Our guest for this week’s ITG Next Georgia 4 Questions with the Coach feature is Bainbridge head football coach Jeff Littleton, who will be kicking off his 11th season at the school. If there’s one thing Littleton has proven over the last decade, it’s that fans can always count on the Bearcats taking care of business in the region and giving themselves a legitimate shot at going far in the playoffs every season. That was the case in 2022, when Littleton took Bainbridge to the quarterfinals against Cedartown. With 82 wins, he is the all-time leader among Bainbridge High football coaches.
Q: Coach Littleton, before we talk Xs and Os at Bainbridge, I want to ask you about the people, things, and surroundings that have influenced your decision to enter coaching, and the way you coach. I want to ask you about those coaches and any other mentors who have influenced you throughout your career. In particular, one of your top goals is for your team and the players to get 1% better each day. Where or who did that come from, and who are those that have been an influence in your career? Was there one person who influenced your decision to become a high school football coach?
A: My former high school coaches influenced me at an early age with their dedication to physical and intense training in the weight room and on the practice field. I felt that was a huge part of our success as a football program, and I learned the importance of hard work and dedication. I definitely got into coaching because of them, because I saw the influence they had on me, and I wanted to be just like them. I saw my coaches as an extension of my mom and dad, who raised me to work hard for what you have and never make excuses.
You know, we as coaches borrow things from each other and I guess that’s how the “1% better each day” came about. We generally start the year off playing tough opponents. We may suffer some ups and downs, so we adopt the old adage of learning from our mistakes and getting better one moment at a time. We feel that by adopting this motto we don’t get too high or too low. You can’t win the state championship in week 1 or week 14, but you can lose it somewhere in between if you don’t stay humble and hungry.
Q: Let me ask you about last season. Your team finished with a 8-5 record , but the season ended with the playoff loss against Cedartown in a game that saw your offense held scoreless in the entire second half. That was tough, but the season was certainly filled with a lot of positive moments, even if it’s the bad stuff people tend to want to remember. One thing in particular was a third straight season without a region loss. Your Bearcats are 14-0 in region play over the 2020, 2021, and 2022 seasons. What was your biggest takeaway from the 2022 season at Bainbridge, Coach Littleton?
A: I give credit to Cedartown for the adjustments and physical play of their football team in that game. We felt last year we were really close to being a state contender, and we showed it in that game; unfortunately, we fell a little short. However, I feel it is a positive experience for our team that shows us that even though we had talent and worked extremely hard, it’s really, really tough to advance deep in the playoffs each week in Georgia.
We really feel that our non-region schedule prepares us well for region play. We normally have an off week before we start, and then another off week in the middle of region play that helps us heal physically and mentally.
Q: Coach Littleton, you’ll have some pretty good talent returning at Bainbridge this year with Antavious Murphy and Keenan Phillips coming back, and I am guessing Cam Sanders is in line for the starting quarterback job heading into spring practice. What can you tell us about those players, the role you hope they will play for the team this season, and the rest of the team personnel for this year?
A: Antavious and Keenan are returning All-State players who play unselfishly on both sides of the ball and special teams. Both will be a huge part of our successes this season. Cam is a returning All-Region WR/QB and has worked extremely hard to replace Bo Smith from last season. We have had tremendous strides in the weight room thus far, but we will need to continue to work hard and dedicate ourselves to raise the standard. We have one of our larger senior classes returning in a while, so we are looking forward to big things from our leadership.
Q: Coach Littleton, talk about the 2023 lineup of opponents and who you see as the biggest challengers to your Bainbridge team this season. Who will be the toughest opponent in the region, and what about the rest of the non-region schedule of teams you’ll face? Which games will be ones Bearcats fans surely don’t want to miss this season?
A: I don’t believe there is a game on our non-region schedule that you will want to miss, especially as a Bearcats fan. We open up with traditional powerhouse Eagles Landing Christian and we play state champion Ware County. Coffee, TCC and Thomasville all made the quarterfinals last year, and we end our non-region schedule with Brooks County. That is certainly a brutally tough schedule that will compare to any in the state. Then, we will end the regular season with our fierce rival Cairo for what we hope will be for a region championship.
