Young Bears looking to defend region title

FLOWERY BRANCH — Cherokee Bluff’s 2020 campaign was a dream season. After all, the Bears won their first Region 7-3A title, first playoff game, most wins (11-2) in a season, and were a field goal away from advancing to the Class 3A quarterfinals.

It was a season full of “firsts” for the then 3-year-old program.

“Last year was a very special season,” Head Coach Tommy Jones said. “It was a culmination of a lot of hard work by a lot of people from an administration, a coaching staff and a group of players. Some were with us, and some had already graduated but they helped to build a great foundation. Our community has been so supportive and our junior Bear coaches have helped build as well. This list is almost enumerable to the number of people that had a lot to do with the success we were able to have last year.”

The architect of Northeast Georgia’s youngest football program is a humble guy. He never points to one thing or another that drives his program. He’s all about “we” not “me.”

That’s the reason this program has rocketed to the top of the region in just three short years and has proven they may still be young but are ready to take on whoever wants some.

“We have some core values that undergird everything we do,” he said. “If there’s an emphasis this year, it’s on the word “one.” We want to be one team and continue to build this thing one brick at a time … nobody is more important than that one.”

Now that the foundation has been concreted at The Bluff, Jones faces another obstacle in Year 4: replacing 19 seniors.

“Replacing those 19 guys will be a very tall task and at the same time, we never ask any individual players to step in and try to be something they are not,” he said. “So, we recognize that we’ll be very untested at some positions and will have to grow and mature. At the same time, we do have some unproven young guys, but they’ve been working extremely hard and are excited to step up and contribute to our team.”

But Jones and his staff have established a culture deep-seated in core values, not necessarily, goals, but as he calls it, “the process.”

“It seems like every year; the process just continues to move forward. We call it a journey. I just feel like we are continuing to take steps on this journey. The hope is you don’t move backward, but sometimes, you have to move backward before you start moving forward again. We’re going to do our best to continue building on the momentum that last year’s seniors created and hopefully by the end of this team 4 journey, we’ll continue to move forward.”

The Bears may have lost several key players to graduation, but they have a stellar group of returning starters and contributors, including bruising, All-State, All-Region 7-3A running back Jayquan Smith. Smith rushed for more than 1,000 yards in 2021 and is back bigger and stronger for his senior season.

“Jay is as serious and conscientious of a player as I’ve probably ever coached,” Jones said. “It means a lot to him. He’s a servant leader, humble, a great teammate, big, fast and powerful. The sky is the limit for that young man. We’re certainly glad he’s wearing purple and playing for us.”

Micah Hunter will mix in at running back as well, and Sam Stribling, Brayden Nance and Colby Harrison will rotate at fullback.

“We have the utmost confidence in those guys,” Jones said. “I like the rotation that we have in the backfield.”  

Anybody that knows Jones’ style, it starts upfront. As Jones says, the key is to be strong from the inside out.

He has three of the five linemen returning, including Division 1 offensive lineman Mateo Guevara, 6-foot-5, 285,­ leading the way upfront. Jones is counting on his senior lineman to be the leader in the trenches.

“Mateo has really grown both figuratively and really,” Jones said. “He started for us a freshman and don’t even think he bench pressed 100 pounds. Now, he’s grown into one of the premier offensive linemen in the state of Georgia. It’s important for us to be built strong from the inside out. He’s an outstanding young man, a hard worker has all the intangibles and he’s a very good offensive lineman for sure.”

Cason Moore and Jacob Benjamin will play alongside Guevara and both are four-year starters. Keller Atkinson will get the nod on the O-Line as well. Pedro Ortega and Parker Waltrip also will see some time on the line, and Ryan Graves will start at tight end.

“It always starts up front,” he said. “We feel like we have three of those guys, almost four, with Keller back. Those guys have played a lot of football and have a lot of reps. Three of our guys have been playing with us for four years. Our guys were forced to do so quickly. It starts up front for us, and we’re excited to watch these guys continue to grow.”

Senior Sebastion Irons returns at quarterback. He had a successful first year with the Bears and is poised to have a breakout year for the Bears.

“He’s a hard worker and a good teammate,” Jones said. “He’s really done some of the things that we’ve asked him to do in the offseason. We know that he gives us a great chance to be successful on Friday nights.”

Sophomore Ashton Wilson will mix in some at quarterback as well

“It’s always good to have a returning quarterback,” Jones said. “Ashton is growing quickly, so we’re excited about having two viable quarterbacks.”

The biggest void left by graduation is the receiver position. Gone are Shad Dabney, Jamir Tolbert, Jaylon Justice, Wyatt Campbell and Deakon Phillips.

But Jones has some good options to plugin. Carlos Marlow may sound familiar, just not on the football field. The Bluff star basketball player is adding cleats to his locker, and Jones is happy to have him on the field. Jhace Justice, Conner Hulsey, Max Eubanks, Ty Corbin and freshman Jordan Justice will battle for playing time at receiver.

“We have seven receivers that we feel like are in that rotation and all can make plays with their hands on the football,” Jones said.

Defensively, Jones will replace seven positions. Right now, Guevara, Dylan Roberts, Waltrip and Santiago Mendiz will be along the defensive front.  

“We’ve got several guys that’ll be trying to mix it up and make it happen in the trenches,” Jones said. "We’ve got a group of guys up front that we feel can rotate and keep ups fresh. I hope that’s beneficial for us."

Brayden Nance is the only starting linebacker returning in 2021. 

“He’s played a lot of quality football for us and has made a lot of tackles.,” Jones said.

Graves, Carter Daum, and Conner Griffin will rotate at middle linebacker. Graves, if he doesn’t start in the middle, will get the nod at outside linebacker. Hulsey also will rotate on the outside.

“We’re not quite sure in the middle yet,” Jones said. “Only time will tell. What we do know is we have some good kids that we are excited about seeing play there.”

The secondary also is riddled with holes from graduation. Jones and his staff will replace the entire secondary. Right now, Raven and Marlow are set at cornerback. Jhace Justice and Jordan Justice will mix in, and Sam Stribling, Ty Corbin and Max Eubanks will rotate at safety.

The season opens at Johnson, followed by home games versus Chestatee and Georgia Military College, then the Bears a trip Lakeside as the final tune-up for Region 7-3A play.

The Bears find themselves on the road for the region opener at Gilmer, followed by West Hall and Lumpkin County at home before beginning the region gauntlet –Dawson County at home, then back-to-back road trips to North Hall and White County.  
Jones wouldn’t pinpoint one game or a group of most important games.

“They’re all important. I hate to emphasize anyone over the other,” he said. “There’s so much parody. Playing a Gilmer is tough. West Hall is the most improved team in the region. Then you’ve got the big three – Dawson County, North Hall and White County. You better strap it on and get ready to play.”