North Gwinnett Football
Coach Bob Sphire has taken North Gwinnett football to new heights. When he arrived at the Suwanee school in 2006, the Bulldogs had never won 10 games and rarely made the playoffs. Since arriving, Sphire has was won at least 10 games every season and, in the process, has turned the Bulldogs into a perennial state title contender.
Sphire is quick to credit the people who have helped make his program a winner.
“You can have all the processes and plans you want, but if you don’t have kids who will come in and work and try to develop within the plan, you won’t have success,” said Sphire. “If you don’t have quality coaches that will come in and execute the plan, it won’t get done. I’ve been blessed most of my career to have players and coaches who will come in and work to try to develop within the plan.”
Under Sphire, North Gwinnett has been known for its prolific offenses and stout lines of scrimmage. This year’s edition is no different. Defensive end Dante Sawyer, with offers from Alabama, Georgia and Southern California, among many others, leads the defense while one of the state’s top wide receiver corps headlines the offense. Daniel Imatorbhebhe, Caleb Scott and Nate Brown dominated 7-on-7’s this summer and will be the main targets of Sphire’s son, Hayden, the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback. Scott had 38 catches for 684 yards and 11 touchdowns last year, while Brown totaled 41 catches for 491 yards and nine touchdowns.
At running back, C.J. Leggett arrived at North Gwinnett in the offseason after transferring from Chattahoochee. Leggett holds offers from Pittsburgh, UCLA and Vanderbilt. Offensive lineman Mitch Hyatt enters his junior year as one of the top offensive line recruits in the nation with offers from many top programs.
In the Bulldogs’ way is one of the toughest schedules in the state with non-region games against Camden County (in the Metro PCS Corky Kell Classic) and Grayson in addition to a rough region slate that includes teams like Mill Creek, Peachtree Ridge and defending state champion Norcross.
Tough schedules are something Sphire swears by.
“To be successful in the kind of region we’re in and to be successful on the playoffs, you’ve got to be battle-tested,” Sphire said. “So I’ve always been a firm believer that (a tough schedule) helps your team (become) battled-tested.”
Off the Field
North Gwinnett High School was established in 1958 and served 2,616 students for the 2011-2012 school year. Notable alumni include Colorado Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon, St. Louis Rams tight end Jared Cook, Cleveland Indians pitcher Blake Wood and Georgia state senator Chip Rogers. North Gwinnett was founded in order to form a high school for students in Sugar Hill and Suwanee. Since 1989 the school has enrolled 1,000 or more students every year, eventually serving over 2,500 a year consistently. Nrth Gwinnett is located in the northwest part of the coiunty, just south of Lake Lanier.
- Since 2008, 634 North Gwinnett students have scored 1800 or higher on their SAT with 73 scoring 2100 or higher.
- Newsweek has ranked North Gwinnett as the top school in Gwinnett, as well as a top 10 school in Georgia, every year for the past three years.
- In 2011-2012, Bulldogs seniors earned over $101,000,000 in scholarships, not including HOPE.
- The 2011-2012 seniors performed a combined 50,000 hours during their enrollment.
- Following graduation, 95 percent of NGHS graduates planned on attending post-secondary education.
Roster
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