August 29, 2024 • 25 mins
In this episode of Cobb Football Friday, the hosts Brian Giffin and sports writer John Bednarowski review the games from week two of the 2024 season. They discuss standout performances, close matchups, and upcoming games for week three. Some notable games include Pope's victory over Dunwoody, Harrison's comeback win against Wheeler, and Campbell's dominant win over South Forsyth. The hosts also preview the upcoming games for week three, highlighting matchups such as Etowah vs. Campbell, Harrison vs. North Paulding, and Marietta vs. McEachern.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Week Two Recap
01:36 Pope's Victory over Dunwoody
02:05 Harrison's Comeback Win against Wheeler
03:04 Campbell's Dominant Performance against South Forsyth
03:34 Alatuna's Close Win over South Paulding
04:44 North Cobb's Victory over McEachern
06:07 Sprayberry's Win against Etowah
09:10 Previewing Week Three
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
S1 (00:02):
From the Henssler financial studio. This is college football Friday.
Get the inside scoop on all the games.
S2 (00:10):
Wow. It is Football Friday and it's week three already
of the 2024 season. Brian Giffin with the sports editor
of the Marietta Daily Journal. The one, the only, the
irascible JB John Bednarowski. How do you like I dropped
in irascible on you?
S3 (00:26):
Yeah. If I only knew what it meant.
S2 (00:28):
I'll look it up when we're finished and I'll email
you the definition, but.
S3 (00:32):
Okay, I appreciate.
S2 (00:34):
That. An interesting week too, to look at. And by
the way, before we do look at it, I want
to remind folks that College Football Friday is presented by
Superior Plumbing. Otters chicken and Pinnacle Orthopedics. John, let's indeed
review week two. I look at your notes here that
you so nicely provide for me, since now I'm 300
(00:54):
miles away. I didn't used to be, but Pope knocks
off Dunwoody. Let's take a look at that one.
S3 (01:01):
Uh, yeah. That one caught a lot of people's attention.
Not just because Pope dropped 41, which I'm thinking that
or 47, actually, I think that's, uh, uh, a sign
that they're moving in the right direction. But the fact
that wide receiver John Stutzer, he had more than 300
(01:24):
yards of total offense, scored five touchdowns, three of them
on long touchdown passes. And then he picked up two
rushing touchdowns, too. So, well, I'll tell you what. He
had a huge night. And, uh, you know, Pope was
the benefactor.
S2 (01:42):
Yeah. No doubt. What a barnburner between Harrison and Wheeler,
a 35 to 34 ball game. What are your thoughts
on that one?
S3 (01:50):
Wheeler got out to a pretty big lead. Harrison came back.
We get into the fourth quarter. Uh, we were retakes
the lead, and Harrison gets one last drive. Xavier Hill, uh,
their quarterback, their first year quarterback. He was the receiver
(02:12):
and running back last year. He ran for 123 yards
and three touchdowns in the game. He led the winning drive. Took,
you know, like four minutes left Wheeler with about 30s
when he scored. Harrison got the big come from behind victory.
And they're two. And oh for new coach Luke Malone.
S2 (02:34):
Yeah no doubt. Interesting. 3534 games. Always going to be exciting.
It wasn't a game there was much suspense in as
Campbell literally ran all over South Forsyth 48 to 7.
S3 (02:47):
I'll tell you what. Jeffrey Phillips has something, uh, brewing
over there. Uh, two. And. Oh. Uh, for the first
time since, uh. Oh, it's gotta be five, six, seven
years since they started out two zero. Emilio Cervantes had
a 92 yard touchdown run. That was just one of
(03:09):
many for the Spartans, who set a new single game
rushing record. They had more than 500 yards rushing, and
they're going to try and go three and zero this week.
S2 (03:23):
Yeah. Wow. More than 500 yards in a game. That's a.
I think the last time I saw that was the
night that Kennesaw State did that at Liberty. 500 yards.
First time they ever beat Liberty. Moving on however, another
Barnburner another really close one Allatoona, to put it in
your words, outlasts South Paulding, 31 to 29. Another exciting one.
S3 (03:45):
Allatoona got got started early. Built the big lead, held on,
got the big win. And you know anytime Allatoona is
playing a team from Paulding County because literally across the
street from Allatoona High School in Paulding County. Right. So
all those teams are their rivals. Xavier Rucker, 176 yards
(04:10):
and three touchdowns. Allatoona gets the big win. And you
know we're going to see exactly how good they are
this week when they head to River Ridge.
S2 (04:22):
And then two teams I don't know I don't know
if the outcome is as surprising, actually, you and I
full confession had a discussion before we started this about
the North Cobb McEachern game. And I thought you put
it very well. North Cobb was very much North Cobb
and McEachern very much McEachern as the Warriors best. The
Indians 45 to 33.
S3 (04:43):
Yeah. And you know, I'm not trying to slight anybody
when we when we say that North Cobb played well
enough to win. But it's one of those where they
got up big early and then for some reason or
another were unable to put McEachern away, and McEachern actually
got pretty close there in the second half. I think
(05:04):
North Cobb may have gotten a late score to get
that thing back out, but Nick Grimstad. Good grief. Is
he off to a hot start? Uh, in the first
couple of weeks this past week, he throws for 313 yards.
