Today’s interviewee is North Cobb coach Shane Queen, whose team is ranked No. 3 in Class 7A entering its opener Friday night at home against No. 1 Buford of Class 6A. Queen’s record at North Cobb is 106-62 with three region titles in 16 seasons. The 2021 team has been fortified by several talented transfers, and their addition to a defending Region 3-7A championship team has helped elevate the Warriors to their highest preseason ranking in history.
Shane Queen, North Cobb head coach
1. This is the highest your team has been ranked since you came to North Cobb. Collectively, how good do you think this team can be? “In 2007 we were actually ranked No 1 [after starting 6-0 on the way to a 10-0 regular season], but collectively our kids had a great offseason. We have a great core coming back from the 10-2 season where we won the region championship. Our expectations are high, and our kids are embellished and tackling the situation very well.”
2. Your quarterback, Malachi Singleton, is a highly regarded player. What does he add to the team? “He’s a natural-born leader. He’s been successful at every level. When he walks on the field, he makes everybody an inch taller. Everybody realizes, hey, we got a chance to win this football game because he is touching the ball every play. From a work standpoint, he is the first one there every day and the last one to leave. His work ethic is impeccable. He’s got a 3.7 GPA. He’s a great student-athlete.” [Singleton, a member of GHSF Daily’s Georgia Power 100, had more than 1,000 yards both rushing and passing last season.]
3. You have several really good players who joined the team in the offseason. What do you think they can bring to the table? “The most important thing is they have to join our culture. That’s anytime you have an outside kid come in and move in, and they have done a great job of that. They’ve jumped in, and some have become leaders on our team in a short period of time. They are obviously very talented, and at the same time, they have to know their role within the team. They have accepted that and done a good job.” On North Cobb’s culture, Queen added, “We’ve been there for 16 years. Been in the playoffs nine out of the last 10 years, so that’s an expectation. Our work ethic in the weight room is something we hang our hat on. Our team GPA has been over a 3.0 the last seven years. Just having an all-around great program, not just the product you see on the field.” [North Cobb has five Georgia Power 100 players, tied with No. 1 Milton for the most. They include Singleton, linebacker Jacob Josephs and three transfers, receivers Sam M’bake and Denylon Morrissette and cornerback Marquis Groves-Killebrew.]
4. You’re playing Buford on Friday in your first game. What concerns you most about them? What do they do particularly well? “They are a big, physical football team, and I think that’s what they hang their hat on. You have to match that physicality or it’s going to be a long night. Last year, they were much bigger than us, but our kids played a very physical game. It’s going to be that way again. Coach [Bryant] Appling has done a great job. Obviously won two straight championships. Buford has our utmost respect. They’re coming to our house again. It’s going to be a big-time game on TV. They’ve been there before, and I want our guys to play like that. To get to Buford’s level, you have to play teams like that. That’s why we get them on the schedule. Hopefully, one day we can be considered one of the top programs in the state if not the country like Buford is already.”
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