They’re virtually starting over at Walnut Grove, where former Grayson assistant Robert Andrews was hired to turn the fortunes around at the youngest school in Walton County.
Andrews was the head coach at Bowdon for the last three season, where he went 14-19. But Andrews was looking to return to a larger school; he’d spent seven seasons as an assistant at Grayson and two other years at North Gwinnett.
“It’s similar to what Grayson was,” Andrews said. “It’s still a young school. The previous staff laid a good foundation and they have lot of potential. We’re just trying to develop its own potential.”
The Warriors will switch from a spread offense and will be based in the Wing-T. The defense will change from a 4-2-5 scheme to a 3-4.
“The kids are working hard in the weight room,” Andrews said. “Coming off a 2-8 season, that says a lot about their character.”
Andrews has already started to see promise on the roster, particularly with Dominique Duke, Jahquih Pledger, Luke Moorhead and Chris Reed.
“There are some very good players out there,” Andrews said. “It’s up to us to find out who can run and hit, then we can get them in the right position.”
Andrews was able to bring a near-complete new coaching staff with him. Jason Abner, who spent 16 seasons at Grayson, will be the defensive coordinator. Other new faces are Brad Miller, Dan Inman, Jerry Carrafa, Justin Lester and Reggie Cochran. Randy Reed is a holdover from the other staff and will coach the defensive line and serve as special teams coordinator. Richard Pullara, who has worked for years in the youth leagues in the area, will be part of the middle school program and a high school assistant.
Andrews will be the fourth coach in the history of the program, which began playing in 2009. He follows Ben Reaves, who led the program for five seasons and took the Warriors to the playoffs for he first time in 2016. Walnut Grove has had only one winning season in the program’s history. The Warriors were 2-8 in 2017.
Walnut Grove will begin spring practice on May 7 and conclude with a spring game on May 18 against Social Circle.
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