He ran for 67. He accounted for five touchdowns in
the win. Uh, he has really taken that next step forward. And, uh,
(05:30):
North Cobb is, uh, you know, they may be a
little bit better than what everybody seemed to think coming in. Uh,
you know, they were not ranked as high in some
of these polls that maybe they should have been. And
they're playing with a little chip on their shoulder.
S2 (05:47):
Well, you know, another name in that game that I
think had a breakout performance and a guy I think
has a lot of upside, worked very well with Nick Grimstad.
That's Steele Ingram, who is really a solid athlete, good
baseball player, good track guy. I mean, then this guy
had a breakout game as a receiver. I mean, he
the two of them were a deadly tandem in that game.
S3 (06:08):
Well, whatever they did, they did. They need to continue
doing it because it's working.
S2 (06:13):
All right, let's move ahead. Sprayberry bested Etowah 31 to 17.
What are your thoughts on that one?
S3 (06:20):
You know, the Yellowjackets. It seemed like they struggled a
little bit early. Uh, they kind of traded the lead
with Etowah, uh, there. And they they finally took it
for good in the second half. Uh, you know, they're
two and. Oh. They scored 21 points in the third quarter. Uh,
(06:41):
Jayden Duckett is having really kind of a, you know,
if he keeps playing this way, it's going to be
his breakout season. He's really starting the quarterback from, uh, Sprayberry.
Jayden Duckett is really starting to get some looks. He's
gotten an offer from eastern Kentucky, if I'm not mistaken,
he's going down to take a visit to Georgia Southern
(07:04):
this weekend. So he is slowly but surely getting on
a lot of people's radar.
S2 (07:10):
Well, that's an interesting score. And then North Cobb Christian
and Mount Paran Christian both went on the road and
got big wins last week.
S3 (07:18):
Yeah. Mount Paran Christian went over to Mount Pisgah, which
is been a traditional rival. Got their first win of
the year, I think it was 17. 13 was the final.
North Cobb Christian, we got to see. You got to
find out a little bit. Uh, I think they won
with some grit because they went up to Darlington, up
(07:39):
in Rome. Darlington is a traditional playoff team, consistently makes
a deep run. And North Cobb Christian came away with
a 14 seven win.
S2 (07:53):
All right. Well that's kind of a look back at
what happened last week. We will step aside for a
break right here. This is Cobb football Friday I'm Brian
Giffen and as always with JB John Bednarowski, the sports
editor of the Marietta Daily Journal. We will be back
to take a look at this week's games. Right after
this time out.
S4 (08:11):
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S5 (09:06):
And we're back with more Kob Football Friday.
S2 (09:10):
And we are back on Kob Football Friday, week three
of this illustrious program. We call it illustrious because we're
the ones doing it after all. As we wind our
way into week three of the season, it's Brian, it's John,
and we're back with you and John. Let's dive right
into these. Etowah off to a bit of a tough
start to the season. And they're going to be at
Campbell trying to slow down a great rushing attack.
S3 (09:33):
Yeah Campbell can come at you with a number of guys.
It looks like they've got kind of a three headed
monster at running back. They've got, uh, Emilio Cervantes. They
got Henry, uh, Pullen, who had a huge game in
week one, and, uh, Ashton Gauthier. Uh, they are running
(09:54):
the ball. Like we said earlier, they they ran for
more than 500 yards. Oh, uh, the other night, uh,
Etowah comes in oh two. They played Sprayberry tough, but
they're still trying to figure some things out. They lost
quarterback Xavier Mahoney to a torn ACL for the second
(10:14):
straight season. You know, when you don't have your starting quarterback,
it takes a few weeks to get the job settled in. And,
you know, going into Campbell right now does not seem
like it's an easy task.
S2 (10:29):
It probably is an indictment of my age and a
confession of my age. But did you ever see A
Night at the Roxbury? Every time I see the name Emilio,
I think Emilio. Anyway. Moving on. Harrison at North Paulding. Sorry.
Harrison at North Paulding.
S3 (10:45):
You know, uh, I think this is going to be
Harrison's biggest test of the early season. Um, even though,
you know, it was a 3534 game against Wheeler, North
Paulding comes in one on one. They made the second
round of the playoffs last year. Uh, you know, this
used to be a region game not too long ago. Uh,
(11:09):
the teams, uh, you know, Harrison had won four straight
in the series until, uh, North Paulding won 2422. Uh,
last year. So we're going to see, you know, Harrison's
got a good shot to go three and oh, but
you know playing the Wolfpack on the road up at
North Paulding. It's not an easy place to play.
S2 (11:30):
Okay. And then moving on McIntosh is at Hillgrove. And Hillgrove,
who has struggled in recent years, is looking to improve
on a good start.
S3 (11:40):
Yeah. They won their opener two weeks ago up at
Mountain View. Uh and then immediately had an off week.
So uh, this should be uh, a game where they
show great improvement even over week one. They've had a
chance to say anybody got banged up and bruised. Try
and get them healthy. They're looking for their first two
(12:04):
zero start since 2019.
S2 (12:07):
Moving ahead. We look now at Marietta at McEachern. A
couple of teams, neither one of which has yet to
taste the win column. I like the contrast that you put.
Marietta scored a total of ten in a row and
two McEachern scored a total of 50. And they also
own two.
