“This Pirates team is focused on working hard in the weight room and taking advantage of every opportunity to build on the legacy that 2022 left behind,” Brunswick head football coach Garrett Grady says of his 2023 team.
That legacy Grady speaks of was a perfect regular season and a Region 2-6A championship. Despite a tough first-round home overtime playoff loss to Houston County, Brunswick’s head football man is only looking forward as he enters his second season leading the Pirates.
“I’m excited about this group, this team – they work extremely hard and are very talented,” Grady tells ITG Next. “I’m really proud of the offseason we are having, and I’m also proud of these players and coaches for their dedication to the Pirates football program.”
Grady says his 2023 Brunswick football team has adopted a bit of a “blue collar” mentality, and it is shining through in workouts, team meetings, and the weightroom.
“They compete at a high level and hold each other accountable every day,” he says.
Sounds like Grady and the Pirates are ready to roll, and they should be. Brunswick returns a ton of talent from last year’s 10-1 team, including the reigning Region 2-6A Player of the Year, senior wide receiver TJ Mitchell. The sure-handed Mitchell has 1,522 receiving yards with 17 TDs over the past two seasons, and he’ll be the main target for senior quarterback Jarrod Elkins, who passed for 1,503 yards and 19 TDs last season.
Complementing Mitchell and Elkins on offense will be returning RB Jamarious Towns, a rising junior who rushed for 693 yards – including two 100-yard-plus games – and 5 TDs last season.
The Pirates also return several defensive playmakers, led by senior defensive linemen Donyea Broughton and River Creel. Lining up behind them in the box will be LBs J’Shawn Towns and Devin Smith. In the defensive backfield, Brunswick will be led by seniors Tyler Sams and Taivon Gadson.
Opponents beware in 2023. Speaking of which, here’s a look at the 2023 Brunswick schedule:
- 8/25: At Camden County
- 9/1: Winter Park (FL)
- 9/9: Augustine
- 9/15: Islands
- 9/22: At Glynn Academy
- 9/29: Grovetown
- 10/6: Lakeside Evans
- 10/13: OFF
- 10/20: South Effingham
- 10/27: Evans
- 11/3: At Effingham County
Schedule Highlights
Brunswick will be tested in the first month of its 2023 football schedule as it takes on Camden County, Winter Park (FL), and then St. Augustine in the Georgia vs. Florida Border Classic. All three opponents are coming off winning seasons, with Camden finishing 8-4, Winter Park ending up with a 10-2 season, and St. Augustine finishing 7-4 in 2022.
The Pirates got their 2022 football season and the Garrett Grady era off to a great start by defeating Camden County. The 2023 season opener will be even tougher as Brunswick faces a more experienced Wildcats team on the road.
The Glynn Academy game is always a huge event for Brunswick, and it’s even more magnified as the Pirates’ region-opening opponent. Glynn County Stadium will be packed and at a fever pitch as Brunswick battles Rocky Hidalgo’s Red Terrors. Brunswick won last season’s game 55-21, and the Red Terrors will be looking to even the score in this annual crosstown rivalry.
Brunswick will be one of the host teams in the 2023 Georgia Florida Border Classic. Last season’s inaugural event saw the Pirates shut down the Bolles Bulldogs by a 20-3 final score. This year the Pirates will take on the St. Augustine High Yellow Jackets on Saturday, September 8 at 7:30 p.m.
Grady says this year’s Pirates team has adopted the motto of “All About the Family.”
“We are a young and hungry team that’s ready to work towards achieving their goals,” he adds.
Better beware of this 2023 Pirates Family.
