If Region 7 needed any new talent (it didn't), it's getting it with the addition of Cherokee Bluff High School. The upstart program is reaching to the top and laying the groundwork to be competitive on numerous athletic fronts.
The Bears, as they will be known, have made three major coaching hires across three sports -- football, basketball and baseball. Cherokee Bluffs hired former Dacula football coach Tommy Jones, former Gainesville basketball coach Benji Wood and former Gainesville baseball coach Jeremy Kemp to lead its respective teams.
''It's exciting," said Wood. "There's going to be some tough patches. All new schools go through that. But it's very exciting to start a program from scratch. There are some fantastic people all in this together. It's going to be a fun ride.''
The convenience for the Wood family was paramount in the decision to move to the new school.
"We live right down the road from here," Wood said. "We live in that community. My daughter starts middle school there next year. They gave me a job, my wife a job. This is a family move. I love coaching basketball, but I'm a daddy first, so I have to do what's best for my family.''
Wood coached at Gainesville for five seasons and led the Red Elephants to the Class AAAAAA championship game this season where they lost to Langston Hughes.
Tommy Jones is coming off back-to-back 8-AAAAAA football titles with Dacula, where he has coached since 2013. His best season was in 2014 when the Falcons finished 10-2 and lost to Colquitt County in the second round. But for Jones building a football program from scratch is uncharted territory.
"We're really excited for the opportunity to compete in a quality region," he said. "We understand that the level of play in 7-AAA football is outstanding. When you have teams like Greater Atlanta Christian that are perennially going to be at the top of the state, then you have other up-and-coming programs like Dawson County, East Hall and North Hall. We know it's not going to be easy."
This past season, Dacula finished 7-5 and lost to Allatoona in the second round. Jones, however, is ready for the challenge at his new program and is aware of the talent in his future region. But the planning has laid the groundwork for a solid start.
"Every new school that opens is a little different," he said. "And the roll-out is a bit different and, in our situation, that's the case. We feel like we are gaining some legitimate momentum here. We started in February with some small meetings, and now we are getting together just about every other weekend with our kids and that number of kids is growing. And obviously we are looking forward to the time when we can spend it with them exclusively in our own building."
On the baseball front, the "Bluff," as it eventually will be called, is covered. Kemp has led Gainesville to the state semifinals three of the past four seasons and was runner-up to Greenbrier in 2015 (AAAAA). The Red Elephants also made it to the semifinals in 2012, so to bring in a coach who has led a team to the semifinals in four of the past six season is a fantastic hire for the Bears.
"For me, it came down to the opportunity to start a new program," Kemp told the Gainesville Times. "I like everything Cherokee Bluff has to offer."
For more information on Cherokee Bluff Athletics, visit its website at https://cbhsathletics.teamsitesnow.com/128239/cherokee-bluff-high-school/athletic-department
About the Author
