, who led in catches with 45

last year, will line up on the out-

side spots, while senior Adam

Dowell and junior Willie Police will

line up at the slot positions. Coach

Jep Irwin opened up the running

game last season. Senior Isaiah

Willis is expected to both run and

catch out of the backfield as the

projected starter after Tyren Jones

transferred to Walton.

Lassiter lost quite a bit on

defense but has several key

starters coming back, which will

be key. Senior Niles Clark, who

led with four interceptions last

season at cornerback, is one of

them. Senior cornerback

Cameron Flores got ample play-

ing time last season, as did junior

defensive lineman Trent Gantt.

“I feel like we are more ath-

letic, faster and more skilled

(defensively) than we were last

year,” Irwin said. It seems like

we’re getting to the ball faster

and are more aggressive.”


[email protected]

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

Sprayberry senior quarterbackCorbin Jackson didn’t get varsityexperience until the latter half of lastseason. Fellow senior quarterbackJacob Kessler is still waiting for hisopportunity.

Their quarterback styles are polaropposites of each other. Jackson likesto scramble, while Kessler likes todrop back and throw the ball. Theymay be competing for a starting job,but they share the same goal of lead-ing a young Yellow Jacket team backinto the state playoffs after they cameup short in 2010.

“Most of the county is underesti-mating us because we lost most ofour offense and three of our starting

offensive linemen. On defense, welost everybody,”Jackson said. “Theteam started to grow (at SoutheastDefensive Camp at West Georgia). Ithink we are going to turn someheads this year.”

Sprayberry hasn’t decided whichone will earn the starting job becauseboth are showing talent in what to do.

When Jackson talked about thedaily grind of being a quarterbackpreparing for the 2011 season, theirto-do list appears endless. They meetwith coaches and the rest of the teamto talk about plays they are going torun. Then they head to the practicefield to run them before doing a vari-ety of passing drills. Later on, theypractice ground game managementbefore watching film and evaluatingtheir performances.

“They both bring something dif-ferent to the program,” Sprayberrycoach Billy Shackelford said.“Corbin is a moble quarterback andJake is a pure pocket guy and aheads-up guy. It’s good two have two(quarterbacks). These guys are soeaqual to what bring that it can be aweek-to-week postion.”

When it comes to playing quarter-back, Jackson has one advantage overKessler. He is familiar with theSprayberry offense, having startedfive games last season for the YellowJackets. Kessler had some catchingup to do after transferring fromWalton last winter. Although heappears up to speed, he’s stillunproven at the varsity level.

“I came in the middle of last season


SPRAYBERRY YELLOW JACKETSABOUT THE YELLOW JACKETSLocation: 2525 Sandy Plains Road, Marietta. Phone: 770-578-3200. Stadium: Jim Frazier Stadium. Colors: Black, Gold. Online: www.sprayberryfootball.com

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanCorbin Jackson, left, and Jacob Kessler giveSprayberry two options for starting quarterback.

STARTING QBS 1 AND 1A

See QBs, Page 68

SPRAYBERRY’S JACKSON AND KESSLER PROVIDE OPTIONS

ABOUT THESPRAYBERRY

QUARTERBACKS

The best gift Jackson everreceived was a go-kart for

Christmas.

Jackson’s favorite team isthe Oregon Ducks becausethey run the spread option

like Sprayberry.

Kessler is the second of fivechildren.

Kessler enjoys playing ten-nis when he’s not playing

football.

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KENNESAW MOUNTAIN MUSTANGSABOUT THE MUSTANGSLocation: 1898 Kennesaw Due West Road, Kennesaw. Phone: 770-594-8190. Home Field: Cobb Energy/Mustang Stadium. Team Colors: Black, Green, Silver. Online: kmhsfootball.com

FAMILY AFFAIRBy John Bednarowski

[email protected]

It was confusing at first forKennesaw Mountain coach ChadMcGehee. He had never coacheda team that had three brothers onit before, let alone having allthree in rotation at their posi-tions, so McGehee came up withhis own solution to the problem.

“For awhile, it was confusinglearning their names,” he said.“So they were Gildon 1, 2 and 3.”

As the Gildons prepare forthe 2011 season, they don’t haveto worry about McGehee notknowing their names. Dejon andDarwin will be on the field a lotat wide receiver trying to makeMcGehee’s up-tempo offense runlike the turbo-charged car thatshares the name of the KennesawMountain mascot. And while theother two are on the bench,Darius will be lining up at cor-nerback trying to get Dejon andDarwin the ball back.

Considering the brothers’positions, game preparation canget a little personal. Often in

practice, Darius lines up acrossthe line from one of his siblings,but just because they are family,neither Dejon nor Darwin gotany kind of a break.

“I usually start talking junk,”Darius said.

A similar action is usuallytaking place on the offensive sideof the ball, too.

“I love him off the field,”Darwin said. “But I mess withhim once we step on the field.”

But as far as being mischevi-ous, braggadocious or a disci-pline problem, a little siblingtrash talk is as close as it gets tothe trio causing problems.

“They always do what we askthem to do,” McGehee said. “If Itell them they have to be here at4 a.m., then that’s when they aregoing to be here.

“They are also no problem inthe classroom.”

Considering the lines of workthe brothers want to get into,they can’t afford to have issueswith the books.

Darius plans on attendingGeorgia Tech to become an engi-

neer, Dejon is heading toSouthern Poly as a computerdesigner so he can create videogames and Darwin wants to bean architect. And while thebrothers should be commendedfor doing the right thing, muchof the credit belongs to theirmother, Francine, who has had toraise the boys on her own for thelast few years.

Their father, Darrell GildonJr., was a career military man butdied in 2009 after suffering fromamyotrophic lateral sclerosis,also known as Lou Gehrig’sDisease. From that point on,Francine took on extra work andwas not home as much to carefor her sons, but she has morethan made up for it with supportin two areas — the kitchen andin the stands.

“With not being around asmuch, I always want to makesure they have a really goodweekend breakfast,” she said.“That usually means they’ll get18 eggs, two packs of bacon,pancakes and French toast.”

See Family, Page 46

GILDON BROTHERS LEAVING THEIR MARK ON KENNESAW MOUNTAIN

Kennesaw Mountain’s Gildon brothers— Darwin, left, Darius and Dejon — areoften confused for one another. One thing is for sure though, as agroup, the trio are making their markson the Mustangs


ABOUT THE GILDONS

Their favorite meal is fried chicken,collard greens, mashed potatoes,

macaroni and cheese and cornbread

Because they look alike, Darius andDarwin often play tricks on the

equipment managers

KICKOFF 2011


Our FBC Volunteer Pew Crew (50 members strong) has faithfully met

to prep Eppie the pew baby dolls to send to children in orphanages and

hospitals in Haiti and around the world. We have already sent 1000+

Eppies, with another 600+ dolls in the warehouse ready to go.

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Enjoy the video called "Project Judy" which will explain this mission

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You can donate or make a purchase online, call 770-479-9569, or

mail it to: EEF, Inc., 110 Pueblo Ct., Unit #1014, Waleska, GA

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I managed to make changes,”Colin said. “I like where I’m atright now and I wouldn’t want tobe anywhere but here. I havesome friends that are still overthere and it makes the rivalry alittle bit more fun.”

Even on the football field,Dozier has had to make changes.Prior to this season, the juniorhad played linebacker. Sequoyahcoach James Teter, however,thought that a move would bebest for the 5-foot-9½, 280-pound Dozier.

Despite Dozier’s numbers lastseason, including 34 solo tackles,18 assists, three tackles for loss,two sacks and one fumble recov-ery, Teter knew that Dozier would

adapt to a new position more eas-ily than anyone else due to hisattitude and leadership qualities.

“He’s a great kid as far as atti-tude,” Teter said. “He’s probablythe leader of our whole programand has been that way since hewas a sophomore. He started as asophomore at outside linebacker.We moved him to nose guard thisupcoming season. He likes beinga linebacker, but for the better-ment of our team moved. But Ithink he’s good at it.”

Moreso than just being goodfor the team, the move may alsobe better for Dozier’s future.

“Coach told me it would bethe best thing for my height toget a scholarship,” Dozier said,“so, if I can get a scholarship,then that would be OK.”

Dozier has clearly adjusted tolife on the line of scrimmage,though there have been some key

differences in adjusting to attack-ing opposing offenses.

“I would say my foot move-ment would be the biggestthing,” he said. “I try to read theplay, but I have to keep movingso I can get off the block. It’seasier to adjust on the defensiveline because you have less toworry about. You have to worryabout the man in front of youand the one next to you.”

On top of working on hisagility and breaking off opposinglinemen, Dozier has been work-ing on the cerebral part of beinga nose guard: timing the snap.

“That’s another key point,” hesaid. “I try to jump the snap oncertain plays and on certaindowns. Usually, on third down,especially on third and long youwant to try and get off the ballquick because most of the timethey are passing the ball.”

ABOUT COLIN DOZIER

He is a very competitive person whether it is on the football field or in the classroom

He likes when teams run right at him because they let him use his strength

His favorite college team is Clemson


Dozierand didn’t know anything,”said Kessler. “I was a realslow kid when I got here. Ichanged my whole mindsetbecause I never had to dealwith this before.”

Not only did the two quar-terbacks brush up on runningSprayberry’s offense during theoffseason, they also had tobrush up on their leadershipabilities. Jackson saidShackelford held a series ofleadership meetings last springto teach the two players how tolead.

Jackson made big playswhen he started the last fivegames of the 2010 season.He threw for 345 yards forSprayberry with 183 of themcoming against Kell. Allthree of Jackson’s touchdownpasses were 30 yards ormore.

But Jackson admitted hewent through a selfish phasebefore and during his starts atquarterback. He interactedmostly with his friends on the

team, he started getting impa-tient when he didn’t start lastseason on varsity and wasnever one to give encourage-ment during games.

Once Jackson learned thatpatience pays off, he changedhis ways.

He encourages all mem-bers of his team during workouts. He praises hisreceivers for making bigplays when he gets a chanceand shakes hands with theoffensive line for protectinghim.

“You can’t think thatyou’re not gong to go intothe game,” Jackson said. “Ihad no idea that I was goingto be where I am now. I got alittle down on myselfbecause I deserved to have achance to play on Fridaynights. When I got mychance when we playedHiram, it just showed me thatyou can’t down yourself .”

Kessler lacked leadership atthe varsity level when hearrived because he hadn’t beengiven a chance to perform atthe varsity level. He hardly gota chance as a backup for theRaiders.


QBs

KICKOFF 2011


KENNESAW MOUNTAIN MUSTANGS


ALLATOONA 22-24 LPOPE 20-24 L SPRAYBERRY 16-23 LNORTH COBB 14-43 LPEBBLEBROOK 10-37 LCAMPBELL 25-3 WSOUTH COBB 6-24 LHARRISON 0-17 LHILLGROVE 7-34 LMCEACHERN 10-21 L

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Chad McGeheeAge: 35Year at School: 2Record: 1-9Career Rec.: 1-9

Varsity Coaching StaffJohn Poitevint — Def. CoordinatorDon Baker — Special TeamsJeff Bettis — Defensive LineMarcus Carter — LinebackersMark Carter — ReceiversRob Williams — Offensive Line


ATALLATOONAAUG. 26

ATPOPE

SEPT. 2

VS.SPRAYBERRY

SEPT. 9

VS.NORTH COBB

SEPT. 16

ATPEBBLEBROOK

SEPT. 30

VS.CAMPBELLOCT. 7

ATSOUTH COBB

OCT. 14

VS. HARRISONOCT. 21

VS.HILLGROVEOCT. 28

ATMCEACHERN

NOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 DEVON PUTMON WR/LB 11

3 LUKE LEWALLEN WR/DB 10

4 CHRISTIAN FLEMING DB 12

5 PARTICK APPIAH LB 12

6 LUCAS CARMEAN QB/LB 10

7 XAVIER EALY WR 12

8 G. MCGRUDER WR/DB 10

9 TYLER BOWMAN WR 12

10 DALIN FINLEY QB 11

11 CAMERON WILSON WR 11

12 DARWIN GILDON WR 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

14 RYAN CLAY WR 12

15 MAURICE PHILLIPS WR 11

16 T. RICHARDSON WR 11

17 DEJON GILDON WR 12

19 ZACH CHANDLER QB 10

20 H. BROOKS DB 12

21 ZACH BISHOP RB/DB 10

22 DARIUS GILDON DB 11

25 JACOBY SHIPMAN LB 11

28 WAYNE DOUGLAS RB/DB 11

30 BEN DOLENSKY K 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

31 NICK FREISER K 12

35 JUSTIN BECKER LB 12

42 RYAN MCGRAIL DB 10

43 JAMARI CARTER RB/DB 10

45 MARCUS BROWN RB 11

48 TYLER COOPER LB 11

50 LUIS SANCHEZ DL 12

52 ALEX HUBBARD OL 12

54 TREVER MCNEAL DL 12

55 LUIS MEDINA OL/LB 10

57 TYLER OZMENT OL 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

58 DREW MCCOLLUM OL/LB 11

60 TYRELL TURNER OL 12

63 TARIQ SHABAZZ OL/DL 10

68 DESMOND REID OL/DL 11

77 BEN HURD OL 12

79 KORDELL BROWN OL/DL 11

80 NICK BELL WR 11

83 MACEO INMAN WR/DB 10

85 A. GOODMAN WR 11

86 JAYSON TOWEH WR 11

91 SIDNEY HAMMOND DE 11

99 CARSON HALL DE 10

Season Outlook

Patience will be a key word

for the fans of Kennesaw

Mountain.

A year after going 1-9

behind new coach Chad

McGehee, the Mustangs are

still in a state of flux.

Last season, McGehee

started the remolding of the

team. He changed the

offense, defense and brought

in a number of his own coach-

es. That trend will continue in

2011.

Kennesaw Mountain enters

the season with only 12

seniors. It also has four new

coaches, including a new

defensive coordinator that

was hired in July, which

means the defense is learning

a new system on the fly, but

through it all, McGehee can

see improvement.

“We’re finally heading in the

direction we want things to be

going,” he said. “The kids are

doing the little things right.

We’re excited about the new

coaching staff, and we’re real

upbeat.”

However, improvement and

excitement can only carry a

team so far, and McGehee

knows this season will have its

challenges.

“(With only five returning

starters) there’s not a lot of

Friday night experience,” he

said. “We’re going to be under-

sized and we’re going to have

to overachieve. But we have

good chemistry and, if they

come and play that way, we

can compete.”

Offensively, McGehee

turns the reins of the up-

tempo unit over to Dalin

Finley.

At 5-foot-7, Finley is an

athletic quarterback who can

run. Because of his size, the

Mustangs will likely use a

rolling pocket to help open

space for him to see down-

field. But while Finley may

be on the smaller side,

McGehee said his quarter-

back’s toughness should

never be questioned.

“He’s a leader by exam-

ple,” McGehee said. “(During

a JV game, he) threw a

touchdown with a broken

collarbone. He came over to

the sideline and you could

see the bone sticking out.

(He was obviously done

for the night), but he still

wanted to go back into the

game.”

One of the biggest

returnees, and a vital cog in

the offense, is wide receiver

Ryan Clay. Clay caught 50

passes last season and will

be Finley’s go-to guy.

The defense will be led by

third-year starter Trever

McNeal, a real run-stuffer on

the defensive line, and middle

linebacker Tyler Cooper, some-

one McGehee says never

takes a play off.

“He’s everywhere,” McGehee

said.


[email protected]


the team, too. We became goodfriends and when I got to Osborne,Grady’s been looking out for me.”

Clay saw Height’s potentialearly on as he played for theWarriors and for the Cardinals’freshmen team. When Currybecame concerned that Heightmight not get recruited as a foot-ball player from Osborne andstarted looking at other schools,Grady stepped in and convincedher to keep Height as a member ofthe Cardinals.

“I knew about Nyiakki whenhe played for Milford and I methim and his aunt at Osborne in his

freshman year,” Clay said.“Osborne was losing kids to otherschools like McEachern andHillgrove went it was opening andhis aunt was going to moveNyiakki as well.

“I found out about him and hislife, and I made a commitment toher that if she stayed and kept himin Osborne, then I would make acommitment to her to make surehe gets recruited and stays on theright track.”

Height made his verbal com-mitment to UAB in mid-July.

“His talent is unbelievableand some of the stuff he does isperfect once you show him,”Clay said. “He picks up thingswell, and he’ll probably playeven better around kids with thesame level of talent that he has.They’ll push him.”


HeightsIn order to become all of

those things, Goodman had tobe given the opportunity tostrive with the Falcons early onin his career. As a sophomore,he was given that chance.

Since then, Goodman hastaken athletic gifts and evolvedthem into becoming the teamfield general.

“As a sophomore, you try toinstill mental toughness and youstay on him,” Smith said. “Youhope that they catch on to whatyou are doing and what you’rethinking. In (his) junior year,(we) cut him loose a little bit.

“At our 7-on-7s, he’llalmost call a play before I’llcall it. So, when you’ve hadsomeone that you’ve worked soclose with for three years andstart thinking alike, a lot oftimes good things happenbecause he is already thinkingabout what he needs to do forthe team to be successful.”

Goodman was thankful forhis early chance to succeed,knowing full well that few peo-ple get the same opportunity.

“I was really excited about get-ting that opportunity my sopho-more year,” he said. “so that now Ican grow as a person, as a playerand as a leader on the team.”

After nearly two years ofbeing a starter for Pebblebrook,Goodman has learned the play-book to the point where he canadjust to opposing defenses andensure that his teammates are allon the same page on every play.

“I can call a play, and even if Isend it in wrong, he fixes it and

tells everyone what to do,” Smithsaid. “As a sophomore, I wastelling him that you’re going to calla play and you’re going to look intheir eyes and see nine people withthat dumbfounded look and you’regoing to have to fix it whether it’s ablocking scheme or runningscheme. You have to learn whatthey’re doing. And he’s done that.”

Though Goodman hasproven his worth at the highschool level, he may not be thepro-style prototype that manyDivision I schools look for. Atjust 6 feet tall, he fits the billmore of a scrambling quarter-back or as an athlete that couldswitch positions.

Still, Ball State has alreadyoffered Goodman a scholarship,though he is starting to garnerinterest from other schools suchas Navy, Tennessee, GeorgiaSouthern.

Tennessee, however, seeshim in a different way.

“We went to a Tennesseecamp and they were really excitedabout his receiving abilities,”Smith said. “He may have a careeras a receiver at the next level. Wedon’t know, but we can’t wait forthe journey to see what he does.When you are the kind of athlete

he is and when you get to college,a lot of times are college wants a6-foot quarterback. They can han-dle (shorter quarterbacks) undercertain systems.”

More than his chances to playat the next level, Goodman alsohas the ability to relate to people.With fellow senior SertonuseHarris, Pebblebrook’s featurerunning back this season, he hasbuilt an important relationship.

“We built a strong bondbetween us and we understandeach other very much. That’swhy he’s (jersey) No. 1 and I’mNo. 2. We’ve been playingtogether since we were fresh-men and we are very close. Ithink that’s what will actuallyhelp the team get better — hav-ing C.J. and me together.”

Furthermore, that relation-ship may help add to theFalcons’ level of play on thefield. In practice and pastgames, the relationship hasalready had an impact.

“If he messes up, then Iknow what he messes up,”Harris said. “If I mess up, thenhe knows what I mess up.We’ve build that bond up strongenough to know when one isright and one is wrong.”

ABOUT C.J. GOODMAN

The main thing he has learned from his coaching staff isthat a team is a family and ,without the team, no one can

win

Teammate Kendrick Peeples has been a major influence outside the coaching staff

When it comes to playing on the next level, he would like toplay quarterback, but he can also play receiver


Hats

“It was a good year,” Ellissaid. “It was a little tough sinceit was my first varsity year, butI started getting used to it andI’m ready to go this year.”

Terrell and Ellis combinedfor 255 yards and three touch-downs in River Ridge’s 22-16victory over Lakeview Academy.Ellis led the way with 146 yards,while Terrell added 109 yards.

River Ridge coach RobertBraucht said Terrell and Ellistogether make for a potent combination.

“I think the big thing is thatthey work so well together,”Braucht said. “It’s kind ofunique. It’s good to have a 1-2punch like that in our backfield.”

Terrell is a straight-ahead

runner, who is capable of break-ing open a big run, but he most-ly uses his strength to grind outyards.

“Austin is a north-south kid,”Braucht said. “He runs mostlystraight ahead, though he doeshave some breakaway speed.He’s a pretty good athlete.

Ellis is more of an open-field runner who can cut backand break open a big run.

“E.J. can run north-south, buthe has the ability to get out inthe open field and break awayfrom the defenders,” Brauchtsaid. “He has good speed andhe’s a good zone back.”

While not particularly closeoff the field, Ellis said he andTerrell have a good relationshipon the gridiron.

“We have kind of a competi-tion,” Ellis said. “We sort ofcompete against each other, butwe help each other, too. We

push each other to be the bestthat we can be. We work welltogether.”

Added Terrell, “E.J. helps me alot with running the ball. When hecarries the ball, I block for him andwhen I carry the ball, he blocks forme. There is kind of a competitionbetween us, but we also help eachother to get better, too.”

Both Terrell and Ellis arenow ready to take the next stepin 2011 as they both make anoth-er stab at reaching the 1,000-yardmark and try to help River Ridgewin a few more games.

“I want to reach 1,000 yardsthis year,” Terrell said. “I wantto have a better season than lastyear and I want us to have abetter season as a team.”

Adds Ellis, “I want to get1,000 yards and win more gamesas a team. I had a good seasonlast year, but I can do better thisyear.”


Blocks

At your fingertips.

MARIETTADAILY JOURNAL

www.mdjonline.com

Chronicling Cobb County’s People and Events Since 1866Chronicling Cobb County’s People and Events Since 1866

www.mdjonline.com


KELL LONGHORNSABOUT THE LONGHORNSLocation: 4770 Lee Waters Road, Marietta. Phone: (678) 494-7844. Home Field: Cobb Energy/Corky Kell Stadium. Team Colors: Copper, White, Black. Online: www.kellfootball.com

LONGHORNS GO TOBIG BACK ATTACK


[email protected]

Though Kell High School isjust eight years old, the Longhorns’football program has already devel-oped a strong tradition.

Outside of winning games,Kell has been able to output top-caliber running backs to DivisionI schools. Last year, Kell hadBrian Randolph, who traded inhis Kell colors for Tennessee’sburnt orange after running for1,068 rushing yards and 16touchdowns on 145 carries.Before that, the school turned outBrian’s older brother, Justin, andcurrent Pittsburgh SteelerJonathan Dwyer.

“With Kell football, and thetradition here, there is a wholerunning back tradition herethat’s been set,” Dwyer said.“Coach (Derek) Cook takespride in it, and I take pride in it.Whoever the running back ishas a lot of shoes to fill everyyear. I take pride in the fact thatI started the tradition here and,every year, there’s always beena running back here that’s had1,000 yards that has gone tocollege and been a top player inthe country.”

Though Brian Randolph setan example of what rushingmarks to shoot for, and of what

caliber player that every runningback wants to become, his valuemay have come from somethingfar more simple than that.

“Technique-wise, he didn’treally help as much,” ChrisGaines said of Randolph. “But hetaught us effort. They say youcan’t really teach effort, butwatching Brian work hard and dothings — he never quit andalways worked hard. He was atwo-way starter and never com-plained. He was a 60-minute guythat played every snap and onspecial teams. What I want tokeep going on into next year isthat effort.”

This year’s version of theLonghorns has a three-back sys-tem with Jordan Chambers, A.J.Redwine and Gaines. Eachbrings a different skill set to thetable, though there will need tobe some discretion in handingout footballs among the trio.

“The good thing is thatGaines and Chambers are defen-sive guys, too,” Cook said, “sothey are going to be on the field awhole bunch. It helps to haveRedwine as just an offensive guyto give those other guys abreather, so we can make surethat we are fresh on defense.”

Though Chambers has theappearance of being Kell’s

GAINES, CHAMBERS AND REDWINE PLAN

ON LEADING KELL BACK TO THE PLAYOFFS

ABOUT THE KELL RUNNING BACKS

In the winter, Chris Gaines competes in wrestling, which helps him with his technique, leverage and learning how to tackle

Gaines also enjoys cooking. Barbecue ribs are his favorite,and he said he could eat ribs all day

A.J. Redwine enjoys swimming, but if a pool isn’t handy, he likes to relax in the tub after a hard practice

Kell runningbacks, fromleft, JordanChambers,A.J. Redwineand ChrisGaines all waymore than200 poundsand can getthe Longhornsthe toughyards whenthey needthem.

