Score High School Sports Newsletter

HOCKMAN ON LINE PLAY

While football fans have been following 7-on-7 tournaments

all summer, the lines of scrimmage have been largely ignored.

Our Chris Schutter caught up with McEachern coach Kyle Hockman about what the men in the trenches have been doing with their summers. We also continue our look at the toughest schedules in the state as Stephen Black gives his top 5 for Class 5A.

In This Issue

Trivia

Team Schedules

McEachern O-Line

Toughest 5A Schedules

Score Poll

Best Stories From Around the State

Trivia

Question:

Which McEachern lineman has offers from multiple SEC powers, including UGA?

Today's answer can

be found in the newsletter!

Tuesday's Answer:

Colquitt County will play Grayson in the Corky Kell Classic.

SOUTHERN FOOTBALL GUIDE

Check out the 2013 Southern Football Recruiting Guide

CLASS 6A TOUGHEST SCHEDULES

1. Colquitt County

2. Grayson

3. Peachtree Ridge

4. Walton

5. Brookwood

CLASS 5A TOUGHEST SCHEDULES

5. ML King

8/31 Ely, Papano, Fla.

9/6 SW DeKalb

9/14 At Mays

9/21 North Atlanta

9/27 At Arabia Mountain

10/11 Dunwoody

10/19 At Lakeside-DeKalb

10/25 Stephenson

11/1 At Tucker

11/8 Miller Grove

4. Clarke Central

8/30 At Marist

9/6 Central Gwinnett

9/13 At Loganville

9/27 Apalachee

10/4 At Salem

10/11 Heritage-Conyers

10/18 Gainesville

10/25 At Flowery Branch

11/1 At Winder-Barrow

11/8 Cedar Shoals

3. Gainesville

8/30 At West Forsyth

9/6 Buford

9/13 Winder-Barrow

9/20 At Apalachee

9/27 At Heritage-Conyers

10/4 Cedar Shoals

10/11 Salem

10/18 At Clarke Central

11/1 At Loganville

11/8 Flowery Branch

2. Flowery Branch

8/30 At Northside-WR

9/6 West Forsyth

9/13 Cedar Shoals

9/20 At Loganville

9/27 Salem

10/4 Apalachee

10/11 At Winder-Barrow

10/18 At Heritage-Conyers

10/25 Clarke Central

11/8 At Gainesville

1. Thomas County Central

8/23 Thomasville

8/30 At Valdosta

9/6 Marist

9/13 At Cairo

9/20 Tift County

10/4 At Bainbridge

10/11 At Northside-Columbus

10/18 Lee County

10/25 Hardaway

11/8 At Harris County

Score is looking for writing interns!

Call 404-256-1572
or click here

for more information.

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Comcast Sports Southeast
announces expansion of high school TV/Digital platform

CSS is getting together with Score Atlanta and PlayOn! Sports to offer one HD TV broadcast every week as well as two exclusive games on the web. The season will start in Atlanta on Aug. 30 with CSS televising "Battle of the Big Chicken,'' a doubleheader beginning at 6 p.m. at McEachern's Cantrell Stadium featuring Walton vs. Hillgrove followed by Lassister vs. McEachern. Every Friday night, high schol football fans will also be able to watch two digital games from around the south and will also feature live chat, social media interaction and live score updates. CSS will also televise the Mill Creek-Norcross game on Sept. 27.

Click here to read the official release from CSS.

IN THE TRENCHES

By Chris Schutter

Indians bolster lines over summer

McEachern is gearing up for this year's football season and while the skill players are working on 7-on-7 drills, the offensive and defensive line have been working hard in the trenches. Coming off a successful 8-3 season, coach Kyle Hockman and the Indians are looking to continue their success starting with a powerful, physical line.

The offensive line is anchored by rising junior Chuma Edoga and fellow junior Chandler Jones. Edoga has been seeing interest from a plethora of colleges including Tennessee, Auburn, Georgia Tech, Florida State, and, most recently, the University of Georgia. As the only returning starter on an offensive line that prides itself in physicality, Edoga has spent this summer establishing his position as a leader on the team. Jones has also stepped up for the team and moving from nose tackle last year to offensive line this season has been a very smooth process.

The biggest concern to have would be the lack of experience on the offensive line, but Hockman is confident in his team. "There's not a huge amount of experience," Hockman acknowledged. "But physically, we're close to what we were last year."

Physically, there is an expected drop-off with All-State OT JaJuan Delaney graduated and playing for the University of Maryland this season. Hockman is still confident in his line because of the likes of Edoga, Jones and Uche Nkadi who played a lot of tight end this year and is transitioning to offensive line to help this team stay fast with solid blocking.

They are focusing on keeping their offensive line technically sound because of how important speed and running the ball is to their offense. They will be blocking for 5-star junior RB Taj Griffin as well as QB Ty Clemons, who has offers from Kentucky, Buffalo and GSU so far. While the skill players have been using 7-on-7 drills to improve the lineman have been trying to focus on technique.

