W W W . S C O R E A T L . C O M

KPC02 I SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game!

GASPORTS.COM

AAAAA1. Lowndes Last Season: 14-1,

State ChampionsThis Week: Harrison

2. Camden County Last Season: 12-1, QuarterfinalsThis week: Brookwood

3. Brookwood Last Season: 14-1, Runner-upThis week: Camden County

4. Warner Robins Last Season: 9-2, First RoundThis Week: Parkview

5. Central Gwinnett Last Season: 9-4, QuarterfinalsThis Week: Dacula

6. Valdosta Last Season: 7-5, Second RoundThis Week: Jordan (Utah)

7. Stephenson Last Season: 12-2, Semifinals This Week: Banneker

8. Parkview Last Season: 10-3, QuarterfinalsThis Week: Warner Robins

9. McEachernLast Season: 6-5, First RoundThis Week: Roswell

10. Tift County Last Season: 7-4, First RoundThis Week: Brooks County

AAAA1. Statesboro Last Season: 15-0,

State ChampionsThis week: Screven County

2. Griffin Last Season: 12-2, Semifinals This Week: Heritage

3. Northside, Warner Robins Last Season: 14-1, Runner-upThis week: Houston County

4. Marist Last Season: 11-2, QuarterfinalsThis Week: Columbia

5. Baldwin Last Season: 10-4, SemifinalsThis Week: Washington County

6. Dacula Last Season: 12-2, AAAAASemifinalsThis Week: Central Gwinnett

7. Dalton Last Season: 10-3, QuarterfinalsThis Week: Calhoun

8. Tucker Last Season: 10-1, First RoundThis Week: Miller Grove

9. Douglas County Last Season: 10-2, Second RoundThis Week: Carrollton

10. Starr’s Mill Last Season: 10-3, AAAAA QuarterfinalsThis Week: Cherokee

AAA1. Peach County Last Season: 12-3,

State ChampionsThis Week: Macon County

2. LaGrange Last Season: 10-4, SemifinalsThis Week: Harris County

3. Carrollton Last Season: 10-1, FirstRoundThis Week: Douglas County

4. Shaw Last Season: 12-2, Semifinals This Week: Troup

5. Chamblee Last Season: 9-3, Second RoundThis Week: South Atlanta

6. Stephens County Last Season: 11-2, QuarterfinalsThis Week: Seneca, SC

7. Cartersville Last Season: 9-3, Second RoundThis Week: Woodland

8. Dougherty Last Season: 13-2, Runner-upThis Week: Northeast Macon

9. Gainesville Last Season: 11-2, QuarterfinalsThis Week: East Hall

10. Washington County Last Season:7-4, First RoundThis Week: Baldwin

AA1. Charlton County Last Season: 14-

1, State ChampionsThis Week: Clinch County

2. Calhoun Last Season: 14-1, Runner-up This Week: Dalton

3. Buford Last Season: 12-1, QuarterfinalsThis Week: East Coweta

4. Greene County Last Season: 13-1,SemifinalsThis Week: Glenn Hills

5. Dublin Last Season: 11-1, SecondRoundThis Week: West Laurens

6. Laney Last Season: 9-3, Second RoundThis Week: Butler

7. Cook Last Season: 10-3,QuarterfinalsThis Week: Colquitt County

8. Greater Atlanta Christian Last Season: 9-2, First RoundThis Week: Mary Persons

9. Jefferson County Last Season: 10-1, First RoundThis Week: Burke County

10. McIntosh County AcademyLast Season: 8-2-1, First RoundThis Week: Liberty County

A1. Lincoln County Last Season: 12-3,

State ChampionsThis Week: @ McCormick, SC

2. Johnson County Last Season: 12-2, SemifinalsThis Week: East Laurens

3. Hawkinsville Last Season: 9-4, QuarterfinalsThis Week: Perry

4. Clinch County Last Season: 7-5, Second RoundThis Week: Charlton County

5. Bowdon Last Season: 12-2, SemifinalsThis Week: Pacelli

6. Turner County Last Season: 9-3, Second RoundThis Week: Worth County

7. Bremen Last Season: 11-2, QuarterfinalsThis Week: Heard County

8. Commerce Last Season: 5-5, FirstRound This Week: Rabun County

9. Irwin County Last Season: 4-6, didnot reach playoffsThis Week: Fitzgerald

10. Athens Academy Last Season: 4-6-1, First RoundThis Week: Oglethorpe County

TUNE IN EVERY FRIDAYNIGHT AT 7:30 TO

790 THE ZONE

W W W . S C O R E A T L . C O M

KELL POWERADE CLASSIC SCORE ATLANTA I 03KPC

football but all prep sports.Last year, we put out a paper called Score