�Staff /

Laura Moon

See Kell, Page 41






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KICKOFF 2011


WALKER WOLVERINES


WHITEFIELD 29-7 WCALVARY DAY 20-42 LPACE ACADEMY 3-28 LGORDON LEE 23-0 WBOWDON 21-42 LBREMEN 14-27 LTRION 0-42 LMOUNT PARAN 0-14 LDARLINGTON 14-48 LMOUNT ZION 46-0 W

WON 3, LOST 7

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Ben WilliamsonAge: 35Year at School: 4Record: 8-22Car. Record: 33-52

Varsity Coaching StaffMartez Graham

Pat HallDan Moorer

Bailey WoodsDavid Yarborough


VS.WHITEFIELDAUG. 26

ATCALVARY DAY

SEPT. 2

VS.PACE ACADEMY

SEPT. 9


VS. BOWDONSEPT. 23

ATBREMENOCT. 7

VS.TRION

OCT. 14

ATMT. PARANOCT. 21

VS.DARLINGTON

OCT. 28

ATMT. ZION-CAR.

NOV. 4

NAME POS. CL.

STEVEN WILSON WR/DB 12

JOSH LAMMERT OL/LB 12

KYLE IRWIN OL/LB 12

GARRETT JOHNSON WR/LB 12

DIXON BABB WR/DB 12

SCOTT SHOCKLEY WR/LB 12

A. J. JENNINGS RB/DB 11

EVAN KASIAN RB/DB 11

NAME POS. CL.

C. GRAHAM RB/DB 11

TYLER SUDDERTH WR/DB 11

MITCHELL BOYLAN RB/LB 11

JAKE SONSHEIN OL/DL 11

MIKE RAMSEY OL/LB 11

COLIN MITCHELL OL/DL 11

S. YARBOROUGH QB 11

JOSH MILLER WR/DB 11

NAME POS. CL.

JUSTIN DELBROOK RB/DB 10JACK JOHNSON RB/LB 10GAVIN CROUCH QB/LB 10BRADLEY MOORE OL/LB 10MICHAEL BERK OL/DL 10JOSH REINI OL/DL 10MATTHEW THOMAS OL/DL 10ERIK WARNER OL/DL 9

JAMES PITTINGER QB/DB 9

NAME POS. CL.

JOE REICH WR/DB 9SAMMY SMITH OL/LB 9GLENN STROTHER WR/DB 9JAKE REINI OL/DL 9J. T. WOOD RB/DB 9MATT WHEELER WR/LB 9A. REICHENBACH WR/DB 9NICHOLAS WRIGHT OL/DL 9

C. SUDDERTH WR/DB 9

Season Outlook

Walker continues to be awork in progress heading into the2011 season.

After a pair of 3-7 cam-paigns, the Wolverines areshort on numbers this year withonly 35 players. Even worse,two-year starting quarterbackJames Clements decided toforego his senior season on thegridiron and shift his focus tobaseball, and the entire 2010coaching staff, with the excep-tion of head coach BenWilliamson, has been changed.

Other than that, everything isthe same on the corner ofAllgood Road and CobbParkway.

As for what this means for theupcoming high school footballseason, Williamson said hesees all the changes as a posi-tive, but, after three full seasonson the job, even he expectedthe team to be farther along inits development.

“I feel like we’re off to a freshstart,” he said. “We’ve let go of alot of things we didn’t do well lastyear and, with the new coaches,players and new behaviors, Ithink we’re heading in the rightway.”

Much of the optimism lies in astrong junior class led by runningback Evan Kasian, offensive line-man Mike Ramsey and transfer

quarterback Sam Yarborough.Kasian has proved to be the

go-to guy on both sides of theball for the past two years, andhis workload doesn’t expect toget any less this season. Hewas the Wolverines’ leadingrusher with 637 yards and fivetouchdowns, caught 36 passesfor 351 yards, three touchdownsand started at defensive back.

Ramsey will anchor a linethat averages 6-foot-1, 220pounds with the hopes of open-ing holes for Kasian and keepingYarborough upright.

Yarborough, a 6-3, 210-pound left-hander, takes over forClements. In order to cater to his

talents, Walker will try to stretchthe field and be based out of aspread offense rather than its tra-ditional triple-option.

Defensively, the Wolverineswill depend on Ramsey, Kasian,linebacker Garrett Johnson andcornerback Steven Wilson toslow down their opponents. Theoverall success of the defensewill be connected to two things,how well the offense performsand how many injuries Walkercan avoid.

“If we stay healthy, we cancompete,” Williamson said.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


KELL LONGHORNS


GRAYSON 13-10 WETOWAH 20-10 WWOODSTOCK 17-10 WEAST PAULDING 20-13 WHIRAM 30-7 WPOPE 35-21 WOSBORNE 52-0 WN. PAULDING 55-30 WSPRAYBERRY 42-28 WCHAPEL HILL 30-7 WSOUTH FORSYTH 49-7 WFL. BRANCH 21-13 WSTATESBORO 7-17 L

WON 12, LOST 1

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Derek CookAge: 39Year at School: 4Record: 26-9Career Rec.: 35-21

Varsity Coaching StaffRichard Norman — Asst. HCDoug Orebaugh — Def. CoordinatorKirk Cross — Offensive Line Jonathan Gordon — ReceiversJoe Tousignaut — Defensive EndsKevin Clark — Defensive BacksRusty Gillespie — Kickers/Punters


DOMEGRAYSONAUG. 20

VS. ETOWAHSEPT. 2

ATWOODSTOCK

SEPT. 9

ATE. PAULDING

SEPT. 16

VS. HIRAM

SEPT. 23

ATPOPE

SEPT. 30

VS.OSBORNEOCT. 7

ATN. PAULDING

OCT. 21

VS.SPRAYBERRY

OCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 BRANDON LOUDER WR/LB 12

2 ORAN DAVIS WR/DB12

3 B.K. HUNDLEY WR 11

4 JULIAN BURRIS WR/DB10

5 JUSTIN PSIHOGIOS LB 12

6 KYLE NORMAN DL 12

7 A.J. REDWINE RB 12

8 MICHAEL VALERO TE/LB 11

9 GAGE ALLRED WR 12

10 CLAY DODSON QB 12

11 HUNTER MARSHALL WR/DB12

13 JAY MOXEY WR/DB10

14 CAPRII KNIGHTEN DB 12

15 KENDALL CRUTE QB 10

16 TYLER PRINCE K 12

17 KEITH MCCAIN RB/LB 12

18 AUSTIN WADE WR 11

19 TYLER FINKLEY WR/DB11

20 QUINCY MAUGER WR/DB11

NO. NAME POS. CL.21 BRENDAN LANGLEY WR/DB10

22 MICHAEL BALDWIN LB 12

23 SETH BROWN RB/DB 11

24 KEVIN HOLMES RB/DB 12

25 CHRIS GAINES RB/LB 12

26 TAYLOR HENKLE WR/DB10

27 CORSAIRE JOHNSON TE/LB 11

28 JORDAN GANTT WR/DB11

29 KHENJI HARRIS WR/DB10

30 TIMMY MURPHY K 11

31 KENDRICK BRUCE RB/LB 10

32 AARON GAINES WR/DB11

33 JORDAN CHAMBERSRB/LB 12

34 TRISTAN SMITH TE/LB 10

35 CLINTON ADAMS RB/LB 12

36 S. HAMMOND WR/DB10

38 TEVIN TWINE TE/DL 12

41 BRIAN LINK RB/LB 10

43 MATT ROSS WR/LB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.44 ZACH CLOER RB/LB 11

45 KALEP COOK WR/DB10

47 DAVID HEIKKILA QB 10

49 J. FRANCO GOMEZ WR/DB10

50 NATHAN WALLER OL/DL 10

51 BRENDAN BARBER OL/DL 11

52 TYLER PINTUR OL/DL 11

53 ARIS MATTEIS OL/DL 11

54 CHRIS STILL OL/DL 11

55 JORDAN DWYER OL/DL 12

56 COREY SPENCER OL/DL 12

57 FAYIZ DABDOUB OL/DL 12

58 CARLTON KOUAME OL/DL 12

59 ETHAN ELLIOTT OL/DL 10

60 C. MENDELSON OL/DL 10

62 JUSTIN ROCHEZ OL/DL 10

64 J. SCARPANTONIO OL/DL 10

65 Z. VAN KAUWENBURG OL/DL 11

66 JULIAN JOHNSON OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.67 JACK LECROY OL/DL 10

68 CALEB BLOUNT OL/DL 12

69 ELI SEARCY OL/DL 10

71 SETH CROSS OL/DL 12

72 KHALIF KINNIE OL/DL 10

73 DAVID HALL OL/DL 12

75 TREY COWART OL/DL 10

76 YUYA KAWAKUBO OL/DL 10

77 KENNY LOUIS OL/DL 12

78 ROB HARRIS OL/DL 12

79 SAL HOGAN OL/DL 11

80 KYLE HINES WR/DB11

81 CURTIS STAMPS WR/DB10

82 BRANDON EMBY WR/DB11

83 CODY ASHWAY WR/DB10

85 LANDON KOONTZ WR/DB10

90 CAMERON MASSUNG K 10

95 AUSTIN LANZ DL 12

96 HENRY AGUIRRE DL 12

Season Outlook

After a record-setting season

last year that saw Kell earn its

first region title and reach the

state quarterfinals, the

Longhorns will have a hard time

duplicating that success with so

many players having graduated.

The goal, however, may be

far less on the side of perfection

this season though.

“Those types of seasons

don’t happen very often in high

school, if ever,” Kell coach Derek

Cook said. “It’s very rare. I can’t

think of one around here that’s

happened recently. I don’t know

if we are shooting to be 10-0

again. We’re shooting to be

region champions so that we can

have that home playoff game.”

Like most years at Kell, the

Longhorns’ leaders will come

from the backfield. This year,

however, there are three backs

who will all see comparable

playing time in A.J. Redwine,

Chris Gaines and Jordan

Chambers.

While it may be easier to

replace Brian Randolph in the

backfield, it will be more difficult

to replace the offensive line and

quarterback positions. The offen-

sive line will have five new

starters from last year, and could

include any combination of

seniors or sophomores.

At quarterback, there is a

duel between senior Clay

Dodson and sophomore Kendall

Crute. Dodson offers more expe-

rience in the program and a

strong arm, while Crute offers

more athleticism and more ability

to make plays on the run.

Defensively, Chambers and

Gaines will be important pieces

of the linebacker corps, while

Jonathan Dwyer’s younger broth-

er, Jordan, will anchor the defen-

sive line. The secondary adds a

key piece in Cherokee transfer

Quincy Mauger.



WALKER WOLVERINESABOUT THE WOLVERINESLocation: 700 Cobb Parkway North, Marietta. Phone: (770) 819-2521. Home Field: Robertson Field. Team Colors: Maroon, Gold. Online: thewalkerschool.org/athletics

PUMPED UPBy John [email protected]

Evan Kasian has meant a lotto the Walker athletic programs.

As a freshman he earnedClass A All-State honorablemention at defensive back forbursting on the scene with sixinterceptions. As a sophomore heled the Wolverines in rushing,receptions, touchdowns and start-ed on both sides of the ball. Healso was the leading scorer onWalker’s Class A state champi-onship soccer team.

On the Wolverines’ athleticfields, Kasian is proving thereisn’t much he can’t do, so nowhe is taking his talents nationally— in powerlifting.

In an effort to better preparehimself for the football and soc-cer seasons at Walker, in additionto the standard weight roomwork from his coaches, the 5-foot-9, 170-pound Kasian

began powerlifting on after asuggestion by former Wolverinesstrength and conditioning coachJerry Collett.

The powerlifting, similar tothe weightlifting seen duringthe summer Olympic games,consist of two moves — theclean-and-jerk and snatch. Theclean-and-jerk is when the lifterpulls the weight from the floorto across their chest, just belowthe chin. From there, the lifter

uses their legs to propel the barup over their head. When doingthe snatch move, the lifterbrings the weight from the floorabove his or her head in onemotion.

Thinking he could use thehelp, Collett took Kasian to seeRobert Hall at Iron ClutchFitness, and the results havebeen impressive. When Kasianstarted the powerlifting, hecould clean-and-jerk 175pounds and snatch 105 pounds.Since then, he has added morethan 100 pounds to each moveand recently qualified for nextFebruary’s U.S. Junior Nationalcompetition in Chicago.

“I had to lift 456 pounds(between the two moves) inorder to qualify,” Kasian said. “Ilifted 456 pounds exactly.”

More impressively, Kasianqualified for the national event inonly the second meet he has ever

See Pumped, Page 79

WALKER’S KASIAN TAKES POWERLIFTING TO ANOTHER LEVEL

� Running Back� Height: 5-9� Weight: 170

2010 Season Stats� 110 carries, 637 yards, 5 touchdowns� 36 receptions, 351 yards, 3 touchdowns

THE KASIAN FILE

Walker’s Evan Kasian has alwaysexcelled on the Wolverines’ footballand soccer fields. Now he is proving hecan be a weightlifter at the nationallevel.


ABOUT EVAN KASIAN

He qualified for the U.S. JuniorNational powerlifting lifting

tournament in only his second attempt

His brother, Justin Kasian, and friend,Jake Powers, could all qualify

for the national event, but in differentweight classes

COACH BEN WILLIAMSON

&

THE WALKER WOLVERINES

THE WALKER SCHOOL

700 Cobb Parkway North, Marietta

770-427-2689 • thewalkerschool.org

The Walker School is an independent college-preparatory school for children ingrades Pre-K - 12 and practices a non-discriminatory admission policy.


HILLGROVE HAWKSABOUT THE HAWKSLocation: 4165 Luther Ward Road, Powder Springs. Phone: (678) 594-8127. Home Field: Cobb Energy/Hillgrove Stadium. Team Colors: Crimson and Silver. Online: www.hillgrovefootball.org.

Staff / Samantha M. ShalHillgrove’s JoJo Marshall is a big play waiting to happen fromany point on the football field.

SMALL FRAME, BIG LEADERBy William Bretherton

[email protected]

At first glance, Hillgrove widereceiver Jordan “JoJo” Marshalldoesn’t look like the type of guythat would step up to lead againstopposing defenses.

At 5-foot-8, 163 pounds,Marshall is often lighter andshorter than the cornerbacks thathe faces, even in the high schoolranks. Regardless, Marshall isable to make plays and has devel-oped into the Hawks’ top receiver.

“He’s not a big kid, but hehas been a big-time player,”Hillgrove coach Phil Ironside

said. “He’s gone up and caughtthe ball over people. He’s done agreat job in the screen game. Hisblocking is second-to-none. Idon’t think people look at himand say, ‘Oh, my.’ But after theywatch film, they are looking for

where No. 6 is.”Marshall’s numbers from last

season also bear that fact out. Hefinished third in the county inreceiving yards with 703 includ-ing an average of 17.5 per catch.Marshall caught seven touchdownpasses, though all of these num-bers were stymied at times by thenumber of players who got theirhands on the football last season,including senior running backKenyan Drake, who committed toAlabama over the summer.

So, how has Marshall becomeone of the Hawks’ top offensivethreats?

See JoJo, Page 46

HILLGROVE’S JOJO MARSHALL A LARGE PART OF THE GAME PLAN


2010 Season Stats� 40 receptions, 703 yards,7 touchdowns

THE MARSHALL FILE

KICKOFF 2011


WALTON RAIDERS


BROOKWOOD 10-27 LMILTON 41-14 WCAMPBELL 34-7 WROSWELL 13-24 LETOWAH 3-19 LLASSITER 31-27 WCHEROKEE 45-21 WWHEELER 37-12 WMARIETTA 59-28 WWOODSTOCK 20-0 WNORCROSS 3-28 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Rocky HidalgoAge: 38Year at School: 3Record: 13-8Career Rec.: 13-8

Varsity Coaching StaffTripp Allen — Asst. HC/OCChuck Goddard — Def. CoordinatorShane Amos — Defensive BacksChris Van Zelfden — LinebackersPatrick Ray — LinebackersJoe Goydish — ReceiversJeff Imperial — Special TeamsJohn Evans — Offensive LineMike Davidson — Offensive LineBill Bellus — Running BacksRob Nichols — Defensive BacksPete Murphy — UtilityErik Klein — Kickers


DOMEP’TREE RIDGE

AUG. 20

ATMILTONSEPT. 2

ATCAMPBELLSEPT. 9

VS.ROSWELLSEPT. 16

ATETOWAH

SEPT. 23

VS.LASSITERSEPT. 30

ATCHEROKEEOCT. 14

VS. WHEELEROCT. 21

VS.MARIETTAOCT. 28

ATWOODSTOCK

NOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 TYREN JONES RB 112 D. RICHARDSON WR/DB 123 T’QWAN ROBINSON WR/DB 114 CHANDLER DEASE DB 125 MYLES HOWARD WR/DB 126 STONE ROMBERG CB/WR 117 MAURICE GIBSON WR 118 DARON BLAYLOCK DB/RB 129 ZACH WILLIAMS RB 1010 LUCAS ARNOLD LB 1011 JIM HOGUE RB/LB 1212 PARKER MCLEOD QB 1113 HUTTON SPITLER QB 1014 PRICE WILSON QB 1015 JACK WHITTAKER DB 1016 BLAKE MONTZ LB 1117 JAMES WILLIAMS WR 1118 ZACH BLAYLOCK FS 1219 MATT WILSON FS 1220 JACOB MURPHY DB 1021 DJ SMITH RB/DB 1022 RYAN CRAIG WR 1123 R. MCCARTHY CB 1124 BILLY MEREDITH DB/WR 1125 RYAN JOHNSON LB/RB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

26 JORDAN VORSTER LB 1027 COLBY BILLINGSLY 1128 AJ COLLINS DB 1229 CHRISTIAN BURLOCK 1130 HENRY ROWLING FB 1031 JARRETT BYERS RB 1232 JUSTICE BAILEY RB/DB 1133 ZACH HOADLEY LB 1234 DAVID SEWELL DB 1035 ZACH CHRYSTAL DB 1036 MATT KENNEY LB 1137 DANNY BOARDMAN DE 1238 RYAN LABAN DB 1039 WILL HOLT WR/DB 1040 THOMAS LYNCH LB/RB 1141 SAM BURSTEIN LB/RB 1142 JUSTIN BROOKS LB 1243 RIDGE GIBSON LB 1044 KELLY BROOKS RB/DE 1245 DALTON HALL LB 1246 COLLIN FANT WR 1047 WILL MCMAHAN RB/DL 1248 DEDRIC SUNDBY LB 1249 NICK GOODWIN LB 1050 CHRIS WEBB DT 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

51 KOTY ALLEN OL 1252 CONNER HOFFMAN DE 1053 RICHARD SUYDAM 1054 GRIFFIN WILKINSON C/DT 1155 JOE COOK LB 1156 GLENN PANTER DE 1057 KYLE WHITAKER DE 1058 MICHAELKRAEMER OL/DL 1059 LUKE HENDON OL/DL 1160 ANDREW MEAUX OL 1161 JACK SHOEMAKER OL 1062 TIM MATTUS C 1063 MITCHELL PAIR OL 1064 MICHAEL LORD C/DE 1265 LOGAN BROWN OL 1166 SABASTIAN COVELO OL/DT 1167 MARCUS WILSON OL/DL 1068 JON FRANCE OL/DL 969 MICHAEL PAIR OL 1070 JESUS GONZALEZ OL 1071 JACK SCHAEFER OL/DE 1172 BEN BIRLEY OL/DE 1273 JAKE BOYNTON OL 1174 G. RADAKOVICH C 1275 HARRISON DAVIS OL/DT 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

76 EVAN BENNETT C 1277 THOMAS BESHARA OL 1278 KRISTIAN DEARMAS OL 1079 B. KUBLANOW OL/DT 1180 BRAD GREEN TE 1181 BEN SIBLEY WR 1282 LUKE HOLLEY WR 1083 JACKSON DONNELL WR 1084 DYLAN WELCH WR 1085 NAKAI POOLE K 1286 J. DAVOUDPOUR LB 1087 TIM DALTON TE/DE 1288 DAQUAN MOORE WR 1289 CORY GREENWALD 1290 ANDREW MASON OL/LB 1091 ANTHONY PRICE K 1192 CHRISTIAN LUCAS K 1093 R. BLAKENSHIP K 994 TREY THOMPSON OL/DL 1195 ELIJAH WEEMS WR 1096 BRANDON LUCCI LB 1197 TRENT WIRTZ K 1198 NATHAN DITTMER K 1299 S.P. HOLLMAN TE 10

SHAQUILLE EVANS

Season Outlook

While Walton lost top rusherKyle Vorster from last year’s 7-4state playoff team, the Raidersremain relatively intact as theyenter the 2011 season.

Walton is especially strong ondefense, where it returns ninestarters. Senior defensive backs,and twin brothers, Daron andZach Blaylock will lead theRaiders’ potent defense, alongwith senior defensive end KotyAllen and senior linebacker

Justin Brooks.While Walton lost Vorster,

who was one of the top rushersin the county with 1,358 yardsand 19 touchdowns, the Raiderswill have someone to step in andfill the gap immediately inLassiter transfer Tyren Jones,who was also among Cobb’s toprushers in 2010. Senior JimHogue is expected to be anotherkey contributor in the backfield.

The biggest question mark for

the Raiders is the offensive line,where they lost most of theirstarters from last year, but senioroffensive tackle Harrison Davisand junior offensive tackle JakeBoynton will provide veteranleadership for the young line.

Walton suffered its other bigloss at quarterback with thedeparture of Bradley Kilborn, butjunior Parker McLeod is in placeto fill the gap behind center.

The Raiders hope to get off to

a better start than they did in2010, when they went 2-3 in thefirst half of the season beforewinning their last five games toqualify for the state playoffs.

With a strong defense and thepresence of Jones in the back-field, Walton should once againbe one of the top contenders inRegion 5AAAAA this season.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


HILLGROVE HAWKS

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


SPRAYBERRY 23-14 WMARIETTA 17-14 WNORTH FORSYTH 42-28 WSOUTH COBB 19-20 LHARRISON 21-0 WMCEACHERN 48-64 LNORTH COBB 39-27 WPEBBLEBROOK 21-3 WKMHS 34-7 WCAMPBELL 35-16 WSTEPHENSON 28-23 WCAMDEN CO. 28-26 WBROOKWOOD 35-45 L

WON 10, LOST 3

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Phil IronsideAge: 43Year at School: 6Record: 33-15Career Rec.: 51-38

Varsity Coaching StaffJohn Moson — Def. CoordinatorTarve Riggins — Running BacksLugman Salam — ReceiversJoe Gerda —Defensive LineAntoine Prince — Def. TacklesKen Nix — Defensive BacksZack Cook — LinebackersJeffrey Wishon — Offensive Line


ATSPRAYBERRY

AUG. 26

VS. MARIETTASEPT. 2

ATNORTH FORSYTH

SEPT. 9

VSSOUTH COBB

SEPT. 16

VS. HARRISONSEPT. 30

ATMCEACHERN

OCT. 7

ATNORTH COBB

OCT. 14

VS. PEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 21

ATKMHS

OCT. 28

VS.CAMPBELLNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 EVAN ENGRAM WR 11

2 ELIJAH IRONSIDE QB 10

3 TRAVON SIMMONS CB 11

4 IKE EREGE RB 12

5 JOHN SILAS LB 12

6 JOJO MARSHALL WR 12

7 OMAR BLACK WR 10

8 ZACH KATZ RB 10

9 JUSTIN HANEY WR 11

10 TO. CLEVELAND CB 11

11 TROY THOMPSON QB 11

12 TYRUS PARKS WR 12

13 DEVIN KNIGHT DB 10

14 KEYANTE BECKHAM WR 12

15 ERROL BREAUX WR 10

16 CONNER BECK QB 10

17 KENYAN DRAKE RB 12

18 PLACID AJOKU DE 12

19 JULIAN ROBINSON FS 11

20 RYAN KNIGHT FS 11

21 KORBIN SANDERS CB 11

22 DERRICK EVANS RB 10

23 RICHARDRE BAGLEY RB 10

24 BAKARI OXENDINE RB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.25 BRADLEY CHUBB LB 10

26 NAKEVION LESLIE WR 12

27 LEMARKUS BAILEY DB 10

28 KELVIN CAMERON WR 12

29 JORDAN PINNER K/P 12

30 ANDREW GAUGHN K/P 10

31 COTY HAYWOOD

32 BR. EBODAGHE 10

33 JUSTIN CONE LB 12

34 FRANK SPAIN 11

35 MITCHELL HARDING DB 11

36 ROBBIE COLEMAN OLB 12

37 LEONARD GRIER 10

38 KENDALL MCGEE WR 11

39 CHRIS HOUSE LB 11

41 JORDAN ADAMS OLB 11

43 J.T. JACKSON 10

44 JORDAN HELTON TE 12

45 QUINCEY NELSON WR 10

46 JIM. WITHEROW WR 11

47 DALTON SIGMAN LB 12

48 VICTOR SANCHEZ LB 11

49 RICKY POWELL 10

50 ZACK WILLIAMS DE 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.51 DYLAN MITCHELL LB 12

52 PEYTON HEWITT DE 11

53 MASON MCCURDY OL 11

54 DAKOTA GROVES OL 11

55 CARTER FITZGERALD OL 11

56 CODY COLLINS OL 11

57 JUSTIN WARD OL 11

58 TYLER YOUNG DE 10

59 MACEN HOWELLS OL 12

60 AN. COLAPINTO OL 11

61 C. KOWALEWSKI DE 10

62 CODY JOHNSON 10

63 DAGAN ABRAHAM OL 11

64 FERNANDO BENTLEY DT 12

65 GRANT FAGAN 10

66 SETH TRULL OL 11

67 BRADY YODER DL 11

68 MITCH STAPLES OL 10

69 TYLER COX OL 10

70 MITCHELL WINDOM DL 11

71 JACK COWART DT 11

72 MATT BREAUX OL 10

73 TREY SMITH OL 10

74 ERIC BREITWEISER OL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.75 JAYLAN REID DT 10

76 CHRISTIAN HALL

77 UGO ANIKPE OL 12

78 WARREN TERRY DL 10

79 JOSH RYAN OL 10

80 JUSTIN DENTON WR 10

81 SAM PETERSON TE 11

82 ERIC NEWMAN TE 10

83 OSY EGBUZIEM WR 12

84 MARCUS ESTES WR 12

85 DESEAN COLLINS WR 12

86 TREVOR DONALD TE 11

87 JAMAL GOOLSBY WR 10

88 TANNER HALEY WR 10

89 PAUL HALEY WR 12

90 COLE DYKSTRA DE 11

91 ALEX GARLAND DE 10

92 AARON AGHAI K 11

93 PAUL BAIN DL 10

94 JACARI GRIGSBY DL 12

95 SCOTTY BROUSSARD DL 12

98 CHARLES TAYLOR DE 12

99 AUSTIN SHIPPAM DT 12

Season Outlook

Hillgrove is going to play this

season with a large chip on its

shoulder — not because it nar-

rowly missed its goal last sea-

son, not because it under-

achieved, but because so many

around the program are con-

vinced that nobody else thinks

that they can do it again.

