Game of the Week: No. 1 Jefferson, No. 1 Rabun set for big showdown at Memorial Stadium

There is no hype around this game. 

Yeah, right. 

When Jefferson and Rabun County tee it up at Jefferson Memorial Stadium on Friday, it will be a full-on, epic battle for the ages, and you can hear the game live on FM 102.9 WDUN. Kickoff is 7:30 p.m.

As it might be thought of as a David versus Goliath contest, it's not. It's Class 2A No. 1 vs. Class 4A No. 1. It's the No. 1 quarterback in the Class of 2022, Gunner Stockton, vs. The No. 1 athlete in the Class of 2022, Malaki Starks. Both are committed to Georgia. 

And that doesn’t even scratch the surface of the buffet of heavy hitters, speedy receivers, slashing and bruising running backs, and two defenses that will be salivating like a rabid dog. 

In the first meeting since 2014, the Dragons rolled out of Tiger with a 28-14 victory. They held Stockton to a season-low 127 yards passing and 19 rushing yards. Starks churned out 157 yards on the ground. 

It could very well be the same type of battle this season, although the Wildcats have not beaten the Dragons in Jefferson since 1955 – only three times in the 24-game series. 

“This is one you know going in that both teams are hoping for bigger aspirations later on,” Jefferson coach Gene Cathcart said. “It’s a playoff-type lab. As you said, there’s going to be that type of electricity and vibe around the game, and you only get so many of those type games to prepare for big region games and, hopefully, playoff games.” 

Rabun County coach Jaybo Shaw agreed. 

“What a great atmosphere it’s going to be on Friday night,” Shaw said. “It’s going to be two really good football teams, and two really good coaching staffs going at it, competing and battling. We’re excited about the atmosphere we’ll get to play in. It's going to be a playoff atmosphere. It's going to be a lot of fun.” 

Starks leads an offense, at quarterback, that returns 3,700 yards to the backfield. Division I recruit Jordan Perry returns as the leading rushing running back in the Dragons’ spread option. Reese Johnson steps in as well, and Commerce transfer Sammy Brown. Brown rushed for more than 1,200 yards in his freshman season and already has multiple Power 5 offers. 

“To have all of us in the backfield and have more people to rotate that people don’t know about is going to be fun,” Starks said. “To beat Rabun, we just need to be us. I tell them all the time; you don’t have to do anything special to be special. If we just do us, we’re going to be fine.”

Cathcart said it’s important his offense needs to be comfortable with every possible way the game could "spin out."

“If it ends up being a defensive game or possession game, we need to be comfortable with that,” Cathcart said. “We need to block well for each other and play well without the ball. The key is we do what we do. What we do, sometimes, we have to grind into form and fashion before we get there.” 

Shaw said the Dragons execute at a very high level.  

“You can tell they’re coached very well, execute their game plans and there’s a reason why they played for a state championship last year,” he said. “We’ve got to make sure our fundamentals are taken care of.” 

On the flip side, the Wildcats packed the cupboard in the offseason, adding dynamic receiver and Dawson County transfer Jaden Gibson, and All-Region 8-4A tight end and Flowery Branch transfer Baxley O’Brien to the offense. 

Stockton said those two instantly improved an already potent spread offense. 

“It’s gotten better,” he said. “Jaden and Baxley are great guys. Jaden will go up and get it, and Baxley is physical. They’ll do anything you ask.”

The transfers will complement a packed offense, including junior running back Lang Windham. He rushed for 1,392 yards and 12 touchdowns as a sophomore. Tate Ramey and Ethan Clarke are mainstays at receiver and a seasoned O-Line led by Division I recruit Bear Old should give Stockton plenty of time to throw.

“You can tell Baxley and Jade have played a lot of football. You can tell they’re experienced guys and able to do a lot of different things,” Shaw said. “That really goes with everybody back on offense. I’m really proud of where our offense is right now. We’ll find out where we got to go and how much better we’ve got to get after Friday night.

"But it's going to boil down to execution for us on offense. In a big-time game, it's going to come do the smallest details. We harped it and it's time to go play." 

ABOUT THE DEFENSE

The Dragons will have the task of slowing down a high-powered Rabun County offense (44 ppg in 2020) again this season. Last year, the Dragons held their opponents, on average, to just 12 points per game. 

However, they’ll have new names in several key positions, mainly in the secondary and on the defensive line. 

Kadin Bailey (58 tackles), will move from linebacker to defensive end. Isaiah Copeland, Xavier Richie and Zach Combs will join Bailey upfront. 

“We feel good about our defensive line guys, they’ve stepped up for us so far,” Cathcart said. “The big thing is to make them to earn 30 feet and three downs and don’t allow chunks of yardages. Our defense has always done a good job of that.” 

Perry (37 tkls) anchors a solid linebacking corp alongside Brown (51 tkls) and Austin Redmon (61 tkls). 

Starks is back to lead the secondary at safety, while Bowman Horn steps in full time at the other safety position. But the Dragons will break new players at cornerback – Dawson Crawley and Tre Reece. 

“They fit right in, and most of them got some reps last year,” Starks said about the secondary newcomers. “I feel very confident in our guys. They know what they’re doing. Our second group is kind of deep, too. Having depth and knowing coverages is the most important game.” 

As for Rabun County, the Wildcats also will have the task of slowing down a Dragon offense that averaged 42 ppg last season. 

The good news for the Wildcats is they have Region 8-2A Defensive Player of the Year Will Turpin (124 tkls) back at linebacker along with Hogan Woodard (72 tkls), Clayton Dixon (30tkls), Hunter Moore (46 tkls) and Turner Grimmett (85 tkls). 

Knox McKinney returns to the defensive line after missing most of the 2020 season with an injury. He joins returning starters Chris Thompson (59 tkls) and Ceasar Cruz (45 tkls). In the secondary, Willie Goodwyn, Jarrett Giles (14 tkls), and Cory Keller (114 tkls) return.