In Countdown to Kickoff, WALB Sports’ Aaron Meaux and McKenzie Blaze break down everything you need to know before football season in South Georgia. Watch LIVE and view previous episodes on WALB.com, the WALB News 10 app and on streaming apps at 7 p.m. every weekday from July 28 to Aug. 12.

SOUTH GEORGIA (WALB) —Class A Region 1 Sub-region B is anyone’s for the taking. Early County begins a new chapter under a hometown head coach with four straight region championships as the standard. Miller County returns a more mature roster with one defining mission: finish the games that slipped away in 2025. Seminole County is chasing the next step in a three-year climb. And Pelham enters year two under its head coach with a returning quarterback, an experienced offensive line and a spread offense that did not exist a year ago.

Early County Bobcats: A hometown standard, reset and ready

Laversay Taylor takes over Early County as a former Bobcat player who spent the last five years coaching defensive backs in the same program under head coaches Hartman and Killingsworth. He becomes the new leader of a program that has won four consecutive region championships.

Taylor said the opportunity came sooner than he anticipated.

“It feels surreal,” Taylor said. “I’ve been graduating now 13 years from high school. If you told me 13 years ago I’d be the head coach of Early County, I would have thought you was kind of crazy. I knew then I would love to one day be a head coach here. I didn’t know it was going to come this soon, but I’m thankful for the opportunity.”

Taylor’s program priorities are strength, accountability and competition. The offseason centerpiece has been the 225 Club — a power clean benchmark he has tied to playing time.

The defense is Taylor’s stated foundation. The offense is still being sorted out. Three quarterbacks — senior Michael Perry, junior Brayden Hooks and Jamerian Jackson — are competing for the starting job, and Taylor said no position is guaranteed regardless of class.

“Ain’t nobody guaranteed a position,” Taylor said. “Everybody gonna work for what they gonna work for. Right now, we got three varsity quarterbacks.”

Taylor added that he expects the competition to be resolved before Week 1. Senior running backs Kobe Lingo and Kayden Kendrix are the projected backfield contributors.

“Family first,” Taylor said. “We want to build that family. Everybody’s held to the same standard. We’re going to work hard and we’re going to hold you accountable.”

Key schedule dates include a Sept. 18 road trip to Charlton County, a home game Sept. 25 against Miller County and a late-season trip to Seminole County on Oct. 30.

Miller County Pirates: Built to finish

Miller County went 3-7 in 2025, with several of those losses coming in the final minutes of games against Clinch County and Early County — both of whom made deep playoff runs. Head coach Tom Causey said the returning group is older and has used that experience as motivation.

“We’ve got to finish,” Causey said. “We were 3-7 last year. And we lost a lot of ball games in the last five minutes of the game. We lost to Early County, which is a semifinal team, Clinch County, too. And those were tight football games until the last eight minutes of the game. And then they just stepped away from us.”

Causey said the standard he is preaching is simple.

“The main focus is do your job,” Causey said. “Let’s do our job. Let’s fit like we’re supposed to fit. We talk to them all summer long about don’t get bored doing the right thing. So we’re trying to get 11 guys to do their job.”

Senior Jamarian Shepard is the program’s centerpiece — a D1 prospect who carries the bulk of the offensive workload and also plays a key defensive role. Causey said the surrounding cast of Bastian, Davis and Butler will need to develop quickly to take pressure off Shepard and allow Miller County to build the backfield depth the program has lacked.

The offensive line returns experience after two seasons of playing freshmen and sophomores at key spots. Junior Creek Durden is among the leaders up front.

The team’s hidden advantage may be in special teams. Causey said kicker and punter Brayden Horn can attempt field goals from 47 yards out — a rare weapon in Class A.

“Our special teams start with Brayden Horn,” Causey said. “If we stall out at the 30, we run him out on the field, and we’re going to try a 47-yard field goal. Because that’s not a stab at him. He’s got a pretty good chance of making that.”

Causey said field position and the ability to score without reaching the end zone could be decisive in the tight games the Pirates expect to see.

The Pirates open their non-region slate facing Clinch County on Sept. 4, followed by four-time state champion Bowdon on Sept. 18 and a road trip to Early County on Sept. 25.

Seminole County Indians: The 1% climb continues

Seminole County has improved its win total in each of the past three seasons, from six wins to eight to nine. Head coach Cedric Stegall said the program is no longer built around one senior class — it is built around a pipeline.

“Come every day ready to compete. Come every day ready to work. Come every day trying to get better,” Stegall said. “And I told you, just take 1% each day. If you work on your craft for 1% each day and get better with that 1%, I think it will help us out in the long run.”

Stegall’s stated goal for 2026 is specific.

“I realize the expectation there. I mean, we’ve got three tough teams on our schedule. I’m looking at seven and three,” Stegall said. “We stay healthy, seven and three. Playoff, you know, and then compete, go second, third round of playoff.”

Quarterback Ellis Dunham returns along with playmaker Kamauri Smith, who was recovering from a knee injury during summer workouts but was expected to be cleared for the opener. Smith was a WALB underclassman of the year nominee last season. Dunham is expected to serve as the steadying presence for a younger supporting cast.

Three contributors Stegall identified as immediate factors are sophomore receiver and defensive back Cartier Hopkins, offensive lineman and receiver Ke’Mani Williams — who stands 6-foot-4 and 310 pounds — and linebacker and fullback Noah Owens. Bryson Sparks and Denija “Droopy” Johnson are also expected to contribute in the secondary.

The program’s new facility and weight room are providing a year-round development home. The schedule opens Aug. 21 against Mitchell County, then Aug. 28 at Westover, followed by a home game Sept. 18 against Thomasville, a home game Sept. 25 against Clinch County and a road trip to Miller County on Oct. 23. Seminole County’s final home game of the regular season will be against Early County on Oct. 30.

Pelham Hornets: Year two, spread out and moving forward

Ryan McKenzie enters his second season at Pelham with returning quarterback Aubrey Flury, a rebuilt spread offense and a starting offensive line that is largely intact. McKenzie said the difference between year one and year two is already visible.

“I feel like we’re a lot ahead of the schedule that we were last year,” McKenzie said. “Last year, we came in and we really didn’t know what to expect. I feel a lot better this year than I did last year. So, excited about what we have to come. And just trying to work every day and be where our feet are.”

The offensive line is McKenzie’s stated strength, returning four to five starters — Jordan Edison, Maddox Taylor, Caden Crowe and Jayden Wimberly.

“We’re excited about our offensive line,” McKenzie said. “That’s our strength because we’ve got four to five guys coming back with Jordan Edison, Maddox Taylor, Caydin Crow, and Jayden Wimberly heading the punch for those two guys.”

Flury’s return under center allows the spread system to build on a foundation instead of learning from scratch. Versatile athlete Kemarion Brantley lines up at receiver and in the secondary. Running backs Cornelius Irvin and Braden Reese are expected to complement the passing game.

McKenzie said the program’s standard is team-first.

“The biggest thing is just being a family and just understanding that we’re not playing for ourselves,” McKenzie said. “We’re playing for Pelham. And I got a mantra and I tell them nobody’s bigger than the P, myself included. I have expectations. They have expectations. And we just want to make sure that they uphold what Pelham is standing for.”

Pelham opens with a scrimmage at Thomasville on Aug. 14 before a non-region slate that includes Calhoun County, Baconton Charter and Dooley County. Region play opens with a home game against Seminole County on Oct. 2, followed by a road trip to Early County on Oct. 9.

The 2026 GHSA Football season begins Aug. 21.

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