GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Just like the bass-pounding music pumping through the speakers on the Bruce Miller practice field, Josh Niblett wants his group to “play fast, and with tempo.”
The Gainesville coach liked what he saw -- at times -- last week in a 26-7 season-opening win over Marietta. But he also said there is plenty of work to do if they want to get back to making deep playoff runs.
“We want to play fast, you know, but the speed in which you play with tempo is dictated by your execution,” he said Tuesday as the Red Elephants were preparing to take on Moody (Ala.) on Thursday at City Park Stadium. “If you're good on first down, you can play fast. If you get a negative play or you have a penalty, then you can't play with tempo. And we're really good when we play with tempo.
“But I still think we’re a work in progress. There's a lot of things we're still trying to work to get fixed, but I do like the kids’ effort, energy, and attitude. Our execution has got to continue to get better.”
Prime example.
“We take the opening drive down (against Marietta), get the ball to the 25 and we have a penalty. We had an opportunity to score, and we kind of missed it,” he said. “We didn't have very many touches in the first quarter and it went by really quick. But then we scored three touchdowns in the second quarter like, 'boom, boom, boom.' Is that still a fast start in your mind?
“But, you know, it's not about what we did last week, it's about what we're going to do this week. It's all about taking the next step.”
Junior quarterback Kharim Hughley (13-of-23, 191 yards, 2 TD passing; 7 rushes for 31 yards, 1 TD rushing last week vs. Marietta) said execution is on everyone on the offense and felt like things have been progressing well in the early going.
“Results are based on (everyone) doing their jobs, and I think we’ve done a really good job with that,” he said Tuesday. “I think we're in a good spot right now. When it's all said and done, we'll be a really, really, really good, explosive, fast tempo offense.”
Having newcomer Nigel Newkirk in the backfield will also help. The junior ran for 120 yards and two scores on 22 carries. And senior wide receiver Phillip Williams had an explosive night tallying 108 yards on just four catches, including a touchdown last week.
Which brings us to Thursday’s showdown with Moody (Ala.), who advanced all the way to the Class 5A state title game in 2024 before losing to Catholic Montgomery (17-14) in the finals. That was after opening the year 0-2, including a 31-7 loss to Gainesville.
The 31 points were the most allowed by the Blue Devils and the 7 points were the fewest they scored in 2024. You know they will be looking for a measure of revenge.
“When you play a top 100 ranked team in the country, you want to play well but you also know who you’re going up against,” Moody coach Jake Ganus said by phone on Tuesday. “Our expectation is to come over and compete, to get better and see where we're at, and to try and win the football game.
“I want the kids to fly around and have fun. It's a really cool stadium with the renovations that they’ve done, you know, with the light show and stuff like that. I want our kids to enjoy the moment.”
But success for either team may come down to the defenses. Gainesville held Marietta to just over 200 yards for the game and the Blue Devils did not get their only score until late in the game.
This particular Red Elephant squad may run through its defense. And the group is loaded, led by Alabama commit Xavier Griffin at linebacker. But the defensive line of Jamarion Matthews, Marshall Leonard, and Kadin Fossung is as good as any in the state.
Griffin had three of Gainesville’s 7 sacks, Matthews had two sacks, three QB hits, and two QB pressures and they recorded 8 more TFLs against Marietta as a unit. They will represent a formidable obstacle for a talented Moody offense.
Moody will have a new quarterback in junior Jake Lowery, who will be making his varsity debut. But they return senior running backs Le'kamren Meadows (149-1,037 12 TD in 2024) and Kevin James (71-559 7 TD; only played in 10 games), as well as receivers Josiah Dozier, a senior (6-2, 204, 45-1,081 yards, 17 TD receiving, 1st-team ASWA) and junior Jalijah Rutledge (53-819 yards, 6 TD).
“Jake’s a really talented player but he's got to find his legs, he's got to find a rhythm,” Ganus said. “We won’t get too exotic. We’ll call things that he's comfortable with. It's always about the mental with quarterbacks and just finding a way to keep them calm."
The Blue Devils also will feature a nasty defensive group. Junior Baroc Willis (6-4, 230, 95 tkl, 26.0 TFL, 17 sacks, 38 QB hurries, 1 FR, 3 FF, 1st-team ASWA) and seniors Henry Smith (109 tkl, 19.0 TFL, 10 sacks, 16 QB hurries) and Cam Mallory (96 tkl, 22.0 TFL, 12 sacks, 13 QB hurries) anchor a stout defensive line. Senior linebackers Jagger Ludolf (200 tkl, 13.0 TFL) and Marshall Teofilo (161 tkl, 5.0 TFL, 3 sacks, 11 QB hurries) are tackling machines.
Ganus said they recognize the challenge they will face but also wants to see how his group fares against what he says may be the best team they encounter all season, no matter how far they go in the playoffs. And he said there was a direct correlation to their playoff run and their tough schedule in 2024.
“I truly believe that our playoff run and our success last season was because of the tough non-region games we played, starting with Gainesville," he said. "We had four really good teams in the playoffs but those early games, especially against Gainesville, helped our guys in those big moments at the end of the year.”
Niblett said they also understand who they have coming to visit City Park and are expecting a dogfight on Thursday.
“The No. 1 thing is (Moody’s) expecting to win a state championship this year. I mean, they're expecting to go win the 5A title in Alabama and I think that's their No. 1 goal,” Niblett said. “So we understand what we have, you know, in front of us. The one thing that we need to make sure is an advantage for us is that we've played a game and they haven't.
“We need to use that experience and that advantage early on in the game, to play fast and to play really good early. But it's a great matchup for us, competition-wise. I think we’re going to have to play really good on offense to give ourselves a chance to win.”
Hughley said the players understand what they need to do.
“We know (Moody) is going to be hungry, but we’re not really focused on what they have going on,” he said. “We’re just focused on what we have going on and just getting better with my team every day. That's all we can do.”
