We are in Week-2 off the Georgia High School Football season and have already been treated to some great games this past weekend. Unfortunately, covid has claimed several games across the state forcing teams to scramble and reschedule. This is Part-II of our Georgia High School Football Previews. We like to call this the Eight Greats Around the State where we take a look at eight intriguing matchups each week.
North Cobb will host the high flying Milton Eagles. Many believe these teams are two of the best in Class 7-A. Will North Cobb be able to find their stride against an extremely talented Milton team? In Roswell, the Blessed Trinity Titans and Marist War Eagles will square off for the 6th time. Will the Marist Wing-T rule the day or will Justice Haynes and Blessed Trinity run wild? Down in Ocilla, the Irwin County Indians will host the Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes. Both teams graduated a lot of offensive firepower and this is the season opener for both teams. Which squad will hit their stride first this week? Finally, down in Pelham the Pelham Hornets will host the Early County Bobcats. The Hornets passing game already looks to be in midseason form, can the Bobcats disrupt the air attack this week?
As always, thanks for reading. Please feel free to comment and share.
Special thanks to the Georgia Helmet Project for providing each team’s helmet. You can find all of their work here: http://gahelmetproject.com
Special thanks to the Georgia Helmet Project for providing each team’s helmet. You can find all of their work here: http://gahelmetproject.com
Historical records are provided by the Georgia High School Football Historians Association. (ghsfa.org)
The Skinny
The North Cobb Warriors will look to bounce back after they were unable to hang on in the second half against Buford last week. Much has been said about the transfers in to North Cobb, but let’s not forget about the mainstays. Quarterback Malachi Singleton is about as good as they come in this year’s junior class. Last week he threw for 218 yards and 3-TDs and added 91 rushing yards and 1-TD. On the defensive side of the ball Caleb Jenkins and Latrell Bullard paced the team with 7.5 and 5.5 total tackles respectively. Reggie Givhan led the team with 11 receptions for 107 yards, while Newcomer, Denylon Morrissette caught two passes for 80 yards and a touchdown.
The Milton Eagles got off to a great start as they blanked visiting Hapeville Charter last week. The Eagles also look to be a legitimate contender for a state title. Their offense is powered by quarterback Devin Farrell and Jordan McDonald in the backfield. They will line up behind linemen GIles Tchio, Maurice Clipper Jr. and center Kayden Richardson. Milton also returns top receivers Adam Freas, Debron Gattling and tight end Jack Nickel…And then there’s the defense…Milton will likely be without L.T. Overton but there is plenty of star power to fill in the gaps. Look for Cam Cainion and Bryce Thornton in the secondary to make passing difficult for the Warriors.
This is a matchup that we could find ourselves watching again late in the playoffs in December. If North Cobb is going to defeat Milton, they’ll will have to establish the ground game and force the Milton secondary to help out with run-support. At this point in the season, we believe Milton is a little more fluid on offense. Eagles by 8.
The Skinny
The Blessed Trinity Titans started their new era under coach Thomas Hall last week with a 34-6 win over Woodland (Stockbridge). The Titans are paced on offense by senior quarterback J.C. French and junior running back Justice Haynes. Haynes is one of the top running backs in the junior class rushed for 154 yards and 2-TDs in the victory. The Titans will lean on Kieren Davis and Deldrick Franklin on the defense to attempt to slow down the Marist run game.
The Marist War Eagles open up their season with their old region foe. Marist is coming off of a state title season and also return one of the top offensive linemen in the state in Steve Nahmias as well as bruising fullback and linebacker Andrew Manelly. Quarterback Champ Davis also returns under center for the War Eagles this season. Expect rising junior O’keefe McKinney to see a bigger role on the defensive line for the War Eagles. Marist is a well coached team and generally will not beat themselves.
This game will be won in the trenches. If Nahmias and the War Eagles can push around Blessed Trinity and control the clock, perhaps they can keep the explosive Haynes on the sideline. That’s easier said than done. We like the Titans by a field goal in what we believe will be an extremely close ball game.
The Skinny
The Irwin County Indians are the two time Class A-Public state champions, but if they are going to make it a third straight title game, they will have to replace nearly all of their offensive productive on the ground. Fortunately for the Indians, they do return junior quarterback Cody Soliday, who threw for 1,908 yards and 23-TDs last season. The Indians will look to several backs to help pace their ground game including freshman Shane Marshall, Matthew Payne and Bernard Herring among others. Malachi Hadden is the team’s leading receiver from a year ago.
The Fitzgerald Hurricanes will also look to get back into the finals after they fell just short to Callaway in the title game. They’ll need to replace do everything player Chance Gamble who graduated after last season. Look for Sultan Cooper to take the reins as the new quarterback for the Canes. Meanwhile on defense, linebacker E.J. Lightsey is about as good as they come in any classification in Georgia. He will lead a defense that allowed just aver 12 points per game last season.
While the Indians should have the nod at quarterback, we believe the Canes defense will do just enough to contain the Indians. Fitzgerald by 8.
The Skinny
The Pelham Hornets got their season off to a great start with a victory over their county rival Mitchell County last Friday. Senior quarterback Zane Touchton had a big day in his debut, leading the Hornets with 270 yards passing and 1-TD while also leading the team with 62 yards and another TD on the ground. His leading receiver last week was Came’ron Daniels who caught eight passes for 105 yards.
The Early County Bobcats also started their season off with a victory in the opening week. This season the Bobcats will be looking to replace production from now graduated Ladarrius Caesar. In last week’s victory, they rolled up 229 yards on the ground with Jeremiah Hutchins leading the way with 81 yards on just 6 carries. Meanwhile, Ryan Foster intercepted two passes in the victory.
It will certainly be a clash of styles on Friday night as the Bobcats will try to wear down the Hornets with the ground game while the Hornets will attempt to spread Early County out and take advantages of mismatches through the air. We like the Hornets at home this week by 6.