Ball security and missed tackles plagued the Gilmer Bobcats in their football scrimmage.
GHS was in Canton last Friday to take on Class 5A Sequoyah, and the hometown Chiefs used their size and depth to their advantage.
Score was not kept, and both teams’ varsity players took the field for the first half. While the Cats were able to string together three sustained drives, they all ended with turnovers. Meanwhile, SHS blended the run and pass to score three touchdowns and a field goal through two quarters of play.
Junior varsity and freshmen players were on the field for the third and fourth quarters, respectively. The Cats’ youngest group drove down the field in the fourth for Gilmer’s lone score.
“Sequoyah is a good football team and returned almost every single starter,” said head coach Paul Standard. “They went to the quarterfinals last year and are well-coached. It was good for our kids because we’re going to play some (good) teams. We’ve got Calhoun on the schedule, and they have a lot of people back and are going to be very good.
“Defensively, I think our guys were a little shell-shocked by how good they were offensively. We obviously didn’t tackle very well, and that’s something we have to work on. That’s why you scrimmage to find out if you have guys in the right place and see what changes we have to make in this open week.
“This is why I like scrimmaging with a week off. If you get somebody dinged up, (and) I think we have a couple little nicks — nothing major — and we’ll have everybody ready to go for the Fannin week preparation.”
The varsity had three drives that all crept deep into SHS territory, which earned first downs and chewed clock. However, they all ended with the ball in the Chiefs’ hands. Fullbacks Peyton Chancey and Madden Hopkins, wingbacks Douglas Callihan and Hunter Britain and quarterback Bo Cronic all contributed to the Cats’ ground game early. Sophomore signal caller A.J. Callihan traded drives with Cronic.
Each series began at the offense’s 25-yard line. Gilmer’s first possession spanned 52 yards and Bobcats picked up five first downs before a fumble ended the drive at Sequoyah’s 23.
Gilmer’s second series totaled 45 yards with the help of four first downs. On third down and 15 from the Chiefs’ 30, an interception gave the ball back to SHS.
The Cats’ final drive of the half covered 52 yards. GHS was aided by a pass interference and before Cronic completed a 15-yard pass to Callihan. It marked Gilmer’s third first down of the possession, but a fumble on the ensuing play ended the Cats’ hopes for points.
“We’ve got some guys in the right place but have got to find some depth on the line of scrimmage. We had a lot of guys go both ways,” said Standard. “We’ve got to develop some depth. We were without starting tackle Sam Jones, and he’s cleared to start practicing this week.
“Our offense had three pretty good drives rotating our quarterbacks. We had a few missed assignments, which you’re going to have early, but you can’t turn the ball over. We did that three times and they were crucial. I was pleased that we were able to move the football and saw some good things out of both quarterbacks.”
Meanwhile, SHS scored three touchdowns and a field goal through the game’s first 24 minutes and made it look easy at times. Gilmer struggled tackling, and none of the touchdown possessions needed more than six plays and covered 75, 77 and 86 yards. Following Gilmer’s third turnover, SHS drove 42 yards ahead of a successful 47-yard field goal.
“We’ve got to find some young guys who can step in and get some snaps, and I think we will as we move forward,” Standard said. “Our biggest takeaway is we’ve got to find depth on the line of scrimmage on both sides and certainly have to tackle better.
“I’m not overly concerned in the sense that it’s something we can fix. And I know the type of young men we have. They’ll be ready to go back to work. I don’t think that will be an issue at all. This has been one of the best summers I’ve ever been a part of. I know that we will get right back on track.”
The JV Bobcats could not get their offense in gear and yards were hard to come by. SHS added two more touchdowns before the fourth.
Gilmer freshmen strung together a 75-yard series to end the game. Heath Hice and Braxtyn Newberry were there to power the offense on the ground. The drive ended with a 5-yard touchdown run by Hice.
“I thought our young guys in the second half did some nice things, and for the most part, those were all ninth graders, especially in the fourth,” Standard said. “I think we have some good kids coming up and will certainly be a great group as they continue to grow and mature.”
GHS opens the regular season next Friday, Aug. 15 at Fannin County. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.