Calhoun continues prepping for season
The Calhoun High School football team is off this week.
Well, we say the Yellow Jackets are off when what we really mean is they just don’t have a second scrimmage after a most impressive early-season showing last Friday Night at Northwest Whitfield County.
But they’ll practice all week obviously and, according to head coach Clay Stephenson, “have plenty of work to do,” as they set their sights and attention on their home opener with Dalton next Friday night.
“A lot of teams hold two scrimmages.
We do not,” Stephenson said. “We take the two weeks after our scrimmage to continue working on things and to continue getting ready for the season. So we’ve got a lot of work to do and we’ve got a lot of different things we need to continue to get better at. And we’ll also continue to get ready for our first game at Dalton.”
The Jackets definitely looked like a team primed for a lot of future success Friday night in Whitfield County, scoring touchdowns the first five times they had the football in rolling to a 35-0 advantage in the first quarter against the Bruins.
“We had a real good scrimmage,” Stephenson said. “I think we got everything out of it we wanted to. The goals going in were obviously to get our (first-team) and (second-team) players a few repetitions and we were able to do that. Because of the way we played in the first half, we were able to get our freshman and our jayvees in there each for a quarter and that was good as well.
“I thought we had a lot of kids, both returning and new guys, that played well. We have some excellent returning playmakers and they made some big plays. I thought our lines, both offensively and defensively, did a real nice job. I thought we executed offensively and got stops defensively and that’s what we’re looking for. I think we had 94 players on the roster and they all got in. And that was another thing we wanted to accomplish because we want to make sure we get a good look at everyone on our roster.”
The romp began on the second play of the night when returning senior quarterback Christian Lewis hooked up with senior wide receiver Quin Smith on a 75-yard touchdown pass for a quick 7-0 lead after
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but had to start over with a first-and-10 at their own 25.
The Warriors just missed out on a possible score in the final minute of the first quarter.
After a holding call on first down for their only offensive penalty of the game, the Warriors had a second-and-19 at their own 27-yard line.
Using a play fake to freeze the defense, they set up for a pass play that saw their freshman receiver get behind the Creek defense around midfield. The quarterback threw a perfect pass that just slipped through the receiver’s hands.
“We feel like in our Wing T offense that that passing opportunity is going to be there. Now it’s just a matter of us executing it and catching the football,” Hamilton said. “The kid that dropped it, 99 times out of 100, he makes that catch so we have confidence that the next time that play presents itself, we’ll execute it.
“The kid kind of beat himself up about it because he didn’t make the catch, but the play was there and I know going forward we’re going to make it work. We want our kids to play with confidence and not get down when we have a mistake or have a breakdown. We want our kids to play through it and come out stronger and that’s why I think the next time we have a chance to make a big pass play like that, we’ll make it.”
The Colts’ lone touchdown came with just 68 seconds to play in the first half to cap off a 10-play, 75-yard march that was really the only time either team moves the ball in the first half.
But even that really came
down to one play as after a quarterback sack by Gordon Central, the Colts were facing a 3rd -and-25 at their own 33. But they hooked up on a 25-yard pass to pick up the first down, move the chains and keep the drive moving.
“That was a big play for them and it shows how close we were to really getting off the field and preventing that touchdown,” Hamilton said. “That’s one of the things we’re really working hard at is getting better in that situation and getting off the field. A lot of times for us right now it does come down to making one more defensive play to get off the field or making one more play on offense to pick up that first down. And that’s something that comes through continued hard work and being confident that you’re going to make that play in that situation.”
The Warriors will play their second scrimmage Friday night when they host Sonoraville at 7:30 p.m.