The Apalachee High School football team will have a chance to do something only a select few football teams have the opportunity to do this Friday.
The Wildcats will get the chance to complete a perfect regular season when they host Salem High School for Senior Night. Standing at 9-0, AHS has already wrapped up the Region 8-AAAA, but a perfect regular season would indeed be something special.
That fact is not lost on head coach Shane Davis.
“I’ve been in coaching 18 years and have only had the opportunity to be associated with one team which went through the regular season undefeated,” Davis said. “It is truly something special.”
Davis was an assistant coach at Oconee County High School in 2001 when the Warriors finished 10-0 and later advanced to the third round of the state playoffs. Being able to complete a perfect regular season would be something historic, special and unique for the Apalachee High School program, Davis said.
“It’s something you will always remember,” the coach said. “There have been a lot of great teams which didn’t go 10-0. To even be in position to do it says a great deal about your team.”
Of course, Davis and his coaching staff are not taking anything for granted this week. Salem is a quality foe battling for a playoff spot. The Seminoles enter the contest on a three-game winning streak.
AHS has been tested at times this season. One-point wins against Loganville and Heritage were games where Wildcat followers had to hold their breaths until the outcome was determined.
The team had a solid performance last Friday against Madison County on the road. Even after falling behind early, AHS would record a convincing 31-14 win.
Going back to the preseason, Apalachee was the second-place choice among media members who follow Region 8-AAAA. (It should be noted I was one of two voters who put the Wildcats first on their ballot.) However, the AHS team has shown it is indeed the class of Region 8-AAAA and is currently ranked seventh in the state. More respect on that front will come when the Wildcats record some state playoff wins.
There are several factors one can point to when looking at the standout season AHS has enjoyed. Quality players is one reason at the top of the list.
Another is quality coaching. Davis is a solid leader for the program and he has a strong group of assistant coaches, most of whom have been with him the entire time he has been at Apalachee.
It all makes for success on the gridiron. Of course, one also has to factor in long, long hours of work and preparation by the players and coaches. That’s one area that can never be overlooked.
Yes, Salem will present a challenge this week. Yet, look for AHS to overcome that challenge, just as it has all others in its path in 2009. Then it will be on to even higher mountains for this successful team.
Chris Bridges is sports editor of the Barrow Journal. E-mail comments about this column to cbridges@barrowjournal.com.
