Thanks to re-classification and region re-alignment, there were a wealth of unknowns coming into the 2016 high school football season.
Despite the changes, some things were still a given, however. Buford would again be a team to beat -- only this time in Class AAAAA. Greater Atlanta Christian, behind Stanford quarterback commit Davis Mills, would be atop the early rankings in Class AAA.
Meanwhile, a glance at Region 7-AAAA revealed what appeared to be a top-heavy league thanks to perennial powers Marist and Blessed Trinity -- the 2015 Class AAA runner-up -- joining old region foes Chestatee, West Hall, and White County. And, with Chestatee and White County in seeming rebuilding mode coming into the season, it was wondered if there would be much playoff drama.
We may have to revisit that idea.
As four of the five teams kick off region play Friday night -- West Hall (4-2, 0-0 Region 7-AAAA) travels to Chestatee (3-3, 0-0) and White County (1-5, 0-0) plays host to Class AAAA No. 6 Blessed Trinity (4-2, 0-0) -- area coaches say there may be more drama than meets the eye.
“There is absolutely no margin for error,” West Hall coach Tony Lotti said. “With only four region games you can’t make a mistake. You can’t have one off night. There is no tomorrow the rest of the way. There’s more pressure now than ever before.”
New Chestatee coach Shaun Conley agreed.
“You are going to have to be on your game every week,” Conley said. “Some people have said, ‘you only have to win one.’ My thinking is we only have four games so we better be ready every Friday. (Coach Lotti) is probably right that there really won’t be any margin for error from here on out.”
Is there an X-factor? Maybe.
The War Eagles were not expected to be this far along this quick after a new coaching staff took over a program that had won one game in two seasons. West Hall’s gritty defense, meanwhile, has been the difference at the end in two close wins.
Despite the new coach in Conley and a total remodeling of the offense and defense, Chestatee already has won more games than the last two seasons combined.
“We may be a little ahead of where we hoped we would be right now. But we’re not talking to any of our guys about being an X-factor or anything,” Conley said. “Our goal is just look at each opponent for that week and do what we can to try and get a win. We’re not really concerned about how the other teams look at us, good or bad.”
The War Eagles feature one of the most explosive offenses in Class AAAA thanks to a spread attack led by quarterback Storm Yarbrough, running back Nick Lyles, and wide receiver Baylee Camp that has racked up 201 points (37 points per game) good for sixth in AAAA. The trio has been among the state’s individual leaders in passing, rushing, and receiving for most of the season.
However, the War Eagles also have allowed the most points (233, 38.8 ppg) in Class AAAA on defense.
“Well, a 2-0 win or loss is the same as a 59-58 win or loss,” Conley said. “We’d like to probably have a little better numbers on defense. Hopefully we’ll have a shot when no one expected us too.”
Up the road, White County is still young, starting “six or seven sophomores,” coach Bill Ballard said. The Warriors (1-5, 0-0) also have been battling injuries. But, after taking on Blessed Trinity, they have a much-needed bye week to try and get back to 100 percent.
“We feel we could be 3-3 right now,” Ballard said. “We had the lead against Habersham Central and Lumpkin County but couldn’t hold on. We’ve been our own worst enemy. But I think the kids are upbeat despite all that.
“We’re looking at the region as a fresh start. It doesn’t matter what your record is once you get in the region. That’s where we’re focusing now.”
Lotti said they, too, are welcoming the start of region play. Their entire non-region schedule was geared to get them ready for this point in the season. However, they are 1-2 this season against teams that run a spread offense similar to Chestatee's.
“We’ve played a lot of different (offensive) styles and some really good defenses,” Lotti said. “I don’t think the spread is a bad matchup for us. Most games just come down to kids making plays. We’re trying to help them improve so they can make the plays they need to make to be successful.”
Both Lotti and Conley said they didn’t feel slighted if the ‘so-called experts’ still feel Marist and Blessed Trinity are the odds-on favorites to grab the top two seeds and home field advantage in the playoffs.
“I think it was safe to say at the beginning of the year that Marist and Blessed Trinity were the teams to beat,” Conley said. “They’re both well-coached and have good athletes. But West Hall has shown the last couple of years it can compete with anyone, White County has traditionally been good the last few years, and I would like to think we’re getting to the point where we’ll be competitive.”
“Marist and Blessed Trinity probably were the favorites in the beginning but I’m not sure it’s clear-cut anymore,” Lotti said. “Chestatee is coming along fast, and I still think White County is going to get going. I feel like we’re going to be competitive.
“I’m not going to come close to try to make any predictions or anything. But I will say this: on any given night, anything can happen. We’re hoping that good things will happen.”
Ballard, like Lotti and Conley, felt the region is more than a two-team race.
“I do. But I think Blessed Trinity is going to be tough to beat,” he said. “I believe the region is stronger than people think it is. It will be interesting to see what happens.”