"We haven't been hitting as much this offseason and have been more focused on base schemes, footwork, and getting in the weight room," Hockman explained.

He went on to say that they've also been trying to give the lines experience seeing different schemes from the offensive and defensive side of the ball in order to prepare them for the complex looks that they will be seeing on both sides of the ball this year. The Indians start their season with a game against Brookwood in the Georgia Dome. Hockman says they have been using some loud speakers on the field to adapt the players to the noise level that will come with playing in the Dome, however, they primarily use a lot of signals from the sideline in order to help communicate with the players on the field.

He isn't too concerned with the noise level because of the leadership being displayed in some of his returning players and how well they have been communicating with each other on the field.

The beginning of the McEachern football season is a tough one. They start off with a game against Brookwood in the Georgia Dome, and then six days later, play Lassiter at home. The last time McEachern played Brookwood, the Indians lost 20-10 in the first round of the 2009 State Playoffs, and the last time they played Lassiter, McEachern lost a heartbreaking 20-17 game in the second round of the 2011 State Playoffs.

Hockman and his team hope to have a different start from last year where they dropped the first two games to Grayson and Walton consecutively before winning eight games in a row en route to a fourth consecutive playoff berth. With how the offensive line is preparing for this season and how much leadership and maturity are being displayed, it is safe to bet there will be a fifth consecutive playoff berth come November.

TOUGHEST SCHEDULES 5A

By Stephen Black

TCC plays five solid non-region opponents

Yesterday we highlighted the five toughest schedules in Class 6A so today we are looking at Class 5A's toughest roads.

While Gwinnett County schools made up three of the top five in 6A, Colquitt County, a South Georgia school, took the No. 1 spot. South Georgia again takes the top spot today as Thomas County Central, ranked No. 3 in the preseason, is our toughest slate in 5A.

Here is the complete list:

1. Thomas County Central - The Yellow Jackets open with five straight non-region games before getting to region play. First is local rival Thomasville, which is one of the biggest rivalry games in the state.

Second on the schedule is Valdosta, the most tradition-rich program in the state, if not the country. The 6A-power hosts TCC on Aug. 30.

In Game 3, coach Bill Shaver's bunch hosts Marist, which has become a respected rival for the Yellow Jackets since 1996, as the programs have met four times in the state semifinals, according to GHSFHA.org, and seven times overall with TCC holding a 6-1 edge. Despite the lopsided series edge, every game in series history has been competitive. Marist is ranked No. 5 in the preseason Class 4A top 10.

Another Class 4A power, Cairo, hosts TCC in Week 4. The No. 4 Syrupmakers have become an important South Georgia rivalry game for TCC over the years.

And finally, to wrap up a brutal nonregion slate, Thomas County Central hosts Tift County, of vaunted Region 1-6A.

After a week off, the Jackets finally get to Region 1-AAAAA play.

2. Flowery Branch - Playing in Gainesville's region is no fun with Deshaun Watson tossing multiple touchdowns every game. It is even rougher when a team plays the non-region schedule Flowery Branch does.

The No. 5 Falcons open with Class 5A No. 2 Northside-WR, a tough way for anyone to start the season. Then, Flowery Branch hosts West Forsyth, which shocked Class 6A last season with a 10-2 record and a second-round playoff berth. In fact, Frank Hepler's Wolverines beat both Gainesville and Flowery Branch last season.

Those two mammoth non-region games set up Flowery Branch's brutal region play, which includes the No. 1 Red Elephants as well as Loganville, Apalachee and Clarke Central.

3. Gainesville - The top-ranked Red Elephants will attempt to defend their Class 5A crown with a challenging schedule. Watson and Co. open with a trip to West Forsyth before hosting Class AAA No. 1 Buford, one of the top overall programs in the state.

Couple those two games with a region schedule that includes No. 5 Flowery Branch, Clarke Central, Heritage-Conyers and Winder-Barrow, and it is a very tough row to hoe, indeed.

4. Clarke Central - The Gladiators face Class 4A No. 5 Marist and 6A's Central Gwinnett before opening Region 8 play, against the likes of No. 5 Flowery Branch and No. 1 Gainesville.

5. M.L. King - All Region 6 teams face a tough schedule every year, as nine of their 10 games are against each other. The region includes traditional powers Tucker, Stephenson, SW DeKalb, and Miller Grove.

M.L. King's schedule may be the toughest in the region this season due to a season-opening visit from Ely (Pompano Beach, Fla.). The Tigers have won three Florida state titles since 2002 and have produced players like Patrick Peterson, Corey Simon and Henri Crockett.

The Lions' schedule also includes games against No. 4 Stephenson and No. 6 Tucker.

HONORABLE MENTIONS: The rest of Region 6, Loganville (plays Monroe Area in addition to Region 8), Evans (plays Northside-WR, Elbert Co, and Jefferson Co.) and Mundy's Mill (faces Lovejoy, Whitewater and Coffee).