-
Senior members of the WCHS football and cheer teams are, from row from left, Clayton Rogers, Elizabeth Woodson, Ashley Howe, and Cooper Turner; second row, Devin Sullens, Lindi Hoersten, and Andrew Pierce; third row, Rylee Higgins, Riley Stancil, Seth Stonecypher, Jimmy King, Jackson Autry, Dylan Archer, Jesse Moose, and Roy Bennett; fourth row, Heaven Gholston, Tyler Davis, and Reece Dockery; top row, Dylan Weaver, Harmon Grier, Jaquez Williams, and J. Ben Haynes. (Photo/Staci Sulhoff)
Let us play.
That's been the mantra for most high school and college football players around the country since the COVID-19 pandemic put a cloud of doubt over the 2020 season.
With less than two weeks before the first games are set to be played in Georgia, it appears the majority of the high school players in Georgia will, in fact, get a chance to play.
Georgia High School Association executive director Dr. Robin Hines said earlier this week that the season is ready to kick off on the opening weekend of September.
"We are constantly looking at the numbers” Hines said during an interview with WSBtv.com. “We are seeing an overall drop in cases. We are seeing an overall drop in case positivity. Things are looking pretty good for us right now. We are moving in the right direction. We have 427 football playing schools, and there are about 62 of those school that have made the decision they aren't going to start on time. Over half of them will be back in a week or two weeks. After the first week, we'll have close to 400 playing.”
In a normal year, the White County Warriors would have kicked off the high school football season with a home game against Stephens County, but 2020 has been anything but normal because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The start of the season was pushed back by two weeks by the Georgia High School Association, and all indications as of this week point the season getting under way Sept. 4. The Warriors will begin the new year with a matchup against the Indians, who
There is a lot of excitement around the Warriors heading into the season. The squad has 19 seniors on the roster, with a wealth of returning starters on both sides of the ball. WCHS is also moving into a new classification and region, moving down to Class AAA after a long stint in Class AAAA, and there are legitimate hopes of making a run at the 7-AAA title as well as making a run in the state playoffs.
“It been a really long time since we've done anything but practice,” WCHS head coach Tim Cokely said. “We're ready to play somebody, ready to compete. We didn't get to do any of the 7-on-7 stuff this summer, so the kids are ready to play. They want to play. We all want to play, so we're excited to get it going. We've got a great group of seniors, and when you have kids that have been in the program for three or four years, it just makes it easier. You can do more things because the seniors know what's expected. We have some really good football players that are working extremely hard. We have good coaches that are working hard. We have high expectations for this team. This is a good football team.”
New region
The Warriors will be taking on Dawson County, North Hall, West Hall, Gilmer County, Lumpkin County, and Cherokee Bluff this fall in the battle for the 7-AAA title.
“Ball is ball,” Cokely said. “I like to play good teams, and we certainly did that in 4A, and there are good teams in this region, but this isn't about just the level of the competition. For me, I think this region is better for us because we're playing schools around us. Teams that we should be playing every year. The travel is better, it's better for the program, and it's also better for the parents and the fans.”