The passing era has taken hold in Georgia
Two Georgia quarterbacks threw for more than 400 yards last week, and four Georgia receivers had more than 200 yards receiving. Those players come from five different teams.
It’s just more evidence that Georgia has entered an era in which wide-open offenses and eye-popping passing and receiving numbers are becoming not so unusual.
The Georgia High School Football Historians Association has attempted to document state records. And while the information is incomplete, the history group currently shows 26 passers who have thrown for 400 yards or more. Three of them accomplished the feat during the current season, which is barely a month old.
Taylor Lamb of Calhoun (465 yards vs. Carrollton) and Tyler Dominy of Dawson County (412 vs. Forsyth Central) became the latest last week. Makail Grace of Wilcox County accomplished the feat earlier this season.
GHSFHA’s records show 32 players with at least 204 yards receiving in a game.
Johnathan Howard of Wilcox County, Shannon Smith of Westside (Macon), Willie Police of Lassiter and Josh Barnes of Calhoun did it last week. Barnes did it on 18 catches. Police did it in the first half alone.
Wilcox County coach Mark Ledford – whose receiver Howard has gone over 200 yards twice this season – lists several reasons for the trend.
High school football has followed what is happening in college football, he said, although smash-mouth Georgia might’ve lagged behind the rest of the country. Training for coaches in passing offenses is easier to get with the help of college clinics. Teams now spend summers in 7-on-7 camps or leagues, making quarterbacks and receivers much more skilled at their craft.
Ledford said he moved to the spread several years ago as a way to get more of his faster, athletic players on the field.
“Some schools have been blessed with guys who can run a little bit, and for us it’s easier to teach kids to pass block than to give them all these run-blocking rules,” Ledford said. “And it’s a lot more fun for our kids to run out and catch a pass than line up and block for the fullback. You might get guys off the basketball team that wouldn’t play if you’re playing on a wishbone or Wing-T.”
Ledford said his players can’t imagine how it was in his day when he was Wilcox County’s quarterback in the 1980s.
“I look at [college] games from the early ’80s on the classic channel and you still see a wide receiver in a three-point stance,” Ledford said. “I tell my players that today and they laugh.”
Passing
595 – Justin Walker (Lee County) vs. Warner Robins 11/4/2010
566 – Emannuel Westmoreland (Central Gwinnett) v South Gwinnett 9/17/2011
552 – Hutson Mason (Lassiter) vs. South Gwinnett 11/20/2009
545 – Hutson Mason (Lassiter) vs. Milton 10/16/2009
527 – Jonquel Dawson (M.L. King) vs. Colquitt County 11/19/10
524 – Ron Hinson (Lamar County) vs. Troup 11/11/1977
523 – Cain Campbell (North Paulding) vs. Kell 10/22/2010
514 – Drew Little (Henry County) vs. Perry 9/28/2007
494 – Jake Durham (Long County) vs. Benedictine 9/26/2008
486 – Hutson Mason (Lassiter) vs. Campbell 9/18/2009
486 – Jonquel Dawson (M.L. King) vs. South Gwinnett 9/3/2010
472 – Gage Henry (Hillgrove) vs. McEachern 10/8/2010
465 – Taylor Lamb (Calhoun) vs. Carrollton 9/14/2012
452 – Jeremy Privett (Charlton County) vs. Pierce County 11/14/2003
449 – Jonquel Dawson (M.L. King) vs. Luella 10/7/2011
445 – Hutson Mason (Lassiter) vs. North Forsyth 11/13/2009
441 – Jacob Owens (Madison County) vs. Apalachee 10/31/2008
432 – Matt Wyrick (Norcross) vs. Cedar Shoals 10/19/1990
420 – Ken Hobby (Tift County) vs. Warner Robins 11/30/1979
417 – Brian Ellis (Peach County) vs. Westside, Macon 9/8/2006
415 – Jonquel Dawson (M.L. King) vs. Valdosta 10/2/2010
415 – Kurtis Koester (Cherokee) vs. Roswell 10/28/1999
412 – Tyler Dominy (Dawson County) vs. Forsyth Central 9/14/2012
