When Brett Sloan took over the program at Kell a year ago, he felt like he was jumping into a moving vehicle. Longtime coach Derek Cook, who had taken the team to four region championships during his nine seasons, had moved into administration and Sloan, then an assistant at Walton, had been hired in April.
Now, as he prepares for his second season, Sloan is more comfortable with the situation as the Longhorns open the season against East Coweta as part of the Corky Kell Kickoff Classic at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“I’ve developed relationships with the players, I know what I expect, I know what they’re capable of,” Sloan said. “Last year I felt like I was driving somebody else’s car. Now I’m driving my own.”
Kell, partly to play homage to the co-creator of the event and partly because of the program’s success, has been competing in the annual event since 2010. Last year the Longhorns were beaten on a late score by Tucker at Georgia State Stadium. This will be the team’s first trip to the Benz.
That Tucker loss was part of a brutal opening schedule that sent the Longhorns’ season tumbling the wrong way. They lost the next week at Lassiter and scored 33 points against Rome in a 54-33 loss. (That was the most points scored all year against Rome, which won its second straight state championship and allowed only 30 points in its five state playoff games.)
Quarterback Evan Conley returns to lead the offense, which lost eight starters. Conley threw for 2,240 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2017.
The defense has eight starters returning, including Appalachian State commit Nick Ross and fellow senior Sam Blancato, a pair of highly regarded safeties.
Kell will play Class AAAAAAA East Coweta, which is beginning its second season under coach John Small. The Indians were 5-5 a year ago and failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 1996.
The Kell-East Coweta game begins at 9 a.m. and is the first of five games that will be played at the Benz on Saturday.
Other interesting games around Class AAAAA on the opening weekend are:
Griffin vs. Spalding, Friday, 730 p.m. (Griffin Memorial Stadium): The two Spalding County rivals open the season for the third straight year. The Bears have won the last two meetings (36-7 in 2017) and lead the series 9-1. The Griffin offense struggled in last week's preseason scrimmage against East Coweta, but were without four starters. The Bears will use two quarterback – Darshaveious Foster and Quamari Williams, a transfer from Eagle's Landing. Spalding backs Kheann Connor and Zion Puckett, one of the area's top recruits, give the Jaguars a solid one-two punch against a relatively inexperienced Griffin defensive line.
Southwest DeKalb at Woodland, Friday, 7:30 p.m.: SWD took a big step toward restoring the swagger to its program last year by going 8-4 under Damien Wimes.
Southwest lost many of its skill position players to graduation, including quarterback Justin Tomlin. The Panthers should be stronger on defense where all-state candidate Jamel Starks returns; he had 70 tackles, eight for loss, and three interceptions in 2017. Defensive linemen Jaquan Smith (10 sacks) and Josh Tate (seven sacks) are legitimate sackmasters.
Woodland is trying to bounce back after a 3-7 season. The Wolfpack had gone 22-7 under Steve Davenport, who left to take the job at South Gwinnett. Woodland features all-Henry County lineman James Crawford (6-2, 300), who will be blocking for productive quarterback Shariff Brown (1,011 yards passing.
Arabia Mountain vs. Carver Atlanta, Friday, 7:30 p.m. at Halford Stadium: A rare match between two region champions in the season opener. Carver went 12-2 in 2017, losing to Warner Robins in the state semifinals. Arabia Mountain went 9-3 and was eliminated by Carrollton in the second round.
Carver lost veteran quarterback Octavious Battle, but returns Jo’Quavious Marks, who ran for 2,127 yards and scored 19 touchdowns in 2017. Arabia Mountain returns all-county quarterback Bryson Williams, who led DeKalb with 1,990 yards passing and added 21 touchdowns and junior receiver Matthew Crawford, who had 28 catches.
Clarke Central at Winder-Barrow, Friday, 7:30 p.m.: The two northeast Georgia rivals have been meeting on a regular basis since 1998. Clarke won the first 12 meetings before Winder-Barrow snapped the streak in 2014. Winder has on three of the last four meetings, including 35-28 a year ago. Clarke is led by Quavion Teasley, a two-way standout at linebacker and running back, and Winder-Barrow features offensive lineman Joey Klemm.
This game is notable because its marks the return of Ed Dudley as a head coach. Dudley has been a head coach since 2015, when he walked away after two seasons at Carrollton. He was an assistant Wesleyan for two years, but inquired about the Winder job when coach Heath Webb resigned to take the Gainesville job.
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