Archive for May, 2011

Members of Georgia Metros AAU team to sign college scholarships:

Emery Buckner (Mountain View HS) – Air Force Academy

Jasmine Camp (Chamblee HS) – Stanford University

Shakeyla Carrington (Grayson HS) – Coffeyville Community College

Aneesha Daniels (Redan HS) – University of Alabama

Jazmine Goss (Pickens HS) – Piedmont College

Jen Heider (Marist School) – Bucknell University

Tina Odume (South Gwinnett HS) – University of Auburn – Montgomery

Brooke Satterfield (North Oconee HS) – Valdosta State University

Tishal Turknett (Lakeside HS – Augusta) – Erskine College

Sharesse Williams (Buford HS) Young Harris College

Bria Young (Collins Hill HS) – Kennesaw State University

Continue reading Georgia Metros AAU team sign scholarships »

ASU-bound Jay Manning (Special)

Arlington Christian guard Jay Manning signed a basketball scholarship with Augusta State. The 6-foot-4 Manning averaged 22 points, 11 rebounds and 3 steals as a senior at the GISA school.  Augusta State coach Dip Metress said, “We are excited about Jay signing with us at Augusta State.  We feel that Jay possesses a lot of qualities to become a standout guard at our level.  Jay has a unique combination of athleticism and skills that will translate to him having success.  He is a true student-athlete, and we look forward to developing him.”

North Gwinnett point guard Clayton Williams has signed a basketball scholarship with Francis Marion.

North Gwinnett shooting guard Cyrus Lavant has committed to Alabama Southern.

Westlake had a large number of track athletes sign scholarships: Shaquavia Porter (Southeastern Louisiana University), Yvens Resilard (Fort Valley), Kinsley Lawson (Georgia Southern ), Ashley Johnson (Troy State), Shaquille …

Continue reading More late college signings »

Anna Bush will join Pace Academy as the Head Volleyball Coach and Athletic Department Administrative Assistant after 11 years of coaching volleyball at the Marist School.

During her first three years at Marist, she headed the middle school program followed by two years as Varsity assistant coach. Anna then took over the Varsity program in 2005 leading the Varsity team to the State Championships in her first year and winning the State Championship in only her second year as head coach. She was also honored as the AAAA Coach of the Year in 2006. In her six years as Head Coach, Anna guided the Varsity team to four State Championship appearances. She brings a Varsity record of 237 wins and only 55 losses for a .812 winning ratio.

Anna has 32 years of combined playing and coaching experience. She is a graduate of The George Washington University (B.B.A. Marketing) where she was a starting left side hitter.  She garnered many accolades as a GW player including All Conference …

Continue reading Volleyball coach Anna Bush leaves Marist for Pace Academy »

Roswell will play Chattahoochee in an alumni football game to benefit ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

The event will be begin at 5 p.m. Saturday at Roswell High School, with the football game at 7 p.m.

All of the former Roswell coaching greats will be on the sidelines, including Ray Manus, John Coen, Pete Poulos, Tim McFarlin, Wayne Smith, and Barney Alexander.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for students.

Former Roswell and NFL players Jermaine Phillips and Chris Reis will be the honorary coaches.

Continue reading Roswell vs. Chattahoochee in alumni football game for charity »

Five athletes from Kell High School signed college scholarships on Friday:

Emily Dixon signed with Northern Oklahoma University.  Dixon was a girls basketball standout as a point guard with the team highest 3 point percentage.

Brett Gillespie, Cobb County Lineman of the Year, signed with North Greenville University.

Chris Goershel, Cobb County Regional Pitcher of the Year, signed with Piedmont College.

Parker Madden, Cobb County Player of the Year, signed with Snead State University.

Samantha Quarles, .433 batting average and a lead triple hitter, signed with West Georgia.

Pictured in group photo from left to right: Parker Madden (baseball), Emily Dixon (basketball), Samantha Quarles (softball), Brett Gillespie (football) and Chris Goershel (baseball)

Continue reading Five from Kell High School sign college scholarships »

(This is part of the AJC’s “30 in 30″ series — with quick hits on top high school football teams across the metro area and state during spring football practice. We’re doing 30 football teams in 30 days. Click here for a master list. Hey AJC, what about spring sports? You know, the non-football sports? Go here)

Central Gwinnett has two of the metro area’s top college prospects with tailback George Morris and linebacker Trey Johnson, a rising junior who finished with 152 tackles and 7.5 sacks last season. Quarterback Emmanuel Westmoreland threw for 2,800 yards and 28 TDs last year.

