VALDOSTA —
Tonight, the Valdosta Wildcats will put on their uniforms and compete for the first time in 2012.
The Wildcats will travel to Waycross today to play Ware County in their preseason scrimmage. Kickoff at Waycross Memorial Stadium will come at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the gate.
The two schools’ varsity squads will play most of the scrimmage, but the junior varsity players will also get some snaps.
Because Ware has not played a game this year, Gillespie does not know a lot about the Gators. But he knows Ware head coach Ed Dudley and he knows how good Ware usually is. So he is expecting a challenge from the Gators tonight.
“I know Coach Dudley, and I know that they’re going to be well coached and that they will have a good football team,” Gillespie said. “They always do.”
Valdosta began scrimmaging Ware County in 2010, Gillespie’s first season with the Wildcats. The Wildcats’ coach likes scrimmaging Ware, feeling the Gators provide a good test for his team.
“I think it’s a good, competitive scrimmage,” Gillespie said. “Proximity is another factor, of course. It’s easy travel for our fans. It’s just a good fit. (Scrimmaging Ware) has just worked out really nice for us for the past two years.
“We like going against them. They’re a fine football team. If there’s things that we need to work on, those things will be exposed.”
Valdosta and Ware were region rivals for several years, and Valdosta played Waycross High many times before Waycross and Ware County merged in the early 1990s. The Wildcats have won 12 of 14 regular season meetings with the Gators.
The two teams have split their two scrimmages the past two years, with both teams winning on the other team’s home field. Last year, Ware beat Valdosta 24-7 at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium.
Gillespie says that there are plenty of things that his team still needs to work on. But he also says the Wildcats have gotten much better since fall practice began.
“We’ve gotten a lot better. There’s no question about that,” Gillespie said. “There’s still a lot of things that we need to improve on. But I don’t think there’s any question we’re a better football team than we were on Aug. 1.”
After scrimmaging Ware tonight, the Wildcats will not play again until Sept. 1, when they open their regular season against North Augusta (S.C.) in a kickoff classic at North Gwinnett High School in Suwanee.
Last year, Valdosta and Ware scrimmaged on Aug. 12. This year, the scrimmage is on the 17th, which means the Wildcats have had a few extra days to practice. And in the past, Valdosta played a game the week after its scrimmage. This year, Gillespie likes having an extra week off before the first game.
“That’s a good thing for us. The last two years, it’s been kind of tough, because really you came out of camp, and you went straight into your scrimmage week,” Gillespie said. “This year, it’s a little bit better, because you come out of camp and you get the (full week of practice) and now you go into your scrimmage and then you still get the off week before you play your first game. It times out well for us. I like the structure of the summer a little bit better.
“I don’t know that we were ready to scrimmage when we did last year. This year, I feel like we’re closer to being ready to play against someone else.”
Directions to Waycross Memorial Stadium: Take U.S. 84 east from Valdosta to Waycross. In Waycross, take U.S. 84 into downtown. Turn right onto Memorial Drive (U.S. 1/U.S. 23). Go about 1/2 mile. The stadium is on the left.
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Valdosta High quarterback Shelby Wilkes throws a pass during a preseason practice earlier this month. Wilkes will lead the Wildcats into Ware County to face the Gators in preseason action tonight. Christian Malone | The Valdosta Daily Times
Discussion
’Cats head to Waycross
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