CJ Cypher chasing some GHSA greats with his sophomore year production
Carrollton’s CJ Cypher is already having a year for the history books. Look what the field general for the 7A state contenders has done in just his tenth-grade season.
That’s 48 touchdown passes (and no interceptions) in 10 games for a gaudy average of 4.8 passing scores every Friday night.
The 4-star Miami commit is also averaging 20 yards per completion for a 10-0 team.
Cypher’s second varsity season compares to the best full seasons — regular plus postseason of any varsity season — of some of the Peach State’s most prolific passers.
Cypher’s stat line is from just 10 games in his sophomore season.
“He’s just grown as a player,” Carrollton coach Joey King said. “Mentally, he understands what we are trying to do from the quarterback spot. Impressive cerebrally as well. He’s executing at a high level. Trusting his self. Trusting teammates. His offensive line has done a fantastic job.”
“He’s been patient in the pocket and is just seeing the defense really, really well right now.”
Take what the defense gives you. Trust the big plays will come. Those have been the main coaching point for him.
“I’ve always tried to get my quarterbacks to think like I think,” King said. “When we call something, we want them to think exactly what I’m thinking. We don’t have that coach-to-player communication. I can’t tell him in his ear. We have to train him all week, and our quarterbacks coach, Sam Monachino, has done a great job with him being able to think as I think.”
Lawrence and Watson also had their best statistical seasons as sophomores. Lewis had his best fall as a freshman, but reclassified up and played just three years of high school ball.
Noland and Philo’s best years came as juniors. Bailey, Fromm, Lewis and Stockton’s best stat lines all came as seniors.
Carrollton, which starts its postseason journey Friday against North Forsyth, has advanced to the finals in three of the last four years. If Cypher gets another five games at his current pace, he’d finish with 4,744 yards and a staggering 72 touchdown passes.
The games will get harder, but even a slight regression of that pace would likely put him over 4,200 yards and 60 touchdowns. That would shatter the GHSA state single-season record of 56 touchdown passes. That mark is currently shared by Philo and K’Hari Lane of Macon County.
King has ironically been the head coach and play caller for three of those monster seasons. He coached Lawrence at Cartersville, went off to the college level and returned to the GHSA to now coach Cypher and Lewis at Carrollton.
King knows that a lot of people want him to start comparing those three players.
“They’re all different, just to be honest with you,” King said. “They are different kids. They are different types of players. I think CJ’s arm is probably stronger than any of them as a sophomore. I think I’m a better coach now than when I was even with Julian, but definitely with Trevor. It is kind of an unfair comparison at times. I try to strive, grow and get better every year, too. Just like we push these kids to do.”
“With what we’re doing, the way we are teaching him and the way he has handled it, it’s obviously super impressive for a sophomore. But he’s big, he’s strong, and he throws the ball well. He can absolutely rip it and then put touch on it when it needs to be. He’s done a great job of being everything that I think he can be and still has a lot of really, really good football left to play.”
Carrollton’s offense offers some eye-opening balance. Cypher’s got a strong run game with two backs who have already scored 27 times on the ground. He’s also spread those 48 scoring plays around, with six different receivers all having at least six touchdown catches.
He had a sequence against Westlake that featured three one-play scoring drives in a row.
“We’ve got a lot of people making plays for him,” King said. “He’s got guys around that are playing well for him and they are doing a great job communicating well and all being on the same page.”
CJ Cypher: Has his early commitment helped him?
The 6-foot-2-plus, 195-pounder is Rivals’ No. 1 QB prospect for 2029. 247Sports has him at No. 2 nationally.
He committed to Miami well before his sophomore year. King feels that has eased the burden of national recruiting attention. Cypher hasn’t had to manage the typical mass-visit schedules for a national prospect of his caliber.
“It has taken away a bit of the distraction that we have to go here this weekend and there next weekend,” King said.
King said decision-making and accuracy rank “1A and 1B” among the best parts of Cypher’s game right now.
“Putting the ball where it is supposed to be when it is supposed to be there,” he said. “That’s the name of the game. It doesn’t matter how far you can throw it or how tight you can spin it; if those two things aren’t right, you are not going to be a very successful quarterback. He excels at the two things that I believe make really good quarterbacks.”
East Coweta’s John Small has faced both Cypher and Lewis at Carrollton. He said he’s never seen a better sophomore QB than Cypher.
“Incredible poise,” Small said. “Doesn’t throw interceptions. Doesn’t get rattled. You try to get to him, he’s going to beat you because he’s smart. He’s got excellent playmakers around him obviously, but he’s still got to make those good decisions.”
Cypher is also throwing downfield. The big plays are not largely coming off screens. Defenses might try to get Cypher off his launch point, but that hasn’t worked.
“When you do, he can throw it off his back leg 60 yards on a dime,” Small said. “Just an unbelievable talent. Fun to watch on film, but you hate to play against him.”
Cypher has been so advanced this early in his career that there has been widespread speculation on the recruiting trail that he could, like Lewis, reclassify up. That would make him a senior next fall.
“I would say go ahead and go to college now,” Small joked. “That wouldn’t hurt my feelings at all.”
