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Football

Clarkston job has special meaning for Wansley

Gary Wansley, at podium, talks about Clarkston's upcoming season at the DeKalb County High School Football Media Day. Photo by Travis Hudgons
The job of head football coach at Clarkston High School is about more than wins and losses for Gary Wansley. The job for the eight-year resident of Clarkston is a chance to instill pride in a community through the football program. “My wife and I b...

Late bloomer: Lithonia lineman solves academic issues, signs with Georgia Tech

Former Lithonia standout Jimmie Kitchen, left, is joined by his mother Valerie Wallace and Lithonia head football coach Marcus Jelks after signing a national letter-of-intent to play football at Georgia Tech. Photo by Robert Naddra
Even while he worked out last summer with the Tennessee State football team, Jimmie Kitchen said he knew it wasn’t the right fit for him. “I knew I could play better football; I knew I could play a step up,” he said. Kitchen will get that chanc...

Signing day: Columbia has its best class; Tucker, Stephenson lead pack

Ramon Ward’s message is similar to that of other assistant football coaches around DeKalb County—hard work on the football field and in the classroom could result in a free college education. More than 100 football players across the county heede...

DeKalb football players busy on National Signing Day

For the second year in a row, Stephenson had the most players sign college football scholarships on National Signing Day (Feb. 2). Twenty Stephenson players signed scholarships, including nine who will be attending Football Bowl Series (formerly NCAA...

M.L. King, Stephenson dominate list of all-region players

M.L. King senior receiver Demarco Robinson leads a group of 21 DeKalb County players selected to the first team of the Region 2-AAAAA All Region team. Robinson was named the region’s offensive player of the year. He set the state record for single-...

Setting the standard: Tucker’s seniors end careers with 49 wins, state title

Tucker’s senior class won’t end its final season with a state championship, but it did complete one of the most successful runs of any senior class in school history. The Tigers (13-1) were eliminated in the Class AAAA semifinals in a 20-19 loss ...

Fast and furious : Tucker benefiting from quick starts in playoffs

Tucker fans have come to realize the importance of arriving to football games on time this season. With the exception of a couple of games early in the season, the Tigers have managed to put their opponents in a hole by the end of the first quarter. ...

M.L. King receiver sets state record

ML King’s Demarco Robinson (21). Photo by Travis Hudgons
by Mark Brock M.L. King senior receiver Demarco Robinson set the Georgia state high school record for receiving yards this season, and he and teammate Jonquel Dawson, a junior quarterback, broke several DeKalb County single-season marks. The pair’s...

Football: Five county teams cruise into second round

Chris Sanders dives for a Tucker touchdown. Photo by Travis Hudgons
Tucker coach Franklin Stephens saw what can happen in the state football playoffs when a team is not prepared. Northside Warner Robins, ranked No. 1 in Class AAAA, was upset in the first round last weekend by Whitewater 28-21. The Eagles could have b...

Mistakes hinder Columbia in 25-7 loss to Woodward

Woodward Academy was the first wing-T offense Columbia has faced this season, and Eagles’ coach Mario Allen is hoping for better results next time. Columbia was hammered by Woodward’s four-pronged attack that amassed more than 300 yards rushing i...

NFL incident spotlights dangers of concussions on high school level

A spate of concussions during week six of the NFL season has prompted national debate about head injuries in football. In one helmet-to-helmet collision, replayed throughout the following week and fodder for sports radio, Atlanta’s Dunta Robinson a...

St. Pius fall short against Grady 7-6

The road to the state playoffs got a little longer for St. Pius on Friday night. The Golden Lions lost to Grady 7-6 at home in a game that gave Grady the lead in Region 5-AAA, Division A. Both teams entered the game undefeated in the subregion. St. P...

Ray leading Druid Hills by example

Kip Hall has seen it all from his beloved alma mater, the University of Georgia, this year. Players arrested for drinking, missing court dates and breaking and entering; defeats by weaker programs, and a record in free fall. Indeed, the Druid Hills c...

Stephenson’s defense more than a family affair

On NFL draft day this year, Perry Riley anxiously awaited news. It was stressful. For once, the LSU standout’s future was out of his hands, entrusted to an agent averse in the high-stakes negotiation of a pressure cooker atmosphere. Riley needed so...

Time to shine: Early tests could help Saints make playoff run

Ray Bonner has seen enough five-win seasons. The Cedar Grove coach, in his eighth season at the school, led the Saints to five 5-5 marks since going 0-10 his first season in 2003. Cedar Grove also was 6-4 in 2008 and 4-6 in 2005. “It’s time for u...

Hardin's 59-yard field goal lifts Marist past SWD 17-14

Marist coach Alan Chadwick didn’t hesitate to make the decision. With the score tied 14-14, Marist was facing a fourth-and-5 from the Southwest DeKalb 42-yard-line in the final seconds of the Region 6-AAAA showdown on Friday night. Chadwick called ...

Jonquel Dawson raising the bar at M.L. King

M.L. King coach Michael Carson saw the potential in quarterback Jonquel Dawson two years ago when both were at Avondale. Since Carson took the head coaching job at M.L. King earlier this summer and Dawson transferred to the school, Carson has surroun...

6-AAAA showdown: Playoff edge at stake for Southwest, Marist

The playoff picture is beginning to take shape in Region 6-AAAA only three weeks into the football season. The 12-team region plays a straight region schedule, so every loss is critical. Southwest DeKalb and Marist realize that, both already having l...

Lithonia rallies to beat Miller Grove in 3 OTs

Lithonia rallied late in the game to win for the second week in a row, this time beating Miller Grove 29-21 in triple overtime on Friday at Hallford Stadium. The Bulldogs needed a touchdown and two-point conversion to tie the game 21-21 with 32 secon...

Lithonia rallies to beat Miller Grove in 3 OTs

Lithonia rallied late in the game to win for the second week in a row, this time beating Miller Grove 29-21 in triple overtime on Friday at Hallford Stadium. The Bulldogs needed a touchdown and two-point conversion to tie the game 21-21 with 32 secon...

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