There are just 19 days remaining until the kickoff of the 2025 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)...
TOWNS COUNTY (5-4 in 2024; playing non-region schedule)
Coach Jason Roquemore has vowed to build consistency within the program and he and his staff are achieving that. They had just their second-ever winning season in 2024, despite suffering a slew of key injuries early on.
And the numbers in the program for the Indians continue to climb, with nearly 50 now turning out for summer practice. And they return the bulk of their team, with experience, coming into the 2025 campaign. We asked Roquemore what has been the key to bringing interest to the smallest public school program in the state and what their priority is moving forward.
QUESTION: Coach, you continue to bring attention to your program in one of the smallest schools in the state, increasing the participation every year. What is the message you're sending that seems to be resonating in the area?
ANSWER: I think it all starts with controlling what we can control to make the most of our opportunities. Our players, coaches, and leadership council have done a tremendous job of embracing the challenges we face. We talk a lot about being intentional with our words and behaviors. This helps us to be the best version of ourselves both on and off the field. We take ownership in "Our Standard" and we challenge the people in our program to uphold our standard all the time.
QUESTION: Y’all battled through a plethora of injuries last season yet still finished with a winning record. What has been the priority this offseason?
ANSWER: We definitely got bit by the injury bug last fall, but unfortunately injuries are part of the game. That being said, I couldn't be more proud of the resilience our kids and coaches showed each week. Due to those circumstances, we were able to get several young guys some valuable grass time, which should hopefully help us this fall. As far as priority this offseason, we made an investment with our leadership council in regards to understanding the difference in "Progress" and "Change".
"Not all Progress results in Change. However, all Change is a result of Progress."
- Up Next in Two-a-Days: UNION COUNTY
- Previous Two-a-Days: RABUN COUNTY
