By Mike Holland’s count, eight players took snaps behind center for the Oglethorpe County football team this fall.
That certainly wasn’t by design, but was necessary in an attempt to create offense after losing starting quarterback Hunter Hall to a broken collarbone in the first game.
“It was kind of a revolving door there,” Holland said. “We’re trying to find something that we could do that would work, that was easy for those guys, but it makes you one-dimensional.”
Holland knew moving to Region 8-A Division I this season would be tough, but the Patriots thought they could compete for one of the four playoff berths in a region with traditional powers Commerce, Rabun County and Elbert County.
But little went right for the Patriots, who finished 0-10 for the first time since 2016, losing four games by one score each.
It was Holland’s fourth season at OCHS, which has gone 12-30 during his tenure. This year’s seniors were freshmen his first year.
“I feel so bad for the seniors because they did everything I asked them to do, and then in the end, it just wasn’t quite enough,” Holland said. “So I’m doing a lot of soul searching and trying to figure out what I can do better because the kids, our core group of guys, man, they’ve been as committed as anybody.”
The Patriots lose several key seniors, including Jordan Johnson, Justin Jackson, Darius Heard, Landon Tipton and Reid Coley, but Hall will be a junior next year, and leading rusher Payton Prince, who had 788 yards and five touchdowns, will be a senior.
Several other key underclassmen are scheduled to return, including Keagan Moats, Jackson Tatum, Demarcus Meadows, Matthew Martin and Clint Graham.
In addition, the Oglethorpe County Middle School team went 6-0 this year, and OCMS coach Steven Irwin said several of those players will play for the high school program next fall.
“I see excitement in the seventh-grade class and the sixth-grade class that will begin working with us in the spring,” Irwin said. “I think our numbers will be up as we continue to change the culture here. I think we will continue to see 30-40 players every year.”
Without Hall, the Patriots focused on the run, including out of the wildcat formation, where backs and receivers take snaps. Heard added 654 yards and 10 touchdowns rushing, and Johnson finished with 454 yards and three touchdowns.
Heard, who entered the season as a starter at receiver, was the leading passer with 246 yards, and Caden Hartrum was the leading receiver with 11 catches for 52 yards.
Any offense the Patriots generated, was sometimes undone by a defense that gave up an average of 40.5 points a game this season.
“This season is one of the hardest things I've ever done,” Holland said. “But there's a lot to be said for staying together and continuing to fight and those kinds of things because in the end, it’s those lessons you will take with you. You could (have) easy sailing, but you may not learn as much, as far as being a person and responding to adversity, unless you have a season like we did.”