410 – Taylor Heinicke (Collins Hill) vs. Brookwood 9/30/2010
402 – Jeremy Privett (Charlton County) vs. Brooks County 10/31/2003
407 – Makail Grace (Wilcox County) vs. Wilkinson County 8/31/2012
Receiving
322 – Terryon Robinson (Decatur) vs. Riverwood 9/9/2011
294 – Demarco Robinson (M.L. King) vs. South Gwinnett 9/3/2010
291 – Christian Robinson (Centennial) vs. Northview 11/4/2011
276 – Malachi Jones (Central Gwinnett) vs. South Gwinnett 09/17/2011
272 – Ryan Flores (Berkmar) 1994 (date, opponent unknown)
271 – Gannon Hall (Tift County) vs. Bainbridge 11/16 1990
262 – Juan Daniels (Norcross) 1990 (date, opponent unknown)
254 – Tai-ler Jones (Gainesville) vs. North Hall 9/18/2009
251 – Justin Brownlee (Central Gwinnett) vs. Clarke Central 9/7/2012
264 – Zack Walker (Johnson County) vs. Portal 9/11/2009
246 – Demarco Robinson (M.L. King) vs. Colquitt County 11/19/2010
240 – Chris Jackson (Henry County) vs. Mary Persons 10/26/2007
239 – Myles Campbell (Duluth) vs. Archer 8/26/2011
239 – Melzie Johnson (Bainbridge) vs. Jones County 10/03/2008
237 – Chris Jackson (Henry County) vs. Jones County 9/7/2007
233 – Braxton Lane (Sandy Creek) vs. vs. Carrollton 10/19/2007
221 – Adam White (South Gwinnett) 1999 (date, opponent unknown)
219 – David Bowman (Central Gwinnett) vs. Roswell 11/06/1970
216 – Robert Walker (Duluth) 1972 (date, opponent unknown)
216 – Tyler Davis (Duluth) 2003 (date, opponent unknown)
215 – Alex Chisum (Sandy Creek) vs. Peach County12/03/2010
215 – Chris Conley (North Paulding) vs. Kell 10/22/2010
214 – Justyn Shackleford (Berkmar) 2010 (date, opponent unknown)
211 – Johnathan Howard (Wilcox County) vs. Dooly County 9/14/2012
210 – Markeith Ambles (Henry County) vs. Union Grove 9/12/2008
208 – D.J. Donley (Charlton County) vs. Fitzgerald 9/30/2005
207 – Shannon Smith (Westside, Macon) vs. Northside, Warner Robins 9/14/2012
206 – Willie Police (Lassiter) vs. Kell 9/14/2012
206 – Terence Jeffers (Berkmar) 2005 (date, opponent unknown)
205 – Johnathan Howard (Wilcox County) vs. Wilkinson County 8/31/2012
205 – Isaiah Jupiter (Berkmar) 2007 (date, opponent unknown)
204 – Josh Barnes (Calhoun) vs. Carrollton 9/14/2012
Please e-mail us at GHSFDaily@bellsouth.net if you know of additions that should be made to these lists.
Produced by Georgia High School Football Daily, a free e-mail newsletter. To join the mailing list, click here.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
5 comments Add your comment
BamaBornDukie
September 21st, 2012
10:11 am
Great article. I recently watched the last Bama vs Auburn game that Bear Bryant coached (1982) and:
-The WR out wide in a 3 point stance
-Lot of 1-2 WR routes
-Oversized/Wide shoulder pads
-Old School AstroTurf…..which was like playing on super-grip asphalt
The game has developed greatly over the past 30 years in terms of offensive philosophy, offseason strength & conditioning, and overall size of players.
Heisenberg
September 21st, 2012
10:39 am
Hutson Mason is on the passer yardage list 4 times, yet none of the receivers from the 2009 Lassiter team on on the receiver yardage list. That is really spreading it around. Hope he gets his redshirt this year and Murray goes pro. Would like to see him run the UGA offense a couple years.
Camden74
September 21st, 2012
2:32 pm
How do you run the clock with a passing only game? You would almost have to have a perfect completion record…… Give me a very good running game along with a GOOD passing game and a very good defense, STATE TITLE!
none
September 25th, 2012
12:29 pm
@Heisenberg I wish Hutson Mason would transfer out the sec
cat doc
September 26th, 2012
5:30 am
3 things can happen when you pass the ball and 2 of them are not good. I read of these big numbers being put up. the question is where is the defense and who are these schools playing?