TIFTON, GA -- After the first few practice days of high school football, South Georgia coaches say they've handled the heat. As for handling the heat of a South Georgia schedule- that's another story.
Local coaches from Tift County, Fitzgerald, Turner County, Worth County, Coffee County and Turner County previewed their upcoming seasons at the Tift Regional Medical Center’s Kickoff to Men’s Health on Saturday.
Topics ranged from the expected subjects of returning starters, offensive and defensive schemes all the way to the recent GHSA reclassification.
For the reclassified 6A teams, Tift and Coffee County, the changes in the high school athletic landscape added another top high school team to the region, Camden County. But it’s not isolated to 6A, throughout South Georgia, new classes have created some of the toughest competition.
“It (6A-Region 1) would compare with any region in the country. South Georgia and Georgia football has really moved up in the rankings. I think that Texas and Georgia are right up there at the top right now,” Tift County Coach John Reid said.
“That region is going to be extremely tough. You could be one of the top five or six teams in the state and not even make the playoffs. It's going to be tough for everybody,” Coffee County coach Robby Pruitt said.
“With Cook down (in AA) you're talking about five, six, seven teams that could legitimately make a run in to the quarterfinals,” Fitzgerald Coach Jason Strickland said.
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