“I put a picture on facebook,

and some random kid comment-

ed, ‘Ya’ll got lucky last year.

We’re going to beat you this

year,’” Hillgrove linebacker John

Silas said. “I just ignored it

because I know that we are

going to keep working hard to

try and have a better season

than we had last season.

“It seems like we are playing

with a chip on our

shoulder.”

With players such as quar-

terback Gage Henry, lineback-

ers Brandon Chubb and Jabari

Hunt-Days, and defensive line-

man Ira McCune all gone due to

graduation, the Hawks, on paper

at least, appear to be depleted.

However, there is also reason to

believe that this team has

reloaded with talent.

Offensively, the offense will

be turned over to junior Troy

Thompson. Sophomore Elijah

Ironside, coach Phil Ironside’s

son, has game experience and

could compete for playing time.

The team’s offense will be

carried by senior running back

Kenyan Drake and senior wide

receiver JoJo Marshall, while

the defense’s leader will be

linebacker John Silas. All three

players will be relied on for the

experience and leadership nec-

essary to get the proverbial

chip off of the team’s collective

shoulder.



WALTON RAIDERSABOUT THE RAIDERSLocation: 1590 Bill Murdock Road, Marietta. Phone: (770) 578-3226. Home Field: Raider Valley. Team Colors: Red, White, Blue. Online: www.raidersfb.org.

NEXT IN LINEBy Greg [email protected]

Walton’s Koty Allen will bedoing more than assuming a keyrole in the Raiders’ defense thisseason.

The 6-foot-2, 225-pounddefensive end also hopes to takehis place among the number ofstandout defensive linemen thatWalton has had over the last fewyears.

Allen hopes to join 2010graduates Kyle Woestmann(Vanderbilt), Brandon Burrows(Georgia) and Chris Mooney(Columbia), 2008 graduate ChaseThomas (Stanford) and 2006

graduate Nick Hartnett (WesternKentucky) on the list of Waltondefensive linemen who havemoved on successfully to careerson the Division I level.

See Next, Page 79

WALTON’S KOTY ALLEN COULD BE LATEST

IN STRING OF RAIDERS’ DIVISION I LINEMEN

Walton’sKoty Allenwould be thelatest of along line ofRaidersdefensivelinemen if hesigns with aDivision Ifootball program inFebruary.

�

Staff / Jon-Michael

Sullivan


2010 Season Stats� 69 tackles, 7.5 sacks� Being recruited by:Kentucky, Tennessee, Ole Miss, UCF

THE ALLEN FILE

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HARRISON HOYASABOUT THE HOYASLocation: 4500 Due West Road, Kennesaw. Phone: (678) 594-8104. Home Field: Bruce Cobleigh Stadium. Colors: Navy Blue, Green, White. Online: harrisonhoyafootball.com

WHO IS THIS KID?By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

A high school quarterback that hasnever started a varsity game is heavilyrecruited by Division I programs.

It sounds a lot like Camden County’sBrice Ramsey, who has already committedto Georgia, but the future Bulldog isn’t theonly one garnering high praise from thecollege scouts. So is Harrison’s ClayChastain.

“Before his junior year, he went toFlorida’s passing camp,” said Chastain’sfather, Bruce, “and Urban Meyer fell inlove with him. He took him down to the‘Swamp’ and had a passing session andtold him he would be invited back to (the)Friday Night Lights (passing camp).

“It was shortly after that he began hear-ing from everyone.”

Heading into his senior season, Clay

Chastain already has Alabama, SouthCarolina, Virginia, East Carolina, Marshalland Tennessee showing serious interest.While attending the Crimson Tide’s pass-ing camp this summer, he even had theopportunity to sit in Nick Saban’s officeand talk to the very successful Alabamahead coach.

See Chastain, Page 39

HOYAS’ CHASTAIN HAS NO STARTS BUT LOTS OF ATTENTION

� Height: 6-4 � Weight: 220� Career varsity starts: 0� Career passing yards: less than 200� Colleges being recruited by:Alabama, Florida, South Carolina,Tennessee, Marshall, East Carolina,Virginia, VMI

THE CHASTAIN FILE

Harrison’s Clay Chastainwill finally lineup under center as the Hoyas’starting quarterback this season.Despite not having started a varsity game in his career, the new signal-caller is beingrecruited bysome of the bestcollege footballprograms in thecountry.

�Staff /

Erin Gray

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KICKOFF 2011


WHEELER WILDCATS

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


POPE 6-21 LSOUTH COBB 0-34 LMEADOWCREEK 16-0 WCENTENNIAL 0-32 LMARIETTA 34-41 LWOODSTOCK 0-48 LETOWAH 0-38 LLASSITER 0-31 LWALTON 12-37 LCHEROKEE 13-21 L

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Michael CollinsAge: 37Year at School: 2Record: 1-9Career Rec.: 33-34

Varsity Coaching StaffJeff Joiner/Davis Harvey — OCNick Anderson — ReceiversGary Roach — LinebackersMike Collins Sr. — LinebackersShakoor Bryant — Defensive LineJerry Mahon — Defensive LineAnthony Steele — Defensive Backs


VS.POPE

AUG. 26

ATSOUTH COBB

SEPT. 2

ATMEADOWCREEK

SEPT. 9

VS.CENTENNIALSEPT. 16

ATMARIETTASEPT. 23

ATWOODSTOCKSEPT. 30

VS.ETOWAHOCT. 7

VS. LASSITEROCT. 14

ATWALTONOCT. 21

VS.CHEROKEEOCT. 28

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 JAMAL BRYANT QB/DB 112 S. BRYANT DB 123 JEVAN SAMPLER LB 104 KAHLEM LOONEY DB/RB 115 RASHAD JENKINS WR/DB 126 JALEN WILSON DB 127 D. JACKSON RB/DB 108 EMANUEL BEAL WR 109 DAMETRIUS WEBB LB 1110 HAKIM CARTER LB/RB 1111 TOMMY LONG LB/TE 1212 ADRIAN MORRIS DB/WR 1113 RAHEEM PAYNE WR 1114 KYONTE MAXWELL RB/DB 1115 HAYDEN WHITMIRE TE/DL 1116 JACOBI GREEN QB/DB 918 TAYLOR WOLF QB 920 B. COTHRAN RB 1021 ALFONSO BALLARD DL 1223 MICHAEL SPENCE LB/RB 1224 SKIIE ALSTON DB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

25 QUINCYE PRICE LB/RB 1026 ALLEN ARTIS LB 1027 B. GLADNEY LB 1228 MARCUS JACKSON DB 1229 ISAIAH BANKS LB 1130 XAVIER WOMACK WR 1031 COREY BUNKLEY WR 1033 ALI BILAL DB 1034 DOUG LIPSCOMB TE 1235 TY WALKER FB 936 MILAN WOOD DB 1037 ELYJAH MARROW RB 1138 REGINALD JAMES DB 939 DEVIN SMITH DB 940 JACOB LAVAN K/P 1041 JAMIL COLEMAN DB 1042 ANTONEO WEST DB 1043 LUCAS MENDONCA LB 1044 MAU MARTIN DL 1245 ELIJAH BROWN WR 946 BRIAN MAGEE WR 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

47 B. REDMOND LB 1048 JAMES JACKSON LB 1149 BRICE MURRAY DB 950 MONTRICE FILES DL 1051 RODERICK RILEY LB 1153 TRE HUNTER OL 1054 BRANDON WOOD OL/DL 1155 R. MCMATH OL 1156 BRANDON WOOD OL/DL 1157 TOMMY FEAZELL OL 1160 K. WASHINGTON OL 1061 GRANT KISLING OL 1263 GRANT KISLING OL 1264 J.B. SMITH OL 1165 K.J. RAWLES OL 1067 WILLIE BYRD OL 969 JACKSON BLAND DL/OL 1270 K.C. SHAW OL 1171 DARRYL PRICE OL 972 H. ANGELLETTA OL 1273 BRITTON JONES OL 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

75 DASHAWN SNEED OL 1176 MALIK FIELDS OL/DL 977 MIKLE FIELDS OL/DL 978 JULIUS TOLLIVER DL/OL 979 NIGEL MORRIS DL 980 KEVIN HAWKINS WR 1281 BILLY POLAKOWSKI WR 1082 M. ARCENEAUX WR 1083 K. ANDERSON WR 1284 MARK MORAN WR 1085 JESSE KEARSE TE 1086 MICHAEL GORDON WR 987 HARLAND HOWELL WR 988 SAM YAPKOWITZ TE 989 KEYSHAN COLLIER WR 990 JOHN MENZIES DL 991 MICHAEL PINERO OL/DL 1093 J.D. BARRON K/P 1194 VICTOR ALVES K/P 1098 DONOVAN FIELDS DL 12

Season Outlook

Wheeler may be a couple ofyears away from getting thisthing turned around, but it didwin a game for the first time inthree seasons and has enoughexperience returning to take itsprogram to another level.

Wheeler did got that victoryin three seasons againstMeadowcreek and came closeto beating Marietta andCherokee in Region 5AAAAAcompetition.

Based on how they pro-gressed during the spring and

summer, the Wildcats may addto their win total.

“There are several other bar-riers we have to crawl over and,hopefully, we can jump over afew more this year,” second-year coach Mike Collins said.“Breaking old habits and startingnew ones is never an easyprocess. Our focus is on theprocess of getting rid of oldhabits that contribute to you notbeing a successful program andestablishing the habits of a win-ning program.”

Building programs often startwith a quarterback. Junior JamalBryant already has a year ofvarsity experience on hisresume.

He has four returningstarters on the offensive line,two senior receivers in KeshonAnderson and Tommy Long, andappears to have sophomorerunning back in DevontaeJackson.

Wheeler also has experienceon the defensive side of the ball.The Wildcats have two returning

defensive ends in seniorJackson Bland and juniorDametrius Webb.

Senior Alfonso Ballard isback to lead Wheeler’s line-backer unit and the Wildcatsare also welcoming back juniorAdrian Morris in the defensivebackfield along with seniorSantavious Bryant, who missedmost of the 2010 campaign withan injury.


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


HARRISON HOYAS


WEST FORSYTH 0-13 LWOODSTOCK 6-16 LMILTON 31-13 WPEBBLEBROOK 3-13 LHILLGROVE 0-21 LSOUTH COBB 10-7 WCAMPBELL 42-0 WKMHS 17-0 WMCEACHERN 10-28 LNORTH COBB 17-6 WM.L. KING 17-25 L

WON 5, LOST 6

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:David HinesAge: 41Year at School: 4Record: 19-13Career Rec.: 24-29

Varsity Coaching StaffMatt Moody — Asst. HCLee Rider — Offensive CoordinatorRich Robinson — Defensive LineDavid Reed — Tight EndsJamey Stiltz — Defensive BacksBobby Thompson — ReceiversBrent Haygood — Offensive LineJames Mathis — Defensive BacksRobert Jarvis — LinebackersTom Fiacco — Offensive Line


ATWEST FORSYTH

AUG. 26

VS. WOODSTOCK

SEPT. 2

ATMILTONSEPT. 9

VS.PEBBLEBROOK

SEPT. 16

ATHILLGROVESEPT. 30

VS. SOUTH COBB

OCT. 7

ATCAMPBELLOCT. 14

ATKMHSOCT. 21

VS.MCEACHERNOCT. 28

VS.NORTH COBB

NOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 JUSTIN BROOKS RB/DB 12

2 A.J. SMITH RB/DB 12

3 KYLE HOLMES WR/DB 12

4 JUDD HALEY LB 12

6 CULLEN MCCRITE WR 12

7 STEPHON ETIENNE RB/DB 11

8 COLLIN WILSON DL 12

9 MATT NELSON TE 12

10 ANDREW BROCK QB/DB 10

11 SUBBY ADETUJOYE WR/DB 12

12 C.J. POSEY RB/DB 11

13 ALEX ALRED WR/DB 11

15 TYLER CETRULO WR 12

16 DAMON COWAN DB 11

17 CLAY CHASTAIN QB/DB 12

18 TAYLOR SILLAY LB 12

19 LORENZO NUNEZ QB/DB 9

20 R.C. EUSTACE LS 12

21 ADDISON JACKSON WR/DB 12

22 JUSTIN MYRICKS WR/DB 12

23 DARREN PARKINSON K/P 12

24 TONNE’ OSAIGBOVO WR/DB 12

25 W. HUFFSTETLER RB/DB 11

26 ZACH MOORE RB/LB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

27 KYLER GILLESPIE WR/LB 11

28 CHATHAM CARTER RB/DB 11

29 DEMETRUS JONES DB/RB 12

30 JOSEPH PIEPER WR/DB 11

31 DUECE WHITE RB/DB 11

32 CHRIS MURPHY RB/DB 10

33 T. WILLIAMS RB/DB 12

34 TYLER BARNES TE/DE 12

35 RYAN WENDT DB 12

36 CARTER REED LB/RB 10

37 MICHAEL RYAN WR/DB 10

38 KEEGAN KARIM RB/DB 10

39 AVERY STIGALL RB/LB 11

40 JOEY REGISTER WR/LB 12

41 HUNTER JENS DB 10

42 CARSON HUGHEY LB 10

43 JONATHAN FISHER RB/LB 10

44 JAMES PEARSON LB 12

45 HUNTER FUQUA RB/LB 11

46 PARKER KELLEY WR/LB 10

47 TAYVON BENJAMIN DB/WR 10

48 TERRANCE DAVIS DL 11

49 RYAN MOORE RB/LB 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

50 JOHNATHAN DIXSON OL/DL 11

51 ANDREW BUEHLER OL/LB 12

52 BRADLEY FLOWERS OL 11

53 DAKOTA TATUM OL/DL 11

54 SAM LYONS OL/DL 11

55 CURTIS HUBER OL/LB 11

56 JORDAN WILLIAMS OL 12

57 SHAWN MADDEN OL/DL 11

58 JOEY CONNORS OL/DL 10

59 JALEN PENN OL/DL 10

60 JOSH ADAMS OL/DL 10

61 RYAN CAMPBELL OL 10

62 AARON CURRY DL 11

63 MARSHALL BARELA OL/DL 10

64 JAKE SHUMPERT OL/DL 12

65 HUNTER DAVIS OL/DL 11

66 BRADEN BARNES OL/LB 11

67 MITCHELL BENSON OL/DL 10

68 DAVID BERNER OL/DL 10

69 AL REINHARDT OL/DL 11

70 ZACH OSBORNE OL 12

71 AUSTIN O’NEIL OL/DL 11

72 J. AMERSON OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

73 WADE SHUBERT OL/DL 10

74 KEVIN NOBLE OL/DL 12

75 M. WENCLAWIAK OL/DL 10

76 JACKSON MORRIS OL/DL 11

77 CHRIS KLUCK OL/DL 10

78 WILL SICILIANO OL/DL 12

79 NICK SHY OL/DL 11

80 WYATT LOUCKS WR/DB 10

81 MATT EIDSON TE/DL 10

82 TOMMY OROK DL 12

83 CAMERON ISZLER TE/LB 11

84 JACOB MOSS WR/DB 11

85 JUSTIN NIXON TE/DL 11

86 DREVON JONES WR 10

87 VAFA PARSA DL 11

88 J. HUTCHINSON P/K 11

90 TIM JOHNSON DL 12

91 CHRIS KEEL LB/WR 10

94 JOE BARTON OL 10

95 NOBLE WHITE WR/DB 11

97 COOPER LARGENT K/P 11

98 AUSTIN EDENFIELD OL/DL 11

99 JONATHAN GRIMES DE 9

Season Outlook

After a slow start to the 2010

season, the Harrison Hoyas

found their rhythm and finished

the year strong, winning four of

their last five games to earn a

playoff spot in Region 4AAAAA.

The Hoyas are hoping to

carry over their winning ways to

2011 with a hope of challenging

for a region championship.

The key to making the jump

back to Cobb’s elite class will fall

to the hands of new starting

quarterback Clay Chastain.

Chastain has all the tools to be a

good quarterback — size, speed,

arm strength — now all he as to

do is prove he can do it in a

game. The Hoyas should give

him plenty of opportunities this

season.

Chastain will have a pair of 6-

foot-5 targets to throw to in the

likes of wide receiver Subby

Adetujoye and tight end Matt

Nelson. Fullback Zach Moore is

the top receiver out of the back-

field, junior C.J. Posey returns

as the main threat when Harrison

wants to run and they will oper-

ate behind an offensive line that

returns three starters.

The Hoyas were strongest on

the defensive side of the ball last

season, allowing only 11 points

per game. Six starters return on

defense, including their three

leading tacklers — linebackers

Judd Haley, James Pearson and

strong safety Tonne Osaigbovo.

A definite strength of the

squad will be the kicking game,

which returns kicker Darren

Parkinson and punter Jimmy

Hutchinson. After a breakout

showing at the Kohl’s National

Scholarship Camp, Hutchinson is

considered one of the nation’s

top high school punters in the

Class of 2013. Both players will

be able to help the Hoyas dictate

field position.

After a pair of five-win sea-

sons, Harrison appears to be on

the right track to improve in

2011. How much it improves will

depend on how productive the

offense is, and how well

Chastain plays as he settles into

the role of starting quarterback

and team leader.


[email protected]


WHEELER WILDCATSABOUT THE WILDCATSLocation: 375 Holt Road, Marietta. Phone: (770) 578-3266. Home field: Corky Kell Stadium. Colors: Navy, Blue, Gold. Online: www.wheelerfootball.com.

FINDING WHEELER’STEAM LEADER

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

It came as a shock whenJamal Bryant was asked to playquarterback last summer.

Bryant, who was a risingsophomore a year ago and listedat 5-foot-4 and 140 pounds, hadnever taken a snap under center.It was an unusual request, basedon Bryant’s size, but his decep-tive speed fit the mold of leadingthe triple-option offense thatcoach Mike Collins installed.

Bryant won the job and hadto lead a Wheeler offense thatwas just as inexperienced. Hestruggled at times but still laiddown a foundation on howWheeler will run its offenseunder Collins. Bryant also ledthe Wildcats to their first winsince 2007 with a 16-0 victoryover Meadowcreek, and Wheelerwas also in games againstMarietta and Cherokee.

Despite suffering a few over-whelming losses due to inexperi-ence and making a few rookiemistakes, Bryant looks back onhis first varsity season as a posi-tive experience. Now, he is enter-ing his junior season after takingadvantage of a full offseason tohone his skills.

“Me coming into it as a newquarterback, I wasn’t prepared forit really,” Bryant said. “Some ofthe coaches got me ready for it. Idid OK starting off as a sopho-more. I didn’t think I can do it. Iwasn’t expected to play that posi-

tion. I was expecting to play run-ning back, but it was good. I hada really good season.”

Bryant, who comes across ashumble and reserved, did provea year ago he had the leadershipto play quarterback. DespiteWheeler going 1-9, the offensemade strides from the previousyear behind Bryant, who usedhis speed to make several longruns.

“When you step in and every-body is looking at you, you haveno choice but to lead at thatpoint,” Collins said. “I think, attimes, when it got tough, theylooked for Jamal to make theplay for them and I think thathelped him to develop his leader-ship skills.”

Not only is Bryant expectedto lead again, he will have moreexperience around him. Unlike ayear ago, the Wildcats are moreset at their skill positions withsophomore running backDevontae Jackson and receiversKeshon Anderson and TommyLee. Bryant also has four of hisfive starting offensive linemenare returning — seniors GrantKisling and Heyward Angelettaand juniors Brandon Wood andKion Shaw.

Collins said Bryant is rapidlyshowing signs of being animproved quarterback.

“His numbers have increasedin the weight room,” Collins said.“He’s stronger in every lift thanhe was last year. He’s about a

See Bryant, Page 82

BRYANT READY TO TAKE NEXT STEP AS

IMPROVED QUARTERBACK GAINS CONFIDENCE

Staff / Laura MoonQuarterback Jamal Bryant took over Wheeler’s offense last year and helped lead the team toits first win in more than two years.

ABOUT JAMAL BRYANT

He loves macaroni and cheese.

His grandmother, Lotty Leftridge, inspired him to play football.

His favorite player is running back Reggie Bush because ofhis versatility.


ETOWAH EAGLESABOUT THE EAGLESLocation: 6565 Putnam Ford Road, Woodstock. Phone: (770) 926-4411. Home Field: Eagle Stadium. Team Colors: Royal Blue, Gold. Online: etowaheaglesfootball.com

ROWELL, PORCHEPULL DOUBLE DUTY

By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

Unlike smaller privateschools, such as Mount ParanChristian in Kennesaw andWalker in Marietta, Etowahdoesn’t have to play many of itsstarters on offense and defensebecause the team has so muchdepth.

As many as 60-plus athletesjoin the Eagles’ varsity programevery year and, more often thannot, none of starters go bothways. So, to discover that NickRowell and Dalton Porche aretwo-way players, is a bit of ananomaly — that is, until afteryou speak with coach BillStewart.

“I’m really confident that theycan do the job on both sides ofthe football,” he said. “It doesn’ttake a lot for them to understand.They’re very coachable guys andthey pick it up. They’re skilledenough to go both ways.”

Rowell, a senior returningfrom a MCL injury to his rightknee during spring practice, is adefensive tackle who will seemore time at fullback this season.Dalton, another senior, starts atdefensive end and will also getthe starting nod at guard alongthe offensive line.

“These guys grew up playingfootball,” Stewart said. “They’retalented and, year after year, youcan tell by the way they play thatit’s a love and a passion for them.It keeps them going, and thatlove and passion allows them to

be more apt at understandingwhat needs to happen on bothsides of the ball.”

The 5-foot-9, 250-poundRowell is a three-year starter ondefense and a four-year varsityletterman. He played fullback inmiddle school, but was moved todefensive tackle when he got toEtowah. Following the kneeinjury last spring, he is stillworking himself back into shapeto play both ways.

“Coming off the knee injury, Ineed to get in better shape,”Rowell said. “I’m trying to dothe best I can and I’ll be readyfor it.

“I thought about havingsurgery first, but I found out thatI didn’t need it. I just worked mytail off in physical therapy duringthe offseason and it got bettertwo weeks before training camp.It was hard though workingthrough it.”

Despite the injury, Rowell islooking forward to his dual role.He understands what it will takeand is taking the proper steps tobe sure he succeeds at both posi-tions. Last season, he was oftenused at fullback in offensiveplays close to the end zone.

“Being mentally tough is real-ly the best thing to have whenyou play two positions,” he said.“I think I have that and it’swhat’s going to keep me going.

“I’m looking forward to hav-ing a bigger role at fullback. Itwill bring me back to my middle-

See Double, Page 39

ETOWAH SENIORS PREPARE TO PLAY BOTH

WAYS IN STATE’S HIGHEST CLASSIFICATION

Staff / Todd HullEtowah’s Dalton Porche, left, and Nick Rowell will be true 60-minute men this season whenthey start on offense and defense for the Eagles.

ABOUT NICK ROWELLSpanish is his favorite foreign language.

If he had superpowers, he would want to fly.

He was not a “Star Wars” fan.

