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Indians, Vikings
and Chiefs are ready for football season
By
MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@thecitizennews.com
Many teams don’t know what the 2000 football season holds in store
for them, but they are excited at the potential.
The East Coweta Indians have a number of new players who could rise to
the occasion and carry on a winning tradition, the McIntosh Chiefs have
a new coach and a new offense and the Northgate Vikings return many of
their big guns on both sides of the ball and are in the hunt for another
trip to the post-season.
East Coweta has only two returning starters on offense: seniors Sean McElhannon
(guard) and James Janson (tackle), and five returning starters on defense,
seniors Eric Emerson (linebacker), Alex Rogers (defensive lineman), and
Gerren Brittain (cornerback) and juniors Zach Smith (linebacker) and Alex
Freeman (strong safety). The quarterback position will be shared by sophomores
Lee Heaberlin and Lamar Gay.
“We’re young at our skill positions,” said Coach Danny
Cronic. “They are all hard workers but it is very hard to tell how
the season will go.”
East Coweta also has a monster of a schedule this season, thanks to the
classification shuffle. In four weeks, starting Sept. 22, the Indians
host North Clayton, a top ranked team with a top ranked quarterback, travel
to Fayette County, never a pushover, host Evans, a wild card as they have
just been added to the region, and then they travel to Lovejoy for a Saturday
day game.
They must also finish the season against their rivals, the Newnan Cougars.
Discussing his projection for the season, Cronic said, “We’re
hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.” East Coweta travels
to Sandy Creek for a jamboree tonight at 7. They will also face Northgate
in the jamboree.
Northgate is looking for a big season. The team went 7-4 last year and
made the playoffs and is currently ranked in the top 10 in AA by the AJC.
Six starters return on offense and nine starters on defense. Seniors Mitch
Stewart (quarterback), Dominique Partridge (wide receiver), Kenny Strozier
(running back) and Marlon Cruver (running back) should be an explosive
unit for the Vikings, while a senior-laden defense looks to control the
tempo of the game.
Northgate’s schedule isn’t easy and some of the teams will be
entirely new to both the coaches and players. The Vikings have three straight
games against the tougher part of their schedule. Sept. 22, they travel
to face Crim, last year’s 5-AA region champs. The next week they
host Manchester, which finished last season at 8-2. Oct. 6, Northgate
travels to play Callaway, another team that went to the playoffs last
year.
Games against Lamar County and Grady won’t be easy games either,
but if the Vikings can survive, a return trip to the playoffs is entirely
possible.
As for McIntosh, the Chiefs have a new coach, Butch Prosser, who was the
defensive coordinator for the Mt. Zion, Jonesboro Bulldogs, and a new
offense, the wing T instead of the run and shoot. The question is whether
it will be enough to turn around the program, and the answer is maybe.
Last year’s defense showed bright spots, but was on the field too
much and wore out quickly. The new offense should take up more clock time
and give the defense some much needed rest. Add to this Prosser’s
experience as a defensive coordinator for a perennially tough program
and the Chief defense could shine this year. Seven starters return to
the defense this year, including seniors Randy Klimetz (inside linebacker),
Tim Love (safety), Erik Walton (defensive tackle), Robert McCarthy (defensive
tackle) and Todd Matos (defensive end).
The offense is veteran too, returning eight starters including Luke Wiggs
(quarterback), Jim O’Shea (fullback), Robert Landy (right end) and
Klimetz (halfback). The offensive line will figure big into the Chiefs’
plans this year and good performances could mean good things for the team.
The schedule is the tough part to figure out. The Chiefs open with rivals
Fayette County in what promises to be an exciting game. The Chiefs follow
that with two weeks on the road against Morrow and Jonesboro, two teams
that leaped up from AAA. McIntosh will also have to face Eagle’s
Landing, Riverdale, Mt. Zion-Jonesboro, Starr’s Mill and North Clayton.
The Chiefs have never seen any of these teams before but then again, these
teams have never seen the Chiefs before either.
McIntosh hosts a jamboree tonight against Landmark Christian and Spalding
County, beginning at 7.
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