North Fulton, covering the eight publicschools in that area. We committed space for600-word articles for each school plus a photoand calendar of its games.

The reaction was so incredible that wehave renamed the paper Score Prep, and everyWednesday we will deliver it into North

Fulton, Cobb and Gwinnett. Now, as we didwith North Fulton, we are starting with justfour schools in Cobb and Gwinnett and willcontinue to add more as the school year moveson. We also will be adding more and morelocations in those areas with the Prep paperbeing inserted into Score Atlanta. Please bepatient with us. Last year at this time, wepromised you we would get to Cobb andGwinnett, and our plans are to move into South

hen I think about the Kell PoweradeClassic and all the great players and

coaches that have participated in the gamesover the last 15 years, it reminds me of when Iwas first beginning my journalism career andwas sent over to Westminster to do a story onthe revival of the prestigious school’s footballprogram. I walked on to the field and immedi-ately caught eyes with a coach wearingshorts, grey hair and an old whistlearound his neck.

We looked at each other and smiled.It was Wayman Creel, my coach at

Lakeside High School and, at the time,the winningest high school coach inthe state.

We talked for almost an hour andwhat I remember most from the conver-sation was what he told me when Iasked him why he never had coached incollege or the pros. He told me he hadplenty of opportunities to do both butfelt the game is its purist at the highschool level. I can’t remember his exact quote,but it went something like, “There is nothingbetter in this world than an autumn Fridaynight under the lights with two schools des-perately trying to outdo the other.’’ Waymanadded, “It’s heaven.’’

Indeed it is!And for that reason, Score Atlanta has

taken an even a bigger plunge into the cover-age of high school sports; not just high school

W the school will serve as sideline reporters. Wewill be turning the game into a game-night cel-ebration as we have put together a strong list ofsponsors headed up by Hair Cuttery, whichwill be on hand painting hair the color of theschool teams. The Atlanta Falcons YouthFoundation will be on hand to present a schol-arship check, and we will be shooting T-shirtsinto the crowd. Also, everyone who enters the

game will be given a game matchup pro-vided by the reporters of Score Atlanta.

We at Score Atlanta feel this cityneeds a paper devoted to high schoolsports, one that gives each of the schoolsits due. Whether its football, soccer,cross country or basketball, Score Prepis going to cover it.

Like Coach Creel said, its going tobe heavenly.

And for all you sitting in the GeorgiaDome today, enjoy the games.

I.J. Rosenberg spent 13 years at theAtlanta Journal-Constitution, many of

them covering the Atlanta Braves. He is nowthe publisher of Score Atlanta, a growingsports marketing company which publishes aweekly sports paper, high school editions inCobb, Gwinnett and North Fulton as well asothers publications such as The Score Cardand special sections for professional teams intown such as the Falcons and Hawks. He canbe reached at 404-256-1572 orijrosenberg@scoreatl.com.

Fulton, DeKalb and hopefully every metroAtlanta county.

We also are excited to announce that wewill be broadcasting a high school footballgame every Friday night. I will join with play-by-play announcers from 790 The Zone andprovide the color, and I am looking forward toreturning to the broadcast booth on a regularbasis. We will feature the matchup in Score

Atlanta and also in the Prep edition for thearea in which the game is played. Our staffwill give you a complete preview of the game.Our first game is this Friday night withDuluth at Norcross, the oldest rivalry inGwinnett County, and our Prep reporters hitboth campuses last week and spoke withcoaches and players.