KICKOFF 2011


WHITEFIELD ACADEMY WOLFPACK


WALKER 7-29 LPACE ACADEMY 10-31 LWILKINSON CO. 7-33 LSACA 21-6 WLANDMARK 7-28 LELCA 0-62 LFIRST PRES. 17-24 LSTRONG ROCK 42-6 WOUR LADY 27-33* LPINECREST ACD. 0-31 L

WON 2, LOST 8*OVERTIME

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Jimmy FieldsAge: 46Year at School: 5Record: 25-20Car. Record: 33-34

Varsity Coaching StaffAlex Livingston — Offensive LineKen Eaton — Def. CoordinatorLee Culp — Defensive LineLeslie Simpston — ReceiversSteven Wright — Running Backs


ATWALKERAUG. 26

VS. PACE ACADEMY

SEPT. 2

ATWILKINSON CO.

SEPT. 9

VS.SW ATL. CHR.

SEPT. 16

ATLANDMARK CHR.

SEPT. 23

VS.ELCA

SEPT. 30

ATFIRST PRES.

OCT. 7

ATSTRONG ROCK

OCT. 21

VS.OUR LADYOCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 R. SHERRELL RB/DB 112 KHALEN PINKETT RB/DB 103 JAY FIELDS TE/LB 124 MAX RIEVES WR/DB 115 CARTER FIVEASH WR/LB 116 ALEX MANNING WR/LB 107 DAVID BALLEW WR/DB 98 JOHN ALAR QB/WR 129 C. WASHINGTON WR/DL 1110 MAX KEMETHER QB/DB 1111 BAILEY COMBS QB/DB 912 THOMAS EAST DB/K 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

14 BRAELEN PHILLIPS WR/DB 1015 SKY DUPREE WR/DB 916 MATT OLSON WR/LB 918 NILE BALL RB/DB 919 MATT MILBURN WR/DB 1120 KRIS MARTIN WR/DB 1121 RYAN WESLEY WR/DB 922 RYAN JONES WR/DB 1224 IAN NASH RB/LB 925 LELAND MANNING WR/LB 1227 BRAD DAVIDSON WR/DB 928 MARCUS JONES RB/LB 9

NO. NAME POS. CL.

33 LORENZO CARTER WR/LB 1034 JAY DESHONG WR/DB 936 BEN BRANNEN RB/LB 1140 JAMES SCHULTZ RB/LB 1144 JUSTIN BRENDEL WR/LB 1050 J.B. SOUTHERLAND OL/DL 1252 NICK PAPARELLI OL/DL 1253 SAM PERLEY OL/DL 1154 EVERETT JOINER OL/LB 1156 S. LEMASTERS OL/DL 1157 COLE BARBER OL/LB 958 S. GARRETT OL/DL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.

59 JACK BRADLEY OL/DL 960 SAGE BLACKWOOD OL/DL 961 WILLIAM BELL OL/DL 964 ELLIS JONES OL/DL 1170 K. WITHARANA OL/DL 1171 MICHAEL HEBERT OL/LB 972 JAYLEN HUDSON OL/DL 1074 HUNTER HOLLIDAY OL/DL 1175 JAMES HARPER OL/DL 1276 BRENNAN SAUL OL/LB 1177 LIAM VIRRILL OL/DL 9

Season Outlook

Getting back on the winningtrack is the top priority for aWhitefield Academy team thatsuffered a rare losing season in2010.

While Whitefield has lost anumber of key players from lastyear’s team such as UAB signeeKennard Backman, quarter-back/wide receiver HarrisonGoudiss and runningback/linebacker Kyle Gutteridge,the Wolfpack will have anotherstrong senior group coming in tofill the leadership gap.

Jacob Southerland, a 6-foot-4,270-pound senior offensive line-man and Division I prospect,returns to anchor a strongsenior-laden offensive line thatalso includes James Harper, NickPapparelli, Spencer Garrett andLeland Manning.

The Wolfpack will alsoreceive strong senior leadershipfrom tight end/linebacker JayFields, wide receiver/defensiveback John Alar and defensiveback/running back Ryan Jones.

Sophomore Max Kemether

took the starting reins at quarter-back for the last few games of the2010 season and will be the start-ing signal-caller again this year.

While Whitefield will be experi-enced in the trenches, it will bemuch younger in both the offen-sive and defensive backfields.

The biggest key for Whitefieldthis season is simply to stayhealthy after a rash of injuriesdoomed the Wolfpack to a 2-8record last year, their worst sea-son since going 3-8 in 2006.

Improving the passing game

is another key as the Wolfpacktry to bolster their wide receivercorps, with Alar expected tomake an important contributionand provide a target forKemether to throw to.

If Whitefield can stay healthy,develop some wide receiversand their young offensive anddefensive backfields, theWolfpack could be back in thestate playoff hunt in Region 5A.

— By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


ETOWAH EAGLES

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


BERKMAR 56-21 WKELL 10-20 LWEST FORSYTH 41-14 WNORTH FORSYTH 17-6 WWALTON 19-3 WCHEROKEE 56-0 WWHEELER 38-0 WMARIETTA 36-29 WWOODSTOCK 17-14(OT) WLASSITER 48-21 WMILL CREEK 7-32 L

WON 9, LOST 2

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Bill StewartAge: 42Year at School: 6Record: 35-21Career Rec.: 35-21


Ed Koschewa — Off. CoordinatorStevie Jackson — QuarterbacksRodney Hunter — Running BacksKeith Roddy — ReceiversJeff Zmistowski — Def. LineJosh Shaw — Defensive Backs


ATBERKMARAUG. 26

ATKELL

SEPT. 2

VS.WEST FORSYTH

SEPT. 9

VS.NORTH FORSYTH

SEPT. 16

VS. WALTON

SEPT. 23

ATCHEROKEESEPT. 30

ATWHEELEROCT. 7

VS. MARIETTAOCT. 14

VS.WOODSTOCKOCT. 21

ATLASSITERNOV. 3

NO. NAME POS. CL.1 MIKE LANIER WR 12

2 TRE ASHFORD LB/WR 12

3 BARRETT BURNS WR/DB 12

4 V. WASHINGTON DB 12

5 RAHUL KASAN WR 12

6 M. MCCAULEY DB 11

7 REEVES JOHNSON QB 11

8 D. AWE-OLALEYE WR 12

9 AUSTIN FRANZEN WR/DB 11

10 C. CROLLEY WR 11

11 JESSE BROWN WR 11

12 TRE’ ATKINS WR 11

13 P. BLANCHARD DB 11

14 JOHN OLIVER QB 10

15 BLAKE BROWN WR 10

16 STEVEN ROBLES DB 11

17 BEN ROWELL DB 10

18 ZACH LORD DB 10

19 MATT WILLETT DB/WR 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.20 JAMES LIGON DB 11

22 KEVIN JEAN-BART

21 DALTON TROGSTAD DB 11

22 RYAN WILBORN LB/RB 12

23 BRANDON ENGLE DB/RB 10

24 D. WHEATON RB/DB 12

25 MARTYN DETZ WR/DB 12

26 RANDY GUTIERREZ WR 11

33 RANDY PRESMY

27 DAVID GUERRERO RB/LB 12

28 PIERRE LUBIN LB/RB 10

29 QUANDRE SMALL RB 10

30 AYDEN BONILLA DB 10

31 SEAN MCCONNELL DB 11

32 GENTRY CROMWELL K 10

33 JOE ELLIS LB 10

34 JESSE MULLINS RB 11

35 REED BLANCHARD LB 11

36 B. GOODMAN DB 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.38 JESSE PHILLIPS LB/TE 11

39 MICHAEL HUNT DB/WR 11

40 RYAN HOPPER K 11

41 NICK ROWELL DL 12

42 BRYCE COROI LB/TE 11

43 JAMES ARNOLD LB 10

44 MATT BOWLING DL/RB 11

45 ZACH LOPEZ LB 11

46 TAYLOR CANTRELL LB 11

47 ZACK WILCOX LB/TE 12

50 M. RECHSTEINER OL 11

51 CARLOS FUENTES OL/DL 11

52 DALTON PORCHE DL/OL 12

53 DYLAN JENKINS DL 11

54 LANCE KELLY OL 12

55 KEITH GORDON DL/OL 10

56 JAKOB HASSAN OL 11

58 BRIAN CLARK OL 11

60 BRANDON CANNON OL 12

NO. NAME POS. CL.61 JACOB HOLCOMBE OL 11

63 CHANDLER STEELE DL 10

64 TY RITCHEY OL 12

65 JAMES VARLEY DL 10

66 DYLAN HEROD OL/DL 12

67 MILES REVELS OL 11

68 EVAN BLOCK OL/DL 10

70 JACK SINGER OL 11

71 DEREK TAYLOR OL 11

72 AVERY DUNCAN OL 11

74 CHASE SAMMONS OL 10

75 NATHAN PARROTT OL 10

76 JULIUS RICHARDS OL 11

77 JAMES JONAS OL 10

78 ZAHER HISHMEH OL 10

80 ANDREW HUGHES TE 12

82 PRESTON WHITE DL 10

84 CONNOR JENSEN WR 10

88 DALTON PHILLIPS DL 11

Season Outlook

If there is one word to describe

Etowah’s football team under Bill

Stewart, it’s “consistent.”

Since taking over the pro-

gram in 2006, the Eagles have

made the playoffs every year

and, except for the 2009 cam-

paign when Etowah used an inel-

igible player and had to forfeit six

contests, they have won at least

seven games every season.

This year should be no different.

Etowah, which finished 9-2

last season, returns six starters

on offense and five on defense

for the 2011 campaign. Although

all-county quarterback Braden

Nolan is no longer under center,

the Eagles return their top run-

ning back in Devonte Wheaton

and their best receiver in Barrett

Burns on offense.

Last year’s question mark —

the offensive line — is also solid

with veterans Jakob Hassan,

Brandon Cannon and Ty Ritchey

back. Dalton Porche, who filled

in for an injured Ritchey along

the line, will also start.

“I feel like we’re going to

have some experience at run-

ning back this year with Devonte

coming back,” Stewart said.

“We’re replacing a quarterback,

but I think we’re replacing him

with a good one with Reeves

Johnson. We have a line that’s

intact with three returning, so

that gives us a little bit of a start

from there compared to last year

when we had to revamp the

entire line.

“Barrett Burns has emerged

as a guy that’s going to be a

weapon on the offensive side of

the ball at tight end and receiver.

I think our receiving corp, with

Damola (Awe-Olaleye) and

(Mike) Lanier and also Martyn

Detz, is a group of guys that we

can get the ball to and move it.”

Although there is an extra

hole to fill defensively, the cup-

board isn’t totally bare. Stewart

enacted a few position changes

to shore up that side of the ball,

which gave up 20 or more points

five times.

“Defensively, day by day,

we’re getting closer to rounding

off that group,” he said. We have

some guys like Tre Ashford who

has stepped up from the safety

position to play linebacker and

Ryan Wilborn, a linebacker, will

be returning.

“We moved some corners to

safety, with Brandon Goodman

and Vashaun Washington, so

that’s been a good fit, and the

two corners with Michael

McCauley and Brandon Engle

have done a good job, so I feel

comfortable that we’re going to

be able to slow people down.

“We’re looking forward to get-

ting after it.”



WHITEFIELD ACADEMY WOLFPACKABOUT THE WOLFPACKLocation: 1 Whitefield Drive, Mableton. Phone: (678) 305-3000. Home Field: Whitefield Stadium. Team Colors: Navy, Gold. Online: www.whitefieldacademy.com.

JUMPING BACKINTO FOOTBALL SEASON

By Greg [email protected]

It was a good spring for WhitefieldAcademy’s John Alar, who capped off anoutstanding track and field season with aneighth-place finish in the Class A highjump at the state meet.

Alar hopes to enjoy similar success onthe gridiron this fall as he takes the field forhis senior season as a free safety and widereceiver for the Wolfpack football team.

Being a two-sport standout is nothingnew for Alar, who has been a key con-tributer for both Whitefield’s football andtrack teams since his freshman year.

But football is now the focus for Alar,who is excited about the Wolfpack’schances to rebound from a disappointing2-8 campaign.

“We got back from (a Fellowship ofChristian Athletes) camp (a week before thebeginning of fall practice) and we reallycame together as a team,” Alar said. “Theseniors are ready to step up and lead thisteam. Last year was disappointing for us,but I think we’re going to have a big yearthis year and get back to the state playoffs.”

Alar is entering the football seasoncoming off the momentum from a memo-rable spring on the track in which he wonthe Region 5A title and finished fourth atthe county meet in the high jump alongwith his eighth-place state finish.

He saved his best for last, jumping a per-sonal-best 6 feet, 1 inch at the region meet —breaking the 6-foot barrier for the first time —and leaping an even 6 feet at the state meet.

“Going into the state meet, I had justjumped my (personal-best) 6-1 at region,”said Alar, who finished second in 5A andfailed to place at the state meet in the highjump as a sophomore in 2010. “I was oneinch short (of my personal-best jump) at 6-0 at state, but I was still very pleased withmy performance. It was a great experienceto go to the state meet. Hopefully, I can doeven better next year.”

Football and track have been of equalimportance for Alar, who started playingfootball in the fifth grade and began trackas a sixth-grader.

Alar was introduced to track by hisfather, Paul, who is an avid runner and a

regular competitor in road races and mas-ters (30-and-over) track meets.

Alar competed in the 800-meter run asa freshman at Whitefield, but then movedto the high jump as a sophomore.

He has made great strides in his devel-opment as a high-jumper under the guid-ance of his personal coach, Hugo Munoz,who competed in the high jump for Peru atthe Summer Olympics in 1996 and 2000.

While Alar believes his future as a com-petitor on the college level lies in track, headds that he is equally dedicated to football.

“They are pretty much equal, though I dohave a shot to run track on the D-I level.” saidAlar, who is being recruited by Penn,Washington & Lee and Emory for track.

Alar will be a key performer in theWhitefield defensive backfield as a freesafety and will also see some time on theoffensive side of the ball as a wide receiver.

While Alar certaintly brings athleticability to the gridiron, he said it is his dili-gent and studious approach to the gamethat is just as big a key to his success.

“I’m very technical,” Alar said. “I’mgood at reading what the receiver is goingto do and I know where he will be. I studyfilm a lot and I learn as much as I canabout what the receivers do.”

Whitefield Academy football coachJimmy Fields acknowledged Alar’s atten-tion to detail as well as his work ethic.

“The thing that comes to mind aboutJohn is that he brings a strong work ethicto the field,” Fields said. “His work ethicis why he is so successful in track, achiev-ing the success he did at region and stateand its why he is successful in football. Heis very detailed oriented in track and thatcarries over into his football. He worksvery hard and is very coachable. He’ll be aleader for us this year and he’s a veryimportant part of this football team.”

WHTIEFIELD’S JOHN ALAR HOPES TO USE THE MOMENTUM

OF A STATE TRACK MEET BERTH HELP THE FOOTBALL TEAM

� Free Safety, Wide Receiver � Began playing football in fifthgrade� Finished eighth place in the ClassA state high jump

THE ALAR FILE

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanWhitefield Academy’s John Alar is hoping the success he found in track andfield last spring will be able to carry over to the football field this fall.

ABOUT JOHN ALAR


He wants to pursue a business career

Has a small business with his younger brother landscaping lawns, along withdetailing and pressure-washing cars.


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KICKOFF 2011


Staff / Samantha M Shal (above) and Lindsay FendtWith Allatoona completing its new turf field this month, every public school in Cobb County — except Marietta and its storied Northcutt Stadium — now hasthe all-purpose surface to play football, soccer, lacrosse and offer the youth athletics in the area an additional place to hold games and tournaments. Aboveis the turf field at Osborne High School. The turf in North Cobb’s Emory Sewell Stadium is pictured below.


[email protected]

As the last artificial turf field wasinstalled recently at Allatoona HighSchool, every public high school in theCobb County School District now hassome form of an artificial surface installed.

At every school, that surface isFieldTurf, with the exception ofMcEachern, which was the first and onlyschool in the county to have SprintTurfinstalled.

At Marietta’s home for more thanseven decades, Northcutt Stadium main-tains the tradition of its natural surface.

As a result of the installations, foot-ball has changed in a variety of ways foreach school. For those schools thatalready had turf installed, such asLassiter and McEachern, the playing fieldmay have evened up for them somewhat.

“Maybe,” said McEachern coach KyleHockman, on losing some of the pro-gram’s competitive advantage. “I thinkthere could be something to that. Wenever ever missed practices. We alwayshad lines and hash marks. And I thinkthere is also a safety concern sometimeswhen you are on a practice field that’s notin very good shape.

Regardless, it is universally believedamong high school coaches that theinstallation of the artificial turf surfacearound the county will save Cobb Countymoney in the long-term compared withhaving to maintain a natural surface year-round.

“At the school level, we spent some-where between $5,000-10,000 each year

sodding the game field every year thatwe don’t have to do anymore,” Waltoncoach Rocky Hidalgo said. “The cost ofcutting and chemicals on the field hasbeen dramatically cut down. We onlyhave to maintain our practice fieldsnow. We probably save $10,000-20,000with everything included because of theturf field annually from the athletic budget.”

For everyone else, the new installationwill save man hours that typically wouldhave spent on tasks, such as cutting thegrass, fertilizing, maintaining the naturalsurface and striping the field.

“It probably saved me 200 hours ofwork this summer because I don’t have tomow or stripe the field,” Pebblebrookcoach Randall Smith said. “Golly, itallows me to watch film more and break-down opponents because I’m not havingto be on the field.”

That time can now be spent on a mul-titude of other tasks — including spend-ing more time on the game of footballitself.

“You have coaches who spent time cut-ting grass or painting fields,” Hidalgo said.“They can go home and spend time withtheir families, prepare for games or pre-pare more for their classes. We don’t haveto spent nearly as much time at the field.”

On top of added time spent on practiceor film study, the new fields prevent fieldsfrom being destroyed in the case ofextreme rains that turn grass fields intomud pits.

“The weekend of the flood (in 2009),”Smith said. “We couldn’t even go outside.It was so muddy that you couldn’t even go

out and function. We had to practice in thegym, which is basically just a walkthrough.You just lose out. With this field, it can rainlike that all day for three days and we canstill go outside and get things done.

“After that flood, it destroyed ourfield. You couldn’t even walk across itwithout the mud coming up over yourshoelaces. (The new field) has been ablessing.”

Outside of the new fields’ practicalappeals, there is also the argument thatthat they create a new aesthetic appeal toeach school’s respective athletic facilities

— making each school have a newer feelto it.

“I like the way it makes our stadiumlook,” North Cobb coach Shane Queensaid. “I like the facility upgrade that itgives. It gives your program a differentlook.”

Regardless of why each school feelsthe new surface is better, each coach isin agreement that it will help with oneof the key components of football.

“Our whole county will be better atfootball just because of that,” Hockmansaid.

COBB’S TURF BEGINNING TO PAY FOR ITSELFEVERY COBB COUNTY SCHOOL NOW HAS ARTIFICIAL SURFACE; MARIETTA THE LONE PUBLIC SCHOOL WITHOUT

KICKOFF 2011

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011� PAGE 18 SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 79 �KICKOFF 2011

competed in.Currently, Kasian’s personal

bests include 280 pounds in theclean-and-jerk and 205 in thesnatch, but he said, by the time thecompetition comes around nextyear, he hopes to be at 315 and 225.

For Walker football coachBen Williamson, Kasian’s goalsbring a smile to his face.

“He’s our feature guy,”Williamson said. “He’s our mostexplosive player. He wants theball and (the lifting) has helpedhim with his strength and speed.

Kasian said the lifting hashelped his speed significantlybecause many of the moves aresimilar to what he encounters onthe football field.

“It helps with your speed andraw strength,” Kasian said. “Thespeed from (taking the weight)from the ground to the chest issimilar to the explosive moves arunning back does when he’s get-ting off the ball quickly.”

The lifting has also helped insoccer when he is trying to maneu-

ver between defenders. Kasian hasbetter balance and is able to con-tinue moves to get shots on goalthat defenders may have been ableto prevent previously.

“He just wants to score morethan the opponents want to stophim,” Williamson said.

Kasian rushed for more than600 yards, caught 36 passes for 351yards and scored eight touchdownsin 2010, and more is expected fromhim this season. As an upperclass-man, Kasian has taken his leader-ship responsibilities seriously andWilliamson said he believes thepowerlifting is proving to be a helpwhen it comes to influencing theyounger players that are coming upthrough the program.

“When he is on the platform,everyone in the weight room stopsand watches to see what kind ofrecord he’s going to break next,”Williamson said. “They see howhard he’s working and the youngerplayers want to be like him.”

Williamson said he alsoexpects Kasian’s production toturn some heads.

“His numbers are going to beimpressive,” he said. “His num-bers could be near the top of thecounty on both sides of the ball.”


Pumped“It’s definitely an honor to be

mentioned with the great defensivelinemen that we’ve had over theyears,” Allen said. “Following guyslike Chase Thomas, who are playingon the Division I level, is exciting,and I want to be where they are. I’vebeen playing football for 12 yearsand to get to this level is awesome.”

Walton coach Rocky Hidalgoagreed that Allen will be the latestWalton defensive line standout tomove on to the Division I level.

“We’ve had a lot of guyswho have played on the D-Ilevel and Koty will definitelyjoin them,” Hidalgo said.

Allen certainly showed thepotential to reach the next level in2010, when he recorded 69 tacklesand 7½ sacks in his first year inthe starting lineup to help leadWalton to the state playoffs.

While Allen has been a littleundersized for a defensive line-man, he makes up for with hisintense, physical, all-out style.

“I may not be the biggest orfastest player out there, but I canbe the most intense,” Allen said.

“I’m very physical. I like to gofull-out and hit people.”

Hidalgo agrees.“He plays so hard. He does a

great job of getting to the ball-carri-er. He plays hard every game andevery play and he brings a lot ofintensity to the field every game.”

Allen will be part of astrong Walton defensive unitthat also includes defensivebacks Daron and Zach Blaylockand linebacker Justin Brooks.

He will be stepping up tomore of a leadership role on thedefensive line as a senior afterthe departure of Woestmann,Burrows and Mooney.

“I’m looking forward tobeing more of a leader ondefense and just being a leaderon the team,” Allen said.

Another key to Allen’s successis all the hard work that he does inthe weight room — an area inwhich he is helped out by hisfather, Billy, a competitive body-builder in the 1980s who nowworks as a weight trainer and hasbeen a big contributing factor inhis son’s physical development.

“My dad has really helpedme with my weight training,”Allen said. “He pushes me hardand he has helped become theplayer that I am.”

Allen is certainly on his wayto becoming Walton’s latestDivision I defensive lineman, with anumber of D-I schools vying forhis services.

For Allen, it will be awhilebefore he makes his final deci-sion on what college he wantsto continue his career at.

“It’s still pretty early,” Allensaid. “I’m still looking at a lotof schools. It’s pretty exciting tobe recruited on the D-I level.”

For now, Allen is looking for-ward to the 2011 season and isfocused on improving his individ-ual stats as well as leading Waltondeeper into the state playoffs.

“I would love to lead theteam in sacks and help us winthe state title,” Allen said.


Next ABOUT KOTY ALLEN

His favorites subjects arechemistry and science

His favorite football player is Dick Butkus

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 17�KICKOFF 2011

CREEKVIEW GRIZZLIESABOUT THE GRIZZLIESLocation: 1550 Owens Store Road, Canton. Phone: (770) 720-7600. Home Field: The Grizzly Den. Colors: Blue, Green. Online: www.gogrizzly.net.

RAMP UP THE INTENSITYBy Adam Carrington

[email protected]

Riley Davis was ready for achange after being home-schooled and private-schooled hiswhole life.

The only thing he may regretabout joining the Creekview foot-ball team was not doing it sooner.

“To tell you the truth, I loveit,” the senior wide receiver andsafety said. “From the first work-out, (they) accepted me. I lovethe coaches. (Creekview) is like abig family. The teachers are smartand the coaches are good.

Everyone is watching out foreach other. They’re not worriedabout (themselves) and how toget scholarships.”

Davis said he enjoyed theexperience of playing private-school and home-school football,but stated that the football atmos-phere wasn’t as intense.

He appreciates the longer andmore grueling practices he has atCreekview as opposed to playingin the private-school and home-school football. He doesn’t mindpracticing four to five days aweek instead of two. He also getsmore reps and enjoys the breaksin between practice sessions

where he can talk and work withassistant coaches privately, andcompliments his Creekviewteammates for not giving upwhen games aren’t playing out intheir favor.

And most of his private-schoolfriends having already graduatedfactored into his decision.

Riley took a liking to coachAl Morrell right away. From thefirst meeting, Davis said Morrelltook a strong interest on how heperformed academically andtaught him few things about lifeon and off the field.

“He’s one of best coaches thatSee Intensity, Page 39

CREEKVIEW’S DAVIS READY FOR SOME PUBLIC-SCHOOL FOOTBALL

Creekview’sRiley Daviswill play hisfirst year oftraditionalhigh schoolfootball in2011 afterplaying inprivate-school andhome-schoolleagues.

