VALDOSTA — Clinch County doesn’t return its entire state championship team.

But when the Panthers begin to defend their Class A public state championship next fall, they will return more than 98 percent of its high-powered rushing attack.

After a 13-1 finish that included a 24-7 title game win against region rival Irwin County at the Georgia Dome on Dec. 11, Clinch must replace three offensive lineman, a pair of linebackers and four-star Georgia recruit Chauncey Manac. But what the Panthers won’t be missing is the offensive talent that helped power the program to its sixth state title and first since 2010.

Rushing for 4,627 yards total out of its unconventional single wing offensive set, Clinch brings back 4,542 of those rushing yards including rising senior Shannon Young — the Region 2-A co-Offensive Player of the Year after rushing for 1,615 yards and 23 touchdowns — and rising junior quarterback Charles McClelland — the state championship game star when he rushed for 173 of his 1,001 yards, also finishing with eight touchdowns. Trezman Marshall, a rising sophomore quarterback that missed five games with a broken collarbone, rushed for 817 yards and nine touchdowns, while rising senior Zebulon Johnson averaged 16.5 yards per carry on his way to 809 yards and 12 touchdowns. McClelland and Marshall combined to throw for 529 yards with 468 of the yards receiving coming back as well.

“We do, we return every single offensive skill guy,” Clinch coach Jim Dickerson said. “There’s not a skill guy that we lose unless you want to consider Chauncey, a part-time tight end. Other than that, every single guy that we have that played a skill position be it tight end, receiver, quarterback, running back, defensive back, does return other than our linebackers. 

“We do lose our linebackers and really the only place that we’re hit by graduation hard is linebacker and offensive line. Which are two critical positions obviously, it can make you or break you those two positions. But we do return a lot of guys.”

Those four backs will indeed need some newcomers to emerge on the offensive front where all-region performers Riley James and Ryan Moore graduate as well as center Jeremy Corbitt. Guards Ashton Manac and Gunner Hoopiiania do return as rising seniors.

Defensively, the Panthers also have a few holes with the loss of their three top tacklers in linebackers Quincey Cooper and Marcus Hodges as well as Chauncey Manac, who split time on the defensive front as well as linebacker. Cooper, 5-foot-7 and 185 pounds, led Clinch with 99 tackles, while Chauncey Manac made 67 tackles with eight sacks, three fumble recoveries including one returned for a touchdown despite missing five games with an injury. Hodges finished with 66 tackles.

Octavius Morris will be Clinch’s top returning tackler after making 59 stops including eight sacks and three fumble recoveries, also returning one for a score. John Mincey, a rising junior, emerged in Chauncey Manac’s absence with 51 tackles and three sacks. Jerrod Jones also returns after picking off six passes, returning one for a touchdown, and recovering four fumbles, returning one for a TD. Keb Grady (one interception), Machari Bighams (four interceptions, two fumble recoveries, two TDs), Jervonta Johnson (three interceptions, two fumble recoveries, one TD) and Zebulon Johnson (three interceptions, one TD) all return in the secondary. Rising junior Duane Moore will be back on the defensive front after making 49 tackles with three sacks.

“I think the future and you don’t want to count your bitty’s before the eggs hatch so to speak because a lot can happen in a year’s time,” Dickerson said. “And we are Class A and not Class 6A, so we really depend on every single guy that we plan on making it. But if everybody stays on the right course, and we can develop a few guys on the offensive line, I think we’ll be a pretty good football team next year.” 

Jamie Wachter is the sports editor of the Valdosta Daily Times and can be followed on Twitter @jlwachter.