Oglethorpe County is gearing up for its season opener against Social Circle at 7:30 p.m. Friday.
“It’s a big game, a rematch, and they beat us three years in a row since I’ve been here,” senior receiver/defensive back Darius Heard said. “We’ve gotta get that get-back.”
The Patriots ended the summer with a 48-7 scrimmage loss against Lincoln County on Friday. Despite the score, they’re confident about their abilities when the season starts this week.
“We’re gonna patch some things up and get better,” said Jordan Johnson, who will see action at running back, receiver and defensive back. “We’ll have a great next week against Social Circle.”
Heard added: “We’re gonna be fine. I think we’re a good team, and we’re gonna be good. We’ll just keep working and building chemistry.”
Coach Mike Holland said he and the other coaches will look at film to make adjustments ahead of the opener. He said offensive production will be a point of emphasis.
“We have really good guys up front,” he said. “We have really good backs, and we have really good wide receivers, so there’s no excuse for us not to be moving the football.”
Holland also said conditioning will be an important adjustment this season. With Heard, Johnson and others playing multiple positions, he said he’ll have to learn when to substitute different players.
“When we were fresh, I thought we played really tough defensively,” Holland said. “But as the game wore on, we weren’t able to sustain that, so I gotta do a better job of having our guys conditioned a little better.”
Sophomore quarterback Hunter Hall said he was comfortable in his first game as the starter. His lone touchdown came on a long pass to Heard in man coverage in the first half.
“It felt good, but players make plays,” Hall said. “Couldn’t have done it without my receiver.”
Both Heard and Hall said they will continue to improve their chemistry throughout the season, but they were both complimentary of the other’s performance in the scrimmage.
“(Hunter) got that dog in him.” Heard said. “He’s just a sophomore, so he’s got a lot of growing to do. He’s got two more years, and he’s gonna be a good QB.”