VALDOSTA — Second place will be on the line tonight, when the Valdosta Wildcats host the Coffee Trojans.
Barring a collapse, Lowndes probably has the Region 1-AAAAA championship wrapped up. So the Wildcats (6-2, 3-1 region) will be going for the next-best thing. Whoever wins tonight’s 8 p.m. game at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium will clinch second place in the region.
“This is a big game,” Valdosta head coach Rick Tomberlin said. “We’ve got another tough opponent in Coffee.”
Tomberlin quickly admits that beating the Trojans will not be easy. Like many people who’ve seen Coffee, Valdosta’s coach is very impressed with them.
“They’re the biggest high school football team I’ve ever seen,” Tomberlin said. “Coach (Bryan) Way at Warner Robins thought they had the best athletes in the region. They definitely have the biggest athletes in the region. (Their lines) might be bigger than Valdosta State’s. And they’re not only big, they’re good athletes.
“They’re 7-1. They were ranked No. 2 in the state earlier in the year, before Lowndes beat them. In the spring, the college coaches said they were loaded, and that’s a pretty good indication.”
Coffee has several college prospects. The most highly-touted is B.J. Brand, a 6-foot-4, 324-pound offensive lineman who has committed to Georgia.
“It seems like every time a college scout comes by here, they’re going there, too,” Tomberlin said. “They’re looking at a lineman, or a linebacker or a running back. The quarterback (Burke Batten) is a good player, so is their big, tall receiver (Demario Bennett), and that gigantic offensive line. (Brand) is an outstanding lineman. Defensively, No. 7 (Fred Moore) and No. 90 (Demario Paulk) are real good players who get after you.”
Coffee runs a unique offense, called the “Wing-and-Chuck,” that mixes the wing-T with the option and a passing attack. They move the ball behind a big offensive line with four starters that weigh at least 250 pounds.
“They’ve got a lot of talent coming through there right now,” Tomberlin said. “They’ve got the best athletes in the region. They’ve got the No. 1 offense in the region. I think they’re as good as advertised. It’s a diversified offense. They’re not a typical wing-T team. When I think of their offense, they’re throwing the ball and running the option.”
They won’t have All-Region running back Melvin Loving, who is hurt and will not play.
Defensively, the Trojans run a 4-4 front. Moore and Paulk are both college prospects, and the secondary is quick.
“They run a multiple 4-4 defense,” Tomberlin said. “They use different looks, but basically, it’s a 4-4 or a 4-3. They generally have a three-deep secondary, but also use some two-deep and some man-to-man.”
Tomberlin says the Wildcats need to play well in order to win.
“We need to get a good start,” Tomberlin said. “We can’t get behind. We’ve got to make big plays. We can’t get penalties at inopportune times, like we have recently, or sacks. We can’t turn the ball over. We’ve got to have some people step up and make some plays. Our defense has to play real well. We can’t make mistakes in the kicking game, either.
“We need all the Wildcats to come out and support us tonight. This is a big game, and we need all the support we can get.”
For 77 years, these teams’ rivalry was as lopsided as any in the state. From 1924-2001, Valdosta was 32-0 against Coffee. But things have changed. The Trojans have won three of their last five against VHS, and each of the past two. A year ago, the teams were scoreless for three quarters, but Coffee scored twice in the fourth quarter to win 14-0.
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Wildcats battle Trojans
Valdosta, Coffee look to secure second place in Region 1-AAAAA
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