�Staff /

Todd Hull

KICKOFF 2011


WOODSTOCK WOLVERINES


NORTH FORSYTH 7-0 WHARRISON 16-6 WKELL 10-17 LNEWNAN 28-16 WCHEROKEE 31-10 WWHEELER 48-0 WMARIETTA 42-7 WETOWAH 17-14(OT) W LASSITER 30-14 WWALTON 0-20 LCOLLINS HILL 3-7 L

WON 7, LOST 4

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Brent BuddeAge: 37Year at School: 2Record: 7-4Car. Record: 7-4

Varsity Coaching StaffMike Mills — Assistant HCRoy Clayton — Off. CoordinatorAndrew Price — Def. CoordinatorTodd Harris — QuarterbacksJonathan Thomas — Running BacksTight Ends — Tripp Chandler Chandler Wall — ReceiversChris Jones/Cory Nix — Def. LineSam Young — LinebackersTrey Thomas — Defensive Backs


VS.NORTH FORSYTH

AUG. 26

ATHARRISONSEPT. 2

VS.KELL

SEPT. 9

ATNEWNANSEPT. 16

ATCHEROKEESEPT. 23

VS.WHEELERSEPT. 30

ATMARIETTAOCT. 7

ATETOWAHOCT. 21

VS.LASSITEROCT. 28

VS.WALTONNOV. 4

NO. NAME POS. CL.

2 CHRIS MOWERY DB 103 JARED BOLAK DB 114 AUSTIN STROUD WR 124 REX EIFORT DB 95 JONATHAN WIENER QB 126 ALEX MOTSINGER QB 107 MAX KEETON DB/WR 118 BRANDON YEAGER WR 129 JOHN LAY DB 1110 BRIAN CONRAD RB 1111 ADDISON BASS WR 1112 JUSTIN AGNER QB 913 JAKE INGRAM DB 1214 SAGE JORDAN QB 915 JORDAN BROWN QB 916 BRONSON BLAKE DB 1217 P. WASHINGTON QB 1218 AUSTIN MEAUT RB 1019 ZACH SHAREEF DB 920 DONAVON BRAND RB/LB 921 DAVID BROWN RB/DL 1221 DEVON MARTIN DB 922 CHRISTIAN WHITE DB 1223 LAROB TERRELL DB 1123 ZACH NANI DB 924 WILLIAM FREEL DB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

25 RYAN HENDON DB/RB 1225 REAGAN AMOS DB 926 ALEX TOLEDO DB 1227 SHARRONE GATES RB 928 JEAN BOEREAU RB 1029 RYAN STEPHO DB 1230 ERIC MONROE DB 931 JELANI REGAN DB 932 JEBRAI REGAN LB 1233 SPENCER REED DB 934 IGNAT DEINEKA LB 1235 JON CHELENA DB 1036 CHRISTIAN HUNT DL 1137 TONY RICCI LB 938 CHRISTIAN BARNESDB 1039 AUSTIN STEPHO LB 940 JACOB SCHOEB LB 941 JORDAN DONLEY LB 942 C. CHAPMAN LB 1143 JOSEPH ARCURI LB 1044 JOHNNY CLARK DL 1245 NICK LEEPER LB 1246 ETHAN WHEELER LB 1047 TREY ALEXANDER LB 1148 GARRETT KIEFER LB 1049 JONAH SCHOEB LB 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

50 HUNTER POOSER OL 1151 JACOB AUSTIN LB 1152 JORDAN WILLIAMS OL 1053 ANDREW LENHART LB 1054 NOAH RICE LB 1255 ZACH MINOR LB 1256 DANIEL PETERS OL 1157 DUNCAN MORRIS LB 1058 JOEY PURPURA LB 959 AVERY KONECNY LB 960 JEFF DAVIS OL 1161 ZACH BLANTON OL 1162 BLAKE JACOBS OL 1063 CHAZ DUNN OL 964 AUSTIN BIGGERS OL 1065 FOSTER GREEN OL 1166 THOMAS TRIBOLET OL 1167 STAFFORD COOK OL 969 TYLER BAGGETT DL/OL 1070 ANDY WOODYARD OL 971 WESLEY PELLA DL 1172 DAVID SCHRECK OL 1173 JOSH SCHOEB OL 1274 RUSSELL SPROUSE OL 975 MATT JOHNSON OL 1176 DENZEL PIKE OL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

77 ROBERT DELOACH OL 978 LINCOLN WALKER LB 1079 TYLER GOLEMI OL 1280 GARRETT TREVINO WR 981 MILES DICKEY WR 982 COLIN TAYLOR WR 983 JOSHUA LOUD TE 984 TYLER COX WR 1085 JIMMY KELLEY TE 1285 GARRET ATKINSON WR 986 WILL STUMF TE 1087 JOSH KUZA WR 1188 DILLON THOMPSON TE 1288 JOSH THUERER WR 989 D. HOUSEHOLDER WR 990 DANIEL BENETEZ DL 991 AUSTIN ALDRIDGE DL 1092 DADRIAN SMITH DL 1093 ANDY RODRIGUEZ DL 1094 JACOB KLEIN DL 1195 LONDON DEMETRIODL 996 COLE LANSDELL DL 997 JOHN FOLEY DL 998 KENDALL HUNTER DL 1299 NOAH MANZELLA DL 9

Season Outlook

After finishing the season lastyear in three losses inWoodstock’s last four games, theWolverines come into this sea-son looking to finish strongerthan they did last year.

Woodstock will have to moveon, however, with several of itsbest players departed due tograduation. Leading rusherTanner Skogen is at Furman,while starting quarterback KevinBolak is gone, too.

“I think Kevin was a great leaderfor us and wasn’t by any means aflash in what he did,” Budde said.“But he led the team and quarter-backs are judged by their wins-loss-es whether that is fair or unfair. And,in the case of Kevin Bolak, he won17 games as a starting QB.

“Tanner was a hard workerand a great athlete and did a lotof great things at running backfor two years and even got in asa sophomore and played for us.”

This year, Woodstock will run atwo-quarterback system that fea-tures Jonathan Wiener, a playerthat saw time as the team’s kicker,kickoff specialist, wide receiverand quarterback, as well as PryceWashington, who transferred intoWoodstock’s program last yearfrom Whitefield Academy.

More than Woodstock’soffense, which returns fourstarters, the Wolverines’ programhas always focused on its ability

to play tough defense. Thisyear’s team returns five starters.

“We have been blessed overthe years to have some great tal-ent and kids… And I fully expectfor all of our players on bothsides of the ball to step up andcontinue the tradition that hasbeen built before them.”


[email protected]

KICKOFF 2011


CREEKVIEW GRIZZLIES

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


SEQUOYAH 17-13 WNW WHITFIELD 18-0 WLAMBERT 7-17 LCHATTAHOOCHEE 7-42 LJOHNS CREEK 10-13 LROME 51-14 WSOUTH FORSYTH 23-38 LCASS 10-38 LFORSYTH CEN. 20-21 LWOODLAND 21-38 L

WON 3, LOST 7

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Al MorrellAge: 54Year at School: 5Record: 34-18Career Rec.: 34-18

Varsity Coaching StaffSeth Deering — Inside LBsJeff Nelson — Def. CoordinatorJustin Wheeler — FullbacksRonnie Jackson — QuarterbacksChris Jeffreys — Wide receiversNate Cline — Outside linebackersFreddie Foster — Defensive BacksJamie Nelson — Wing backsShawn McClellan — KickersTim Smyrl and Chip Wludyga


VS.SEQUOYAHAUG. 26

ATNW WHITFIELD

SEPT. 2

ATLAMBERTSEPT. 9

VS.CHATTAHOOCHEE

SEPT. 16

VS. JOHNS CREEK

SEPT. 23

ATROME

SEPT. 30

VS.S. FORSYTH

OCT. 7

ATCASS

OCT. 14

VS.FORSYTH CEN.

OCT. 21

ATWOODLAND-BAR.

OCT. 28

NO. NAME POS. CL.

1 XANDER PING QB/DB 11

2 RILEY DAVIS WR/DB 12

3 KEITH WOODS RB/LB 12

4 AVERY JEANS RB/DB 10

5 CONNOR DULMAGE QB/LB 10

6 HADEN HALL QB/DB 11

7 AUSTIN MURPHY WR/DB 10

8 JONATHAN RUSSELL WR/DB 11

9 JOEY NOLL WR/DB 11

10 HUDSON GRAHAM WR/DB 10

11 JACOB HOLCOMBE WR/LB 11

12 CASEY MARTIN WR/LB 10

14 B. MORISSET RB/DB 12

15 KYLE ALLEN WR/DB 11

16 JACK O’DONNELL WR/DB 10

17 COLE RICHARDS RB/LB 12

18 GARRETT HARE RB/LB 12

19 STEPHEN SHUGART WR/DB 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

20 DYLAN HARRISON RB/DB 11

21 HUNTER UDALL WR/LB 11

22 ZACH HENSON RB/DB 11

23 ISAIAH RODGERS RB/LB 10

24 BAILEY QUINN RB/DB 11

25 HAYDEN GALLOWAY RB/DB 12

26 WILL KIRBY RB/DB 11

27 WADE GODFREY RB/LB 12

28 NATE DRAUGHON WR/DB 10

29 EVAN GIBSON WR/DB 10

30 T. TANKERSLEY RB/DB 12

31 M. RICHARDS RB/LB 11

33 EDDY SCHOEWE RB/LB 11

34 LUCAS NELSON TE/LB 11

35 DONDREI HUBBARD RB/LB 12

37 HUNTER SMITH WR/LB 10

38 J. SORRENTINO RB/LB 10

39 TRENT GILELAND TE/DL 11

NO. NAME POS. CL.

40 CHASE CALLAHAN RB/LB 11

41 ALEX DULONG RB/DB 10

42 LOGAN RIDINGS RB/LB 10

43 BEN O’DONNELL TE/DB 10

44 RJ KNECHT RB/DB 10

46 AUSTIN MCDONALD RB/DB 10

47 GRANT SHEDD QB/DB 10

50 TRAVIS BALL OL/DL 12

51 AUSTIN CHESTER OL/LB 12

52 AUSTIN KING OL/DL 11

53 BLAKE COCHRAN OL/DL 12

55 AUSTIN WEAVER OL/DL 11

56 ROBERT LYON OL/DL 11

57 DUSTY CALLAHAN OL/LB 10

58 MICHAEL SHAW OL/DL 10

59 MICHAEL CRAFTON OL/DL 11

60 LUKE SCHULTHEISS OL/DL 10

61 JOSH COOK OL/DL 10

NO. NAME POS. CL.

62 TRAVIS WALLAGE OL/DL 12

65 CODY WATKINS OL/DL 10

66 N. VISCOMI-SCHWABB OL/DL 10

67 DOUGLAS NULPH OL/DL 10

68 ALEX GAINEY OL/DL 12

69 JOE BRADLEY OL/DL 10

70 GLEN CARPINO OL/DL 11

72 JONATHON SULLIVANOL/DL 10

73 PAYNE, KATAVIOUS OL/DL 11

76 DOTSON, JOHNATHANOL/DL 10

77 GRANT RHODES OL/DL 11

78 C. THRELKELD OL/DL 10

79 MATT SINGLETON OL/DL 10

83 NATHAN PELLETIER TE/DL 11

84 BRANDON WRIGHT WR/DB 11

89 BEN MCCLELLON K 10

99 JESS GRAHAM WR/LB 10

Season Outlook

Creekview will attempt to put

a rough 2010 season behind it

with an entirely different roster.

The Grizzlies couldn’t have

gotten off to a better start last

season, winning their first two

games of the year that included

archrival Sequoyah on the road,

but finished with a disappointing

3-7 record. And if they are looking

to make strides from last year,

they will have to do it with new

faces on both sides of the ball.

They have talent at the skilled

positions, but most of them lack

the varsity experience, with the

offensive line being the biggest

question mark.

Creekview is tweaking a few

tings offensively based on the

talent it has on the field. They

may run a multiple and spread

the field more instead of being

strictly Wing-T.

Junior quarterback Haden Hall

is expected to lead the offense

after a successful JV season a

year ago. Brandon Wright is doing

good things at receiver as is senior

newcomer Riley Davis. Senior

D’Ondrei Hubbard is tabbed to

start at fullback after getting varsity

playing time last season with junior

Will Kirby filling in.

Senior linebackers Keith

Woods and Garrett Hare and

junior lineman Robert Lyon will

anchor the Creekview defense,

which is also reloading from last

season. Junior Joey Knoll will

contribute in the secondary after

getting playing time on varsity as

a sophomore last year.

“We’re unproven, but talent-

ed,” Creekview coach Al Morrell

said. “Our biggest question is in

the trenches, especially the

offensive line.”


[email protected]


WOODSTOCK WOLVERINESABOUT THE WOLVERINESLocation: 2010 Towne Lake Hills S Drive, Woodstock. Phone: (770) 592-3500. Home Field: Wolverine Den. Colors: Navy Blue, Cardinal Red, White. Online: www.eteamz.com/woodstockwolverines/

BROTHERLY LOVE


[email protected]

There are fans so fervent thatthey live and breathe by whathappens with their favorite team.

But there are few people whodevote themselves so fully to oneteam that it becomes their liveli-hood. In the case of the Schoebfamily, that much is true.

The family of five has threebrothers, Josh, Jonah and Jacob.Josh, a senior, figures to be thestarting left tackle for Woodstock,

serving as the team’s top lineman.As a sophomore, Jonah will likelybe one of the linebackers —though he is currently injured —while Jacob, a freshman, is cur-rently competing for his brother’sjob in his absence.

“It’s been great,” their father,Matt, said. “It wasn’t plannedthat way. First, the youngest oneand oldest one started in rec ballat CYFA (Cherokee YouthFootball Association). Our mid-dle son, Jonah, wanted to seehow his brothers like it.

See Love, Page 82

WOODSTOCK’S SCHOEB BROTHERS

PART OF A TRUE FOOTBALL FAMILY

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanThe Schoeb brothers, from left, Jonah, Josh and Jacob, could all see playing time this year.Josh is Woodstock’s starting left tackle while Jonah and Jacob are linebackers.

THE SUMMIT AT ATPP3910 Canton Road | Marietta, GA 30066

For registration and program information,visit www.summit-atpp.com or call 678-384-6500

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• Basketball Training Clinics

• Summer Camps & Private Instruction

• Bootcamp By Kathy Fitness Class

• Team Basketball, Baseball and Volleyball Tournaments

• Team Practice Court/Field Rental


CHEROKEE WARRIORSABOUT THE WARRIORSLocation: 930 Marietta Highway, Canton. Phone: (770) 479-4112. Home field: Tommy Baker Field. Colors: Red, White, Black. Online: www.cherokeewarriorstdclub.org.

Staff / Samantha M. ShalCherokee’s offensive line, from left, Nick Mitchelli, Tyler Ratcliff, HunterCollett, Levi Satterfield and Jacob Crowley, hope to return the Warriors to thetop of Region 5AAAAA and the Class AAAAA state playoffs.

UNBREAKABLE WALLBy Adam Carrington

[email protected]

When Cherokee senior center HunterCollett and his stout offensive line wereasked about their offseason schedule,Collett said, “We have some pinned upaggression that’s ready to be unleased.”

In other words, they’re ready to surprisea few teams after going 3-7 last season.

“We’ve worked hard this summer onand off the field,” senior offensive guardNick Mitchelli said. “We want to go to theplayoffs. Our goal is to play 11, but wewould love to play more and that’s whatwe intend to do.”

There is no doubt that Cherokee’s offen-sive linemen will be a strength going into

the 2011 season. Based on their productivi-ty throughout the summer, they’re buildinga wall that will be difficult to break.

Their goal is not to improve on their los-ing record. Their goal is to make the ClassAAAAA state playoffs and then make astatement once they get there. The experi-ence factor on the offense is working inCherokee’s favor with four returning starterscoming back, and they’re ready to create apath that will lead them to postseason.

“I think the overall feeling of having 10games under your belt will help,” Cherokeecoach Brian Dameron said. “They trust eachother and have become a tight-knit group.”

What makes these linemen stand out istheir size. Collett is 6-foot-3 and is more

See Wall, Page 38

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step faster. He’s much, muchmore mature as an overall athleteand the way he has approachedthe game and how he approacheshis preparation. Hopefully, allthat will manifest into a success-ful season.

“I think it was good experi-ence last year for him to gothrough the ups and downs of avarsity season as a sophomore. Ithink he’s coming in well sea-soned. The jitters he had as a

young player, I hope not to seethose this year.”

However, Bryant doesn’twant to rely solely on his speedthis season. His priority this sea-son was mastering the passinggame. With Bryant being a short-er quarterback, throwing doesn’tcome easy. He has to use hisquickness to roll out and see thefield beyond his bigger offensiveline.

He threw the ball three to fourdays a week during the wintermonths. He attended passingcamps at Kell and Campbell andtook advantage of Wheeler’s ownpassing camp.


Bryant

the team’s need for communica-tion on defense. “Our linebackersare a little greener. They are hit-ters that play downhill, but theirFriday night experience is not asgreat as some others.”

On top of being the team’stop corner and its captain, SouthCobb will also feature Thomason the offensive side of the ball,as a slot wide receiver.

“We’ve worked really hard inthe last 12 months on kids beingtwo-way contributors,” Koestersaid. “We’re working with ourkids from the standpoint that, ifyou are the kind of prospect thatwe believe you to be, then youshould be a two-way performer.

So, we’re trying combinations onthe field to get our best 11 on thefield that are our freshest 11 onthe field.”

In order to make the adjust-ment, Thomas said that he hadworked more on his route running.

“Basically, it’s just footwork,and you’ve got to be smart,” hesaid. “You have to figure out thedefense and how they line up.”

By playing wide receiver,Thomas believes that he canbecome a better cornerback andvice versa.

“Playing corner, then goingback to playing receiver, youalready have a step on the otherdefender because you know whatthey are going to do,” he said.“You know about their capabili-ties and the zones they play, man(to-man), everything like that.”


Task

“They’re great athletes. Mywife and I have been happy thatthey all chose the same sport. Ithas been unusual, but it’s greatthat they love football like wedo. They all want to play col-lege ball. If everything alignsright, then they will have thatopportunity.”

The family’s connectiondoesn’t stop there. Matt Schoebserves as a community coachthat handles the middle schoolprogram, though Woodstockcoach Brent Budde said hewould love to have him on hisvarsity staff — only he can’t bewith his sons playing for theWolverines.

“It’s really nice,” Woodstockcoach Brent Budde said. “Theyare a football family… They areall hard workers and havebright, bright futures in footballand can all play at a high levelat the next level.

“I think we’ve had brothers onthe team even and even in somecases three, but nothing to where

they are all really close to beingon the field… I think it’s definitelya unique situation that you havethat many brothers on one team.”

Like most athletes, theSchoeb brothers began playingfootball by playing games inthe front yard and by playingyouth football.

“At the time, when theywere young before the seasonwould start at rec ball, all threewould be in the yard going backand forth in pads hitting adummy,” Matt Schoeb said. “Icoached pretty consistently andoversee the junior program atWoodstock… Jacob would takea little more abuse. Josh wasbigger and would get both ofthem. We would always gothrough fundamentals beforethe season would start.”

Off the field, the three broth-ers all have their own innatequalities. On the field, Josh,who stands at 6-foot-4, 270pounds, is larger than life andmakes his presence well knownto his opponents. Off the field,he possesses a more calm andquiet persona.

“He is (Woodstock’s) bestoffensive lineman,” Matt said.“He’s got great feet and is a nice

kid. With any great of-fensivelineman, he has to have a littlenastiness to him. He does. But offthe field you wouldn’t know it.”

For Josh’s younger brothers,they have grown up and becomelinebackers that will each see keyplaying time for the Wolverines’defense. They follow a long lineof talented linebackers inWoodstock’s program.

“(Jonah) played in ourscrimmage game last yearagainst McEachern, and gotthrown into the fire as a sopho-more.” Budde said. “The wholefamily is blessed with somegood size and great instinctsand they are hard working.

“Jonah has a bright future atinside linebacker. In the past, we’vehad the Carmichael brothers, thenCameron Allen, who walked on atUGA. Then, there’s Bruce Miller,who’s now in the NFL with the(San Francisco) 49ers. (Jonah andJacob) are part of Woodstock’sown ‘Linebacker U’.”

This year, instead of com-peting against each other inpads on the front yard, all threebrothers have the chance towork on the same team towardthe same goal — winning thestate championship.


Love

ABOUT THE SCHOEB BROTHERS

The brothers moved to Georgia from Arizona

Each brother has a different collegiate allegiance — Josh likes Tennessee, Jonah favors Georgia and Jacob pulls for Georgia Tech

Hobby. After holding off the dis-ease as long as he could, the 17-year-old Hobby died on May 30,2006.

“I have lived 17 years andbeen able to do a lot of greatthings,” Hobby told his parents afew days before he died. “Butthe little kids with cancer need achance to live. Tell (my friendsand teammates) to raise moneyfor research.”

Because of Hobby, theRally 4 Quarters 4 Researchfundraising campaign was bornas was the annual Matt Hobby

Jersey Award.In the past 5 years, Pope stu-

dents have helped raise morethan $55,000 for the RallyFoundation for ChildhoodCancer Research by passingbuckets around at football gamesto collect loose change, and nowtwo Hanshaw’s have worn jerseyNo. 70.

“It’s a humbling experienceto wear No. 70,” Kemper said.“It’s a big deal and one the play-ers take very seriously.”

The Matt Hobby JerseyAward goes to the lineman thatemulates the toughness, determi-nation and enthusiasm for thegame and love of his teammatesthe way Hobby did during hisfight with cancer. To make the

award even more special, thewearer of No. 70 is bestowed thehonor through a vote by histeammates.

Matt Hanshaw, Zach’s broth-er, was the first to be honored in2006 and it will be somethingthat he carries with him for alifetime.

“I was never All-County,MVP, or anything really big atPope,” Matt Hanshaw said. “ButI was the Matt Hobby JerseyAward winner. It means a lot tome because my teammates andcoaches appreciated how Iplayed and how I went about mybusiness on the football field.

“It was a great honor to meback then, but now after 5 yearsit’s an even greater honor to me.”

Geddy Wilson, GarrettSchoppman, Rylan Leary andTrevor Buhr followed Matt withwearing No. 70 and now the tra-dition has been passed on toZach.

“I realize the footsteps I haveto follow in,” Zach Hanshawsaid. “It hasn’t really hit me yet.I cried the night Matt got itwhen he came out for the firsthome game so that’s when I willprobably realize it.”

Hanshaw will officially behonored before Pope’sSeptember 30 game against Kell.He will accept it during a pre-sentation before the game withHobby’s parents, Jud and PamHobby.

“It’s an important thing here,”

Kemper said. “That night 20children with cancer will be onour sidelines and they will besmiling ear to ear. The biggestlesson they teach is (dealing withthe disease) is all about attitude.”

Hanshaw, who is currentlybeing recruited by West Georgiaand Valdosta State, realizes thekind of people he is following bywearing the No. 70. He said heunderstands what the honor is allabout and vows not to sully his,or the award’s, reputation.

“I’m under a microscope nowand I definitely have a height-ened responsibility,” he said. “Ascenter I try to take command ofthe offensive line. Hobby was aleader, and that’s what I want tobe.”


70

KICKOFF 2011


CHEROKEE WARRIORS


NORTH FORSYTH 3-14 LMILTON 19-41 LWEST FORSYTH 17-42 LMILL CREEK 14-35 W*WOODSTOCK 10-31 LETOWAH 0-56 LLASSITER 24-27 LWALTON 21-45 LWHEELER 21-13 WMARIETTA 27-20 W* WON BY FORFEIT

WON 3, LOST 7

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Brian DameronAge: 49Year at School: 11Record: 56-54Career Rec.: 56-54

Varsity Coaching StaffBradley Fowler — Asst. HC/DCBen Martin/Thomas Sheehan — OLBill Holton/Jason McDaniels — QBAdam Johnson — Running BacksLance Riccio — ReceiversCasey Wingard — Defensive LineCharles Higdon — Defensive BacksBarry Dalton — Linebackers


ATNORTH FORSYTH

AUG. 19

VS. MILTON

AUG. 26

VS.WEST FORSYTH

SEPT. 2

ATMILL CREEK

SEPT. 9

VS. WOODSTOCKSEPT. 23

VS.ETOWAH

SEPT. 30

ATLASSITEROCT. 7

VS. WALTONOCT. 14

ATWHEELEROCT. 28

ATMARIETTANOV. 4

NO.NAME POS. CL.

1 J. GONZALEZ RB/LB 11

2 TALLEY REDMOND TE/LB 11

3 TREY BUTLER SE/DB 12

4 ANDREW BLAYLOCKDB/RB 12

5 BLAKE JOHNSTON RB/LB 10

6 WILL SHUBERT TE/LB 12

7 BRANDON HROUDA RB/LB 10

8 BLAKE JONES SE/DB 12

9 HUNTER WINGFIELD QB/DB 10

10 JONATHAN JONES K 10

11 JORDAN FREEMAN SE/DB 10

12 WILLIE CYRUS RB 11

13 ZACH DAWSON K 10

14 TROY TUCKER SE/DB 12

15 TIMOTHY PATTISON SE/DB 12

16 MATT BEARDEN SE/DB 10

NO.NAME POS. CL.

