There are just 28 days remaining until the kickoff of the 2022 high school football season. But make no mistake, preparations for the upcoming campaign got underway months ago. And teams throughout northeast Georgia already are in full countdown mode.
With that in mind, we spent the last couple of weeks catching up with programs around our area to get a feel for how spring practice went, how the summer is going, and what coaches believe the fall will look like. Our "Two-a-Days" series honors those old-school grinding sessions that lead us out of summer and into fall, asking each area coach two key questions about the state of their respective programs.
Over the next two weeks, AccessWDUN's Friday Game Night will get you prepped for the start of gridiron action with responses from coaches throughout northeast Georgia. (Teams run in alphabetical order)...
EAST JACKSON
The Eagles lost a lot on offense from an improved unit in 2021. There will be some significant changes, including at quarterback and receiver, where they lost the bulk of their production. But a move down to Region 8-2A is a welcome change, and if they can find the right pieces to the puzzle, they should be instant playoff contenders.
We caught up with coach Cameron Pettus to discuss the changes on offense and who fans may need to keep an eye on once the season starts.
QUESTION: Coach, each year, the offense has shown improvement, but you graduated starting quarterback Tyler Crow. However, senior Randy Smith and freshman Drew Richardson give you a couple of options. How has that battle gone this summer?
ANSWER: "Losing a great athlete and leader like Tyler is always tough, but I could not be more excited about both Randy and Drew. Both are exceptional quarterbacks who have great skill sets. Both throw the ball very well, both can run the ball very well, and both are growing with our offense daily. They both make the offense very dynamic. When one is at quarterback, the other one is starting at receiver. We have packages for both and look forward to more improvement this year. It’s going to be fun to watch them play!"
Q: Y’all also lost your top three receivers from last season. Who are some early guys that could be standouts by the season opener?
A: "TJ (Talan Jackson) has had a monster summer. He was a dynamic threat for us last year on special teams. He is lightning in a bottle. The quarterback who isn’t behind center will be at receiver. Randy is a big physical matchup nightmare for 1-on-1 coverage. Drew is super fast and shifty. Brayden King has had a great spring and summer and looks extremely well outside. Another kid who we are really excited about is Nathan Heiss. He came out of nowhere last year and started at corner for us. He might be one of the best corners I have ever coached. We have been transitioning him to offense, and he has not disappointed. We also are utilizing our running backs, Gary Maddox, Dekane Williams, Quay Hill, JZ Lester and Javon Hunt, in the passing game and we really like their ability as well. Dekane has great hands, strength and speed. Gary is strong, shifty and tough. Quay is fast and strong. JZ and Javon both broke off runs over 80 yards in the spring game, and they are getting better daily. With our gunslingers at QB, we have been spreading the ball around to all our athletes in space. It is going to make it a lot of fun developing game plans!"
- Previously in Two-a-Days: EAST HALL
- Up Next in Two-a-Days: FLOWERY BRANCH