S3 (12:23):
Yeah, it's been a rough start for both teams, but
in different ways. Uh, you know Marietta, of course, they
they started out with Gainesville. That one didn't work out
so well. Um, West Paulding came in the other night
and took care of them. Uh, you know, they've scored
(12:44):
a grand total of ten points in the first two games.
They're having some trouble running the ball. The offensive line
is inconsistent. Um, it's been, uh, that way for the
last couple of years. Uh, you know Kimani Vidal, who
is the star of the 2019 state championship team. He
just made the LA Chargers final roster. I'll tell you what.
(13:10):
If he had any eligibility back left, I'm sure Marietta
would love to have him back there right now. Uh, McEachern.
Like we said, they've scored 50 points. They've been able
to move the ball up and down the field. Uh,
they haven't been able to stop anybody yet, right? So
this is going to be strength versus weakness and strength
(13:32):
versus weakness. Uh, in this game, I have a feeling.
And this one, you know, they say it's to figure
out who the real Ms. is. Um, you know, you
got to give McEachern a little bit of a nod
because they're playing at home this week.
S2 (13:49):
It's the resistible object against the immovable force. Kind of
the opposite of the old saying. How about drew at
South Cobb.
S3 (13:59):
Drew is a little bit of a smaller, uh, program. Uh,
they're coming into South Cobb, the Eagles. Uh, coach Marcus Harrison.
He's hoping to get his first one, uh, first win
at the head of South Cobb program. Uh, I think
this will be a good test for both teams. South
(14:21):
Cobb has got some athletes. Uh, they showed some promise, uh,
last week. Uh, let's see if they can get that
first win.
S2 (14:29):
All right. We talked a lot a little bit earlier
about North Cobb. They host East Coweta this week. That's
going to be an interesting one to watch. I think
East Coweta second week in a row. North Cobb is
taking on the Indians.
S3 (14:41):
Yes, that is true. Uh, you know, North Cobb rolled
up more than or almost 600 yards of offense against McEachern.
And we talked about Nick Grimstead a little bit. He's
already accounted for ten Touchdown over the first two weeks.
You know East Coweta playing down there with Newnan. I
(15:04):
believe they're in the region with Westlake and Carrollton and
some of those teams. They're no stranger to playing teams
in Cobb County. This should be a pretty good matchup
and one that North Cobb really has to take seriously,
because I'm sure that there is a little bit of
(15:24):
an emotional high. Beating McEachern. They are traditional rival. Now
they get East Coweta coming in. You don't want that. Uh,
don't want any kind of a letdown.
S2 (15:35):
All signs kind of point that at some point down
the road, North Cobb and Walton are going to end
up head to head again. Sound familiar? Speaking of Walton,
they are at Roswell, and this has all the earmarks of, well,
basically an explosive game on both sides.
S3 (15:50):
Could very well be, um, you know, this is the
first team meeting between the two teams in three years.
They were longtime region rivals and this will be the
35th meeting. Currently the series. All time series is tied 1717.
(16:11):
Roswell's won three of the last four, but Walton got
the one that was most recent. UB took Walton's offense
a little bit to get going last week against Lambert.
It was aided by a 100 yard interception return by
Alex Ward. The Ward brothers are really paying off big early. Uh,
(16:34):
this game could be, you know, 50 to 48. It
could also be, uh, 21 to 17. Regardless, this is
one of those games that you're going to want to watch.
S2 (16:47):
All right. And moving ahead, Wheeler wheels into north Atlanta.
You see what I did there?
S3 (16:52):
Yeah. The Wildcats are one of the strangest zero and
two teams. You know, I've seen in recent memory. You know,
they forfeited a game in week one because of the
weather when they were actually leading. And then they have
a one point loss to Harrison last week. Um, one thing,
(17:14):
Josiah Allen is off to a good start this year.
Last week he had 177 yards and two touchdowns against Harrison,
if I'm not mistaken, when they played North Atlanta last year.
Or it may have been the year before. But he's
had good luck against North Atlanta. I think he went
(17:36):
for like 260 something yards the last time they faced
each other. So uh, I think this is a good
opportunity for Wheeler to try and get in that win column.
S2 (17:47):
All right. And then the next one, we talked quite
a bit about Sprayberry earlier. Kennesaw mountain had a rough
year last year and didn't get off to a particularly
good start. What are your thoughts on them hosting Sprayberry
and the Yellow Jackets.
S3 (17:59):
For Sprayberry is looking for its second straight three and
zero start to a season. Jayden Duckett is leading the
way on offense. He threw for 265 yards and three
touchdowns last week. Uh Kennesaw Mountain. Uh, off to an
on one start. This is, uh, actually, I don't know
(18:21):
what you would call Kennesaw Mountain weather. It's a North
Cobb school or West Cobb school. Sprayberry is over there
in East Cobb. But this has been a traditional game. Uh,
they've played almost every season, although they've missed the last couple.
So it's good to get this game back. Uh, back
(18:43):
on the schedule. This is, uh, this is always a
fun one. And, you know, Sprayberry, uh, uh, they're playing
great defense. Uh Duckett.
S6 (18:57):
Yeah.
S3 (18:58):
It's very difficult to get him to stay in the pocket.
He's so mobile. And the better that he throws, the
more dangerous this team's going to be. Because now you're
not going to be able to tell. Is he going
to throw. Is he going to run right. Uh, I'm
really liking the way that the Yellow Jackets are starting
(19:18):
this season.
