After an undefeated season ended in uncertainty last year, Oglethorpe County Middle School finished the job this fall. The football team claimed the PAC-11 league championship with a 12-6 win over Social Circle last Wednesday.
Last season, the Patriots were set to face Apalachee Middle School before a shooting at the high school left two students and two teachers dead.
“We were going to be the first team to play on their field after the incident, but weather canceled the game on us,” head coach Steve Irwin said. “We were excited about the chance to play them, but we spent time during the week talking about how to support them the best way that we could. The players and coaches were disappointed we did not get to play, but understood the situation.”
The 2024 season came to a 6-0 finish. But 2025 brought new challenges: a tougher league schedule and new players to develop.
“We started the season with a loss, so yes, there was concern,” Irwin said. “But we refocused and prepared to play the next game. This group of players has been very focused and coachable.”
Rather than reinvent the system, Irwin leaned on consistency.
“We did not make any changes to the way we practiced or change the culture,” he said. “We just kept working hard each and every day. Our team culture is that we play with effort, attitude and toughness each snap, play, series and game.”
That steadiness quickly got the season back on track.
After the opening loss, OCMS rolled through the rest of its schedule. The defense dominated, not giving up more than six points in any of the last four games and shut out East Jackson 20-0 in the playoffs.
“Our defensive coaches and players did an amazing job preparing for every opponent,” Irwin said.
Cooper Davenport led the Patriots with over 700 yards on the ground and 16 touchdowns this year. Irwin referred to him as the “offensive leader.”
Leading Davenport was a battle-tested group up front.
The eighth-grade line — Brody Anderson, Noah Evans, Robert Gunter, Braiden Walker, Kayden Smith and James Henderson — consistently opened lanes, clearing the way for more than 900 rushing yards this season.
Irwin said the team is supported by Principal Mack Baldwin and the teachers, who consistently back the program and ensure it has what it needs.
“Anything I need, they make it happen,” he said. “I also have amazing parents who feed the team and provide funding to buy the equipment we need to maintain this program.”
And through it all, Irwin said, the core of the program remains unchanged.
“The culture will never change here as long as I am coach,” he said. “We will play with passion, effort and toughness, and be more physical than the other team each and every day.”