Malachi Jones is a newcomer expected to have an impact at WR. Said Wofford, “I feel like Jones can be a very productive player in our system. He has ideal size and speed, and is a smart player.” His older brother Tai-ler Jones plays at Notre Dame.

Charles King started some at DB last year as a freshman. “He is a very aggressive player with good speed and a nose for the football.”

Team: Central …

Continue reading Spring football preview on Central Gwinnett High School Black Knight »

(This is part of the AJC’s “30 in 30″ series — with quick hits on top high school football teams across the metro area and state during spring football practice. We’re doing 30 football teams in 30 days. Click here for a master list. Hey AJC, what about spring sports? You know, the non-football sports? Go here)

Jared Zito is the team’s new coach, replacing Dacula coaching legend Keith Maloof, who retired after 26 seasons due to health reasons.

“We will be installing new schemes on both sides of the football,” Zito said. “One of the major focuses … will be to evaluate all our players to make decisions on what is the best place for all of them.”

Team: Dacula Falcons

Spring Game: 7 p.m. May 20

Last year’s record: 6-4

Starters lost: 3 on offense, 3 on defense

Head coach: Jared Zito

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Note: This blog will cover topics and issues that have proven to be most important to our readers. For the AJC’s complete high school coverage, go here …

Continue reading Spring football preview for Dacula High School Falcons »

WSB-TV/Channel 2 and PlayON! Sports in cooperation with the Georgia High School Association announce a new night for exclusive high school football “Game of the Week” coverage.

For the first time, high school football games will be televised live on Thursday nights.

The 12-week regular season schedule features cross-town matchups from 11 counties.

Games will air live on Thursday nights at 7:30 p.m. on Channel 2.2, WSB-TV’s second digital channel. Fans can also watch games live on wsbtv.com and watch the rebroadcast Friday nights at 1:06 a.m. on Channel 2.

“We made a great start with last year’s Friday night game telecasts,” said Bill Hoffman, vice president and general manager for Channel 2 WSB-TV. “This year, we’re taking this season to the next level by carving out a special night for these match ups.

“The GHSA, schools, and coaches cleared the logistical challenges involved in moving games to Thursday nights. All involved see the value in increased …

Continue reading Thursday Night Football on TV »

(This is part of the AJC’s “30 in 30″ series — with quick hits on top high school football teams across the metro area and state during spring football practice. We’re doing 30 football teams in 30 days. Click here for a master list. Hey AJC, what about spring sports? You know, the non-football sports? Go here)

Stephenson High School has several positions battles this spring:

Will it be Justin Holman or Ali Groves at QB?

TJ Moon, Rashi Henry or Pernell Whitehead at RB?

Lontario Collier, Shawn Blaylock, or DeMarkus Sweat at WR?

Josh Parris or Amos Harper at TE?

Jordan Dunham or Michael Turnipseed at OC?

Kadeem Murray or Amos Harper at LB?

Ali Groves, Deonte Davis or Isadore Davis at DB?

And who at kicker?

On the positive side, Stephenson has one of the most talented-loaded rosters in state history, with 14 players projected to sign FBS (formerly I-A) scholarships, including RB Mike Davis (committed to Florida), OG Jafar Mann (Florida), DT Carlos Hood (South Carolina)  and TE …

Continue reading Spring football preview on Stephenson High School Jaguars »

Meyer

(This is part of the AJC’s “30 in 30″ series — with quick hits on top high school football teams across the metro area and state during spring football practice. We’re doing 30 football teams in 30 days. Click here for a master list. Hey AJC, what about spring sports? You know, the non-football sports? Go here)

Centennial’s spring goals are building depth along the offensive and defensive lines and the QB competition between Jimmy Meyer and Chase Rosenberg.

The team’s top returning players are RB Zietrick Smith, WR Wade Francis, OT Vincent Calhoun,  DB Amari Ross, and LB Camrin Carty.

The top newcomers are WR Michael Lopez, DE Andrew & Alex Estes, DT Michael Hsu, and Rosenberg.