17 BLACE BROWN QB/DB 10

18 MASON KEYT QB 11

19 CLAYTON FIELD SE/DB 10

20 ZAVIER WIGGS RB 12

22 TYVON WILLIAMS RB/DB 10

23 E. MESTEMAKER LB 12

25 J. METCALFRB/LB 11

26 ZACH BOGDAN SE/DB 10

27 DEVON MERCER SE/DB 10

28 ISAAC GRUNDY DB/SE 11

29 BRANDON GREENE SE/LB 10

30 LANCE PARCHMENT SE/DB 10

31 PRINCETON GETER SE/DB 10

33 KIEFER WRIGHT LB 11

34 KYLE ACEVEDO RB/LB 12

35 HUNTER SIDWELL SE/LB 10

NO.NAME POS. CL.

36 LANDON MONROE RB/LB 10

37 SPENCER KEALEY K 10

38 ZACH WILSON SE/DB 10

39 LOGAN HORNBACK RB/LB 10

44 MASON DOZIER LB 11

46 JUSTIN CLARK SE/DB 10

47 GEORGE CARMO SE/LB 11

50 B. SANDERCOCK LB/OL 11

52 NICK MITCHELLI OL 12

53 LEVI SATTERFIELD OL/DL 11

54 JACOB CROWLEY OL/DL 11

56 ALEC RIGGINS OL/DL 10

58 CODY PARKER OL/DL 11

59 TUNDE AYINLA DL 11

64 NICK RAGSDALE DL/TE 11

65 HUNTER COLLETT OL 12

NO.NAME POS. CL.

67 ZACH JONES OL/DL 10

68 HUNTER BURTON OL/DL 11

69 MICHAEL ACKERMAN OL/DL 10

70 BRADLEY REEVES OL 12

71 TYLER RATCLIFF OL 12

72 CALVIN MAYO OL/DL 10

73 XAVIER KEITH DL 11

77 LOGAN WITHEROW DL/OL 10

80 ZAK KUYKENDALL SE/DB 11

81 CAMERON SEBRINGOL/DL 10

82 SEAN ANDERSON SE/DB 10

83 MASON MAYES SE/DB 11

85 JOSH MCCLAIN SE/DB 11

88 AUBREY SHARP TE/LB 10

89 T. SHACKLEFORD SE/LB 10

94 DJ MOORE TE/DL 12

Season Outlook

Cherokee’s success on

offense this season relies heavily

on its offensive line. Defensively,

the Warriors are going to have to

fill some holes, especially in the

secondary.

The biggest positive for the

Warriors going into this season is

returning four starting offensive

linemaen from last season who

are in the 250- to 300-pound

range and have experience cre-

ating holes for their running

backs in the triple-option offense.

The offensive line is coming off a

productive summer and appear

ready to turn around Cherokee’s

fortunes after finishing with a 3-7

record last season.

The Warriors will have to deal

with a blend of returning players

and newcomers on both sides of

the ball.

Junior Mason Keyt is a first-

year starter at quarterback, and

his strength is his knowledge of

the triple option. Keyt isn’t overly

flashy, but he has got skilled play-

ers around him who are. Junior

Xavier Wiggs is a junior running

back that shows exceptional

speed, and returning seniors Kyle

Acevedo and Andrew Blaylock

have the experience.

Cherokee will line up junior

track and field specialist Blake

Jones at receiver, along with

senior Trey Butler.

The Warriors are a little

uncertain defensively, especially

in the secondary. Safety Matt

Ellis, is academically ineligible

and returning defensive back

Quincy Mauger has transferred

to Kell, where former Warrior A.J.

Redwine also is.

Cherokee still is returning tal-

ent led by junior nose tackle

Ayinla Tunde, who is expected to

be the cornerstone of Cherokee’s

3-4 defense. Senior Will Shubert

is a four-year starter at line-

backer. Senior DJ Moore is back

at defensive end, and junior

Talley Redman is another return-

ing player at linebacker.


[email protected]


By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Whitefield Academy is astrong bet to bounce back fromits disappointing 2010 seasonand once again claim a stateplayoff berth in Region 5A.

That is a lot easier said thandone, however, as the Wolfpackface some tough competition inthe southern subregion of 5A in2011.

Plagued by a rash of injuriesall season long, Whitefield tum-bled down to 2-8 overall and 2-4 in the subregion to finishfifth.

The Wolfpack lost a numberof key players, including UABsignee Kennard Backman, butwill be led by a strong group ofseniors that includes 6-foot-4,270-pound offensive linemanand Division I prospect JacobSoutherland.

As a result, Whitefield has astrong chance to grab one ofthe two state playoff berths, insubregions if the Wolfpack canavoid the injuries that doomedtheir 2010 campaign.

But Whitefield coach JimmyFields knows, that first, histeam will have to beat out anumber of competitive squadssuch as First Presbyterian Day,Landmark Christian and OurLady of Mercy.

“There are some very toughteams in our subregion,” Fieldssaid. “The entire region has 14schools, and 10 of those foot-ball teams are capable of mak-ing the state playoffs, so it’s ahuge challenge just to contendfor a spot in the state playoffs.”

The team to beat in isEagle’s Landing ChristianAcademy (12-0, 7-0), the

defending subregion championwhich advanced to the Class Astate quarterfinals last year.

“Eagle’s Landing (ChristianAcademy) is a very strong pro-gram,” Fields said. “They’realways strong and they’re theteam to beat in our subregion.”

Senior defensive end JustinThomason will anchor theChargers defense. The 6-foot-3,240-pound Thomason is beingpursued by a number ofDivision I programs, includingNorth Carolina, BostonCollege, Louisville, Pittsburgh,Vanderbilt and Central Florida.

On offense, the Chargerswill be led by junior runningback Keyante Green, seniorquarterback Aaron Spratlin,senior running back John Tatumand senior wide receiver TravisManon.

Landmark Christian (6-4, 4-3) is expected to battleWhitefield for second place inthe subregion, while Our Ladyof Mercy (7-3, 4-3) and FirstPresbyterian (5-5, 3-3) are theother contenders.

State semifinalist Wesleyan(12-2, 6-1) faces some rebuild-ing with only two starters eachreturning on offense anddefense, but the Wolves areexpected to have enough talenton hand to win the northernsubregion again.

Cornerback Zander Yost, a5-11, 184-pound senior who isbeing recruited by Georgia andIowa, leads the way forWesleyan, along with seniortight end Eric Rappe and 6-9,275-pound senior offensivelineman Josh King.

Pace Academy (9-2, 6-1)and Holy Innocents (7-4, 5-2)are the other contenders.

WHITEFIELD TO MAKE MOVE TOWARD TOP OF 5ARichardSherrell (1) andWhitefieldAcademy maybe ready tomove backtoward thetop of Region5A and returnto Class Aplayoffs.

�File photo


NORTH

1. WESLEYAN 2. HOLY INNOCENTS 3. PACE ACADEMY 4. PINECREST 5. MOUNT PISGAH 6. KINGS RIDGE 7. FELLOWSHIP

SOUTH

1. ELCA 2. WHITEFIELD 3. LANDMARK CHR. 4. FIRST PRESBY. 5. OLM 6. STRONG ROCK 7. SACA


REGION 5A BEST TEAM


At 6-foot-4, 280 poundsSoutherland is a force on the lineof scrimmage for WhitefieldAcademy and will go DI. He iscurrently being recruited byGeorgia, Wake Forest, Clemson,Tennessee, Vanderbilt and others.

Wesleyan was hit hard bygraduation which turns the regionover to Eagles Landing Christian.

The Chargers return most oftheir key weapons from last year’sstate quarterfinalist, including run-ning back Keyante Green, quarter-back Aaron Spratlin (1,350 yardspassing, 13 TDs) and runningback John Tatum (1,054 yards, 22TDs) on offense and JustinThomason on defense.

ELCAJACOB

SOUTHERLAND

OL, WHITEFIELD

After a 2-8 season a year ago,Whitefield Academy returns asenior-laden offensive line led byJacob Southerland, and MaxKemether returns at quarterback.The big question is who will runthe ball, but, with the line intact,there should be plenty of holes tochoose from.

WHITEFIELDACADEMY


CAMPBELL SPARTANSABOUT THE SPARTANSLocation: 5265 Ward Street, Smyrna. Phone: (678) 842-6850. Home Field: Richard McDaniel Stadium. Team Colors: Royal Blue, Silver. Online: campbellhighfootball.com

Staff / Jon-Michael SullivanCampbell’s Tyler Houston has had three coaches during his four years withthe Spartans, but in this, his senior season, he is ready to take on a leader-ship role and become a coach on the field.

THE ANCHORBy Carlton D. White

[email protected]

New Campbell coach Harris Rainbowhas high expectations for the 2011 season.Despite all of the ups and downs theSpartans have gone through over the years,including four head coaches in five seasons,Rainbow is optimistic about the kind ofsuccess Campbell can achieve.

The problem he faced entering springpractice in May though was not knowingwhich players he’d be able to count onwhen fall practice rolled around. New tothe team, the school and the community, hequickly learned that Tyler Houston wassomeone he could rely on.

“For just the brief time we’ve seen him

on game film and during spring practice, weknew he was the real deal,” Rainbow said ofHouston.

A 5-foot-11 senior, Houston made quitean impression on Rainbow during earlypractices. Entering his third year as a starterand as a Campbell letterman, Houstonturned out to be the perfect kind playerRainbow wanted.

“Tyler’s a model cititzen and a greatyoung man,” Harris said. “I wish he werehere longer because he’s the type of playerwe could build our team around.”

Houston, a 280-pound starter along thedefensive line at nose guard, established himself in practice, player interviews withcoaches and in the classroom, where he takes

See Houston, Page 38

CAMPBELL’S HOUSTON LEADING SPARTANS INTO NEW ERADON’T MISSTHE

NEXT DEAL!

KICKOFF 2011


FOLLOWCOBB DAILY DEALS AT


SAVEDCOBB COUNTY


KICKOFF 2011


CAMPBELL SPARTANS


VS.CENTENNIALAUG. 26

ATHUGHESSEPT. 2

VS.WALTONSEPT. 9

ATMCEACHERNSEPT. 16

VS. NORTH COBB

SEPT. 30

ATKMHSOCT. 7

VS.HARRISONOCT. 14

VS. SOUTH COBB

OCT. 21

ATPEBBLEBROOK

OCT. 28

ATHILLGROVE

NOV. 4

‘06 ‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10


CENTENNIAL 0-36 LHUGHES 35-29* W WALTON 7-34 LMCEACHERN 15-54 LNORTH COBB 6-34 LKMHS 3-25 LHARRISON 0-42 LSOUTH COBB 0-27 LPEBBLEBROOK 0-28 LHILLGROVE 16-35 L* OVERTIME

WON 1, LOST 9

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Harris RainbowAge: 33Year at School: 1Record: 0-0Car. Record: 26-52

Varsity StaffDavid Cardoza — Assistant HCNick Williamson — Def. CoordinatorBrad Hawkins — Defensive LineWade Stewart — LinebackersSkyla Hutchins — Defensive BacksColeman Joiner — QuarterbacksJamal Wilson — ReceiversPhil Sandifer — Offensive LineIsaiah Williams — Offensive Line

NO. NAME

1 DEMARIO FORMBLY

2 MATT COTTON

3 MARQUIS HUDSON

4 KEVIN CHIRWA

5 GREG TULL

6 JAMEZ TAYLOR

7 AUSTIN GREEN

8 JOSH MILLER

9 GEORGE WRIGHT

10 ROBERT COOKS

11 QADEEM SALAAM

12 JUAN CASTRO

13 MORGAN FORD

14 AJ ANDERSON

15 ERIC PERDUE

16 ARVIEL JENKINS

17 RICKY JAMES

18 DAVID COLLINS

19 ZAC GRISSETT

20 GENERO MADURO

NO. NAME

21 JUDE LOUISSANT

22 DYKARI HICKEY

23 DARIUS HARRIS

24 LANCE MAGWOOD

25 SHERON MASON

26 SAMUEL MORRISON

27 BRAXTON STEPHENS

28 JAVON REEVES

29 GAIYON REAVISH

30 NIGEL CLARKE

31 KIEVIAN MCGHEE

32 NICK SHANKLIN

33 KERRELL SUMMERHOUR

34 CALEB PARKS

35 D’AMONTE ERVIN

36 DERRICK HALL

37 JEREMIE TUZIZILA

38 MAC BRAYLOCK

39 ARMAND GAZDA

40 DELARRION PURIFOY

NO. NAME

41 CHANCE JACKSON

42 JUSTIN ROGERS

43 JORDIE GONZALEZ

44 SAEVON SPRINGER

45 MICHAEL NICHOLS

46 KEON DAVIS

47 VICTOR INGRAM

48 KERHEEM DARRINGTON

49 ARNEIAS ROBINSON

50 JAMES WALKER

51 LEDARION LEWIS

52 CHRISTOPHER BROWN

53 OSCAR PERALES

54 DEKEVION BYRD

55 DWIGHT HANSARD

56 ALEX COOKE

64 ALEC BROWN

66 CORY HAWKINS

67 WALTER LOPEZ

68 CHASE SIMMS

NO. NAME

69 KENDRICK PLEMING

70 ETHAN CALIXTE

71 TYLER HOUSTON

72 ROBERT ADAMS

73 STEPHEN WASHINGTON

74 JHAMED OWENS

75 ALBERT TAYLOR

76 WESNER SIMILIEN

77 JUSTIN SWINT

78 JULIO TELLEZ

79 ENRIQUE YENNY

80 MALCOLM PERDUE

81 MARLON HORNE

82 CHARLIE SHARITZ

83 KAHSAAN WILKINS

84 KENNETH SMITH

85 JOSH MONYEI

87 ANDRE WOODS

88 QUINCY PERDUE

89 JALEN BATHEA

90 NICK MITCHELL

Season Outlook

The revolving door of new

Campbell coaches continues to

swing open as Harris Rainbow

has become the Spartans’ fifth

different coach in seven sea-

sons, and their third in the last

four.

Rainbow was with his unit for

all of spring practice, as well as

the current preseason practice

drills. In his opinion, the Spartans

remain a work in progress and

will stay that way until the first

game of the season.

“Our practices have been

good and the kids have been

working hard,” he said. “We

have lots of seniors and good

leadership from that bunch,

but, to be honest, we’re

starting from square one.

These guys are learning how to

practice.”

In teaching his players how

to practice, Rainbow acknowl-

edged that it’s going to take time

to determine which of them

deserve starting roles on offense

and defense. Campbell’s first

game is scheduled for Aug. 26

when the Spartans host

Centennial.

“We have a lot of great kids

and everyone is still competing

for jobs,” he said. “I don’t know

who will start for us, and they’ll

still be competing for jobs up

until the day before the first

game. I want them to fight for

those jobs right up until the last

possible minute.”

To that end, Rainbow’s prac-

tices haven’t had a set first team

or a set second team. Players

continue to rotate in and out of

the units.

“Everybody on the first team

has been practicing on the sec-

ond team and vice-versa,” he

said. “I want these guys to be

hungry and understand that their

spot isn’t guaranteed. They have

to continue to earn it.”


[email protected]


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Cash is stationed at the same base asthe 22 Navy Seals who lost their lives ina helicopter crash on Aug. 6.

“You always wonder what’s going on(over there),” Vara said. “You wonderwhether it’s calm or whether they aregoing through ‘hell.’”

The fact that both Vara and Blake Cashplay or have played high school footballhas always been something that hasbrought the brothers closer together, andit’s a reason Vara is anxiously waitingOctober when Cash is scheduled to comehome on leave. It will give Cash plenty of

time to see his brother catch a few passeswhile helping the Buccaneers to a potentialRegion 7AAA championship.

Arnold, one of Allatoona’s inside line-backers, is the one most kept in the darkwhen it comes to his relative. His great uncleserves in a highly classified area as a mem-ber of the Army’s intelligence unit, and he iscurrently serving his “second or third” six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan. As a dis-tant relative, Arnold isn’t even sure of hisgreat uncle’s name, but he is well aware ofthe risks he is taking and the sacrifices hehas made. And he echoes the thoughts of histeammates and shares their same concernsand prayers.

“How is he? Is he OK?” Allen said,and maybe more importantly, “Did any-thing go wrong?”


Perspectivetimes for 244 yards and came out of thatgame knowing I could play.”

Jones, who runs a 4.47-second 40,responded by becoming one of the pre-mier backs in the state as a junior. At 5-10 and 185 pounds, he carried the ball304 times for 1,939 yards and 19 touch-downs leading the Buccaneers to an 8-3record and their first state playoff appear-ance. His efforts were good enough toearn a spot on the Class AAA All-Statefirst team, but for Allatoona coach GaryVarner, what Jones did following hisjunior season is more impressive.

“It’s his maturity,” Varner said. “Hiswork ethic. He didn’t miss a day of off-season workouts. He put on 15 pounds ofmuscle and got faster. He’s going to be afast, powerful kid.

“At the end of the day, you are goingto have to stop him to beat us.”

The fastest of the three backs with a4.38 40, Wheaton had his first glimpse ofwhat his future might hold as a sopho-more against Harrison during the 2009season. The first time he got into thegame against the Hoyas, he gathered in atoss, went around the corner and foundthe end zone from 40 yards out. That

helped lead him to his 765-yard, 10-touchdown season in 2010. But don’t letWheaton’s conservative numbers makehim appear as an underachiever in anyway. At least five times during last sea-son, Etowah produced blowout victories,leaving Wheaton on the sidelines formuch of, if not the entire, second half.And with teams like Georgia, Auburn,Mississippi State and Old Miss zeroingon his services, a season of well over1,000 is in the offing for 2011.

“Early on we knew he was fast,” saidEtowah coach Bill Stewart. “But wedidn’t know he was going to be the 4.4real deal.

“He’s built himself up from 10thgrade to 11th to now and he’s reallymade more of the commitment in theweight room. It’s evident he can bespecial.”

All three backs will be counted onheavily this season and all have a chanceto lead their teams deep into the playoffs,but for Drake, Jones and Wheaton, adeep playoff run might not be enough.

“The main goal is to win a statechampionship,” Drake said.

If the trio has the kind of year that isexpected from them a Class AAAAA ora Class AAA state title may be possible,but one thing is certain — Drake, Jonesand Wheaton will be exciting to watchalong the way.


Backs

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KICKOFF 2011


By Greg Oshust

[email protected]

Mount Paran Christian hasits work cut out for it as theEagles attempt to earn a secondstraight trip to the Class A stateplayoffs in a tough and competi-tive Region 6A this year.

The Eagles finished fourth in6A to qualify for state for thefirst time in school history in2010, but a repeat performancewill be challenging task for ateam that lost a large seniorclass.

Not to mention the fact thatRegion 6A features as many asseven teams that have a legiti-mate chance at earning a post-season bid.

“Our goal every year is tomake the state playoffs, but thatis very difficult to do in a verycompetitive region like 6A,”Mount Paran coach MitchJordan said. “We have six orseven teams competing for fourplayoff spots, so it’s going to bea big challenge for us to earnone of those playoff spots.”

While Mount Paran’s offensewas hit hardest by graduation,the defense has key players, likelinebacker John Pierce McKayand defensive end Colby Dozier,who could help keep the Eaglesin the hunt.

Darlington and Bremen havebeen the dominant teams inRegion 6A the last few yearsand this season should be nodifferent.

Darlington (10-2, 7-0) isonly two years removed from astate semifinal appearance andadvanced to the second round in2010.

“Darlington has had a strong

run the last few years and theylook to be back to form this sea-son,” said Jordan, a formerDarlington assistant. “They arethe strongest team in the region.”

The Tigers feature the mostprolific offense in 6A, averaging36 points a game in 2010.

Quarterback Brad Butler andwide receivers Nigel Matthewsand Cameron Gibson providemuch of Darlington’s offensivefirepower, while safety TevinHamilton is among the key play-ers on defense.

Bremen (10-2, 6-1) shouldalso be among the region’s topteams with a strong runningattack and a solid defense.

Bowdon (4-6, 3-4) will be inthe mix as well with a speedybackfield that features seniorsMaricio Askew, Alonzo Wyattand Wezley Stevens, with quar-terback Tyler Wright and widereceiver J.B. Stevens also pro-viding much firepower.

Walker has been on the out-side looking in as far as the stateplayoff picture after a couple of3-7 seasons.

Contending for a postseasonberth won’t be any easier thisseason for the Wolverines, wholack depth with only 35 playersand have lost two-year startingquarterback James Clements afterhe decided to pass up his seniorseason to focus on baseball.

Walker (3-7, 2-5) will beboosted by its solid junior classthat includes running back EvanKasian, offen-sive lineman MikeRamsey and quarterback SamYarborough.

North Cobb Christian (2-8)is technically in 6A, but thefledgling program is still play-ing a non-region schedule.

MOUNT PARAN, WALKER HAVE 6A UPHILL CLIMBChristopher

Graham (11)and Walker

will faceMount ParanChristian in

October. Thegame willlikely be a

must-win ifeither teamhas playoff

hopes.

�File photo


1. DARLINGTON 2. BREMEN 3. BOWDON 4. TRION 5. MOUNT PARAN 6. WALKER 7. GORDON LEE


REGION 6A BEST TEAM


The 5-foot-9, 170-poundAskew is an explosive back whocan break open a big play at any-time. He is being recruited by anumber of SEC schools likeGeorgia, Auburn and Ole Miss.

Darlington is once again theteam to beat in 6A with a potentoffense that averaged 36 points agame last year. The Tigers, whoreached the state semifinals in2009, will once again be in themix for the state title in Class A

DARLINGTONMARICIO

ASKEW

RB, BOWDON

The Wolverines have a newquarterback in Sam Yarboroughand return their ‘Mr. Everything’in Evan Kasian, who wasWalker’s leading rusher andreceiver in 2010. If theWolverines can stay healthy, theyshould tally more than three wins.

WALKER

KICKOFF 2011


HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY1ST

!

SAVEDCOBB COUNTY









By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

The Allatoona Buccaneers will again befavored to advance to the state playoffs in 2011,but it is not going to be an easy task coming out ofRegion 7AAA.

The region, which is split into two six-teamsubregions, has the potential to be full of hurdlesfor whichever team is to advance to the regionplay-in games with hopes of reaching the postseason.

Miles Jones, a 1,900-yard rusher in 2010,should have the Buccaneers in position to win thesub-region for the second straight year.

Allatoona needed an 18-13 win overCartersville to secure the Region 7AAA (B) title,and it appears the Purple Huricanes will be thebiggest challenge to a return to the region titlegame.

If there is a dark horse, it may come in theform of Southeast Whitfield, which has a lot ofyoung talent, and Cedartown, which is led by theChubb brothers — quarterback Zach and fullback

Nick — and has a lot of team speed.“We can’t afford to fall asleep on any of these

teams,” Allatoona coach Gary Varner said. “Wehave to play our best because if we let down some-one could come up an get us.”

On the other side of the region, traditional pow-ers Dalton and Ridgeland will again challenge forthe top spot.

Ridgeland defeated the Buccaneers in the regiontitle game last season after Allatoona had defeatedthe Panthers earlier in the season.

Dalton will challenge for the top spot behindsmall, quick running back Tre Beck, a 1,200-yardrusher in 2010.

Ringgold will also be better behind the rushingefforts of 1,000-yard rusher Mark Fairbanks.However, the Tigers will be playing the entire sea-son on the road.

Ringgold’s stadium was destroyed in the Apriltornadoes that devastated much of Alabama andparts of western and northern Georgia. The Tigerswill play all their home games in 2011 at FinleyStadium on the campus of the University ofTennessee-Chattanooga.

ALLATOONA TO CHALLENGE FOR 7AAA TITLE

REGION 7AAA PROJECTIONS

NORTH

1. DALTON 2. RIDGELAND 3. RINGGOLD 4. SE WHITFIELD 5.LAFAYETTE 6. HERITAGE

SOUTH

1. ALLATOONA 2. CARTERSVILLE 3. CEDARTOWN 4. GILMER 5. MURRAY CO. 6. PICKENS

REGION 7AAA POTENTIAL SPOILER

REGION 7AAA BEST TEAM

REGION 7AAA BEST PLAYER

While Dalton’s Tre Beck andRinggold’s Mark Fairbanks maymake some noise, and Cartersville’sCollin Barber has already puntedhis way into a commitment toGeorgia, but the best player inRegion 7AAA is the Buccaneers’Miles Jones.

He rushed for 1,939 yards in2010 and he is bigger and fasterin 2011.

While the Buccaneers may beled by Jones, they have qualitybackups at running back to helphim shoulder the load. The offen-sive line, while inexperienced, hasthe potential to be better thatn itwas a year ago and the defensewill find ways to make plays togive the offense short fields towork with.

