The Callaway-Haralson County game was postponed and not rescheduled after Callaway moved to virtual learning and canceled extracurricular activities this week.
Today’s interviewee is Haralson County coach Scott Peavey, whose team is 5-0 and ranked No. 5 – its highest ranking since 1970 - entering its home game Friday with No. 1 Callaway in a Region 5-2A game. Haralson County, in its fourth season under Peavey, had never made the state playoffs in back-to-back seasons until 2018-19 with 8-3 records.
Scott Peavey, Haralson County head coach
1. What’s the significance of this game for your team? “'Getting to play a game of this magnitude is the culmination of hard work and years of trying to get kids involved in the program and setting a standard to follow. Obviously, it’s the start of region play and it sets the tone, and it can put you in the driver’s seat to win a region championship if you win. I feel like it’s one of the biggest games in the state. We’ve played in some big games (but) not a No. 1 vs. No. 5 matchup. It’s pretty big for our community.”
2. What would you say about your team to someone who hasn’t watched you yet? What will they see? “We play a very unique offensive style. We play a power running game. We’re very simple in our approach to it. We throw it probably more this year than in several years but still only a couple of times per game. We’re a downhill running team, a very physical, aggressive style of offense. On defense, we’re multiple. Our kids play with tremendous effort. We’ve got 11 kids that will rally to the ball. Our motto for years has been ‘relentless.’ I think our kids play that way.”
3. What have you and your staff have done since you arrived that you feel made the biggest difference in getting the program to where it is now? “The first year we struggled, and the last two we’ve been 8-3, the first time in school history making back-to-back playoff appearances. We’ve tied or broken school records for wins the last couple of years. We’ve had a chance to play for the region championship the last couple of years. All that starts with our administration at our school. They’ve made a big push to make athletics a bigger deal and make football important. I think it started three seasons ago when we had the Sheppard kid [Treylon Sheppard] break the state rushing record. That created a buzz. Our community and student body got excited about it, and it’s been a fun ride.”
4. What makes this team potentially better than the past two that made the playoffs? “At times, I do think we’ve played better team football than in the past. We’re not reliant on one great player like Sheppard. We play more as a team. Everybody understands his role. We’ve played the best defense that we’ve played since I’ve been here. It’s also one of those things where the kids started with us as freshmen when we got here and know our expectations and how we did it every day. They know our coaches and players that have been in our program. We’re four years into this, and this is when you hope it comes together, and I think it has.”
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