The game will be available both on theradio and at 790thezone.com, and students at

Introducing a new way to cover all of the high school sports in ATL

‘He [Wayman Creel] told me he had plenty ofopportunities to do both but felt the game is its purist

at the high school level. I can’t remember his exact quotebut it went something like, ‘There is nothing better in this

world than an autumn Friday night under the lights with twoschools desperately trying to outdo the other.’

Wayman added, ‘It’s heaven.’

W W W . S C O R E A T L

KELL POWERADE CLASSICKPC04 I SCORE ATLANTA

Starr’s Mill vs. Cherokee11:45 a.m.

These teams haven’t played against each other since 2003 whenthe Cherokee Warriors took out the Starr’s Mill Panthers 35-14. A lot haschanged since then, however. The Panthers are coming off a 10-win sea-son and a region title. They are also pre-ranked No. 7 by the AtlantaJournal-Constitution and No. 10 in the coaches poll on gasports.com.Quarterback Robby Davis, a senior, is a third-year starter who hasimproved his skills tremendously. His speed makes him dangerous as apasser and a rusher (he can run a 4.51 40-yard dash). The defense heldopponents to 14 points or less in seven games last season, and the scarypart is that with several returning starters, they may be even better now.

The Cherokee Warriors made it to the state tournament from2002-04, but in 2005 they struggled with a 1-9 record. This was mostlydue to a large number of graduating seniors and a serious turnover in thecoaching staff. Now that everyone has a year under their belts, however,the Warriors are ready to return to prominence. Senior quarterback JohnValentine will get his chance to show what he is made of, and the offensepromises to be much more polished and prepared. Last season was areal disappointment for Cherokee, but with coaches and players that areall familiar with one another, the Warriors should no doubt rise tobecome one of the top teams in the region again. A win over one ofGeorgia’s highest-ranked teams would definitely be the boost this pro-gram needs.

Warner Robins vs. Parkview2:45 p.m.

Parkview is hoping their successes from last season will carryover. The Panthers reached the quarterfinal round of the state tourna-ment for the 11th consecutive time, and head coach Cecil Flowe won his150th game as the season came to a close. Flowe will certainly add a fairshare of wins to that total this season with eight starters returning to thefield. Senior defensive back Tremayne Graham is one of the most talent-ed players at his position and is also a solid wide receiver when his num-ber is called upon. Senior Antonio Mohn had nine rushing touchdowns asa sophomore before missing last season with an injury. Now he is healthyand ready to pick up where former RB Caleb King left off.

The Warner Robins Demons have one of the richest histories ofthe teams in the Kell Powerade Classic, winning 23 regional titles andfour state championships, including one in 2004. The Demons had a fair-ly inexperienced team last season but still finished with a 9-2 record.Many stars of 2005 will be returning this season, including QB ShaneSams. As a sophomore, Sams completed 68 percent of his passes andthrew seven touchdowns. The player to watch on offense will be seniorAntwan Hamilton; he averaged 10 rushing yards per carry and 11 totaltouchdowns. The defense held opponents to about 10 points per gamelast season, and defensive ends Brian Buford and Roderick Rose werethe leading tacklers. They will return to the starting lineup on Saturday,which means bad news for Parkview.

E A T L . C O M

SCORE ATLANTA I 05KPCADE CLASSIC

Brookwood vs. Camden Co.5:30 p.m.

It’s been almost four years since these teams faced off. In 2002,Brookwood and Camden County met in the semifinal round of the statetournament, with Brookwood sneaking away with a 24-23 victory.Brookwood has made it to the postseason every year since then and evenreached the 2005 state championship game. The Broncos will enter thisgame with arguably the best linebacker combo out there. Senior ILBRennie Curran is especially dangerous: he has been ranked the No. 7 ILBin the nation and the No. 19 overall athlete in Georgia according toRivals.com. Curran is joined by seniors Joe Moore and David Kelley whoutilize their speed to their advantage often. And after averaging 35 pointsper game last season, the offense is just as lethal.