ALLATOONAMILES JONES

RB, ALLATOONA

The Bulldogs have speed andthe young and inexperienced teamfrom 2010 will be better preparedin 2011. The quarterback-fullbackcombination of the Chubb broth-ers will present problems for anyteam that comes into the gameunprepared.

CEDARTOWN

File photoMiles Jones, front, and Allatoona will challege for the school’sfirst football region championship in 2011.


ALLATOONA BUCCANEERSABOUT THE BUCCANEERSLocation: 3300 Dallas-Acworth Hwy. Acworth. Phone: (770) 975-6503. Home Field: Buccaneer Stadium. Team Colors: Red, Black, Silver. Online: bucs-football.com

By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

When Allatoona takes the field this year,they will play in front of thousands of ador-ing fans cheering them on in the hopes ofbringing home victories.

But for three members of the Buccaneers,some of their biggest fans won’t be in atten-dance during the 2011 season, and all theycan do is hope that they will be in the future.

Grant Vara, Cassie Allen and HunterArnold all have relatives currently servingabroad in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait.While the players are proud of their service,commitment and love of family and country,their absence is always in the back of thetrio’s minds.

“It takes a lot of dedication to go off andleave your family to fight for what youbelieve in,” said Arnold, a 16-year-old line-backer for the Buccaneers.

But for Allen, Arnold and Vara, it is some-thing they are reluctantly getting used to.

Last season, Allen’s father, Sgt. MichaelAllen Sr., traveled to every Allatoona game— home and away — to watch his son playon the Buccaneers’ defensive line. That

won’t be the case for the 2011 season as heprepares to deploy for his third tour of dutyin the Middle East in the last six years aspart of the 202nd EOD unit of the NationalGuard based in Marietta.

Upon his arrival in the desert, Sgt. Allenwill have multiple duties, but his trade allowshim to be a high-tech mechanic that repairsHumvees and other military transport vehi-cles. At no time will Cassie Allen or hismother, Shelia, know the exact whereaboutsof their father or husband, but thanks to cur-rent technology, the Allen family, along withthe other families, is able to keep in regularcontact.

“We use Skype,” Shelia Allen said. “Weusually talk two times a day — once in themorning and once before I go to bed.”

Even with consistent contact, however, thefamilies rarely, if ever, know the details of theirrelatives’ day-to-day activities. It was no moreevident than when Michael Allen came homefrom his first tour in 2005.

“He came home and he was wearing aBronze Star,” Shelia Allen said. “When Italked to his commander, she said it wasgiven to him for continuously leading trans-ports without ever losing a soldier or a

truck in action.“When I asked him about it, he just said,

‘I was just doing my job.’”For Vara, a wide receiver, he knows his

brother, Blake Cash, does his job so theAfghan people have a chance to lead a betterlife in their war-torn country.

Cash, a former wide receiver and punterat North Cobb, is a member of a 58-personunit, of which a dozen studied agriculturalbusiness at the University of Georgia. Those12 teach the Afghan farmers how to growand produce better yields with their crops,while Cash and the rest of the unit providethe necessary security during the instructiontime.

Ironically, Ronnie Cash, the father of Varaand Blake Cash, said Blake’s choice to go intothe Army is forcing him to experience the onething he most wanted to avoid.

“He didn’t want to go into the Air Forcebecause he didn’t want to fly,” Ronnie Cashsaid. “But what he does in Afghanistan(because of the severe uneven terrain) he’s in ahelicopter 80 percent of the time.”

That realization became a bigger causefor concern for the family recently as Blake

KEEPING THINGS IN PROPER PERSPECTIVETHREE BUCCANEERS DEAL WITH KNOWLEDGE LOVED ONES ARE IN HARMS WAY

From left,Cassie Allen,Hunter Arnoldand Grant Varahave their daysfull of schooland football,but their mindsare always withtheir relatives whoare servingabroad inAfghanistan,Iraq andKuwait.

�Staff /

Jon-MichaelSullivan

See Perspective, Page 10

ABOUT CASSIE ALLEN

He is an early riser, gettingup nearly every day at 5 a.m.

He hates to be late

He did not go on summer vacation this year to make

sure he did not miss a singleoffseason workout

ABOUT GRANT VARA

He is considering joining themilitary after high school

KICKOFF 2011


By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

It’s been rumored that EastPaulding coach John Reid issaying he has the most talentedteam he’s ever coached.

And he’s got a couple ofstate championships on hisresume.

“That’s what I heard hesaid,” Kell coach Derek Cooksaid. “That a pretty bold state-ment considereing he’s wonsome state championships.”

Kell’s the defending champi-on after going undefeated duringthe regular season. A lot of thathad to do with having a ParadeAll-American in BrianRandolph, who has taken hisservices to Tennessee.

Even with Randolph gone,the Longhorns are still returningtalented running backs in ChrisGaines and A.J. Redwine.Senior Jordan Chambers, who isexpecting to anchor the line-backer unit, may also get a fewsnaps toward the end of the sea-son, like he did a year ago.

Add senior receiver HunterMarshall to the list, as well as cor-nerback Taylor Henkle, who hasthe daunting task of fillingRandoph’s shoes in the secondary.

“It’s early to really tell whatwe got because we lost so manystarters,” Cook said. “It’s tooearly to tell if we are a con-tender or not. We got some goodathletes. Its’s a team game, andit takes a lot of wins.”

There are teams like Pope,Hiram and Sprayberry who arein Kell’s subregion that haveathletes as well.

The Greyhounds’ season will

depend greatly on how ClassAAAA honorable mentionHolland Frost performs as asenior under center. He’s notgoing to have Garrett Brown tothrow to this season, but seniorMyles Everett is being groomedto fill Brown’s shoes.

Pope’s running game will beorganized by committee, butFrost is expected to be in on thecarries. The Greyhound defen-sive line is young, but is expect-ed to be strong at linebacker.

The Greyhounds have thepotential to sqeeze into the topfour after making the playoffslast season for the first time in adecade, but they know they can’tunderestimate the teams theywill have to beat to get there.

Sprayberry is another teamready to make a statement in5AAAA after coming up shortof expectations last season.Ironically, Sprayberry’s best winof the season came against EastPaulding, which is favored towin.

The Yellow Jackets are goingto be extremely young. Theywill be new at quarterback, run-ning back and wide receiver.Most of their defense consists offirst-year starters, with line-backer Terrell Brownridge beingthe most experienced player.Based on preseason workouts,the Yellow Jackets appear to bereplacing talent with talent, butthe new talent is still unproven.

Osborne, the other CobbCounty participant in 5AAAA,are still attempting to laydown a foundation under first-year coach Xarva Smith, whohas experienced in rebuildingprograms.

SAME COMBATANTS TO REIGN IN REGION 5AAAAThe matchupbetween Kelland EastPaulding onSept. 16 willlikely give thewinner the legup in the racefor the subregiontitle.

�File photo


NORTH

1. EAST PAULDING 2. KELL 3. HIRAM 4. POPE 5. SPRAYBERRY 6. N. PAULDNG 7. OSBORNE

SOUTH

1. VILLA RICA 2. S. PAULDING 3. DOUGLAS CO. 4. LITHIA SPRINGS 5. CHAPEL HILL 6. ALEXANDER 7. PAULDING CO.




The region’s best player maybe a tie between East Pauldingrunning back Kamani Thomas andKell linebacker Jordan Chambers.Thomas closed in on 2,000 yardsin 13 games last season, eclipsing100 yards in 11 of them. He alsohad 22 rushing touchdowns.Chambers produced 130 tackleslast season and will be vital to theKell defense.

East Paulding has returningtalent in all areas of the field,including a star running back andreceiver. It’s been rumored thatcoach John Reid is claiming hehas the best team he has evercoached, and he’s coached teamsto state championship titles.

EASTPAULDING

JORDAN

CHAMBERS

LB, KELL

Osborne may not be ready tochallege for a region title in thenear future, but new coach XarviaSmith has the Cardinals headingin the right direction. For the firsttime in recent memory, Osbornehas a full coaching staff and thatshould lead to more teaching andbetter results.

OSBORNE

KICKOFF 2011


ALLATOONA BUCCANEERS


KMHS 24-22 WRIDGELAND 17-14 WSE WHITFIELD 55-14 WDALTON 17-21 LCARTERSVILLE 18-13 WMURRAY CO. 42-7 WCEDARTOWN 30-15 WPICKENS 14-0 WGILMER 40-0 WRIDGELAND 12-13 LST. PIUS X 17-24 L

WON 8, LOST 3

2010 Results

Coach’s Corner

Head Coach:Gary VarnerAge: 44Year at School: 4Record: 15-12Career Rec.: 15-12

Varsity Coaching StaffKeith Byrd — Running BacksJeremy Anderson — ReceiversBarry Cox — QuarterbacksMike Dennison — LinebackersTroy Peterson — Def. CoordinatorAndy Wilcox — Defensive LineBrett Hubinger — Defensive EndsDavid Cintron — Defensive BacksKevin Pena — Defensive Backs

NO. NAME POS.CL.

1 TERENCE SYKES DB 11

2 TOMMY DAVIS WR 11

3 JUSTIN HOBBS WR 12

4 CL. SOLBERRY WR 11

5 ALEX ISON DB 11

6 JEREMY UZEE QB 11

7 MILES JONES RB 12

8 AUSTIN PURVIS DB 12

9 ALEX WEAVER QB 12

10 T.J. HERRON FB 11

11 D.J. EZELL WR 10

12 NATE STEPHENS DB 10

13 TYLER HEATON RB 10

14 GRANT VARA WR 12

15 ZECH HAMPTON QB 12

16 ELIJAH REED QB 10

17 GRACIA TSHIMANGA RB 12

18 CHRIS MCCREA WR 11

19 GARRETT DETWILER TE 12

20 LOGAN EDGE RB 10

21 KENNY PADTHA DB 12

22 TJ REED RB 11

NO. NAME POS.CL.

23 DARIN HILL WR 12

24 MARVIN MITCHELL DB 12

25 DAVID JEUNE DB 10

26 CHRIS COLMAN DB 12

27 SCOTT ROEMBKE DB 10

28 CHARLIE MAISON RB 11

29 JOEY BROOKER DB 10

30 CODY SORRELLS LB 11

31 AUSTIN DANIEL LB 11

32 MATT JOHNSON TE 12

33 BROCK WILEY LB 12

34 AUTRY SHORT WR 12

35 NICK JONES RB 10

36 RICO WALTERS LB 12

37 DREW NORMAN WR 10

38 AUSTIN CAIN LB 12

39 DILLON COURTNEY LB 11

40 ROBERT JOHNSON RB 12

41 STEPHEN OSBORN WR 11

42 ROBBIE ENSLEY TE 10

44 JUSTIN WADE LB 10

46 JOE TAYLOR LB 10

NO. NAME POS.CL.

47 MIKE MILLER LB 12

48 MARVIN JOHNSON RB 11

49 BRETT BENTON LB 10

50 GEORGE HITESHEW OL 12

51 ANDREW HESTER OL 11

52 RYAN BENTON OL 10

53 AMIR NADEER OL 10

55 PEARSON KILGORE LB 11

56 WALKER BOWEN OL 12

57 A.J. BOWIE OL 11

58 HUNTER ARNOLD LB 11

59 LUKE MILLER OL 12

60 ALEX FURGUSON DL 11

61 JP DEAN OL 10

62 PRESTON BUSH OL 12

63 CASSIE ALLEN DL 11

64 DALTON ALEXANDER OL 12

66 CADE STRICKLAND OL 12

69 MIKEDZURENKO OL 10

70 AMIR MOORE OL 10

71 VAUGHN CHURCH 10

74 MIKE GIRESI OL 11

75 MATT HARDAGE TE 11

NO. NAME POS.CL.

76 DEVON WILLIAMS DE 11

77 NICK MILLER OL 11

78 EDDIE WELBORN K 10

79 JOR. SUTHERLAND WR 10

80 DOUG BRUNNER TE 10

81 HUNTER YOUNG WR 12

82 AUTIN KHOLER K 11

83 MARK DAVIS K 12

84 BR. DESROSIERS WR 11

85 AUSTIN ADAMS WR 10

86 DAMEKUS CARMON WR 12

87 JOHN ROGERS WR 12

88 MARKEL MILNER TE 11

89 JOSH BROWN DL 12

90 BRYSON BRINDLE DL 12

91 CALVIN HOWARD DL 11

92 VAUGHN STEVENS DE 11

93 NATE SHAW K 11

94 GREYSON BOWEN 11

95 SHANE TULEY DE 12

96 DEXTER BRANDON DL 12

97 BRANDON WILLIAMS DE 12


VS.KMHS

AUG. 26

ATRIDGELANDSEPT. 2

ATSE WHITFIELD

SEPT. 9

VS.DALTON

SEPT. 16

VS. CARTERSVILLE

SEPT. 30

ATMURRAY CO.

OCT. 7

VS.CEDARTOWNOCT. 14

ATPICKENSOCT. 21

ATGILMEROCT. 28

VSREG. PLAY-IN

NOV. 4

TBA

Season Outlook

Allatoona’s first season in

Class AAA was a successful one.

At 8-3, the Buccaneers made the

playoffs in the first season they

were eligible and hosted a first-

round playoff game.

Now, after the first taste of

success, Allatoona is ready to

take it to the next level.

The key to the Bucs having

another successful season is run-

ning back Miles Jones. Jones car-

ried the ball for more than 1,900

yards as a junior and was named

Class AAA First-Team All-State.

Heading into this year, Jones

has put on 20 pounds of muscle,

gotten faster and more powerful and

has become an instinctive runner.

“At the end of the day you

have to stop him to beat us,” said

Allatoona coach Gary Varner.

However, Varner is hoping

not to have to give Jones the ball

more than 300 times again this

year. Other players who will see

an increased load will be T.J.

Herron and Robert Johnson.

Herron is Jones’ primary backup

and has shown the potential of

being a solid runner of his own.

Johnson is a true fullback and

enjoys opening the holes for his

teammates to run through.

The trio will run behind a line

that Varner calls “strong, stocky

and solid,” at an average size of

5-foot-11 and 250 pounds, and

Varner added they are “good

high school football players.”

On defense, the Buccaneers

return eight starters from a unit

that allowed 13 points per game.

Allatoona will continue to show

an aggressive, physical defense

and will look to a pair of upper-

classmen for leadership.

Mike Miller will help lead the

way at linebacker. After a year of

alternating between the inside

and outside linebacker positions,

Miller will mainly play in the mid-

dle with a keen eye on stopping

the run.

If the opponent takes to the

air, junior safety Alex Isom will

have an opportunity to ball hawk

with his above average speed

and play-making ability.

Playing in Region 7AAA, the

Buccaneers’ success in 2011 will

likely come down to their Sept. 30

home game against Cartersville. If

everything goes to plan, a victory

would put Allatoona in position to

play for a region championship in

early November — again at home

— likely against either Dalton or

Ridgeland.


[email protected]


By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

Region realignment was verygood to Region 7AAAA last year asthe region laid claim to the newestClass AAAA state champion.

With the opening of the near-by Johns Creek High School,new Region 7AAAA memberChattahoochee, which used to bea AAAAA school, dropped downbecause of smaller enrollmentnumbers and went on to claimthe first state football champi-onship in its 20-year history.

The Cougars completed theseason with an undefeated 15-0record and topped previouslyunbeaten Starr’s Mill 24-0 in thechampionship game.

With all of the euphoria sur-rounding Chattahoochee’s victo-ry, it will be tough for the team toprovide an encore performancethis time around. The Cougarslost several key seniors from lastyear’s squad, so there will be lotsof question surrounding thereigning champions.

Despite the losses — eight onoffense and eight on defense —which includes starting quarter-back Timmy Byerly and his pri-mary target, Kane Whitehurst,Chattahoochee remains talentedand could once again competefor the region crown.

“It’s a tough region,”Creekview coach Al Morrellsaid. “It’s a very tough region.Obviously, Chattahoochee wonthe state championship, but theylost a lot of seniors from lastyear, and I understand that theyhave a lot of move-ins, so I’msure they’ll be good again.”

In only its second varsity sea-son, Lambert, which finished the

year 8-3, turned a lot of heads inearning the No. 2 seed from theregion and reaching the stateplayoffs under veteran coach SidMaxwell, the former Sequoyahmentor. The Longhorns returneight offensive starters, includingthree-year starting quarterbacksenior David Broadus and juniorrunning back Brock Maxwell,and four defensive starters,including three-year starting line-backer senior Matt Ham.

“You always hope to be com-petitive every year,” Maxwellsaid. “But I’ve been around along time and one thing I’velearned is to take it one game ata time. The important thing is toget better each week becausethat helps you win games.”

After Chattahoochee andLambert, Region 7AAAAappears to be wide open. Romeis always competitive and JohnsCreek is expected to makestrides in its third varsity season.

Sequoyah went 5-5 last sea-son and just missed out on theplayoffs with a veteran group.Coach James Teter will have ayoung team, but one capable ofwinning.

“I think we’ll be in the mix bythe end of it,” he said. “The bigthing is, we lost 22 seniors, so wehave a lot of holes to fill. We’llstart eight sophomores on bothsides of the ball and how they’llhandle things will be a factor.”

Creekview (3-7), which suf-fered its first losing season in itsfive-year tenure, could be rebuild-ing again, but not according tothe coaching staff. Coach AlMorrell has 11 seniors on theteam, which means there will beseveral young players involved inmaking plays.

SEQUOYAH, CREEKVIEW FACE TOUGH 7AAAACreekview

and Will Kirby

(26) will again open the

season withSequoyah on

Friday.

�File photo


1. LAMBERT 2. CHATTAHOOCHEE 3. JOHNS CREEK 4. ROME 5. SEQUOYAH 6. SOUTH FORSYTH 7. NW WHITFIELD

8. CREEKVIEW 9. CASS 10. WOODLAND 11. FORSYTH CEN.




It’s difficult to identify becauseno one player stands out.Everyone is talented, but no onesticks out as a must-see, danger-ous player that can change a game

Lambert, because theLonghorns pretty much have theirentire offense intact as well as astrong defense.

LAMBERT? After a 3-7 season a year ago

its hard to imagine the Grizzliesstruggling as much in 2011.Creekview will still be a youngsquad, but the young players from2010 will have an opportunity toshow how much they improved.

CREEKVIEW


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a safe and

successful

football season

to all of the

High Schools

and Private

Schools.

KICKOFF 2011


The Top Ten teams in the Associated Press Georgia high school football pollsof the 2011 season with first-place votes in parentheses, win-loss record, totalpoints and last year’s final ranking:

Class AAAAARecord Pts Prv

1. Brookwood (8) 0-0 97 12. Camden County (1) 0-0 83 93. Lowndes 0-0 75 64. Grayson 0-0 60 35. Colquitt County (1) 0-0 58 26. McEachern 0-0 46 107. Stephenson 0-0 45 NR8. North Gwinnett 0-0 32 79. Hillgrove 0-0 19 510. MLK Jr. 0-0 8 NROthers receiving votes: Collins Hill 7, Peachtree Ridge 6, Valdosta 5, Walton 4,

Mill Creek 2, Norcross 2, Etowah 1.Class AAAA

Record Pts Prv1. Tucker (6) 0-0 90 42. Statesboro (2) 0-0 78 33. Northside-WR (1) 0-0 77 NR4. Chattahoochee (1) 0-0 50 15. Flowery Branch 0-0 46 NR6. Brunswick 0-0 41 NR7. Ware County 0-0 40 88. Starr’s Mill 0-0 32 29. Kell 0-0 30 510. East Paulding 0-0 26 6Others receiving votes: Marist 12, Clarke Central 8, Dutchtown 4, Griffin 3,

Bainbridge 3, Lambert 3, Creekside 2, Dunwoody 2, Northgate 2, Whitewater 1,Pope 1.

Class AAARecord Pts Prv

1. Sandy Creek (8) 0-0 97 12. Carrollton (1) 0-0 85 23. Cairo (1) 0-0 79 44. Peach County 0-0 73 35. St. Pius X 0-0 52 86. Burke County 0-0 40 57. Allatoona 0-0 30 NR8. Baldwin 0-0 28 99. Cedar Grove 0-0 24 710.Eastside 0-0 12 NROthers receiving votes: Grady 11, Gainesville 4, Monroe Area 3, Spalding 3,

Thomson 2, Ridgeland 2, Columbia 1, Cartersville 1, Washington County 1,Stephens County 1.

Class AARecord Pts Prv

1. Buford (9) 0-0 99 12. Calhoun 0-0 86 23. Carver-Columbus (1) 0-0 79 34. Cook 0-0 68 45. Greater Atlanta Christian 0-0 47 106. Fitzgerald 0-0 45 57. Dublin 0-0 29 NR8. Westminster 0-0 27 89. Brooks County 0-0 22 910. Swainsboro 0-0 15 NROthers receiving votes: Thomasville 8, Jefferson County 8, Lovett 4, Putnam

County 3, Callaway 3, Lamar County 2, Elbert County 2, Laney 1, Pepperell 1,Vidalia 1.

Class ARecord Pts Prv

1. Clinch County (4) 0-0 94 12. Eagle’s Landing (5) 0-0 87 33. Savannah Christian Prep. 0-0 76 24. Wesleyan 0-0 54 45. Wilkinson County 0-0 51 56. Wilcox County 0-0 50 67. Lincoln County 0-0 39 78. Emanuel County Institute 0-0 33 89. Charlton County (1) 0-0 26 NR10. Darlington 0-0 21 10Others receiving votes: Johnson County 8, Brookstone 4, Bowdon 2, Hawkinsville

1, Marion County 1, Aquinas 1, First Presbyterian Day 1, Bremen 1.

All Associated Press members in Georgia are eligible to participate in the high school footballpoll. Those who voted for this week’s poll are: Augusta Chronicle, Augusta; Brunswick News,Brunswick; Times, Gainesville; Gwinnett Daily Post, Lawrenceville; Marietta Daily Journal, Marietta;Telegraph, Macon; Times-Herald, Newnan; Rome News-Tribune, Rome; Tifton Gazette, Tifton;Valdosta Daily Times, Valdosta.

ASSOCIATED PRESSPRESEASON RANKINGS

KICKOFF 2011


Heading intothe 2011season,there are nobiggerrecruits thanthe big-timerunningbacks inCobb andCherokeecounties.Etowah’sDevonteWheaton,Hillgrove’sKenyanDrake andAllatoona’sMiles Jonescan choosevirtuallywhereverthey want togo to school.In Drake’scase, healready haschosen theUniversity ofAlabama.

�Staff /

Laura Moon

2010 Season Recap� 765 yards, 10 TD � Cherokee Tribune All-County FirstTeam

THE WHEATON FILE

2010 Season Recap� 145 carries 1,002 yards, 9 TD

35 receptions, 539 yards, 7 TD � Class AAAAA Second-Team All-State� Committed to Alabama

THE DRAKE FILE

2010 Season Recap� 304 carries, 1,939 yards, 19 TD � Class AAA First-Team All-State� Cobb County Touchdown Club

Running Back of the Year

THE JONES FILE

BACKS ON THE RUNHILLGROVE’S DRAKE, ALLATOONA’S JONES AND ETOWAH’S

WHEATON PREPARED TO HAVE SPECIAL SENIOR SEASONS

By John Bednarowski

[email protected]

Kenyan Drake had caught theeye of a few recruiters during the2010 season and was settinghimself up for a heavy recruitingyear heading into his senior sea-son, but with one game every-thing changed.

A 170-yard, two touchdownperformance against then-No. 1Camden County not only putHillgrove into the Class AAAAAstate quarterfinals, but also sentDrake’s stock soaring.

All of a sudden the Hawks’ 6-foot-1, 195-pound running backwas getting offers from schoolslike Georgia, Georgia Tech andAlabama. For many 17-year-oldsthe new sudden attention would

have been overwhelming, butHillgrove coach Phil Ironsidesaid Drake just took it in stride.

“Most kids can’t handle that,”Ironside said. “You just don’thave a kid that can take all of thatand stay humble. Kenyan did.”

Drake, who runs a 4.4-second40-yard dash, finished the 2010campaign with 1,002 yards rush-ing, 539 yards receiving and acombined 16 touchdowns thatmakes him, Allatoona’s MilesJones and Etowah’s DevonteWheaton the big-time backs towatch in Cobb and Cherokeecounties as the 2011 seasonkicks off.

“When I was young, I wantedto be the best player out there,”said Drake, who eliminated anyrecruiting pressure by commit-

ting to the University of Alabamalast spring. “But the gameagainst Camden County, youalways watch them because theyare always one of the best in thestate. To have a performance likeI did against them, that’s when Ireally realized I could reallycompete in this game.”

Jones and Wheaton have hadsimilar revelations during theirhigh school careers, and, likeDrake, they have set themselvesup to play at a big-time DivisionI program.

“It was my sophomore yearagainst North Paulding,” saidJones, who is currently beingrecruited by Mississippi State,Maryland and has an offer fromKentucky. “I carried the ball 38

See Backs, Page 11



By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

The next game on the schedule isalways the most important one, but, oftentimes, there is a game that matters evenmore.