S2 (19:19):
All right. Moving to the next one on the docket.
Pope is at Cherokee.
S3 (19:25):
Now, this is going to be the first meeting between
these two schools since 2015. Cherokees won six of the
last seven back, uh, dating back to 2001. But I'll
tell you what, Hudson divine. Now, of course, he's getting
a lot of help from John Stetzer and JT way
and some of those guys. But he has really grown
(19:47):
into the quarterback's role. Had a big night the other night,
265 yards and three touchdowns. Um, I expect them to
just kind of turn it loose again this week. This
game could end up being one of those where they
need a calculator to keep score.
S2 (20:04):
All right. And then Sequoia is at Cal. And Cal
is an explosive bunch in their own right here the
first couple of weeks.
S3 (20:11):
Yeah Cal's averaging 40 points a game. Uh, they take
on the Chiefs who, believe it or not, are averaging 38.
And you know they're they're a team that is famous for, uh,
running the wing T. This is going to be a
fun contrast in styles between, uh, pair of undefeated teams.
S2 (20:32):
Yeah. The wing T boy. You don't hear it. I'll
tell you what though. Like the triple option it again.
If it's run right. It is a very effective offense.
And it's so unconventional in today's football, it's hard for
people to prepare for and account for everybody. That'll be
an interesting one to keep an eye on. Rounding out
these games were taking a closer look at Kahula Creek
is at North Cobb Christian. What are your thoughts on
(20:53):
this one? Now that I pronounced it? Uh, I hope right.
S3 (20:57):
Well, While Cahuilla Creek comes in on two, North Cobb
Christian is two and zero. And the significant thing about
this game is North Cobb. Christian becomes the first team
in Cobb County to begin region play. Uh, now that
they have consolidated, uh, and gotten rid of class seven, a, uh,
(21:19):
the region's, for the most part, are a little bit
more bunched up. Now they've got eight teams, 17 regions.
The the Non-region schedule is not nearly as long. North
Cobb Christian gets region play started this Friday.
S2 (21:35):
All right. In the other games on the schedule, Allatoona
at River Ridge. Lithia Springs is at Pebblebrook, Lassiter is
at Northview, Saint Francis at Mount Paran, and Dominion Christian
is at Walker. John, I want to give you the
opportunity to let folks know where they can get a
copy of kickoff 24. I know there's still plenty of
them around.
S3 (21:54):
Well, you know, we've got we've got a number of
copies still available down at the office. It seems like
people are pretty happy about them. Uh, you know, and
if they're happy, we're happy. That's all I can tell you. Um,
and of course, you know, in addition to that, make
sure everybody is following us on Twitter at Cob Football Friday. Uh,
(22:17):
live score updates while you're at the game. If you're
at home, you're following along. We've got the live scoreboard
at Cob Football Friday. And then, of course, you know,
we've got the, uh, the weekly preview issue, uh, that
comes out Friday morning with all the game previews and
(22:39):
statistics and standings and all the fun stuff that we do.
So if you're trying to follow Cobb County High School football,
we're the place to be.
S2 (22:49):
Yeah, no question about that, John. It's always good to
be with you. And obviously it's an intriguing week three.
This is opening week for me. The college level where
I am working. So I have a Saturday evening game,
which means I will have the opportunity to listen to
the North Cobb game against East Coweta. So I'll be
able to keep some track. And you know, the other
thing is I can always leave one of the devices
(23:09):
on Cobb Football Friday also and follow along.
S3 (23:12):
I'll tell you what. While you're getting your schedule started
over there at the Citadel, the old, uh, team that
you used to call for Kennesaw State gets started 330
Saturday afternoon. They are now an FBS program. They open
the season at, uh, UTSA out in San Antonio. They're
(23:35):
going to play in the Alamodome. Uh, as of right now,
they are only 25 point underdogs, but I think they
will play much better than what the oddsmakers think. I
think they're going to find some early success. One of
the things that we talked about, I was at their,
(23:55):
uh Season opening press conference on Monday. Uh, you know,
this is the first time in almost two years that
Coach Brian Bohannon is going to have the entire team
playing on the same date. You know, last year they
were trying to redshirt all these guys. Uh, limit them
(24:16):
to four games. So they were playing mix and match.
I think they're going to be better than a lot
of people think.
S2 (24:23):
Well, we'll certainly find out. I'm still struggling to imagine
Coach Bo not just married to that triple option, or
that was kind of a dyed in the wool thing
for him. So kudos to him that he has had
to and has adapted away from it, I guess.
S3 (24:37):
Well, you know, it's the pistol offense. And for the
first time, uh, you know, arguably the greatest player in
Kennesaw State history, former quarterback Chandler Burke is now the
co-offensive coordinator, and he's the one that's going to be
calling the plays, so we're looking forward to seeing how
(25:00):
he handles it. One of the youngest offensive coordinators in
the country at age 28.
S2 (25:06):
Yeah. No kidding. Hard to believe it's been that long
since he played. What a fun start to that program
it was. John. Thanks as always my friend. We'll look
forward to doing this next week and hopefully there will
be a whole bunch of wins you want to talk about.