As good as the Broncos are, however, they certainly will havetheir hands full against the team that the Atlanta Journal-Constitutionand Sports Illustrated named the best in Georgia. The Camden CountyWildcats are coming off of their best offensive season in history, averag-ing over 42 points per game. Head coach Jeff Herron led the Wildcats tothe state title in 2003, and has a 71-7 record in his six years as headcoach. The team will be without a senior quarterback (A.J. McCray andMajor Herron are both juniors), but both sides of the ball are loaded withtalent and experienced players. The defense will be led by seniorsRennie Moore Jr., and Willie White, ranked No. 29 and 31 in the state,respectively. This game may be the best of the Classic.

McEachern vs. Roswell 8:30 p.m.

One thing is for certain: all of the upperclassmen on theMcEachern Indians will be looking forward to this one. The last timethese teams met was in the first round of the 2005 state tournament.Roswell controlled the game on offense and came away with a 28-14 vic-tory, ending McEachern’s season. Head coach Jimmy Dorsey enters his23rd season with the Indians and will be ready to extract revenge on theHornets. Senior defensive tackle Ted Laurent is ranked No. 5 overall inGeorgia by Rivals.com, and you can bet he still has a sour taste in hismouth from last season. In the first coaches poll on gasports.com,McEachern earned a No. 9-ranking while Roswell was unranked. TheIndians hope to keep it that way.

Still, the Roswell Hornets are one of the most successful teamsin Georgia and they are looking to make another trip to the postseason.While the Hornets are unranked on gasports.com, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution pre-ranked them No. 8 in Class AAAAA. In Roswell’s ninewins last season, their opponents scored 14 points or less in all but onegame. Senior linebacker Ridge Kern will lead the defense once again,and he has an uncanny ability to put pressure on the quarterback. DustinTaliaferro was only a sophomore in 2005 and still managed to lead theHornets to playoffs. Taliaferro threw for 148 yards and a touchdownagainst McEachern last season. If the Indians are not careful, the expe-rienced junior will throw for even more in the Classic’s final game.

W W W . S C O R E A T L . C O M

KPC06 I SCORE ATLANTA Get In The Game!

Q: How has it grown through the years?Hunter: The first year was real big. It’s

grown a lot; we’ve had a couple of bumps inthe road like when the roof of the Dome fell in.And then we’ve had to compete with some bigshows. The second year we had to play onMonday night for instance because there was aconvention going on, so we billed it as MondayNight Football.

Q: Has the game always been played atthe Dome every year?

Hunter: No, it was played at McEachernin ’95 and later on we had another problemwith the Dome, so one of the years a double-header was played at Brookwood and a double-header was played at McEachern.

Q: What do you do with the money raised;where does it go with this?

Hunter: The schools get some of themoney. There’s been over $40,000 raised forscholarships which were originally for studentsat Wheeler. Now we give scholarships forCobb County teachers, coaches and students.So we donate over $3,000 a year back to theKell Scholarship Fund.

Q: Give us one or two of your most mem-orable moments in these games.

Hunter: From Brookwood, we beatSouthwest Dekalb in ’93 and they were rankedthird nationally. In 1996, we lost to Valdosta onthe last play of the game 31-28, but the gamewas really an omen because we came back andbeat Valdosta in the state championship. Thelast game proved to our kids that they couldplay with anybody in Georgia.

Q: Over the 15 years you have gone

core Atlanta sat down this week with CorkyKell co-founder Dave Hunter, who has

made his mark on high school football in thestate for the past 36 years. In 1987, Dave tookover as head coach at Brookwood High Schooland four years later helped put together whatis now called the Powerade Kell Classic. In 19seasons as head coach in Georgia, coachHunter's teams won 177 games and qualifiedfor the state playoffs 15 times. He won a statetitle at Brookwood in 1996 and talked with usabout the game he helped put together with thelate McEachern coach Corky Kell.

Q: Where did the whole idea of the KellPowerade Classic come from?

