This has a chance to be a special season for Stephens County, one like we haven’t seen since perhaps 2005, when the Indians won 11 games, a region title, and made the quarterfinals. This team has that kind of feel to it.

Head Coach: Wesley Tankersley, 5th season
2021 Record: 8-4; State 2nd Round

“We expect to have a chance to win every game we play in,” states coach Wesley Tankersley. 

2022 Schedule

AUG 5 vs ELBERT COUNTY *SCRIMMAGE

AUG 12 @ FANNIN *SCRIMMAGE

AUG 19 vs HABERSHAM CENTRAL

AUG 26 @ RABUN COUNTY

SEP 2 vs FLOWERY BRANCH

SEP 9 @ DAWSON COUNTY

SEP 16 vs WHITE COUNTY

SEP 23 BYE

SEP 30 @ MONROE AREA^

OCT 7 @ FRANKLIN COUNTY^

OCT 14 BYE

OCT 21 vs HART COUNTY^

OCT 28 @ OCONEE COUNTY^

NOV 4 vs HEBRON CHRISTIAN^

^REGION 8-AAA GAME

Personnel & Schemes

Key Departures: Vadole Fleming, Quanah Martin, Bryson Trimier, Armand Cunningham

No doubt the defense will miss the contributions of that quartet. Trimier had 145 tackles (7 for loss) and 4 interceptions. That’s next level. Martin at the DE position had 69 tackles, 19 for loss, and 6 sacks. Cunningham, a LB, had 65 tackles and a knack of flying to the ball. Fleming, also a linebacker, had 66 tackles and a pair of picks. There are big holes to fill with that group.

Key Returning Players: Ben Stowe, Cam Lacy, TJ Everett, Javin Gordon, Ritt Tankersley, Corey Richie, Nathan Walker

The bulk of the playmakers are back. Stowe, Lacy, Everett, Richie, Tankersley, and Walker are poised to have sensational senior seasons. Gordon is a player of the future. Stowe passed for 1,647 yards and 12 TD and had 8 rushing scores. All that with missing a chunk of time to injury. Lacy had over 1,000 yards receiving and 8 TD, rushed for 3, had a pair of KR for TDs, and had 4 interceptions and 35 tackles. Everett was a 1,000-yard rusher with 7 TDs, and Richie is a next-level talent who had 475 receiving yards, 48 tackles, and 2 INTs. Tankersley (LB) had 69 tackles, while Walker (DL) had 79 tackles (15 for loss) and 4 sacks.

Up & Coming Players: Javin Gordon, Isaac Defoor, Wyatt Hammons, Dylan Hunt, Brock Tankersley, Dawson Childs, Aidan Butts, Devin Cobb, Jasec Smith

“We have a lot of returners, but a few I expect to have even larger roles this year: Javin Gordon RB/DB, Isaac Defoor DB/WR, Wyatt Hammons OL/DL, Dylan Hunt OL,  Brock Tankersley DB/WR, Dawson Childs LB, Aidan Butts TE/DE, Devin Cobb WR/DB, and Jasec Smith WE/DB,” says Tankersley. “Pretty much all those guys saw significant playing time last year, but we need them to play more even significant roles this year.”

Offense: Pro Style Offense. Signal-caller Ben Stowe, barring injury, should be a Player of the Year caliber player. So too will Cam Lacy, an explosive athlete who wants to win badly and is a homerun threat every time he’s near the ball. The backfield will be split between TJ Everett and Javin Gordon. That dynamic duo will be crucial to spreading the field and keeping the defense honest. Lacy and Corey Richie will be feared receivers, with Lacy being the go-to. Richie can go up to get any ball, and has great hands.

Defense: Once again, it’s a 4-man front for the Indians. The top three defensive players are Nathan Walker, Ritt Tankersley, and Corey Richie. Others need to step up quickly to not put too much pressure on the offense to win ballgames.

Trenches: Stephens has a trio of returners on the OLine, but have to settle in on all 5 starters and create depth at OL, accoring to Tankersley. The DLine has 3 starters back also, and another that started a few games and played a significant amount of time. But Tankersley shares that both sides have to keep creating more depth.

Strengths & Areas of Focus

Strengths: Offense, of which the Indians have 9 returning starters. Skill positions are more than set; all offensive skill positions return.

Focusing On: Replacing some DL, LB, and a couple of OL. The guys mentioned above that left – Trimier, Martin, Cunningham, and Fleming leave giant holes on defense. Others are going to have to step up and fill those roles and then some.

GAME-BY-GAME & SEASON PREDICTIONS FOR STEPHENS COUNTY