And I'll have my first one here. Now that I've
been here a year that I get to talk about,
it's coming. All right. John, that is John Bednarowski, the
sports editor of the Marietta Daily Journal. This is college
(25:29):
football Friday. I'm Brian Giffin. One more shout out to
Superior Plumbing, otters chicken as well as Pinnacle Orthopedics for
bringing you this program. We have so much fun with
every week and we will look forward to talking to
you next week. Everybody enjoy the games.
S1 (25:43):
You've been listening to College Football Friday, a presentation of
the Marietta Daily Journal, and the BG ad Group.
From the Henssler financial studio. This is college football Friday.
Get the inside scoop on all the games.
S2 (00:10):
Wow. It is Football Friday and it's week three already
of the 2024 season. Brian Giffin with the sports editor
of the Marietta Daily Journal. The one, the only, the
irascible JB John Bednarowski. How do you like I dropped
in irascible on you?
S3 (00:26):
Yeah. If I only knew what it meant.
S2 (00:28):
I'll look it up when we're finished and I'll email
you the definition, but.
S3 (00:32):
Okay, I appreciate.
S2 (00:34):
That. An interesting week too, to look at. And by
the way, before we do look at it, I want
to remind folks that College Football Friday is presented by
Superior Plumbing. Otters chicken and Pinnacle Orthopedics. John, let's indeed
review week two. I look at your notes here that
you so nicely provide for me, since now I'm 300
(00:54):
miles away. I didn't used to be, but Pope knocks
off Dunwoody. Let's take a look at that one.
S3 (01:01):
Uh, yeah. That one caught a lot of people's attention.
Not just because Pope dropped 41, which I'm thinking that
or 47, actually, I think that's, uh, uh, a sign
that they're moving in the right direction. But the fact
that wide receiver John Stutzer, he had more than 300
(01:24):
yards of total offense, scored five touchdowns, three of them
on long touchdown passes. And then he picked up two
rushing touchdowns, too. So, well, I'll tell you what. He
had a huge night. And, uh, you know, Pope was
the benefactor.
S2 (01:42):
Yeah. No doubt. What a barnburner between Harrison and Wheeler,
a 35 to 34 ball game. What are your thoughts
on that one?
S3 (01:50):
Wheeler got out to a pretty big lead. Harrison came back.
We get into the fourth quarter. Uh, we were retakes
the lead, and Harrison gets one last drive. Xavier Hill, uh,
their quarterback, their first year quarterback. He was the receiver
(02:12):
and running back last year. He ran for 123 yards
and three touchdowns in the game. He led the winning drive. Took,
you know, like four minutes left Wheeler with about 30s
when he scored. Harrison got the big come from behind victory.
And they're two. And oh for new coach Luke Malone.
S2 (02:34):
Yeah no doubt. Interesting. 3534 games. Always going to be exciting.
It wasn't a game there was much suspense in as
Campbell literally ran all over South Forsyth 48 to 7.
S3 (02:47):
I'll tell you what. Jeffrey Phillips has something, uh, brewing
over there. Uh, two. And. Oh. Uh, for the first
time since, uh. Oh, it's gotta be five, six, seven
years since they started out two zero. Emilio Cervantes had
a 92 yard touchdown run. That was just one of
(03:09):
many for the Spartans, who set a new single game
rushing record. They had more than 500 yards rushing, and
they're going to try and go three and zero this week.
S2 (03:23):
Yeah. Wow. More than 500 yards in a game. That's a.
I think the last time I saw that was the
night that Kennesaw State did that at Liberty. 500 yards.
First time they ever beat Liberty. Moving on however, another
Barnburner another really close one Allatoona, to put it in
your words, outlasts South Paulding, 31 to 29. Another exciting one.
S3 (03:45):
Allatoona got got started early. Built the big lead, held on,
got the big win. And you know anytime Allatoona is
playing a team from Paulding County because literally across the
street from Allatoona High School in Paulding County. Right. So
all those teams are their rivals. Xavier Rucker, 176 yards
(04:10):
and three touchdowns. Allatoona gets the big win. And you
know we're going to see exactly how good they are
this week when they head to River Ridge.
S2 (04:22):
And then two teams I don't know I don't know
if the outcome is as surprising, actually, you and I
full confession had a discussion before we started this about
the North Cobb McEachern game. And I thought you put
it very well. North Cobb was very much North Cobb
and McEachern very much McEachern as the Warriors best. The
Indians 45 to 33.
S3 (04:43):
Yeah. And you know, I'm not trying to slight anybody
when we when we say that North Cobb played well
enough to win. But it's one of those where they
got up big early and then for some reason or
another were unable to put McEachern away, and McEachern actually
got pretty close there in the second half. I think
(05:04):
North Cobb may have gotten a late score to get
that thing back out, but Nick Grimstad. Good grief. Is
he off to a hot start? Uh, in the first
couple of weeks this past week, he throws for 313 yards.
He ran for 67. He accounted for five touchdowns in
the win. Uh, he has really taken that next step forward. And, uh,
(05:30):
North Cobb is, uh, you know, they may be a
little bit better than what everybody seemed to think coming in. Uh,
you know, they were not ranked as high in some
of these polls that maybe they should have been. And
they're playing with a little chip on their shoulder.
S2 (05:47):
Well, you know, another name in that game that I
think had a breakout performance and a guy I think
has a lot of upside, worked very well with Nick Grimstad.