Hunter: Corky got together with the prin-cipal of McEachern [Ralph Williams] andmyself, and Corky wanted to see the champi-onship games at the Dome to prove that theDome would work. We all talked about it; myprincipal at the time Emmitt Lawson wasinvolved, and Mr. Williams and Jimmy Dorsey.We said we would have a game and then wetried to find two more teams in SouthwestDekalb and Newnan. So the first year we playedit in 1992, we had a doubleheader. By the way,at that time it was called the Kickoff Classic,and it was the very first football game played inthe Georgia Dome. Before the Falcons, beforeany college game, before anybody.

Q: Do you remember what the resultswere of those games?

Hunter: I don’t think we won. We may haveplayed McEachern, and Southwest Dekalb andNewnan played, but I’m not really quite sure.

S lot of coaches are saying that they just can’tremember it ever being this hot. What are yourthoughts on the heat?

Hunter: My last two to three years, theheat bothered me. I don’t remember it beingover 90 degrees so many days in a row thisyear though. And it’s different now from whenI grew up because I had no air conditioning, soin my opinion it’s all about heat acclamation.When I was a teenager, there were some dayswhen it was 100 degrees. But I was used to it;I played outside all day long.

Q: The steroids issue has been big on theprofessional level and now people are lookingat it on the college level. How about the highschool level?

Hunter: It’s a concern for all of us. Butagain we’re back to the same deal of do youwant to spend so much money to catch two per-cent and hurt the other 98 percent when you’respending half your budget to catch, what, fivepeople? I’m not condoning it at all, don’t mis-understand me. If there was a test that cost $10,I’d have everybody at Brookwood take it.

Q: Finally, what do you remember aboutCorky Kell when you think about him?

Hunter: What a great guy. Corky was a gre-garious guy who permeated love for kids. It waslike it seeped through his pores. What a genuineguy. Ralph Williams came up with the idea toname it the “Corky Kell Classic,” and of coursewe all agreed on it. In fact, we announced it at hisfuneral. Corky was not doing well, but he askedme to keep the game alive. As a matter of fact, itwas a pretty traumatic moment for me. And Ipromised him I would keep the games going.

through this cycle, do you think the kids areany better than they were back then?

Hunter: Yeah I think they’re better!They’re better trained, their nutrition is betterand they are bigger, faster and stronger. I’mnot saying that some of the players early onaren’t as good as the players now. The guys arefaster than they used to be though. It’s just afaster, bigger game.

Q: You were one of the first coaches thatlooked at it as a business, and you’ve done alot with your facilities over at Brookwood. Thathas sort of become a popular trend.

Hunter: By nature, I think people want tomake a better place for their kids. When youbuild good facilities, you feel pride and tradi-tion. That’s what you’re looking for. We madea tremendous effort and the community hasbeen extremely helpful.

Q: You’re seeing a lot of recruiting and alot of kids moving around. How do you look atthat whole situation?

Hunter: I don’t think that’s healthy, Ithink you should be loyal to the school youcame from. However, there’s going to be someof that. I wish there was a way that we couldmake the kids and their families more account-able, but everything nowadays has legal rami-fications with it. If they do it legally, so be it.If you pass the rules and are not careful, whenyou’re a senior you can’t play. What if you andyour wife get transferred to Savannah? That’snot right for your kid. If we’re not careful,we’ll make a rule that harms 95 percent ofthem and catches five percent of them.

Q: You’ve been around for many years. A

‘Corky [Kell] was a gregarious guy who permeated love for kids’

W W W . S C O R E A T L . C O M

KELL POWERADE CLASSIC SCORE ATLANTA I 7KPC

the inside and the logistics of coaching. But aswe came here on the campus, there were alwaysa lot of things out there that intrigued me like theJr. Hornet program and the Rec program. If youlook at the great models that evolved in Georgia– the Valdostas and the Warner Robins of theworld – that was something that we kind of hadbut we always felt like we could do better. Thefinancial end of it is something you have to thinkabout. In this community, there are a lot ofexpectations but improving the facilities was notan outside pressure, it was really something thatcame from us. We wanted to have what’s best forus. The first time I stepped on the new surface atthe Georgia Dome, I knew that I wanted it atRoswell. I don’t know where that really camefrom, but if you’re going to have those things,you’ve got to have a mechanism that’s going tofinance those things.

