Blistering August days drag for just about everyone -- let alone high school football players grinding their way through preseason practice.
Starting tonight, however, players and coaches will get a refreshing dose of something different, as preseason scrimmages get underway around north Georgia.
Five area teams -- Johnson at East Jackson, Fannin County at Towns County, and Greater Atlanta Christian at Dawson County -- will kick off the next closest thing to real competition available on Thursday, while a number of scrimmages will also commence on Friday and Saturday and continue into next week.
"More than anything (scrimmages) just give you a break from four straight weeks of practice," Gainesville coach Bruce Miller said. "Otherwise you'd have nothing but a month of going against yourself, and that can get monotonous for anyone."
That doesn't necessarily mean that every player and coach will like what he sees -- and feels -- once the scrimmages begin, but most coaches believe it is an important step toward preparation for the upcoming season.
"A lot of guys will think they're in pretty good shape until they hit a game situation -- and that's what the scrimmages will be like," Franklin County coach Tommy Welch said. "Once they get going full speed every play and breathing hard, they're going to learn a lot more about themselves. And we'll learn more as coaches too."
And what coaches don't initially see in the heat of competition, they're certain to catch after watching films of the scrimmages -- another key component to the exercise.
"It's important that you get a chance to evaluate kids on film, so you can break things down from all angles and see what you really need to work on," Miller said.
With that in mind, most programs attempt to schedule opponents that will push its players to the limit, hoping to see any weakness exposed before the season gets started in earnest and practice time becomes too curtailed for lengthy self-examination.
"We want to play someone as good or better than we are," Miller said. "You want to see what happens when your players get pushed."
The Red Elephants have faced off with St. Pius in six straight preseasons, not only because of their ability level but also because of the styles of offense and defense the Lions utilize.
"Most teams have a hard time stopping opponents that come right at you, and Pius does that with their option," Miller said. "It makes our kids understand that they've got to be disciplined."
Some teams also take the chance to schedule old rivals -- such as Habersham Central and Stephens County (which will play each other on Friday in Toccoa), longtime foes which can no longer play each other due to the commitments of their regions and regular season schedules.
"It is what it is -- just a great time to play someone in a game position," said Welch, who says coaches also use the instance to help settle position battles. "If we've got competition for a spot, we'll try to divide it evenly and see how each player performs. But, generally we try to get our first teamers the equal number of reps that they would get in a real game."
"It's just a great gauge to see where you are," Miller added.
-- NOTE: Check Access North Georgia.com on Thursday to see another installment of WDUN SportsTalk's high school preview -- which will include four more interviews with area coaches.
Preseason Scrimmages
Thursday
Fannin County at Towns County
Johnson at East Jackson
Greater Atlanta Christian at Dawson County
Friday
Banks County at Franklin County
Buford at Clarke Central
Chestatee at East Hall
Flowery Branch at Lassiter
Habersham Central at Stephens County
Hebron Christian at Riverside Military
Mill Creek at South Gwinnett
North Gwinnett at Grayson
Rabun County at Prince Avenue Christian
St. Pius at Gainesville
Union County at Murphy, N.C.
White County at North Forsyth
Winder-Barrow at South Forsyth
Saturday
Lumpkin County at Jefferson
Aug. 18
Archer at Apalachee
West Hall at Pickens
Aug. 19
Forsyth Central at North Hall
Thursday
April 24th, 2025
1:37PM
