New Jackson County coach Rich McWhorter, who led Charlton County to 15 region titles and four state championships over a 29-year span, needs no playbook on how to build a program. He probably has a few chapters of his own to provide any such publication, if there is one.
However, as he and his Panthers (1-0) prepare to take on North Hall (1-0) this week at The Brickyard, it’s hard to ignore some growing similarities between the two northeast Georgia area programs.
Back in 2001, North Hall brought in a legendary championship coach from Virginia (Bob Christmas) to guide a Trojans program that had no playoff appearances in its 43-year existence up to that point. Christmas, along with current North Hall head coach David Bishop, built the Trojans into one of the area’s most consistent winners and playoff stalwarts through his departure after the 2013 season. They are still going strong under Bishop.
McWhorter is now at the helm of a program that has just four playoff appearances in its history and no playoff wins. Does he think a similar path as the Trojans traversed is down the road for the Panthers, in time?
“It’s still very early in this program for us,” McWhorter stated. “We’re still learning about each other every day. All I know is that Week 2 of your first season can’t be an all-or-nothing kind of thing.
“But these kids are hard-working and want to do well and are doing what we’re asking of them. I feel like we’ve made some big strides since the start of the summer. Whether that translates into more wins during the season is another story. We have a very tough schedule.”
In North Hall’s first season under Christmas (2001) the Trojans finished 1-9 winning their final game of the season (35-12 over Madison County) to snap a 22-game losing streak. Bishop said he remembers the early days of he and Christmas and the rest of a new staff trying to build a winner where none had existed before.
“It’s tough the first couple of years at a place that has never won. The hardest step, but probably the most important one, is getting your kids to believe that they can win. That first win at the end of our first year was huge,” he said. “The offseason was totally different. You could tell when we got to the fall of our second year that (the kids’) mindset was different.”
The Trojans followed in 2002 with an 8-3 campaign that included their first-ever playoff appearance, though the season ended with a 41-7 loss to Cedartown in the first round.
Jackson County was not mired in a program-worst losing streak, however, in Brandon Worley’s final season as coach, and finished 3-7 in 2018, including suffering a 35-0 loss to North Hall.
Admittedly, McWhorter has had just one official game with his new charges. But last week’s 7-0 victory over Banks County, where the Panthers were employing new systems on offense and defense, gave him some encouragement.
“I thought we did a great job defensively,” McWhorter said. “I was impressed with Banks County. We made a few less mistakes than they did and that was the difference. For a first game, I was pleased overall.”
The Leopards use the almost identical wing-T offense as North Hall, especially now that former North Hall offensive coordinator Kerry Kidd is now in the same position in Homer. Does that give either team an advantage?
“It’s usually a little easier on the defense when they see the same offense two weeks in a row like that,” Bishop said. “They did a good job against Banks County and I expect them to probably fix some of the mistakes they made in that game. They’re solid on defense and we’re going to have our hands full.”
“That may be so (about the defense),” McWhorter said about which unit would have an advantage, “however, it also means that they can see our film and see where we made mistakes and try to exploit those. I don’t really know if it’s a big advantage one way or the other.
“It always comes down to execution and which team does that the best. All I know is that North Hall runs that offense to near-perfection so it’s going to be a huge challenge for our guys.”
With both teams still more than a month away from region play and the REAL start to the playoff chase, nothing will be decided on Friday night. But both coaches are looking to keep some early momentum rolling.
“We’re trying to make sure that we’re installing the mindset we want in building for the future,” McWhorter said. “But I also want to win now if we can. I think we can do that. But we’re really just focused on each day right now as we get to know each other and the strengths we have.”
The Trojans are coming off a 34-14 victory over arch-rival Chestatee last week. They hit the road next week against Class 7A Cherokee before heading back home against rival White County. They have aspirations for what they feel could be another big playoff run.
“This is an interesting game because their front seven or eight is pretty dang good. They’re big, physical, and can get penetration,” Bishop said. “We’re still working in some guys in new positions. Keeping momentum early in the year while you’re trying to build the confidence of some of the newer guys is important. That’s our focus right now.”
JACKSON COUNTY at NORTH HALL
-- WHEN: 7:30 p.m.
-- WHERE: The Brickyard, Gainesville
-- JACKSON COUNTY (1-0, 0-0 Region 8-3A): Defeated Banks County 7-0 last week
-- NORTH HALL (1-0, 0-0 Region 7-3A): Defeated Chestatee 34-14 last week
-- NOTABLE: North Hall leads series 3-0. The Trojans won 35-0 in 2018 in Jefferson. ... North Hall is looking for its second straight 2-0 start and third in the last four seasons. ... The Panthers have won 5 straight season openers but are looking for their first 2-0 start since 2017. The 7 points was the lowest points scored by the Panthers in a win since beating Oglethorpe County by an identical 7-0 score in 2010. ... Sr. DL Andrew King had 8 tackles for Jackson County last week and he and fellow Sr. DL Brandon Fisher were huge disrupters in the middle. ... North Hall pounded out 303 yards rushing last week but is was the 141 yards passing that had most fans talking. New QB Trey Sanders passed for 3 TDs as they went over the top against a Chestatee defense that stacked the box. It could become a familiar pattern as teams try to slow down their wing-T offense.