Q: How many years have you beeninvolved in the Kell Classic?

McFarlin: This is our third year. It’s on atwo-year contract; we were there in 2002(against Brookwood) and 2003 (against EastCoweta), and now we’re back.

Q: What’s it like to be involved in that?McFarlin: It’s a great opportunity. It’s the

first time I’ve ever met [Corky Kell co-founder] Dave Hunter; to me, he’s the first guyin metro Atlanta to step out there and drum upthe big dollars and financial support. He justruns a first-class program. He was the kind ofguy I wanted to model our program after. Webrought him in as a consultant a couple ofyears ago to help us with our booster club totry to bring a little more success on that end ofit. … The Kell Powerade Classic itself is moreabout the experience. If you really want toknow the truth about it, from a coaching stand-point it’s a distraction. I enjoy it because thekids enjoy it, but it’s almost a nightmare foryour coaches because everything changeswhen you get down there. You have to get the

core Atlanta sat down this week withRoswell coach Tim McFarlin, who has been

coaching at Roswell since 1981. He has beenthe head coach for nine years, taking the placeof the legendary Ray Manus, and his Hornetsare favorite to win subregion 6B in Class 5A.McFarlin discussed many subjects, includinghis feelings about players transferring schoolsand steroids.

Q: How big has high school football inthe North Fulton area grown? You’ve seen anincredible growth over the last eight-10 years.

McFarlin: It’s always been big in Roswelland Milton. But when we came here, the outlin-ing areas were all very rural. So the growth hasoccurred inherently, but it’s also caught on as faras the passion of the game. I think football is ina unique time of the year; it’s the first thing thathappens right off the bat on the school campus.Because of that, I think high school and collegefootball are situated for success. We’re locatedat the right time of year, and it’s just a great wayto kick off the school year.

Q: You’ve been at Roswell for 25 years. Youdon’t see many guys sticking around that long.The pressure of being a head high school coachthese days is incredible.

McFarlin: Itis, but I had a greatmodel. I worked 17years for Ray[Manus], and I lookback and it went sofast. In a lot of waysI look back andprobably my happi-est years were thelast couple years ofRay’s tenure as headcoach. As the offen-sive coordinator, hegave me full range ofrunning the offenseand I didn’t deal withthe pressures of theday-to-day operationsof the program. Thepressure of head coach-ing really doesn’t botherme. Not once have I everthought, “If we don’twin, I’ll get fired.” I’vejust never thought aboutthat. I’ve never thoughtthat we’re not going to makethe playoffs either. I don’t get on the bus wor-rying about whether we’re going to win or losebecause I really feel like we’re going to winevery time we play football. So I don’t havepressure in that regard. The pressure of being ahead coach now has really evolved in the lastcouple of years into maintaining the program.You have to draw financial support, you haveto focus on transportation of the teams. We livein a legalistic society now, so you’re alwaysworried about elements of the game like heat,injuries, and making sure kids have physicals.There are just so many things involved withbeing a head coach now. As much as I enjoy it,every year I find myself more and more miss-ing the actual coaching of kids. That’s why Ihad to turn the offense over.

Q: You were one of the first coaches toreally realize the importance of raising moneyfor the new field and scoreboard. You werereally out in front on that.

McFarlin: When I got the program, I canremember as an assistant coach having dreamsabout how you would do things a little different-ly. Ray was so good at running the program on

S talk about it and discuss it, how can it be alegitimate goal?

Q: Do you think the recruiting has gottenout of hand in your opinion?

