The Lee County Trojans have become the darling of the 6A classification. Or at least they were at the time of this writing, two games into the season. After playing well in 5A, the Trojans made the jump to Region 1-6A last year and made an immediate impact, finishing as one of the top four teams in the region and making the playoffs. The Trojans have a lot of weapons but two of their most lethal are offensive tackle Chris Barnes and his quarterback, Garet Morrell. Both are Division I commits – Barnes to Georgia and Morrell to Marshall – and both have the physical ability and leadership skills to make Lee County one of the teams to watch late in the season.
Chris Barnes comes from a football family. His father, who is taller than Barnes and weighs about 450 pounds, played football at Albany State. The younger Barnes, who stands 6’5” and weighs 280 pounds, has started on the Trojans’ varsity squad all four of his years at Lee. He’s a big, strong, physical kid who can move and has great football instincts. Those qualities, coupled with his tremendous size, have made him an almost immovable object on Lee County’s line and a hot commodity on the recruiting market.
Over the last couple of years, the Trojans have experienced a surprising level of success. One of the smaller schools in 6A, they’ve shown a tenacity and willingness to compete that have them on everyone’s radar screen. And players like Chris Barnes are the reason why. “Every game, I tell myself to think, think, think. This is a hard game. It isn’t easy at all,” states Barnes.
Barnes plays on the left side of the line. His primary task is to protect quarterback Garet Morrell’s blind side, a job he takes very seriously. And it’s one his quarterback appreciates. “Knowing I have Chris on my blind side is one thing I’ll always be thankful for. He’s a great person, great player, and one of my best friends. We go everywhere together. He’s a leader on and off the field. He’s vocal and humble and one of the guys you just always want to be around,” says Morrell.
Barnes’s ability on the line attracted the attention of programs across the country. Listed as a four-star recruit, just about everyone wanted Barnes. The Georgia Bulldogs ended up winning the Chris Barnes lottery. “When I met with the players, I just had a great time. I get along well with Coach [Mark] Richt and I feel like the Georgia program can make me into a great offensive lineman,” he says.
As far as Garet Morrell is concerned, Barnes is already a great lineman. Barnes isn’t the only reason – but he’s a big reason – why Morrell had the time and opportunity needed to put up some of the best passing numbers in the state last year. Morrell threw for over 2,700 yards and 27 touchdowns – stats that led to Colquitt County head coach Rush Propst to call Morrell the best quarterback in Region 1-6A. “You know, the first thing I need to have is confidence in my receivers. Which I do. Friendship, brotherhood — that comes first. Everything else, I’ve been working on with my coaches since I was little. I’ve been getting ready to throw the ball,” he says. And throw the ball he does – in Lee’s spread attack, Morrell throws the ball about 70 percent of the time.
This year, Morrell would like to throw for more yards and touchdowns than he did last year. He’d also like to see Lee County play more than 12 games this season. “I want to win region, and we’re working together for that to happen. The past three years, we’ve been to second round of playoffs. I want to break that this year. I want us to go farther,” he states.
Morrel has a lot of eyes on him this year. Despite all the attention, he’s committed to remaining focused on his senior season and not getting distracted by all the people who would like a little of his time. “To me, it’s a part of the game. It’s the maturity factor of it all. If you get to where people are constantly talking about you, it makes your head get big. I have to focus on not doing that. I want to go out and keep working and keep pushing harder. It’s great to hear people complimenting us and the team but it doesn’t mean we stop working. We want to work harder and make people know about us from all over. Now people look out for us. They are preparing for us so we work harder,” he says.
When he finishes his career with Lee County, Morrell will play for the Marshall Thundering Herd. He chose Marshall for several reasons – its offense, its coaches, its community support. “I wanted to go there because of the family atmosphere, the great coaches, they made me feel at home, and I really got a good vibe from players and people,” he said of his future school.
Both Garet Morrell and Chris Barnes have big futures ahead of them. They are tremendous talents who have opportunities awaiting them that most high school players can only dream about. Before they look too far ahead, though, they want to show the state that the Lee County Trojans are indeed for real. “We need to stay focused. What we need to worry about are the team and getting better. We don’t need to worry about the other stuff. I want us to worry about getting a ring,” says Barnes.
Player Spotlight/South Georgia/October 2015
Chris Barnes and Garet Morrell
Lee County High School
Leesburg, Georgia
Robert Preston Jr.
Photography my Micki K Photography
