(VIDEO) Game of the Week: 5-0 North Hall ready for GAC showdown

GAINESVILLE — Both Daniel Jackson and Drew Faulkner know it will take something special for North Hall football to derail fifth-ranked Greater Atlanta Christian on Friday night.

But the Trojans seniors also believe their team has the ability — and mental make-up — to do just that when the two-time Region 7-3A champs pay a visit to The Brickyard.

“The excitement level’s really high and the confidence level — I think, as a whole, we’re feeling pretty confident about the game,” said Faulkner, a standout at running back and safety. “From games past, from dominating some games to winning close games — you need both in a season. The confidence level is definitely there, and we’re ready to go Friday.”

“We’re excited with the way we’ve been playing, but overall, we know that we’re only halfway there. So we’re excited to keep it going,” added Jackson, the team’s leading rusher and receiver.

North Hall has plenty to be excited about, including the program’s first 5-0 start to a season since 2013 — coach Bob Christmas’s final campaign with the Trojans. And after taking several lumps as a young squad in 2017, North Hall’s roster looks like a team comfortable in its own skin so far in 2018.

“When it comes to improvements a lot of it goes back to last year,” Trojans coach David Bishop said. “The kids bought into things we asked them to do. You go all the way back really to the spring game of 2017 against West Hall, where we got embarrassed pretty well. And we talked to the kids and talked about a process, and this is what we saw; the kids bought in. Last year, we got better every week and made it into the playoffs. And that was enough to give us momentum in the offseason and keep our kids going and believing in what we were teaching them. 

“And then obviously they’re a team that doesn’t mind throwing it around. We’re not the biggest guys in the skilled positions, but we’re pretty physical. We’ve got good speed there, and they love to compete.”

The Trojans (5-0, 1-0 Region 7-3A) know that will be tested to the utmost by a Spartans (3-2, 1-0) team that, despite sporting two losses already, has collegiate-level talent up and down the roster and a pedigree that demands respect after winning four straight region crowns (2014-15 came in Region 6-2A) and playing for two state titles (’14 and ’16).

“It’s going to take, I don’t know the word perfection, but it’s going to take pretty close. It’s going to take not making mistakes on special teams, limiting your minus plays on offense. Don’t turn the ball over — which we’ve done the last two or three games — and just playing with passion and being able to play for four quarters,” Bishop said.

North Hall has shown no problem in playing a complete game so far, having pulled off two second-half comeback wins at White County and against Class 7A foe Cherokee at The Brickyard.

“It’s just the will to win, trust among each other to keep going on the same plan, the same ideas the coaches have throughout practice,” Faulkner said. “So you just stick to it, and that gives us some confidence that we can pull off wins against bigger teams (like the one) that we’re going to play Friday.”

North Hall’s offense — which, at 42.6 points per game is second in all of Class 3A — will face its sternest test to date against big and speedy Spartans defensive front that features 6-foot-4, 290-pound defensive lineman Christopher Hinton (a Michigan commit with a team-high 5 sacks). Yet the Trojans’ wing-T is built on keeping aggressive fronts at bay and enters the game averaging 309 yards rushing per contest.

“They’re a good football team, and they’re not in the position where they are without being that way,” Bishop said. “And you figure the teams they’ve played, they have some pretty impressive teams that they’ve had to play against as well. But looking through last year’s game tape and looking at some of the things that they’ve done this year, our offensive staff, we’ve put together a pretty good game plan to put our kids in the best position for success.”

Success against a program like the Spartans would send a statement across the state, but North Hall — which is also yielding just 10 points per game (sixth best in Class 3A) — believes it is ready for the opportunity. 

“Defensively, we’re definitely going to have to fly to the ball because they are a fast team. And they do have bigger guys, but it’s just going to take us being as physical as we can be. And like the games we’ve shown prior, we know we have what it takes,” Jackson said.