That's Steele Ingram, who is really a solid athlete, good
baseball player, good track guy. I mean, then this guy
had a breakout game as a receiver. I mean, he
the two of them were a deadly tandem in that game.
S3 (06:08):
Well, whatever they did, they did. They need to continue
doing it because it's working.
S2 (06:13):
All right, let's move ahead. Sprayberry bested Etowah 31 to 17.
What are your thoughts on that one?
S3 (06:20):
You know, the Yellowjackets. It seemed like they struggled a
little bit early. Uh, they kind of traded the lead
with Etowah, uh, there. And they they finally took it
for good in the second half. Uh, you know, they're
two and. Oh. They scored 21 points in the third quarter. Uh,
(06:41):
Jayden Duckett is having really kind of a, you know,
if he keeps playing this way, it's going to be
his breakout season. He's really starting the quarterback from, uh, Sprayberry.
Jayden Duckett is really starting to get some looks. He's
gotten an offer from eastern Kentucky, if I'm not mistaken,
he's going down to take a visit to Georgia Southern
(07:04):
this weekend. So he is slowly but surely getting on
a lot of people's radar.
S2 (07:10):
Well, that's an interesting score. And then North Cobb Christian
and Mount Paran Christian both went on the road and
got big wins last week.
S3 (07:18):
Yeah. Mount Paran Christian went over to Mount Pisgah, which
is been a traditional rival. Got their first win of
the year, I think it was 17. 13 was the final.
North Cobb Christian, we got to see. You got to
find out a little bit. Uh, I think they won
with some grit because they went up to Darlington, up
(07:39):
in Rome. Darlington is a traditional playoff team, consistently makes
a deep run. And North Cobb Christian came away with
a 14 seven win.
S2 (07:53):
All right. Well that's kind of a look back at
what happened last week. We will step aside for a
break right here. This is Cobb football Friday I'm Brian
Giffen and as always with JB John Bednarowski, the sports
editor of the Marietta Daily Journal. We will be back
to take a look at this week's games. Right after
this time out.
S4 (08:11):
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S5 (09:06):
And we're back with more Kob Football Friday.
S2 (09:10):
And we are back on Kob Football Friday, week three
of this illustrious program. We call it illustrious because we're
the ones doing it after all. As we wind our
way into week three of the season, it's Brian, it's John,
and we're back with you and John. Let's dive right
into these. Etowah off to a bit of a tough
start to the season. And they're going to be at
Campbell trying to slow down a great rushing attack.
S3 (09:33):
Yeah Campbell can come at you with a number of guys.
It looks like they've got kind of a three headed
monster at running back. They've got, uh, Emilio Cervantes. They
got Henry, uh, Pullen, who had a huge game in
week one, and, uh, Ashton Gauthier. Uh, they are running
(09:54):
the ball. Like we said earlier, they they ran for
more than 500 yards. Oh, uh, the other night, uh,
Etowah comes in oh two. They played Sprayberry tough, but
they're still trying to figure some things out. They lost
quarterback Xavier Mahoney to a torn ACL for the second
(10:14):
straight season. You know, when you don't have your starting quarterback,
it takes a few weeks to get the job settled in. And,
you know, going into Campbell right now does not seem
like it's an easy task.
S2 (10:29):
It probably is an indictment of my age and a
confession of my age. But did you ever see A
Night at the Roxbury? Every time I see the name Emilio,
I think Emilio. Anyway. Moving on. Harrison at North Paulding. Sorry.
Harrison at North Paulding.
S3 (10:45):
You know, uh, I think this is going to be
Harrison's biggest test of the early season. Um, even though,
you know, it was a 3534 game against Wheeler, North
Paulding comes in one on one. They made the second
round of the playoffs last year. Uh, you know, this
used to be a region game not too long ago. Uh,
(11:09):
the teams, uh, you know, Harrison had won four straight
in the series until, uh, North Paulding won 2422. Uh,
last year. So we're going to see, you know, Harrison's
got a good shot to go three and oh, but
you know playing the Wolfpack on the road up at
North Paulding. It's not an easy place to play.
S2 (11:30):
Okay. And then moving on McIntosh is at Hillgrove. And Hillgrove,
who has struggled in recent years, is looking to improve
on a good start.
S3 (11:40):
Yeah. They won their opener two weeks ago up at
Mountain View. Uh and then immediately had an off week.
So uh, this should be uh, a game where they
show great improvement even over week one. They've had a
chance to say anybody got banged up and bruised. Try
and get them healthy. They're looking for their first two
(12:04):
zero start since 2019.
S2 (12:07):
Moving ahead. We look now at Marietta at McEachern. A
couple of teams, neither one of which has yet to
taste the win column. I like the contrast that you put.
Marietta scored a total of ten in a row and
two McEachern scored a total of 50. And they also
own two.
S3 (12:23):
Yeah, it's been a rough start for both teams, but
in different ways. Uh, you know Marietta, of course, they
they started out with Gainesville. That one didn't work out
so well. Um, West Paulding came in the other night
and took care of them. Uh, you know, they've scored
(12:44):
a grand total of ten points in the first two games.
They're having some trouble running the ball. The offensive line
is inconsistent. Um, it's been, uh, that way for the
last couple of years. Uh, you know Kimani Vidal, who
is the star of the 2019 state championship team. He
just made the LA Chargers final roster. I'll tell you what.
