An impressive night for Hapeville’s Chris Booker, Georgia’s No. 1 OL prospect
How Chris Booker ran back onto the field gave a glimpse into his feelings for football.
What he did once he got there — the sheer aggression would flutter the hearts of offensive-line coaches everywhere.
Hapeville Charter was well on its way to a 34-7 win over Washington High on a damp Thursday evening, enough so that the Hornets’ Alabama-bound offensive tackle had been pulled from the Region 5-AA game.
But, needing to make an unexpected substitution in the third quarter, coaches called on Booker to go back into the game. And with a primal scream, Booker sprinted off the sideline, pulling on his helmet on the way in.
“That’s the biggest thing with this game,” Hapeville coach Winston Gordon told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution this past week. “A lot of kids are ‘in like’ with the game. You have to really love the game. I think he eats and breathes football.”
Once on the field, Booker lined up at left tackle, the heels of his black Nike high-top cleats on the midfield stripe. At the snap, he locked on an overmatched Bulldogs defender and drove him back to his right as the Hornets ran the ball through the line. With his overwhelmed opponent unable to apply any resistance, Booker then took a left turn and steered him downfield. Booker didn’t stop until he put the Bulldogs player on his back near the 30-yard line, almost 20 yards downfield and well beyond the action.
A penalty on a Hornets player wiped out the play, though its existence surely will live on in the memory of at least one Bulldogs defender.
Said Booker, “That felt nice.”
The ferocity was astonishing. Though he had been removed from the game already and even with the outcome decided, Booker couldn’t play any other way, it seemed.
“He plays hard, which is something you want to not have to coach,” Washington coach Lawrence Smith told the AJC after the game. “I think that’s something that could get him some opportunities (at Alabama) very early.”
And with that, Booker was subbed out again, his night’s labor complete. He was soon back to talking and enjoying the company of his teammates and coaches, a homecoming win in the bank.
“We handled business,” Booker told the AJC. “We should have scored more.”
The idea was to observe an elite offensive lineman in action. We gawk at the tight spirals and dazzling touchdown runs from the state’s blue-chip quarterbacks and running backs. Why not spend a night focused on one of the brutes allowing those highlights to happen?
As the highest ranked offensive lineman in the state (per 247Sports Composite, he’s Georgia’s No. 27 prospect overall in the 2026 class and the No. 14 offensive lineman nationwide), Booker more than qualified. A third-year starter for the Hornets, the 6-foot-4, 285-pound Booker rates among the top offensive linemen that Gordon has had in his illustrious career at the South Fulton school.
“You’ve got a kid that’s real athletic and has great feet and just still learning and willing to learn,” Gordon said earlier this week. “And I think he’s never satisfied.”
On this overcast night at Banneker High — Hapeville does not have a home stadium; it barely has a practice field — Booker put on a performance for those who would care to pay mind to the offensive line.
On Hapeville’s first play from scrimmage, he blocked a Bulldogs player to the ground, the first of a collection of pancake blocks. On pass plays, he used his quickness and size to stay in front of Washington pass rushers, keeping his portion of the pocket sealed. On some pass plays, he pulled off an impressive maneuver — giving a jolt to a lineman rushing on the interior and then kicking out wide to fend off the edge rusher.
“We live by, ‘Don’t leave a D-lineman for a linebacker,’” Booker said. “But when I have the opportunity to get both of them, I will.”
He showcased his agility in pulling on run plays, quickly moving into holes to clear paths. Washington, which was without defensive lineman Wihtlley Cadeau (a Florida State commit), was not the most formidable opponent. Booker was unmistakably dominant regardless.
“I saw a really good player,” said Smith, the Washington coach. “I think he’s going to have a really bright future.”
Mainly positioned at left tackle, Booker also lined up at left guard, right guard and even in the backfield as an H-back. He rarely, if ever, failed to carry out his assignment on a play. But his effort — playing to the whistle and finishing off blocks with a shove — stood out as much as his effectiveness. On one run play to the sideline, after taking care of his assignment, Booker turned back to the field to look for another player to block.
“It takes a very mean person to play O-line,” Booker said. “Off the field, you don’t have to be mean. But on the field, for sure.”
A Hapeville teacher who called Booker “Baby Chris” until he grew facial hair and his voice deepened testifies that he limits his hostility for the field.
“Overall, he’s a gentle giant,” said Benetta Walton, a business and technology teacher.
After a rigorous nonregion schedule, the Hornets are 3-4 overall but 2-1 with the region win over Washington (2-6, 1-3).
Before he joins the Crimson Tide after the end of the semester, a relentless offensive tackle shall lead them.
About the Author
Ken Sugiura is a sports columnist at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Formerly the Georgia Tech beat reporter, Sugiura started at the AJC in 1998 and has covered a variety of beats, mostly within sports.
