The Dawson County Tiger football team concluded camp with a scrimmage Aug. 7 at Tiger Stadium. It was the end of a long week of three practices a day conducted by the Tiger coaching staff.
You could never tell on Saturday as the Tigers were in high spirits. The attitude and hustle on this team hasn’t been seen around Dawson County High School in a long time, according to Head Coach Jeff Lee.
Around 69 players finished camp and took part in the scrimmage.
“We may pick up a few more players with school starting this week,” Lee said. “We would like to make sure we have enough numbers for our junior varsity team.
“Our kids believe that they have a shot to win,” he said. “The players have had a great preseason. It all started with passing camp. I thought the scrimmage went well. I am pleased.”
Sophomore Zack Martin had a great scrimmage running the ball. Martin finished the day with 106 yards rushing with two touchdowns for the Tigers.
“Zack is a hard nose, physical back. He looked tremendous on Saturday. We are expecting him to have a big year,” Lee said.
Senior Eian Perry also had a good day running the football. Perry used his quickness and speed to slash through several big holes.
Perry and Martin are a one-two punch in the backfield that will be tough to stop.
Ethan Brown and Bruce Clark played well at receiver. Both players had several nice catches and runs during the scrimmage.
The strength of the Tiger defense was evident on Saturday with the play from the Dawson defensive backfield.
Led by seniors Ethan Brown, Sam Edwards, Cody McGinnis and Eian Perry the Tigers had a big day with several bone-crushing tackles.
The group also picked up three interceptions with Perry picking off one pass and McGinnis pulling down the other two.
“I thought our secondary looked good,” Lee said.
Inside linebackers Lee Smith and Cody Smith both played well on defense.
“Both Cody and Lee run really well. They have had a great spring and summer preseason. We are looking for these two to be a force in the middle of our defense,” Lee said.
The Tigers were off Monday.
“It was the first day of school and I didn’t want to fight that battle. It will give a chance for our kids to rest. We will be back at work on Tuesday,” Lee said.
Dawson will play a scrimmage game against a quality opponent Aug. 19 at Greater Atlanta Christian in Norcross.
GAC has a new coach in Tim Cokely.
Cokely led North Florida Christian School to a state title in Florida last season.
Cokely has coached in Georgia before at Colquitt County. He was at Colquitt for two years.
The Spartans will either be in a 1-back or 2-back set, depending on how their quarterback performs in the preseason. If they are in 1-back they will throw the ball. If they are in 2-back it will probably be in the form of some kind of I-formation and they will run the ball more.
Kickoff for the GAC scrimmage game will be at 7:30 p.m.