There are just 33 days remaining until the kickoff of the 2024 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)...
BANKS COUNTY (4-6 in 2023; did not qualify for playoffs)
The Leopards have a new coach in Todd Winter, who has had success everywhere he has been. He led Pinecrest Academy to a quarterfinal appearance in 2015 and then averaged over 9 wins a season at Holy Innocents' and took the Golden Bears to a semifinal berth and two other quarterfinals in 7 seasons.
Now, he is in Homer and and will be changing the entire program, which has missed out on the playoffs each of the last two seasons, into a power option offense. But they will also be transitioning into a new defense as well with several key roster spots also being up for grabs.
We asked Winter how the changes have been coming along in the summer.
QUESTION: Coach, you are trying to revamp a program that has been close the last few seasons? What have been some of the early challenges for you and your staff?
A: The first challenge was getting the players to buy into the strength and conditioning program. I believe we are seeing their buy in. Secondly, players being held accountable. Lastly, we have great players. A challenge has been for them to believe in themselves. Since spring ball and our first 7-on-7, they have been displaying that.
Q: Y’all are implementing a new offense with several guys in new positions. How has the summer gone in getting that installed? Who have been some guys that have caught your attention?
A: This is the fourth school we have installed the triple-option at. We have learned from each experience installing the offense. I feel it is going better now than ever before. I have been impressed with Lane Morris at QB. Last year he played receiver. He has good footwork, decision making skills, throws well, and most importantly, is a leader with a great attitude. I have been very impressed with our B Backs. Ashton Camp, who played guard last season, has great feet for a 255-pound player. Garrett Spence and Davian Knox look good as well. They both run low and have good vision. Our A Backs have been impressive and have excellent speed with Aucy Jacobs, Jordan Herron and Cam Cooper. Our offensive line has been developing well. Center Micah Ward (238 pounds), guards Noah Williams (6-5, 336) and King Johns (283 lbs), tackles Andrew Patton (265 lbs) and Joshua Camp (258 lbs) and Ethan Brock (243 lbs) at tight end have looked good.
BONUS QUESTION: Y’all are also changing defenses? How quickly have the guys been able to pick up on the new schemes?
A: I have been extremely impressed on how well we picked up on the new defensive scheme. We are playing a hybrid defense which we got from Cary Grove high school in Chicago. They have had great success winning 2 of the last 3 state championships. We ran their 3-5 defense when I was at Pinecrest Academy and had great success. I felt this was a good time to change our style of defensive play. We only gave up 1 score in the spring game and have looked solid in 7-on-7.
- Up Next in Two-a-Days: BUFORD
