Defending state champion Benedictine head coach Danny Britt was invited to speak on the Drive for the GHSA State Title video cast this week to talk about his Cadets as they look to defend their crown against a brand new Class 4A field. Check out what coach Britt had to say and then find all of the classification’s Week 1 matchups below. Cherokee Bluff will be facing off with Kell this Wednesday in the Corky Kell Classic at 5:30 p.m. and will play the first football game in the state. The Bears won their second-straight region title last season in Class 3A and completed the young program’s first-ever undefeated regular season.
Monday’s interview with coach Britt:
We had you on last year in the midst of your run to the state championship and we mentioned those two out-of-state losses to open the year, but then really came together. You said you were waiting for that offense to explode and they sure did. Just talk about that experience?
“Absolutely, it was a great transition with being able to lose and then seeing the kids being able to redirect themselves. We talked about that last year. We really became a solid football team. That being said, we lost a lot of the guys that led that effort last year, so this year we are looking for those leaders and seeing who is going to step up. We’ve had a really good offseason and preseason and so we are anxious to see what we have and who is going to fill the roles.”
Holden Geriner was unbelievable at quarterback last season with those 33 touchdowns and what he was able to do with his legs in some of those games, talk about what the position is going to look like this year
Luke takes over and he is an equally talented young man. In fact, he’s already committed to Florida State to play quarterback even though he hasn’t started a game as a quarterback yet, so that’s pretty funny. But he is going to be exciting to watch. He is 6-foot-4 and a big kid and can really throw it. He has the same type of arm that Holden has and he can also really move. He can run and is really physical. He has played strong safety and receiver for us and he’s got that type of mentality. Being young, he is going to make some mistakes early, but we are ready for that and ready to work through that. It’s going to be exciting to watch him progress.
That’s right, he had 25 catches for you last season at receiver and also 44 tackles in that safety spot. I know his older brother Mac was on the team last year and just graduated. Talk a little about that.
Yes, Mac was one of those major senior leaders that helped us establish that improvement that we saw and he has graduated and gone on to the Massachusetts Maritime Academy to play football and become a river pilot.
In addition to quarterback, I know Holden was also punting for you guys last season. Is Luke going to handle punting like Holden did last year?
No, we have a specialist in Asher Sigman who handles our short field goals and extra points, but Luke will be the backup at punter. My whole philosophy is that if you are a quarterback, you can kick, you can hold and you are an athlete. So they are always going to be asked to step up if needed.
I don’t want to focus too much longer on last year, but we have to mention Justin Thomas and what he was able to do on the field this past season. How does he stack up in your mind to the other great players to come through the program?
After this many years, it’s hard to rank kids, but he is really really special as everybody knows. He’s probably the best to ever do it, just because he could do so much very very well. Running the ball, blocking, receiving, returning, defense and everything he did was special.
It looks like the guy you have this year that will be stepping in the spotlight will be Zaquan Bryan and he had a big season last year with 95 catches, 1300 yards and the touchdowns.
Yes, with Zaquan, we are going to put him in that slot role so he can catch and run and also block more and he will also contribute in the return game and on defense. He has the same athletic abilities and he is just very smooth and fluid. He’s not quite as big as Justin, so we will have to manage that, but he is very tough and is going to be exciting to watch.
Defensively, you were talking about being able to be a little more aggressive last year and take more chances and create more turnovers.
Yeah, we lost some great players, but we have some outstanding guys returning for us. The front seven is going to have to be a strong point of our football team. We feel really good about our front three and guys with multiple offers. We are big at the nose tackle. At linebacker, we have a lot of guys competing for that role. Bryce Baker is back and he is going to be really good for us. We moved him out to the Sam linebacker spot where Holden Sapp was last season and we will get to see more of his athletic ability.
You mentioned the defensive tackle position with guys like Cole Semien, he had five sacks for you last season as a junior, where do you see him this year in terms of matching up that level of production?
He has a great motor. This will be his third year starting and he is going to need to show that and I feel like he will.
CLASS 4A WEEK 1 SCHEDULE
REGION 1
Bainbridge
Cairo
Hardaway
Shaw
Westover
Thursday, Aug. 18
Hardaway vs. Carver-Columbus
Shaw vs. Marion County
Friday, Aug. 19
Bainbridge vs. Cedar Grove
Cairo at Thomas County Central
Westover at Dougherty
REGION 2
Baldwin
Griffin
Howard
Perry
Spalding
West Laurens
Westside-Macon
Thursday, Aug. 18
Griffin vs. Ola
Friday, Aug. 19
Baldwin vs. Peach County
Howard vs. Southwest
Spalding vs. Eagle’s Landing
Westside-Macon at Central-Macon
REGION 3
Benedictine
Burke County
Islands
New Hampstead
Southeast Bulloch
Wayne County
Thursday, Aug. 18
New Hampstead vs. May River
Southeast Bulloch vs. Liberty County
Friday, Aug. 19
Benedictine vs. Jenkins
Burke County vs. Thomson
Islands vs. Calvary Day
Wayne County at Bradwell Institute
REGION 4
Fayette County
LaGrange
North Clayton
Riverdale
Starr’s Mill
Trinity Christian
Troup
Whitewater
Thursday, Aug. 18
LaGrange at Smith Station (AL)
Friday, Aug. 19
Fayette County vs. McIntosh
Trinity Christian vs. Woodward Academy
Troup at Harris County
REGION 5
Hampton
Lovett
Luella
McDonough
Mt. Zion-Jonesboro
Pace Academy
Stockbridge
Woodland-Stockbridge
Friday, Aug. 19
Hampton at Tri-Cities
Lovett vs. Westminster
Luella vs. Eastside
McDonough at Locust Grove
Woodland-Stockbridge at New Manchester
Saturday, Aug. 20
Mt. Zion-Jonesboro vs. Jonesboro
Pace Academy vs. Holy Innocents’
Stockbridge vs. Southwest DeKalb
REGION 6
Hapeville Charter
Holy Innocents’
Miller Grove
Southwest DeKalb
Stephenson
Westminster
Clarkston
Druid Hills
Stone Mountain
Thursday, Aug. 18
Hapeville Charter at Newton
Friday, Aug. 19
Miller Grove vs. Tucker
Stone Mountain at Chapel Hill
Westminster at Lovett
Saturday, Aug. 20
Holy Innocents’ vs. Pace Academy
Southwest DeKalb at Stockbridge
Stephenson vs. Dutchtown
REGION 7
Cedartown
Central-Carroll
Heritage-Catoosa
Northwest Whitfield
Sonoraville
Southeast Whitfield
Friday, Aug. 19
Cedartown at Rockmart
Central-Carroll vs. Redan
Heritage-Catoosa at Ringgold
Northwest Whitfield at Pepperell
Sonoraville vs. Pickens
Southeast Whitfield at Coosa
REGION 8
Cedar Shoals
Cherokee Bluff
Chestatee
East Forsyth
East Hall
Madison County
North Hall
North Oconee
Walnut Grove
Johnson-Gainesville
Seckinger
Wednesday, Aug. 17
Cherokee Bluff vs. Kell
Thursday, Aug. 18
Cedar Shoals at Clarke Central
Friday, Aug. 19
Chestatee vs. Hebron Christian
East Hall at West Hall
Johnson-Gainesville at Banks County
Madison County at Franklin County
North Hall at White County
North Oconee at Oconee County
Seckinger vs. Peachtree Ridge
Walnut Grove at Jasper County
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