McFarlin: Maybe so, I don’t know. We’vehad kids leave our program and had kids cometo our program. We had a big deal a couple ofyears ago when a kid out of Chattahoocheecame here and talked to us, and wound up atParkview. It’s always uncomfortable. My onlyadvice in that situation is that you can’t keepparents from being unhappy where they are,and with the financial resources that a lot ofpeople have in the metro area, you’re not goingto stop them from making these moves. I thinkfrom an ethical standpoint, you have to be ableto look in the mirror and say, “I did not recruitthese kids.” If they come here and they do it

right – they move or get an academichardship and are approved by the GHSA– to me, the GHSA may not be perfectbut I don’t know who is.’’ If he’s notgoing to play here, I don’t want him tobe ineligible somewhere else. In a kid’slife, he’s got a four-year window ofopportunity to play high school foot-ball. And I wish parents could under-stand that they’ve only got four years toplay multiple sports; I think it does akid harm when you tell him he needs tolock into one sport so he can achievethese goals and dreams of greatnessbecause the majority of the kids don’tever get there. And then what you’vedone is stolen that time in their lifewhen they can do what they wanted todo. High school needs to be a timewhere a kid can play, compete andexperience different sports.

Q: What would you like to see asstandards for the heat? What do youfeel is necessary for that?

McFarlin: I don’t know, I don’t everremember it being this hot; it’s like thisglobal warming thing has got us. I thinkwhat we may have to do is continue tomake modifications like practicing atnight or early in the morning. I do thinkthe old school thought of let’s get themout there at 2 o’clock and we’ll just gofor a couple of hours, I think that’s justout. There were times this year when theheat was so bad that we wouldn’t havedared put a kid on the football field.Everybody talks about “kids are indoorswith air conditioning,” and I guess to

some degree that’s true. But it’s hot this year.

Q: The other big subject these days issteroids. Obviously, it happens. How do youwork with something like that and keep the kidsfrom getting into that stuff?

McFarlin: Maybe I’m blind or oblivious towhat’s going on, but I don’t know that I’ve everseen it here at high school. I know I’ve seensome of our kids that went on the college leveland I can remember very vividly being takenaback when I want on the campus of a DivisionI school and saw one of our kids. I knew thatsomething had happened over the course of hisfreshman and sophomore year. With his growth,all the signs were there. First of all, our coachesare committed to this. We don’t even encourageprotein and all that. I tell kids eat right, drinkright, get plenty of rest and let’s let diet, exerciseand sleep patterns take care of the rest. If weever saw it here, I hope we could recognize it. Ifyou look at us this year, we’re not big enoughfor us to even worry about it. Has it ever hap-pened here? I don’t know, maybe it has. But Ihope it hasn’t. … We know the signs of it.

awe out of the eyes of your kids and get themto focus on playing football. The first year wedid a really poor job of doing that. The secondyear we played a good team and lost 9-7 in agood football game. It’s a good news/bad newsthing, but it is a lifetime memory for thesekids. We would just like to change our luck thistime around.

Q: Right, but you’re going to open againstsomeone who’s strong (McEachern).

McFarlin:That’s the good news, I likethat. I know different coaches look for differ-ent things. But I want to know early where westand. And a lot of times if you go out and beata lesser team, it’s hard to get a true evaluationon your program. My whole thinking duringthe season is geared toward what we are goingto do in the playoffs. I think the sooner you can

get a sense of where your team is and how theystack up, the better off you are. You learn veryfew things from winning ballgames. It’s thosetough losses. Playing Parkview four times inthe playoffs has been the greatest thing that hasever happened. Those four losses have grownour program more than anything we could havedone. I’d like to play them again real soon.

Q: How much would a state champi-onship mean to you?

McFarlin: It would mean a lot. We hadour 55-year reunion last year and to seeguys who were older than me that playedhere and played on state championshipteams was great. One guy in particular, TomBowers – who is Jeff Bowers’ brother; Tomwas always in the background as far as noto-riety because Jeff was a quarterback – butTom came by and said, “Tim, it’s time forthis team to win another one.” And I think itis. I think about it and dream about it all thetime. I’m not afraid to put it out there infront of the kids and say this is what wewant to play for. I think if you’re afraid to

‘The [Corky] Kell Powerade Classic itself is more about the experience’

HERE COME THE HORNETS: Junior running back Alex Daniel (photo left) leadsRoswell offense as the Class 5A Hornets look to take subegion 6B. TheHornets are heavy favorites in a subregion which includes Milton, Centennial,Alpharetta, Northview and Chattahoochee. Photos courtesy of Roswell High School.