McEachern Football Coach Franklin Stephens looks back on the 2021 season, talks about a pair of key graduating seniors, and details a tough schedule this fall.
Q: Coach Stephens, your McEachern football team was able to bounce back from a 2020 season that was tough on a lot of teams that were trying to come back from all the issues that the pandemic brought about. After last season’s 7-5 finish, do you feel that your guys are ready to keep moving forward in 2022?
A: Yes, I would agree that 2020 was a tough year for us at McEachern; however, our guys did a great job this past year getting us back on track. Early in the season we dug ourselves quite a hole, but our seniors did a phenomenal job of rallying our guys and getting us to a region championship. We would go on to lose to a very good Mill Creek team in the second round, but I couldn’t be more excited about the turnaround those seniors completed. I believe they have set the course for the program.
Q: You have a young TE/FB in Ivan Kynes that a lot of people are talking about. He showed signs of what he’s capable of in last year’s playoffs. What can you tell us about him?
A: Ivan is a good player that we are expecting to have a great junior season. He worked his way into the starting lineup as a freshman at left tackle. Physically, he was not ready to play at the 7A level. However, he battled every Friday night and never backed down from any challenge. He is having a great off-season, and physically he will finally be ready to play at this level.
Q: I think you would agree that as your QB goes, so goes your team. With that said, Bryce Archie leaves behind quite the McEachern football legacy as he heads to Coastal Carolina. You also have to replace his favorite target in Kaleb Webb, who is at Tennessee. What’s the plan for replacing such a talented QB-WR duo?
A: Well, trying to replace those two guys will be extremely hard. I can’t say enough about the job they did, especially this past year, which is evident by their opportunities at the next level. We have some guys who have been working very hard to step in their shoes. Unfortunately, I don’t believe it will be one or two guys, it will be a committee. Bryce and Kaleb had a lot of production for us, and it would be unfair to believe that we will have one or two guys who can replace them.
Q: How is the 2022 schedule different from the last couple of seasons, and who will fans enjoy seeing on the Indians’ schedule this year?
A: Our schedule is very similar to past years, which I believe is one of the toughest in the state. Week in and week out we will see very athletic teams that are well-coached. We open in the Corky Kell with North Gwinnett, which is always a very solid football team. Langston Hughes came up a little short in the 6A championship game this past year and will be very good again this year. Douglas County gives us a proximity game that could benefit both teams’ fans.
We still have Newton County on the schedule after they manhandled us last year, along with adding Tucker. The more intriguing matchup will be the Valdosta game, which gives our players, coaches, and fans an opportunity to see football in South Georgia on Friday nights. This is all before we get into region play that will feature Harrison, North Paulding, Marietta, and Hillgrove. It should make for an intriguing year.
