On July 15, Apalachee High School sophomore running back Stanley Williams verbally committed to the University of Georgia.
On July 15, Apalachee’s bid for being a top tier football program got even stronger, moving closer to becoming a football powerhouse in the state of Georgia.
It all started in 2006, a milestone year for Apalachee. It saw the Wildcats beat the cross town rival Winder-Barrow Bulldoggs for the first time, something that has become more of a normality since.
2006 was also the first year that Apalachee made the state playoffs. Which, is one of the most important things a team can do, you can’t have a top tier program unless you are making frequent trips to the playoffs.
In 2007, Apalachee won its first playoff game in school history with a 23-13 victory over Haralson County. What’s next for a team that consistently makes the playoffs? Winning those playoff games.
In 2008, Apalachee made its move to AAAA, making its way up the competition ladder and putting itself in the mix with some of the best programs in the state.
The Wildcats made the playoffs in their first year in AAAA, although they fell short to Rome in the first round. One year was all Apalachee needed to get accustomed to playing in AAAA, for in 2009, Apalachee would earn its respect throughout the state.
In 2009, Apalachee really left its mark as one of the top teams in the state, making its name more and more relevant.
The Wildcats put Apalachee on the map, coming out with a new swagger, a new demeanor, and a new nickname.
“The Chee” dominated it’s competition, gaining accomplishments such as: a 10-0 regular season, a region 8-AAAA title, two thrilling playoff wins over Starr’s Mill and Marist, and a trip to the quarterfinals of the state playoffs with a final record of 12-1.
The 2009 team raised the bar and set the standard for Apalachee football.
With every year came another example of the Wildcats throwing their name into the hat of the top teams in the state, aiming to become one of the prominent football programs around.
In 2010, Apalachee finished fifth in the region, just missing out on the playoffs.
The 2010 team could not match the 2009 campaign, naturally of course, there was really no way of replacing so many seniors and still making a deep run into the state playoffs.
But the 2010 squad still held its end in moving Apalachee closer to becoming a powerhouse. You can’t see what this team did by looking at the final scores. To understand what this team did so well at, you truly have to understand what it takes to become a top tier football program.
And that is how well first time players perform after a strong senior class graduates.
In 2010, the Wildcats played one freshman, three sophomores, and only one senior in the offensive skill positions. An inexperienced group of players that still managed to run a prolific offense up-and-down the field on teams in one of the stronger divisions in the state.
The backfield of Stanley Williams, Zay Henry, and Alex Camp would never be as successful as the backfield of the 2009 Wildcats; but based on the expectations set on them, they fully exceeded.
The 2010 team showed that Apalachee is more than capable of replacing its talent. A true high school football powerhouse is able to shuffle in new players from year-to-year and still have success.
And Stanley Williams committing to UGA just might be the biggest thing to happen to Apalachee yet. Verbally committing to a big name Division 1 university not only puts Stanley’s name out there, but it also gets Apalachee’s football program a great deal of notoriety statewide.
The best football programs continuously roll out top notch, Division 1 recruits.
Williams is the youngest Wildcat to be recruited by a big name school such as Georgia, setting the bar high for the rest of the Apalachee football team.
Williams’ commitment to UGA is just another item you can check off the list for things that Apalachee needs to do before being labeled as a Georgia high school football powerhouse.
What’s next on the list? Well, the lay over after the historic 2009 campaign is over, so a return to the state playoffs wouldn’t hurt.
Tyler Rollason is a Winder-Barrow High School graduate and mass communications major at the University of West Georgia. You can e-mail comments about this column to trollason@yahoo.com.
