JEFFERSON, Ga. — It must take quite a bit to impress Jefferson coach Travis Noland.
Admittedly, he’s seen a lot in his nearly 30 years of coaching in North Carolina and Georgia. His standards apparently are very high.
Jefferson (11-1) is the top-seeded team in Class 3A. Their only loss was to Class 4A defending champion North Oconee on a night when their star linebacker/running back Max Brown was knocked out for the season on the opening play. They were humbled in a 35-0 loss at Memorial Stadium.
But since then, they have reeled off what has looked like an impressive seven straight wins by a total 284-69 margin. Two of those wins have been huge routs in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
Still, Noland took the modest approach.
“We don’t have very many superstars, and statistically we’re not a really impressive team from what the media thinks is impressive,” he said. “But we’ve just been very consistent in how we’re playing. We’re just a really solid team.”
Well, football is the ultimate team sport we’re told. If they could choose just one, most coaches would probably take a solid, cohesive team over a dysfunctional group of superstars.
On Friday, the Region 8-3A champion Dragons will put that theory to the test once again, playing host to No. 9 seed Cairo. The Region 1-3A champion Syrupmakers (10-2) have been impressive in their own right, reeling off 10 straight wins behind a defense that has allowed just 123 points (12.3 points/game) during the run.
Both teams are similar in that they give up little on the defensive side while wearing down opponents with punishing ground games. Jefferson’s best win came over Class 5A Jackson County (10-3) in Week 2. The Syrupmakers knocked off then No. 2-ranked Peach County (38-31) for the eventual region title late in the season.
But Noland said that Cairo has something not even North Oconee possessed. And it figures to play a prominent role in who moves on to the semifinals.
“Cairo is probably as fast a team as I’ve ever faced as a head coach,” he said. “They’ve got so much speed. They pose a lot of problems for us.
“We have to try to limit their big plays. We’ve got to be very, very solid in every aspect of the game. It’s going to be a huge challenge for us this week.”
Jefferson has recorded 65 TFLs on the season to go with 18 turnovers, including 6 fumble recoveries. When Brown, a Clemson-commit, went down, he was leading the team in rushing and tackles. But who would step up on the defensive side was the bigger question.
Junior brothers Dylan Berardinelli (linebacker) and Jacob Berardinelli (cornerback) have filled the void on the defense. Dylan leads the team with 82 tackles while Jacob is second with 76. They have 10 TFLs combined. Senior DB Chance Payne, a Minnesota commit, and junior safety Shyne Parham are tied with 3 INTs each and have combined for 67 tackles to lead the secondary.
“Those guys have all played well and Dylan, he’s grown as a player as the year has gone on,” Noland said. “Really proud of all these guys who have had to overcome some adversity this year. Again, just a good solid group of players who are playing well together.”
But sometimes the best defense is a good offense. And the Dragons ability to grind out things on the ground may be another huge key. Brown’s untimely injury helped open the door to find perhaps the area’s best freshman in running back CJ Hays.
In Brown’s absence, Hays has piled up 761 yards and 7 TDs on 100 carries in just six games, with three 100-yard games. But the rushing attack is more than just one guy.
Senior quarterback Colton Grant has added 361 yards and 9 TDs while also throwing for 758 yards and 5 more scores to give them just enough balance to get teams to back off the line and create opportunities on the ground. Darren Pinkard (26-183 yards, 5 TD) has also assumed a bigger role in the backfield of late while Hays has nursed an injury of his own.
“Again, just a group of guys who are playing well together,” Noland said. “We’ve been very consistent (on the offensive line) and Coach Michael Brown does an unbelievable job with those guys. Everybody’s just playing a role and doing what they can do to try to help us be successful.”
Grinding out drives is the road map to the semifinals. But Noland also said things never go exactly as planned.
“That’s what we’d like to do, but that’s easier said than done, especially against a group as good as Cairo,” he said. “Sometimes those long drives are a result of short drives early, and it’s trying to give yourself a chance to lean on them and wear them down.
“(Cairo) creates a lot of points in the kicking game, whether it’s a punt return, kickoff return, blocking a punt, blocking a field goal. They can do it all, which is a result of their length and speed. So, we’ve got to really focus on the things that we try to do, and do them really, really well in order to have a chance.”
That’s where having homefield advantage throughout the playoffs can sometimes be a key factor. And Memorial Stadium, when rocking, is as tough a place for visiting teams as anywhere in the state.
Noland said they will need all the help they can get from Dragon Nation. Jefferson is 15-1 at Memorial Stadium the past two seasons, with the lone loss coming to North Oconee.
“We really need them this week,” he said. “It’s the holidays, and people do have other things to do. But this is going to be a really tough challenge for us, and we just need them to be there and be supportive and be loud and get behind our program.”
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