Bulldogs enter ’21 season with target on their back
“wouldn’t the expectation is for all our players to find ways to improve daily. It matter if we were coming off a 15-0 season, there are always things that we can do to improve,” abrams said. “over half of our players missed two or less days in the summer, so that lets me know that we have a good nucleus of players who care about Chs football.”
Last season went about as well as a Cedartown football fan could ask.
The Bulldogs overcame a tough start and finished undefeated in region play. They took home their first region title since 2001 without even having a close contest in region play. Cedartown won eight consecutive games and advanced to the State Quarterfinals.
The season was essentially perfect for the Red-andBlack faithful.
Now in year two of the Jamie Abrams era, Cedartown football faces a new challenge. For the first time in a very long time, it is the Bulldogs who have a target on their back. The Dawgs are no longer the underdogs. Instead, they are the team everybody will be gunning for.
To hear it from head coach Jamie Abrams, the Bulldogs are not overlooking the region after blowing out each opponent in 2020.
“Georgia football is some of the best in the nation. There are great players and coaches everywhere and our region is no different,”
Abrams said. “Our guys now have to understand that we will get everyone’s best effort each Friday night. I expect every week for our guys to have to play their best football to be successful.”
Abrams said that, instead of thinking about the target placed on the defending region champions, he has focused on how his team has improved during the offseason.
“The expectation is for all our players to find ways to improve daily. It wouldn’t matter if we were coming off a 15-0 season, there are always things that we can do to improve,” Abrams said. “Over half of our players missed two or less days in the summer, so that lets me know that we have a good nucleus of players who care about CHS football.”
The good news is this: although some key seniors graduated in the Spring of 2021 — including Arkansas signee Jayden Johnson — Cedartown returns a ton of production from its fantastic 2020 team.
A season ago, it felt that it took a couple of weeks for the Wing-T offense to truly click for the Bulldogs as Cedartown opened with backto-back losses to Rockmart and Calhoun.
Although Evan Hochstetler’s offense produced just 17 points in those two games combined, his players erupted for 24 points the following week at New Manchester and never looked back en route to a Region 7-4A championship.
For that very reason, Bulldog fans should be extremely excited this fall. Quarterback Reece Tanner, who passed for 513 yards and four touchdowns in a run-heavy scheme, returns to lead the offense in his junior season.
The Bulldogs bring back numerous threats at tailback, including senior CJ Washington (698 yards, 15 touchdowns), junior Harlem Diamond (710 yards, seven touchdowns), and junior Patrick Gardner (349 yards, three touchdowns).
Senior receiver Jordan Johnson — brother of former Bulldog standouts Jayden and Jeremiah Johnson — is expected to be a major target for Tanner after tallying 122 receiving yards a year ago.
Meanwhile, a Bulldog offensive line that made massive strides should be even stronger in 2021 as standout senior Jaylon Stephenson (6-0, 250-pounds) anchors the trenches.
Coach Jamie Abrams
The defense was the key for Cedartown’s success down the stretch last year. Only one Region 7-4A opponent (Pickens) scored on the Bulldogs’ starting unit and nobody, including Class 4A State Semifinalist Bainbridge, put more than 21 points on the board against the Cedartown defense in 2020.
Senior linemen Jai Barnes and Demarieo Sims will lead the Bulldog defense up front.
Four-star athlete and Georgia commit Washington will pair with Eli Barrow — who led the team in tackles as a sophomore last year — to form a deadly linebacker duo. The CHS secondary also returns several playmakers including Diamond, Jordan Johnson, senior Donald Knight, and junior Xavier Hargrove.
Diamond, who recorded 146 total return yards as a sophomore, should lead the charge for Cedartown on both kick and punt returns, but there is no shortage of athletes that new special teams coordinator Brad Watkins can choose from. The Bulldogs will miss the services of punter Corben Cuzzort after a dazzling senior season, but Cedartown returns junior Eri Velasquez and sophomore Ronaldo Segura, both of whom put together strong seasons at placekicker in 2020.
Similar to last year, Cedartown will definitely be battle-tested by the time region play rolls around on Oct. 1. The Bulldogs will play at Denmark, a 7A school in Alpharetta, to open the season on Aug. 20.
After hosting Rockmart on Aug. 27, the Bulldogs play at 5A powerhouse Calhoun one week later. Cedartown hosts New Manchester on Sept. 10 before finishing non-region play at Heard County on Sept. 17. CHS will utilize a bye week on Sept. 24, one week before region play begins.
“Just looking at the season-opener, Denmark is a 7A squad who got put out of the playoffs by the (state) 7A runner-up in a tight game,” Abrams said. “Each of the non-region teams we will play were playoff teams in their classifications and two were region champs, but that’s what we need: we
need to be battle-tested.”
The Bulldogs will try for another perfect season in Region 7-4A play as they take on their five league opponents across six weeks.
Cedartown travels to Jasper on Oct. 1 to open region play at Pickens. After hosting Northwest Whitfield and Ridgeland — the latter of which will be the Bulldogs’ Homecoming game — in consecutive weeks, CHS will have their second bye on Oct. 22.
The Bulldogs will travel to longtime foe Central-Carroll on Oct. 29 before hosting Heritage-Catoosa on Nov. 5 in their final regular season contest.