(13:10):
If he had any eligibility back left, I'm sure Marietta
would love to have him back there right now. Uh, McEachern.
Like we said, they've scored 50 points. They've been able
to move the ball up and down the field. Uh,
they haven't been able to stop anybody yet, right? So
this is going to be strength versus weakness and strength
(13:32):
versus weakness. Uh, in this game, I have a feeling.
And this one, you know, they say it's to figure
out who the real Ms. is. Um, you know, you
got to give McEachern a little bit of a nod
because they're playing at home this week.
S2 (13:49):
It's the resistible object against the immovable force. Kind of
the opposite of the old saying. How about drew at
South Cobb.
S3 (13:59):
Drew is a little bit of a smaller, uh, program. Uh,
they're coming into South Cobb, the Eagles. Uh, coach Marcus Harrison.
He's hoping to get his first one, uh, first win
at the head of South Cobb program. Uh, I think
this will be a good test for both teams. South
(14:21):
Cobb has got some athletes. Uh, they showed some promise, uh,
last week. Uh, let's see if they can get that
first win.
S2 (14:29):
All right. We talked a lot a little bit earlier
about North Cobb. They host East Coweta this week. That's
going to be an interesting one to watch. I think
East Coweta second week in a row. North Cobb is
taking on the Indians.
S3 (14:41):
Yes, that is true. Uh, you know, North Cobb rolled
up more than or almost 600 yards of offense against McEachern.
And we talked about Nick Grimstead a little bit. He's
already accounted for ten Touchdown over the first two weeks.
You know East Coweta playing down there with Newnan. I
(15:04):
believe they're in the region with Westlake and Carrollton and
some of those teams. They're no stranger to playing teams
in Cobb County. This should be a pretty good matchup
and one that North Cobb really has to take seriously,
because I'm sure that there is a little bit of
(15:24):
an emotional high. Beating McEachern. They are traditional rival. Now
they get East Coweta coming in. You don't want that. Uh,
don't want any kind of a letdown.
S2 (15:35):
All signs kind of point that at some point down
the road, North Cobb and Walton are going to end
up head to head again. Sound familiar? Speaking of Walton,
they are at Roswell, and this has all the earmarks of, well,
basically an explosive game on both sides.
S3 (15:50):
Could very well be, um, you know, this is the
first team meeting between the two teams in three years.
They were longtime region rivals and this will be the
35th meeting. Currently the series. All time series is tied 1717.
(16:11):
Roswell's won three of the last four, but Walton got
the one that was most recent. UB took Walton's offense
a little bit to get going last week against Lambert.
It was aided by a 100 yard interception return by
Alex Ward. The Ward brothers are really paying off big early. Uh,
(16:34):
this game could be, you know, 50 to 48. It
could also be, uh, 21 to 17. Regardless, this is
one of those games that you're going to want to watch.
S2 (16:47):
All right. And moving ahead, Wheeler wheels into north Atlanta.
You see what I did there?
S3 (16:52):
Yeah. The Wildcats are one of the strangest zero and
two teams. You know, I've seen in recent memory. You know,
they forfeited a game in week one because of the
weather when they were actually leading. And then they have
a one point loss to Harrison last week. Um, one thing,
(17:14):
Josiah Allen is off to a good start this year.
Last week he had 177 yards and two touchdowns against Harrison,
if I'm not mistaken, when they played North Atlanta last year.
Or it may have been the year before. But he's
had good luck against North Atlanta. I think he went
(17:36):
for like 260 something yards the last time they faced
each other. So uh, I think this is a good
opportunity for Wheeler to try and get in that win column.
S2 (17:47):
All right. And then the next one, we talked quite
a bit about Sprayberry earlier. Kennesaw mountain had a rough
year last year and didn't get off to a particularly
good start. What are your thoughts on them hosting Sprayberry
and the Yellow Jackets.
S3 (17:59):
For Sprayberry is looking for its second straight three and
zero start to a season. Jayden Duckett is leading the
way on offense. He threw for 265 yards and three
touchdowns last week. Uh Kennesaw Mountain. Uh, off to an
on one start. This is, uh, actually, I don't know
(18:21):
what you would call Kennesaw Mountain weather. It's a North
Cobb school or West Cobb school. Sprayberry is over there
in East Cobb. But this has been a traditional game. Uh,
they've played almost every season, although they've missed the last couple.
So it's good to get this game back. Uh, back
(18:43):
on the schedule. This is, uh, this is always a
fun one. And, you know, Sprayberry, uh, uh, they're playing
great defense. Uh Duckett.
S6 (18:57):
Yeah.
S3 (18:58):
It's very difficult to get him to stay in the pocket.
He's so mobile. And the better that he throws, the
more dangerous this team's going to be. Because now you're
not going to be able to tell. Is he going
to throw. Is he going to run right. Uh, I'm
really liking the way that the Yellow Jackets are starting
(19:18):
this season.
S2 (19:19):
All right. Moving to the next one on the docket.
Pope is at Cherokee.
S3 (19:25):
Now, this is going to be the first meeting between
these two schools since 2015. Cherokees won six of the
last seven back, uh, dating back to 2001. But I'll
tell you what, Hudson divine. Now, of course, he's getting
a lot of help from John Stetzer and JT way
and some of those guys. But he has really grown
(19:47):
into the quarterback's role. Had a big night the other night,
265 yards and three touchdowns. Um, I expect them to
just kind of turn it loose again this week. This
game could end up being one of those where they
need a calculator to keep score.
