The following, a weekly feature of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, allows our reporters to open their notebooks and provide even more information from our local teams that we cover daily. We think you’ll find in informative, insightful and fun.
Long way from Longview
Georgia Tech starting quarterback Haynes King is not the most notable King from Longview, Texas. That honor goes to King’s father, John King.
John King won his 200th career game in 2022 as coach of the Longview Lobos high school football team. The veteran coach won a state championship in 2018 and has been at the east Texas school almost 25 years.
Because John King still roams the sidelines at Lobo Stadium, it’s going to be awfully difficult for him to watch his son play Tech football in person. Even harder when Tech’s opening game is on a Friday night.
“He’s probably not going to make it to all the games, but both of us are prepared for that,” Haynes King said this week. “He’s probably just going to watch it on TV.”
Haynes King spent the first three seasons of his college career at Texas A&M, a manageable 186 miles from Longview. The ride from Longview to Bobby Dodd Stadium is a bit steeper at 662 miles.
The Yellow Jackets’ closest game to Texas this season is the Sept. 16 trip to Oxford, Mississippi, to play No. 22 Ole Miss, still more than 400 miles away.
“I’m sure my mom, she’ll try to make most of it, either riding with one of her friends or my cousins or one of her family members,” Haynes King said. “But it’s probably going to be hard on (John King) being all the way home.”
Welcome back
Atlanta United’s trip to Seattle was a homecoming for many staffers and players.
President Garth Lagerwey got to see some friends he made while he was the general manager there from 2015-22, during which he helped them win numerous trophies, and spent 20 minutes talking to Seattle media in the press box before the match and then was honored by the Sounders on the field for his contributions to the franchise.
Manager Gonzalo Pineda played and was an assistant coach at Seattle. He got to have coffee with Seattle manager Brian Schmetzer, whom he has great respect for, during the weekend.
Midfielder Ozzie Alonso played at Seattle from 2009-18. He was part of a pregame ceremony in which he honored goalkeeper Stefan Frei for passing his mark for most appearances as a Seattle player.
The dreaded phone call
Brian Harman won’t have to wait for a phone call.
Not one to find out that he made the Ryder Cup team. And especially not one to find out that he did not make the team.
Harman, thanks in part to his victory at the British Open this year, was one of six automatic qualifiers for the Ryder Cup, which will be held in Italy next month. It will be his first international team event. He has taken several phone calls from team captains, including the Presidents Cup, when he did not make the team.
Jim Furyk called in 2018 as the captain of the Ryder Cup team that played near Paris.
“When he called and told me I wasn’t, I’m like, well, I know, like, I have not performed as well as I should have in an attempt to make this team. Like, I understand. Like, I wouldn’t have picked me either,” Harman said this week from the Tour Championship.
Steve Stricker called in 2017 as the captain of the Presidents Cup team that played in New Jersey.
“I thought I had a better shot at getting picked for that one,” Harman said. “But Steve’s always been a dear friend of mine, and I understood.”
Davis Love III called last year as captain of the Presidents Cup team that played in North Carolina.
“I wanted to be on that team,” Harman said. “But, once again … I finished third in Memphis last year, I was 70th on the FedEx Cup and ended up I was playing really well at the end of the year, but I hadn’t done anything to warrant a flier pick.”
Harman was third on the Ryder Cup points list this year, earning the automatic spot on the team. The call from captain Zack Johnson was only congratulatory.
UGA can’t land every top recruit
Two-time defending national champion Georgia has secured almost every top recruit it has targeted over the past few years. But a pair of highly coveted recruits decided this week to leave the state – one next year and another in a couple of years.
Buford’s Eddrick Houston, a member of the 2023 AJC Super 11 team, had Georgia among his five finalists before committing to Ohio State. Houston joins fellow Super 11 player Air Noland of Langston Hughes as Ohio State commits while another Super 11 player – Houston’s Buford High teammate K.J. Bolden – committed to Florida State.
The Bulldogs have a commitment from Buford quarterback Dylan Raiola, the top recruit in the nation at his position. And yes, all commitments are non-binding until signing day in December.
Recruiting, Part II
Carrollton quarterback Julian “Ju Ju” Lewis had Georgia among the schools on his wish list before choosing Southern California this week.
In a nationally televised matchup against Noland and Langston Hughes last week, Lewis held his own and displayed the talents of a player ranked as the best in the country at his position.
In the class of 2026.
Yes, Lewis is only a sophomore. And his commitment (which is also non-binding) has a longer shelf life – until December 2025.
Quotable
“I got everything I need, man. College funds. Always splurge it on college funds.” – Brian Harman on what he might spend the $18 million for winning the FedEx Cup
-Staff writers Chad Bishop, Doug Roberson, Todd Holcomb and Chris Vivlamore contributed to this report.
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