New coach Josh Niblett has Gainesville believing

GAINESVILLE, Ga. — Josh Niblett talks more about building young men than football.

Niblett arrived on the Gainesville campus in January after a 14-year stint at Alabama's most historical program, Hoover. He guided the Bucs to six state titles in his tenure.

The tools he used to drive the Bucs to those six state titles are being used to reform Georgia's third-most winning program.

But most think the turnaround begins in the film room, with some fancy playbook and on the field. Sure, production on the field is the end game, but for Niblett, it's more than Xs and Os.  

"It's about building young me first," he said. "Then everything else will fall into place. "When I got here in January, it was about basically learning how to be good people, how to make good choices and do the right things, show up every day ready to work, be on time, be a good student and respect everybody around you."

Niblett quickly set the standard at Gainesville and their effect in the locker room and on the field. 

"I felt like there had to be a basis of our standard, and we don't want our standard to be our identity in football," he said. "We want our standard to be our identity as a person, so it'll take care of itself."

He's also big on verbal communication as social media and text have become the primary communication with the players. As great as all the technology is, Niblett prefers the old-fashioned way.

"These kids don't know how to talk because they're on their phones all the time," he said. "So, we're constantly making our kids communicate with each other."

The coaching staff hit the ground running in the spring, creating buzz through social media and billboards around town. The marketing campaign has been driving renewed interest in the program.

The Gainesville base wants to be relevant again and in the conversation for more than a first-round playoff berth. Niblett wants the same thing.

"These seniors are owed a lot," he said. "You hear people say, 'hey, it might be a year, two years, or three.' I'm like, no, I'm not waiting two or three years. I'm not a patient person, and everyone in our program has a sense of urgency. As long as we keep that, we feel like we've got something to prove to not only us but everybody else."

The Red Elephants started to see the fruits of their labor during spring practice in May and throughout the summer.

"It's just about trying to go out and execute what we've been doing this summer," Niblett said. "Our kids have worked extremely hard and are continuing to learn the process. We pride ourselves on three things fast off the ball out of our stance, playing with toughness and finishing. So, those are three things, I think, we are constantly getting better at every day."  

The Red Elephants' offense will feature multiple formations but will try to be as balanced as possible.  

"We're very multiple in personnel groupings, and within those personnel groupings, we're very multiple as far as formations go," Niblett said. "We don't call plays; we call players. So, we want to put the ball in a player's hands so he has the chance to make a difference. We want to be balanced, but we'll do what we do best on Friday nights. If it's a night where we throw it more, then we throw it more. We're going to do whatever gives us a chance to win."
The offense returns four starters and is evolving behind the leadership of junior quarterback Baxter Wright.

Wright passed for 1,504 yards and eight touchdowns last season. He also rushed for another 369 yards.

"I think what allows him to be good is he wants to get better every day," Niblett said about Wright. "He's always trying to master his skills at the quarterback position. He wants to have an identity of being a well-rounded quarterback. 

Senior Naim Cheeks led the team in rushing yards last season (111-817 yards, 10 TDs) and returns to the backfield along with senior Marquis Ross.

"Naim can do it all," Niblett said. "He doesn't mind blocking, can put pressure on the perimeter, is physical, and he's real slippery, too. You want to get the ball in his hands.
"Marquis, I think, will give us that 1-2 punch out the backfield. He's a little bit more like a power runner. I'm excited to see what those two bring to the table."

Niblett has put Christian Hunnicutt in charge of building the offensive line with the loss of several key linemen, most notably Elijah Ruiz.

Juniors Christian Green and Jamel Jones and sophomores Alex Payne and Will Turner are getting reps up front.

"Christian has done a really good job developing those guys," Niblett said. "Upfront, you've got to develop nine or 10 guys because you don't want it to be the same five guys every week, and all of sudden somebody gets banged up. Then you're missing something."

Niblett's son, senior Sky Niblett, will play tight end.

"Sky's been with me a long time," Niblett said. "So, he knows the offense and has been a real big help with the younger guys."

The wide receiver room added two dynamic players in the offseason. Darius Cannon transferred from White County and Tre Reece from Jefferson, giving the Red Elephants some much-needed help.

"Tre is a guy that can blow the top off of it extremely fast," Niblett said. "Darius has great speed, but he's very elusive, a very good route runner, a guy that's tough to guard one on one. We expect them to have big years."

Defensively, Big Red will run multiple fronts. Niblett said the defense will play extremely fast and physical.

"We have taken steps forward over the summer with that," he said. "We've got to keep adding to that and getting better. These guys have done a really good job of trusting what we want them to do."

Seniors Adarian Cheek, Jarrious Harris, Stacy Hopkins Jr, Lacorey Hutchinson, and sophomore Julius Columbus will see time on the defensive line.

"We want to be really good up front controlling the line of scrimmage with our hands," Niblett said. "So, we feel like we have a solid group of guys up front to do that."

Tennessee-commit Jeremiah Telander, who transferred from North Hall, will be the captain on defense at linebacker.

"He works his tail off," Niblett said. "He's always locked in at practice and uses great energy. He's an unbelievable football player."

Sophomore Carmello Byrd and senior Luke Cooper could crack the starting lineup at linebacker.
In the secondary, seniors Dre Raven and Elias Ballard return at cornerback. Seniors Nasir Summerour and Zyrion Harrison will play safety.

The Red Elephants, playing in Class 7A, failed the make the playoffs for the first time in 21 years in 2021.

The Georgia High School Association realigned each class in November, and the Red Elephants returned to Class 6A.

They'll play some familiar opponents in their old stomping grounds, Region 8-6A.

Apalachee, Habersham Central, Jackson County, Lanier, North Forsyth and Shiloh make up the new region.

Niblett said he's not familiar with any of the teams but said they want to be playing their best ball when region comes around.

"Our goal as far as the season is we want to win the opener, win the region and win the last game," he said. "If we're doing those things, then we'll be state champions."