Typically, that game, the most antici-pated or highlighted one on the schedule,tends to have something of value ormeaning attached to it. For example, it’s abig rivalry, or a revenge game from theprevious season.

Every game from the Corky KellClassic held significant meaning, as it pit-ted a Cobb County school versus aGwinnett County school for the secondconsecutive year. Those rivalries tend torun deep every season since Cobb andGwinnett schools typically face eachother in the postseason.

Digging deeper into the schedules ofall 27 Cobb and Cherokee Countyschools, there are several contests worthyof being considered as the most anticipat-ed games of the year:� Sequoyah at Creekview, Aug. 26:There is probably nothing more difficultthan to begin your season with a regiongame, let alone a game with your rival.The majority of Creekview’s populationdrew from Sequoyah so the “bad blood”was there right from the beginning. TheGrizzlies have taken the last two of threefrom the Chiefs and, if either team wantsto have any chance at making the postsea-son this year, then that team has to winthe first game of the season against a bit-ter foe.

� Whitefield Academy at Walker,Aug. 26: Walker started its football pro-gram in 2001. Whitefield started in 2002.Since the Wolfpack opened up shop, thetwo teams have faced each other in eachof the last nine seasons, with theWolverines winning the last two and hold-ing a 5-4 edge in the series. It’s a niceCobb County rivalry that will hopefullycontinue for years to come.

� Allatoona at Ridgeland, Sept. 2:Alatoona beat Ridgeland 17-14 in the sec-ond game of the season last year only tohave the Panthers bounce back and topplethe Buccaneers for the Region 7AAA cham-pionship. Buccaneer fans sure can’t wait toget their hands on Ridgeland again, and thisis their first opportunity to do so. With anyluck, the two teams will meet again for thetitle towards the end of the year and theresults will be different for Allatoona.

� Pebblebrook at Harrison, SouthCobb at Hillgrove, Sept. 16: AfterMcEachern, the standings in Region4AAAAA are likely to be up in the airevery week. For the most part last year,one game separated the No. 2 team fromthe No. 5 team, and this is the week region

play starts up again. South Cobb beatHillgrove by one point a year ago, whilePebblebrook overcame Harrison by 10.There’s no telling what the region stand-ings will look like at the end of this season,but victories in the first week of regionplay are always important.

� Hiram at Kell, Sept. 23: Kell wonRegion 5AAAA by beating the top threeteams — East Paulding, Hiram and Popein consecutive weeks. The Longhorns’roster looks very different from last year,but their schedule remains the same asthey open their region slate against theRaiders, Hornets and Greyhounds.Depending on Kell’s outcome againstEast Paulding on Sept. 16, its matchup upthis week against Hiram could say a lotabout how good the Longhorns are andwhere they’ll finish in the final regionstandings.

� Walton at Etowah, Sept. 23:Etowah went undefeated in Region5AAAAA last year, while Walton’s onlyregion loss was at the hands of the Eagles.The two teams face each other once againto begin their region slate and the winneris sure to make a statement with a victory.

� Lassiter at Walton, Sept. 30: Yeartwo of the Eddie Printz regime begins inearnest with the Trojans taking on theRaiders in a Region 5AAAAA matchup.While the other region teams playedagainst each other the week before,Lassiter was able to sit back and watch thecarnage unfold. Knowing the stakes, andhoping to prevent another 3-3 regionmark, a good start out of the gate againstWalton would go a long way for Lassiter.

n Hillgrove at McEachern, Oct. 7:One thing is certain, Powder Springs isn’t

big enough for Hillgrove and McEachern

after the teams combined for 112 points

and 1,125 yards of offense in their first

gridiron meeting last season. It took five

years for the Hawks to finally face the

Indians on an even Class AAAAA playing

field and the Indians took round one 64-48

in regulation. Round two could be another

slugfest.

� Sprayberry at Pope, Oct. 13:Thursday night television pits the YellowJackets and the Greyhounds with Region5AAAA implications on the line. It’s theonly game that night in the area, so thereare sure to be fireworks.

� Towns County at River Ridge, Oct.14: River Ridge plays four of its finalgames at home and Towns Country is oneof those teams the Knights would like tobeat.

River Ridge, which is entering its secondvarsity season, fell to the Indians 14-7 on theroad last year and a welcome sign ofimprovement would be to win games at homeagainst teams you’re capable of beating.

� Woodstock at Etowah, Oct. 21:This Towne Lake rivalry is one of thebiggest in Cherokee County and usuallyhas playoff implications associated withit. This season should be no different,especially with the two teams meeting solate in the year.

� Lambert at Sequoyah, Oct. 21:Former Chiefs head coach Sid Maxwellmakes his return to the where he servedas head coach for 15 seasons.

Lambert, Maxwell’s new team, beatthe Chiefs 10-3 last season, so althoughChiefs fans will be happy to see Maxwellagain, they’ll be even happier to witness aSequoyah victory over a region opponent.

� Creekview at Woodland, Oct. 28:Creekview lost seven of its last eightgames and concluded the year on a four-game losing streak. The Grizzlies certain-ly don’t want a season like they had lastyear and a big win in their regular seasonfinale could help them in the long run.

� Sprayberry at Kell, Oct. 28: Thesetwo teams are not very far apart from oneanother, yet it will only mark the fourthtime they’ve met in their histories. Thegames have been exciting now thatthey’re both in Region 5AAAA, and play-off ramifications will ensue for bothteams meeting this late in the season.

� Etowah at Lassiter, Nov. 3: Region5AAAAA implications will be on the linein this final televised Thursday nightmatchup.

� North Cobb at Harrison, Nov. 4:Harrison beat North Cobb 17-6 last sea-son to spoil the Warriors hopes of makingthe postseason and instead guaranteeditself a spot. With Region 4AAAAAexpected to be jumbled again, this season-ending matchup could be a big one forboth schools once again.

� Pebblebrook at South Cobb, Nov.5: Saturday afternoon contest to end theseason against rival schools from southCobb playing in the same region. ’Nuffsaid.

BIG GAMES ABUNDANT ON 2011 SEASON LANDSCAPEKEY CONTESTS THAT COULD DETERMINE PLAYOFF PARTICIPANTS BEGIN AUG. 26

It was notuntil thefinal day ofthe 2010season thatthe finalplayoff spotin Region4AAAAA wasdecidedwhenPebblebrookfaced SouthCobb. Thatmakes thesamematchupone to watchin 2011.

�Staff /

Laura Moon

KICKOFF 2011


By Carlton D. White

[email protected]

All signs point to the Region4AAAAA championship run-ning through McEachern onceagain. The Indians have beendominant in the league the pasttwo years by collecting a 16-0mark against region foes.

The Indians return fivestarters on offense and eight ondefense from last year’s squadthat went 10-2 on the season andreached the second round of thestate playoffs.

Four of the five offensivestarters are at the skill positionsof quarterback, running back andwide receiver, so timing andchemistry shouldn’t be a problemfor that group as long as theoffensive line does its job. Third-year starting quarterback TrentThompson takes over the reinsfull-time after splitting withteammate Dondre Purnell theprevious two seasons.

Always joined withMcEachern in the fight for theregion championship will beHarrison and North Cobb. New-comer Hillgrove is also expectedto be in the mix while SouthCobb and Pebblebrook continueto improve every year.

“It’s a very competitiveregion,” McEachern coachKyle Hockman said. “Thereare some really good coacheswho know the game and workhard at getting their playersready every week. We’re alsovery familiar with each otherwhich makes game planningeven tougher.”

Hillgrove went 10-3 andreached the quarterfinals of theClass AAAAA state playoffs in

their first year as a AAAAAschool.

The Hawks will have to workin a new quarterback after GageHenry graduated, but they still haverunning backs Kenyan Drake andIke Erenge, as well as receiverJoJo Marshall. John Silas alsoreturns to hold down the defense.

North Cobb narrowly misseda spot in the playoffs and posteda 5-5 record. According to coachShane Queen, the Warriors areexpected to bounce back thisyear with a strong senior classand several starters returning.

Harrison edged North Cobband Pebblebrook for the finalplayoff spot. The Hoyas, whowent 5-6 last year, return quar-terback Clay Chastain andrunning back C.J. Posey aswell as linebacker Judd Haley,strong safety Tonne’Osaigbovo and defensive tack-le Will Sicilano.

South Cobb, which went 7-4,returned to the postseason forthe first time since 2006.Replacing quarterback John-tavious Mullins and leadingrusher Demarcus Adkins will bedifficult for coach Ed Koester,but the Eagles always have ath-letes ready to go.

Pebblebrook (4-6) returnstalented quarterback C.J.Goodman, running backSertonuse Harris and widereceiver Dontavious Heard.

First-year Campbell coachHarris Rainbow is out toimprove his team’s recent histo-ry. The Spartans have won threegames in two years.

Kennesaw Mountain coachChad McGehee is also lookingfor better results from theMustangs.

MCEACHERN STILL TEAM TO BEAT IN 4AAAAAAfter sharingquarterbackduties withDondrePurnell lastseason,McEachern’sTrentThompson,right,will be thefull-timestarter in2011.

�File photo


1. MCEACHERN 2. HILLGROVE 3. PEBBLEBROOK 4. HARRISON 5. NORTH COBB 6. SOUTH COBB 7. KMHS




He’s a powerful, quick andspeedy runner who has all of thetools. The dual threat ran for1,000 yards last year and caughtpasses for another 500. His versa-tility is one of the main reasons hewill be heading to the Universityof Alabama next year.

The Indians have athleteseverywhere and they return a lotof the personnel that made themso successful last season.

MCEACHERNKENYAN

DRAKE

RB, HILLGROVE

The Falcons’ defense was inevery game last year and shouldpoint the way toward the playoffs,but their returning quarterbackC.J. Goodman will get them there.

PEBBLEBROOK

8. CAMPBELL

KICKOFF 2011

SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011� PAGE 4SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011 PAGE 93 �

KICKOFF 2011

By Adam Carrington

[email protected]

Region 5AAAAA has themakings to be a stronger regionin 2011, but it’s still Etowah’schampionship to lose.

Lassiter is expecting to bestronger, particularly on theoffensive side of the ball.

Walton is expecting to havea more seasoned defense thisseason with the bulk of itsstarters coming back from lastyear’s playoff team.

Woodstock lost a lot fromlast season but has enough tal-ent to be just as solid as it wasin 2010.

And Cherokee, Marietta andWheeler are expected to makeimprovements from last season.

“I think you have to startwith Etowah,” Lassiter coachJep Irwin said. “They wentundefeated in region play.”

Etowah became a postseasonregular in Class AAAAA fiveyears ago when Bill Stewarttook the helm. The Eagles arecapable of defending with sixoffensive and five defensiveplayers returning.

Having experience on bothsides of the ball does helpEtowah’s chances. The Eagleshave the most experienced run-ning back in the region withsenior Devonte Wheaton —arguably the best player in theregion — along with widereceiver Barrett Burns and fourreturning offensive linemen.

Etowah also has linebackerRyan Wilborn returning to bol-ster its defense.

If there is one team that’shungry to stop Etowah, it is its

Towne Lake rival Woodstock.The Wolverines are expecting tobe just as strong on defense asthey are every season and coachBrent Budde said his offensiveskill set behind senior quarter-back Jonathan Wiener has thepotential to be stronger than lastseason.

To beat Etowah and fellowregion contenders Lassiter andWalton, the Wolverines have totake care of the basic funda-mentals on both sides of theball.

“(Winning region is) goingto take us taking care of whatwe can take care of,” Buddesaid. “We can’t afford to turnthe ball over and we have totake advantage of the opportuni-ties that present themselves.”

The Trojans return highlycoveted junior quarterbackEddie Printz.

Printz is expected to bemore mature as a junior andthree of his four startingreceivers were starters last sea-son. Senior Charlie Hegedus,who committed to NorthCarolina State, brings bothspeed and experience.

Walton, which is known tostart slow and finish strong, hasnine returning defenders guid-ed by senior twins Daron andZach Blaylock in the sec-ondary. The Raiders are alsoreturning senior defensive endKoty Allen and senior line-backer Justin Brooks.

The remaining teams in5AAAAA — Cherokee,Marietta and Wheeler — arestill building their respectiveprograms after finishing withlosing seasons in 2010.

A THREE-TEAM RACE SHAPING UP IN 5AAAAAOne of thebiggest early-seasonmatchups willbe whenEtowah facesoff withWalton. Thewinner willhave a clearadvantage inRegion5AAAAA.

�File photo


1. ETOWAH 2. WALTON 3. LASSITER 4. WOODSTOCK 5. CHEROKEE 6. MARIETTA 7. WHEELER




While Lassiter quarterbackEddie Printz is getting most of thecollege attention, Etowah speed-ster Devonte Wheaton emerged asthe catalyst of the Eagle backfieldlast season, helping the Eagles goundefeated in region play en routeto a title.

Etowah appears to be the mostbalanced in terms of having expe-rience coming back from bothsides of the ball. A total of 11returners have performed underpressure and are capable of doingit again.

ETOWAHDEVONTE

WHEATON

RB, ETOWAH

The Raiders return everyoneexcept their quarterback and run-ning back from a year ago. CoachRocky Hidalgo said this defensecould rival some of the bestWalton has ever had.

WALTON


2011 MARIETTA DAILY JOURNAL/CHEROKEE TRIBUNE

ANNUAL FOOTBALL PREVIEWTeam Pages

Allatoona ....................................8Campbell ...................................12Cherokee ..................................14Creekview ..................................16Etowah .....................................20Harrison ................................22Hillgrove ...............................24Kell ......................................26Kennesaw Mountain ..............28Lassiter ..............................30Marietta ............................32McEachern .........................34Mount Paran Christian .........36North Cobb ...........................42North Cobb Christian ............44Osborne ...............................52Pebblebrook .........................54Pope ....................................56River Ridge ...........................58Sequoyah ..............................62South Cobb ..........................64Sprayberry ..........................66Walker ..............................70Walton .............................72Wheeler ............................74Whitefield Academy ...........76Woodstock .................... . . .80

Features

Games to Watch in 2011 ..............................5

Big-Time BacksCarry the Load....................6

Prime-Time Football ....................................40

MDJ Dynamite

Dozen ........48

Cherokee

Super Six ...60

Cobb Turf Project ............................................78

Region Previews5A ...........................83 6A ..........................867AAA ......................87 5AAAA ..................887AAAA ...................89 4AAAAA ...............925AAAAA ...............93

KICKOFF 2011


AUG. 19CHEROKEE AT NORTH FORSYTH

AUG, 20KELL VS. GRAYSON (DOME) 11:45 AMLASSITER VS. BROOKWOOD (DOME) 2:30 PMMCEACHERN VS. N. GWINNETT (DOME) 5:30 PMWALTON VS. P’TREE RIDGE (DOME) 8:30 PM

AUG. 26KMHS AT ALLATOONACENTENNIAL AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT WEST FORSYTHHILLGROVE AT SPRAYBERRYALPHARETTA AT NORTH COBBPEBBLEBROOK AT LOWNDESSOUTH COBB AT MARIETTAMILTON AT CHEROKEEETOWAH AT BERKMARPOPE AT WHEELERNORTH FORSYTH AT WOODSTOCKOSBORNE AT HUGHESSEQUOYAH AT CREEKVIEWWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT WALKERMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT PACE ACADEMYMOUNT ZION AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN 5 PM

SEPT. 2ALLATOONA AT RIDGELANDCAMPBELL AT HUGHESWOODSTOCK AT HARRISONMARIETTA AT HILLGROVEKMHS AT POPEMCEACHERN AT LOWNDESNORTH COBB AT CENTENNIALEAST COWETA AT PEBBLEBROOKWHEELER AT SOUTH COBBWEST FORSYTH AT CHEROKEEETOWAH AT KELLSPRAYBERRY AT LASSITERWALTON AT MILTONOSBORNE AT WOODWARD ACADEMYCREEKVIEW AT NORTHWEST WHITFIELDJOHNS CREEK AT SEQUOYAHMT. PISGAH AT RIVER RIDGEPACE ACADEMY AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYN. COBB CHRISTIAN AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANWALKER AT CALVARY DAY

SEPT. 9ALLATOONA AT SOUTHEAST WHITFIELDWALTON AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT MILTONHILLGROVE AT NORTH FORSYTHSPRAYBERRY AT KMHSMARIETTA AT MCEACHERNLASSITER AT NORTH COBBPEBBLEBROOK AT CHAPEL HILL

NORTHVIEW AT SOUTH COBBCHEROKEE AT MILL CREEKWEST FORSYTH AT ETOWAHWHEELER AT MEADOWCREEKKELL AT WOODSTOCKMCNAIR AT OSBORNEPOPE AT VILLA RICACREEKVIEW AT LAMBERTNORTHWEST WHITFIELD AT SEQUOYAHRIVER RIDGE AT TEMPLEWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT WILKINSON COUNTYMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT HARALSON CO.FELLOWSHIP AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN 5 PMPACE ACADEMY AT WALKER

SEPT. 16DALTON AT ALLATOONACAMPBELL AT MCEACHERNPEBBLEBROOK AT HARRISONSOUTH COBB AT HILLGROVENORTH COBB AT KMHSNORTH FORSYTH AT ETOWAHMILTON AT LASSITERALPHARETTA AT MARIETTAROSWELL AT WALTONCENTENNIAL AT WHEELERWOODSTOCK AT NEWNANKELL AT EAST PAULDINGOSBORNE AT HIRAMNORTH PAULDING AT SPRAYBERRYCHATTAHOOCHEE AT CREEKVIEWSEQUOYAH AT CASSMODEL AT RIVER RIDGESACA AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT TRIONCROSS KEYS AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN 4:30 PMWALKER AT GORDON LEE

SEPT. 23WOODSTOCK AT CHEROKEEWALTON AT ETOWAHWHEELER AT MARIETTAHIRAM AT KELLPOPE AT OSBORNEJOHNS CREEK AT CREEKVIEWROME AT SEQUOYAHRIVER RIDGE AT CROSS KEYSWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT LANDMARK CHRISTIANDARLINGTON AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANNORTH COBB CHRISTIAN AT ST. FRANCIS 5 PMBOWDON AT WALKER

SEPT. 30CARTERSVILLE AT ALLATOONANORTH COBB AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT HILLGROVEKMHS AT PEBBLEBROOKMCEACHERN AT SOUTH COBB

ETOWAH AT CHEROKEELASSITER AT WALTONWHEELER AT WOODSTOCKKELL AT POPESPRAYBERRY AT EAST PAULDINGCREEKVIEW AT ROMESEQUOYAH AT SOUTH FORSYTHRIVER RIDGE AT GORDON LEEELCA AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYNORTH COBB CHRISTIAN AT TOWNS COUNTY

OCT. 7ALLATOONA AT MURRAY COUNTYCAMPBELL AT KMHSSOUTH COBB AT HARRISONHILLGROVE AT MCEACHERNPEBBLEBROOK AT NORTH COBBCHEROKEE AT LASSITERETOWAH AT WHEELERWOODSTOCK AT MARIETTAOSBORNE AT KELLPOPE AT NORTH PAULDINGHIRAM AT SPRAYBERRYSOUTH FORSYTH AT CREEKVIEWLAKEVIEW ACADEMY AT RIVER RIDGEWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT FIRST PRESBYTERIANMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT GORDON LEEGLASCOCK COUNTY AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIANWALKER AT BREMEN


OCT. 14CEDARTOWN AT ALLATOONAHARRISON AT CAMPBELLHILLGROVE AT NORTH COBBKMHS AT SOUTH COBBMCEACHERN AT PEBBLEBROOKHILLGROVE AT NORTH COBBWALTON AT CHEROKEEMARIETTA AT ETOWAHLASSITER AT WHEELERNORTH PAULDING AT OSBORNECREEKVIEW AT CASSSEQUOYAH AT CHATTAHOOCHEETOWNS COUNTY AT RIVER RIDGEBREMEN AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANN. COBB CHRISTIAN AT LAKEVIEW ACADEMYTRION AT WALKER

OCT. 21ALLATOONA AT PICKENSSOUTH COBB AT CAMPBELLHARRISON AT KMHSPEBBLEBROOK AT HILLGROVENORTH COBB AT MCEACHERNWOODSTOCK AT ETOWAH

MARIETTA AT LASSITERWHEELER AT WALTONKELL AT NORTH PAULDINGOSBORNE AT SPRAYBERRYPOPE AT EAST PAULDINGFORSYTH CENTRAL AT CREEKVIEWLAMBERT AT SEQUOYAHLANIER AT RIVER RIDGEWHITEFIELD ACADEMY AT STRONG ROCKWALKER AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANHEBRON AT NORTH COBB CHRISTIAN

OCT. 28ALLATOONA AT GILMERCAMPBELL AT PEBBLEBROOKMCEACHERN AT HARRISONHILLGROVE AT KMHSSOUTH COBB AT NORTH COBBCHEROKEE AT WHEELERMARIETTA AT WALTONLASSITER AT WOODSTOCKSPRAYBERRY AT KELLEAST PAULDING AT OSBORNEHIRAM AT POPECREEKVIEW AT WOODLANDSEQUOYAH AT FORSYTH CENTRALSOCIAL CIRCLE AT RIVER RIDGEOLM AT WHITEFIELD ACADEMYMOUNT PARAN CHRISTIAN AT MOUNT ZIONN. COBB CHRISTIAN AT GEORGIA MILITARYDARLINGTON AT WALKER

NOV. 3ETOWAH AT LASSITER

NOV. 4CAMPBELL AT HILLGROVENORTH COBB AT HARRISONKMHS AT MCEACHERNCHEROKEE AT MARIETTAWALTON AT WOODSTOCKWOODLAND AT SEQUOYAHBOWDON AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANWALKER AT MOUNT ZIONALLATOONA REGION PLAY-INKELL REGION PLAY-INOSBORNE REGION PLAY-INPOPE REGION PLAY-INSPRAYBERRY REGION PLAY-INRIVER RIDGE REGION PLAY-INWHITEFIELD ACADEMY REGION PLAY-IN

NOV. 5PEBBLEBROOK AT SOUTH COBB NOON

ALL GAMES 7:30 P.M. KICKOFF UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED

2011 Composite Cobb/Cherokee High School Football Schedule

DevonteWheaton (24)

will look tohave a big

game Oct. 21when Etowah

hosts archrivalWoodstock.The teams will try to

recreate lastyear’s 17-14

overtimethriller. The

Eagles’ victorypropelled them

to the Region5AAAAA

championship.

Kenyan Drake(17) and

Hillgrove willhead to

McEachern on Oct. 7 in a

rematch of thewhat was,

arguably, thebest game of

the 2010 season. The

Indians beatthe Hawks 64-48 last

year in a key Region

4AAAAAmatchup.

Allatoona’sMiles Jones (7)

finished the2010 season

with more than1,900 yardsrushing and

was named tothe Class AAAAll-State first

team. Now, hehopes to lead the

Buccaneers totheir first

region title andplayoff victory.

2011 KEY GAMES

AUG. 20MCEACHERN VS. N. GWINNETT (DOME) 5:30 PMWALTON VS. P’TREE RIDGE (DOME) 8:30 PM

AUG. 26KMHS AT ALLATOONA

SEQUOYAH AT CREEKVIEWSEPT. 2

MCEACHERN AT LOWNDESETOWAH AT KELL

SEPT. 9KELL AT WOODSTOCK

SEPT. 16DALTON AT ALLATOONA

KELL AT EAST PAULDINGCHATTAHOOCHEE AT CREEKVIEW

SEPT. 23WOODSTOCK AT CHEROKEE

WALTON AT ETOWAHSEPT. 30

CARTERSVILLE AT ALLATOONAHARRISON AT HILLGROVEETOWAH AT CHEROKEELASSITER AT WALTON

OCT. 7HILLGROVE AT MCEACHERN


OCT. 21WOODSTOCK AT ETOWAH

WALKER AT MOUNT PARAN CHRISTIANOCT. 28

MCEACHERN AT HARRISONNOV. 3

ETOWAH AT LASSITERNOV. 4

WALTON AT WOODSTOCK

CARRYING THE LOAD

A SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT OF THE MARIETTA DAILY JOURNAL AND CHEROKEE TRIBUNE � SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2011

KICKOFF 2011

Etowah’s Devonte Wheaton, Hillgrove’s Kenyan Drakeand Allatoona’s Miles Jones are big-time backs whoare poised to help take their teams deep into the playoffs, but to do that, they will be the ones...

Austell3698 Largent WaySuite 103Marietta, GA 30064678-354-2883

Woodstock2230 Towne Lake Pkwy.Bldg. 300, Suite 100Woodstock, GA 30189770-592-4424

Kennesaw270 Chastain Rd.Kennesaw, GA 30144770-421-8005

Marietta61 Whitcher St.Suite 1100Marietta, GA 30060770-422-3290

Canton15 Reinhardt College Pkwy.Suite 102Canton, GA 30114678-505-4455

West Cobb2041 Mesa Valley WaySuite 100Austell, GA 30106770-944-1100

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