Team: Centennial Knights

Spring Game: 6:30 p.m. on May 20

Last year’s record: 5-5

Starters lost: 9 on offense, 7 on defense

Rosenberg

Head coach: Jeff Measor

Follow AJC Prep Zone on FACEBOOK … and Twitter

Note: This blog will cover topics and issues that have proven to be most important to …

Continue reading Spring football preview of Centennial High School Knights »

Everybody seems to have an opinion on the GHSA’s new reclassification plan. Here are excerpts of a recent column by one of our colleagues, Adam Krohn of the Gainesville Times. (You’ll need to go here to read the full article and then come back and comment). We at the AJC don’t endorse or oppose Mr. Krohn’s views, but we certainly think the reclassification is worth talking about a few more times:

There’s a civil war going on in Georgia, and once again, it’s the North that’s winning — for now …

The six-classification plan earned the 26 votes required for a majority vote thanks to the 17 metro Atlanta schools, which voted 17-0 in favor of the six-class plan. The only reason the six-class vote took place is because [the GHSA attorney Alan Connell] allowed the executive committee to break its own rules, so who set the “dangerous precedent” here?

GHSA executive committee member Jesse Crews says he has a lawyer who will first speak with Connell this week as a …

Continue reading GHSA ‘in a mess’ with reclassification, says columnist »

(This is part of the AJC’s “30 in 30″ series — with quick hits on top high school football teams across the metro area and state during spring football practice. We’re doing 30 football teams in 30 days. Click here for a master list. Hey AJC, what about spring sports? You know, the non-football sports? Go here)

Holy Innocents’ has been a model on how to build a football program at a small private school.

The Golden Bears have made the state playoffs the last four years.

Here are the team’s top returning players:

LB/FB Harrison Andros, 6-2, 210: Three-year starter on offense

TE/LB Howard Joe, 6-3, 215: Leading WR from last year.

WR/DB Andy Nichols, 6-1, 180: Very versatile athlete.

OL Evan Thomas, 6-0, 220: Three-year starter.

QB/LB John Galloway, 5-9, 150: Team MVP from last year.

Team: Holy Innocents’ Golden Bears

Spring Game:May 17

Last year’s record: 7-4

Starters lost: 5 on defense, 3 on offense

Head coach: Ryan Livezey

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Note: …

Continue reading Spring football preview of Holy Innocents’ Golden Bears »

The Miller Grove High School boys’ basketball team has finished No. 56 nationally for the 2010-11 season. The announcement was made by MaxPreps, a California-based company that ranks more than 20,000 high school boys’ varsity basketball teams nationwide.

Having completed only its fifth season of varsity basketball, Miller Grove (32-1) won its first 27 games of the season before being derailed by Southwest DeKalb of Decatur, a team it had beaten earlier in the season by 32 points. But the Wolverines remained focused and capped the campaign with a 67-59 win over Rockdale County of Conyers on March 11 to claim its third straight Georgia AAAA state championship.

Miller Grove, which posted its best single-season record in the process, is one of 10 basketball teams being honored on the fifth annual boys’ MaxPreps Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard.

“The MaxPreps Tour of Champions recognizes excellence in on-court performance. Together with the Army National …

Continue reading Miller Grove’s basketball team honored on Tour of Champions »

Lassiter coach Jep Irwin (AJC photo)

(This is part of the AJC’s “30 in 30″ series — with quick hits on top high school football teams across the metro area and state during spring football practice. We’re doing 30 football teams in 30 days. Click here for a master list. Hey AJC, what about spring sports? You know, the non-football sports? Go here)

Lassiter High has one of the nation’s top college football prospects for 2013 with quarterback Eddie Printz. “Our offense is designed around his ability to spread the ball around and make plays in the passing game,” Lassiter coach Jep Irwin said.

WR Charles Hegedus recently returned to the team after participating with the school’s track team.

Irwin’s goals for spring are to determine the depth chart “two deep” at each position, install a new offensive and defensive scheme and improve practice organization and tempo.

Team: Lassiter Trojans

Spring Game:6:30 p.m. on May 13

Last year’s record: 5-6

Starters lost: 5 on offense, 5 on …

Continue reading Spring football preview for Lassiter High School Trojans »

The GHSA voted to approve the plan to expand from 5 to 6 classifications, which will go into effect in fall 2012.

Click here to read the STORY about vote.

Click here to look at how the state’s 433 member schools will be divided (Note: This is based on old numbers, not the new student enrollment figures that will come out in October 2012).

Now … what are YOUR questions about the GHSA’s 6 plan? Who is getting the best deal? The worst part of it? What is confusing? What makes sense? Please post them below.

Continue reading What are YOUR questions about the new GHSA 6-classification plan? »