S2 (20:04):
All right. And then Sequoia is at Cal. And Cal
is an explosive bunch in their own right here the
first couple of weeks.
S3 (20:11):
Yeah Cal's averaging 40 points a game. Uh, they take
on the Chiefs who, believe it or not, are averaging 38.
And you know they're they're a team that is famous for, uh,
running the wing T. This is going to be a
fun contrast in styles between, uh, pair of undefeated teams.
S2 (20:32):
Yeah. The wing T boy. You don't hear it. I'll
tell you what though. Like the triple option it again.
If it's run right. It is a very effective offense.
And it's so unconventional in today's football, it's hard for
people to prepare for and account for everybody. That'll be
an interesting one to keep an eye on. Rounding out
these games were taking a closer look at Kahula Creek
is at North Cobb Christian. What are your thoughts on
(20:53):
this one? Now that I pronounced it? Uh, I hope right.
S3 (20:57):
Well, While Cahuilla Creek comes in on two, North Cobb
Christian is two and zero. And the significant thing about
this game is North Cobb. Christian becomes the first team
in Cobb County to begin region play. Uh, now that
they have consolidated, uh, and gotten rid of class seven, a, uh,
(21:19):
the region's, for the most part, are a little bit
more bunched up. Now they've got eight teams, 17 regions.
The the Non-region schedule is not nearly as long. North
Cobb Christian gets region play started this Friday.
S2 (21:35):
All right. In the other games on the schedule, Allatoona
at River Ridge. Lithia Springs is at Pebblebrook, Lassiter is
at Northview, Saint Francis at Mount Paran, and Dominion Christian
is at Walker. John, I want to give you the
opportunity to let folks know where they can get a
copy of kickoff 24. I know there's still plenty of
them around.
S3 (21:54):
Well, you know, we've got we've got a number of
copies still available down at the office. It seems like
people are pretty happy about them. Uh, you know, and
if they're happy, we're happy. That's all I can tell you. Um,
and of course, you know, in addition to that, make
sure everybody is following us on Twitter at Cob Football Friday. Uh,
(22:17):
live score updates while you're at the game. If you're
at home, you're following along. We've got the live scoreboard
at Cob Football Friday. And then, of course, you know,
we've got the, uh, the weekly preview issue, uh, that
comes out Friday morning with all the game previews and
(22:39):
statistics and standings and all the fun stuff that we do.
So if you're trying to follow Cobb County High School football,
we're the place to be.
S2 (22:49):
Yeah, no question about that, John. It's always good to
be with you. And obviously it's an intriguing week three.
This is opening week for me. The college level where
I am working. So I have a Saturday evening game,
which means I will have the opportunity to listen to
the North Cobb game against East Coweta. So I'll be
able to keep some track. And you know, the other
thing is I can always leave one of the devices
(23:09):
on Cobb Football Friday also and follow along.
S3 (23:12):
I'll tell you what. While you're getting your schedule started
over there at the Citadel, the old, uh, team that
you used to call for Kennesaw State gets started 330
Saturday afternoon. They are now an FBS program. They open
the season at, uh, UTSA out in San Antonio. They're
(23:35):
going to play in the Alamodome. Uh, as of right now,
they are only 25 point underdogs, but I think they
will play much better than what the oddsmakers think. I
think they're going to find some early success. One of
the things that we talked about, I was at their,
(23:55):
uh Season opening press conference on Monday. Uh, you know,
this is the first time in almost two years that
Coach Brian Bohannon is going to have the entire team
playing on the same date. You know, last year they
were trying to redshirt all these guys. Uh, limit them
(24:16):
to four games. So they were playing mix and match.
I think they're going to be better than a lot
of people think.
S2 (24:23):
Well, we'll certainly find out. I'm still struggling to imagine
Coach Bo not just married to that triple option, or
that was kind of a dyed in the wool thing
for him. So kudos to him that he has had
to and has adapted away from it, I guess.
S3 (24:37):
Well, you know, it's the pistol offense. And for the
first time, uh, you know, arguably the greatest player in
Kennesaw State history, former quarterback Chandler Burke is now the
co-offensive coordinator, and he's the one that's going to be
calling the plays, so we're looking forward to seeing how
(25:00):
he handles it. One of the youngest offensive coordinators in
the country at age 28.
S2 (25:06):
Yeah. No kidding. Hard to believe it's been that long
since he played. What a fun start to that program
it was. John. Thanks as always my friend. We'll look
forward to doing this next week and hopefully there will
be a whole bunch of wins you want to talk about.
And I'll have my first one here. Now that I've
been here a year that I get to talk about,
it's coming. All right. John, that is John Bednarowski, the
sports editor of the Marietta Daily Journal. This is college
(25:29):
football Friday. I'm Brian Giffin. One more shout out to
Superior Plumbing, otters chicken as well as Pinnacle Orthopedics for
bringing you this program. We have so much fun with
every week and we will look forward to talking to
you next week. Everybody enjoy the games.
S1 (25:43):
You've been listening to College Football Friday, a presentation of
the Marietta Daily Journal, and the BG ad Group.
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