TIGER — Coach Lee Shaw cannot help but smile when thinking of the sight.
Tailgaters, fans, and well-wishers brimming the parking lot at Rabun County High School -- all there just to catch a glimpse of practice.
"They were up there to watch our 'midnight madness' practice (the first allowable fully-padded practice on Aug. 1), honking horns and flashing lights -- and some of them had been there for hours just to get the best spot," Shaw said. "It's so much different now than when I first came back."
Shaw has led the transformation of Wildcat football from admirable local program to a county-wide phenomenon.
That's what winning at a near-unprecedented level will do.
Rabun is coming off back-to-back state quarterfinal appearances -- doubling up the program's best-ever state performance (1998), while also claiming three straight region crowns (the only prior success coming, again, in 1998).
In 2017 -- despite graduating an impressive senior class from last year's 11-1 squad that set a program record for scoring while yielding just 11.4 points per game -- the Wildcats are determined to keep up their positive momentum. And with players like Bailey Fisher at quarterback, there is plenty of optimism that the Wildcats can do just that.
A senior, Fisher is one of the top performers in northeast Georgia, and, thanks to insane numbers like his junior campaign (2,671 yards passing, 29 TDs, 6 INTs; 1,029 yards rushing, 21 TDs) he is perhaps the most most underrated player in the state. A versatile player so in charge of the 'Cats spread attack that Shaw says he is the equal to the best he's coached -- which includes sons Jaybo (a collegiate standout) and Connor (now with the Chicago Bears).
Making Fisher even more dangerous is a receiving corps that Shaw says -- top to bottom -- may be the best the WIldcats have fielded. Included are Austin Jones (junior), the team's leading pass-catcher in 2016, along with explosive sophomore Braxton Hicks, who is already receiving attention from SEC and ACC programs, as well as veterans Cole Keener, Chase Horton and Dillyn Nichols.
That said, Rabun will field an offensive line that returns just one starter from 2016 -- center Sean Lovell (junior) -- and Shaw is anxious to see how they stand up to the rigors of Friday night.
The same goes for Rabun's attack-minded 3-3 stack defense, which returns a plethora of talented linebackers and defensive backs but will blood several new linemen. The Wildcats can take plenty of comfort in knowing leading returning tackler Gavin Jones returns for his senior campaign to anchor the unit. Jones is an all-state performer at free safety, which Shaw dubbed a "mini-Charlie Woerner," harkening the former Wildcats star and current Georgia Bulldog tight end.
An all-state placekicker, senior Andrew Barnes, should also help round out a team with high expectations for itself.
"They've all bought in to the way we've built this program; the whole community has bought in, and its really neat to see," said Shaw, himself a Rabun graduate. "And the guys on this team are still hungry for success. I've got 14 seniors, and they've done a tremendous job of showing the younger guys how it's done. I'm having a hard time even picking captains right now because there are so many deserving guys. That's a good sign."
RABUN COUNTY: NEED TO KNOW
- MASCOT: Wildcats
- TEAM COLORS: Red and White
- CURRENT REGION: 8-AA
- HEAD COACH/RECORD AT SCHOOL: Lee Shaw, sixth season, 45-14
- 2016 RECORD/ACCOMPLISHMENTS: 11-1, Class AA quarterfinalist, Region 8-AA champion
- KEY LOSSES: OL Peyton Backer, RB Cal Drummond, WR/P Noah Cannon, DL Jack Blackstock, NG Hawk Davis, DE Miguel Ortiz, LB Sam Butikofer
- OFFENSIVE STYLE: Spread option -- The Wildcats will get their playmakers in space and make defenses cover the whole field. And an explosive quarterback and receiving corps could give opposing coordinators more nightmares in 2017 after averaging a program-record 47 points per game in 2016.*
- KEY OFFENSIVE PLAYERS: 5 returning starters -- Sr. QB Bailey Fisher (2,671 yards passing, 29 TDs, 6 INTs; 1,029 yards rushing, 21 TDs in 2016), Jr. WR Austin Jones (team-high 41 receptions, 636 yards, 6 TDs), So. WR Braxton Hicks, Sr. WR Cole Keener, Jr. OL Shawn Lovell, Jr. RB Brison Beck
- DEFENSIVE STYLE: 3-3 stack -- Rabun County will use its athleticism and speed, shifting and attacking while looking to force mistakes from opposing offenses.
- KEY DEFENSIVE PLAYERS: 5 returning starters -- Sr. MLB Gavin Jones (team-high 92 tackles in 2016), Sr. ILB Dawson Henricks, Sr. DL Tanner Jarrard, Jr. DL Jackson Webb, Jr. DL Austin Sosebee, Sr. SS Justin Wilkes, Sr. FS Austin Jones (All-State performer)
- SPECIAL TEAMS: Sr. PK/P Andrew Barnes (All-state performer), Fisher will also punt, Sr. LS Gavin Jones
- STRENGTH: Quarterback/receivers -- Fisher is as good a quarterback as Shaw has coached -- and that includes his sons, who starred collegiately, with Connor Shaw now on the Chicago Bears roster. He may just be the most underrated player in the state. Meanwhile, Shaw also says his five receivers may represent the best corps (top to bottom) he's had in his time in Tiger. Hicks (a sophomore) is already drawing high-level FBS interest.
- QUESTION: Lines of scrimmage -- Do they have talent and ability? Shaw says most definitely. But they are still largely untested on both sides, and he's anxious to see how they respond under the lights.
- KEY GAMES: The Wildcats face a tough non-region schedule that includes a state quarterfinalist in Mt. Pisgah Christian (Class A Private) and a Sweet 16 foe in West Hall (Class AAAA), as well as serial playoff program Stephens County. Rabun can make a statement in region play with its 8-AA opener against last season's second seed in Banks County (Sept. 29, away). The Wildcats, who are looking to claim their fourth straight region crown, also get traditional power Elbert County at home this season (Oct. 20).
- TRENDING: There's arguably no hotter program in northeast Georgia right now than Rabun County. After a 13-year playoff drought (1999-2011), the Wildcats are now looking for their sixth straight state berth -- after equalling the program's best-ever postseason performance by reaching the quarterfinals in back-to-back seasons (2015-16). Owners of three straight 8-AA crowns and a 45-14 record since 2012, excitement is boiling over in Tiger, where Shaw is making the rest of the state take notice of the boys from "north of the (Tallulah) Gorge." And with key catalysts still on the roster there is no reason to stop looking northward.
*- Stat courtesy Georgia High School Football Historians Association.org
2017 SCHEUDLE
Aug. 25 vs. Mt. Pisgah Christian
Sept. 1 at Stephens County
Sept. 8 at White County
Sept. 22 vs. West Hall
Sept. 29 at Banks County*
Oct. 6 vs. Putnam County*
Oct. 13 at Social Circle*
Oct. 20 vs. Elbert County*
Oct. 27 at Oglethorpe County*
Nov. 3 vs. Monticello*
*- Indicates region contest
(All kickoffs scheduled for 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted)
