Summary of last season:
The Gators stormed all the way to the semifinals in just the second season under Coach Franklin Stephens. Their three losses were by a total of just 18 points, with two of those losses coming from Glynn Academy, which the Gators played for the state title. The Gators scored 32.5 points per game, while giving up 13.9 PPG. It marked the sixth consecutive year in which WCHS won 10 or more games.
Outlook for this season:
“You try to build a program so that when you lose players, you have someone to step in,” says Stephens. “The loss of those players will be drastically felt, because those kids are doing a tremendous job off the field too. But the opportunity is now here for some of these guys. They have the keys to the field; it’s going to be a brutal schedule week after week, but we’ve done a good job of getting our kids’ bodies in shape and we have to play at an extraordinary high level.”
Players returning from last year’s team:
There is plenty of leadership returning for the Gators on both sides of the ball. Defensively, they welcome back junior Jalynn Strickland, senior Ronnie Adams, and junior Trey Cobb at the linebacker posts. The talent-rich secondary includes seniors Hakeem Dillard, Jamoya Howard, Olajuwone Smith, and junior Jordon Turner. On the other side of the ball, it’s seniors Hayden Blackburn and James Lucas anchoring the interior front five. A trio of fellow seniors, WR Tyler Williams, RB Gary Williams, and QB JeMar Lincoln, round out the offensive cast. Senior kicker Noah Shepherd is another valued returnee.
What has realignment changed this year?
The Gators’ classification didn’t change, but they shifted from 3-AAAAA to 2-AAAAA along with South Effingham and Statesboro. The Mustangs were a state playoff team in 2015, but the Blue Devils were an uncharacteristic sub-.500 team as was Wayne County, which joins the mix. Meanwhile, New Hampstead went 7-3 in just its second season. Those teams comprise Ware’s new region where the Gators figure to be a favorite to reclaim the region title they lost to Coffee last year, after claiming that flag three straight years.
Big games this year:
It’s a murderer’s row schedule by most standards, as the Gators open in a grudge rematch against Glynn Academy. Get your tickets for that one ASAP for what is bound to be a packed house. Then, comes another titanic border match against perennial foe Coffee and oh, by the way, road trips to Northside (Warner Robins) and Lowndes, neither of which requires introduction. The 2016 slate also includes dates versus Grady High of Atlanta and East Lake, out of Tarpon Springs, Florida, both of whom made the second round of the playoffs last year. And that’s all before region play starts.
