NOTE: There are only 34 days left until the start of the 2015 high school football season -- both around the state and right here in northeast Georgia. With that in mind, AccessWDUN is already in full preparation mode. Over the next three weeks we will give you a sneak peek of what’s in store for 2015 with our "Two-A-Days" series. We will bring you two key questions -- and answers -- for each program in our coverage area, twice a day. Each morning will start a new program, with another highlighted each afternoon. And at the end of each week we will also provide some video footage and commentary from area coaches. Programs will run in alphabetical order.
Probably no team in northeast Georgia was hit harder by injury in 2014 than North Forsyth. The Raiders had four players suffer season-ending ACL tears and at one point played 28 underclassmen that were second-string or lower on the depth chart.
Coach Jason Galt, however, also attributes that to opting to play two preseason games and have no spring practice. We caught up with the third-year coach, who says they are going back to the future.
QUESTION: How much of a factor did opting out of spring play in your troubles in 2014 and is changing the climate in the program a high priority?
ANSWER: I think having no spring practice and shorting our practices in the summer played a huge factor in some of our issues last season. We went back to having spring practices and longer practices in the summer this year and it has completely changed the attitudes of the players. The morale and chemistry is so much better at this point and everyone is absolutely ready to get going on the season. However, a positive by-product of last year is that we got to play a ton of younger players and they are coming in with more game experience than they might have gotten. It was the first time in my career I played freshmen on the varsity and I would rather not have to do that.
QUESTION: You lost several key players in the offensive backfield, including second-leading rusher Sr. Lance McGonigle to injury. Is finding suitable replacements essential in your double-wing attack?
ANSWER: We like to control the ball with long drives and we want three or four guys that can run the ball and keep the chains moving. Losing Lance is a big loss. But we are looking about five or six guys right now we feel pretty good about. Jr. Griffin Heffington, Jr. Simon Holcomb, and Sr. Cody Dwyer have kind of taken to the front right now but our focus through the fall will be finding the top guys and putting them in the right spots. We also have Sr. QB Jacob Bailey (6-foot, 240) returning and he is like a big fullback so we feel good about being able to operate our offense in a way we weren’t able to do last year. I am really looking forward to this season because I feel we have a chance to get back to where we were after the 2013 season when we went to the playoffs.
COMING UP NEXT: North Gwinnett
