Lake Oconee Academy used its bye week to prepare for its upcoming region game at Washington-Wilkes.
This Friday’s game between the Titans (2-4) and Tigers (2-4) will be the region opener for both.
Lake Oconee Academy head coach Patrick Stewart respects what Washington-Wilkes head coach Alex Bradford has done with his program this season. He said the Tigers are much better than their overall record suggests.
“We took advantage of our bye week,” Stewart said. “We wanted to get everyone healthy and squared away. And then, really focus on our small details and get a head start on Washington-Wilkes. They’re a strong team, and they’ve done a good job. The record might not reflect it, but they have a disciplined, fast, and good team.”
Last year, Washington-Wilkes edged the Titans 20-13 in a defensive battle. Stewart hopes for a better result this week.
“We played them competitively last season, and they had a great quarterback (Tamari Curry),” Stewart said. “They do many similar things that they did last year, so it won’t be anything that we haven’t seen before.”
Curry has since transferred to Westside of Augusta, so the Tigers have replaced him with talented freshman Mayson Mingle. The 6-foot, first-year starter is a dual-threat, passing for 596 yards, four touchdowns, and only one interception so far this season. Mingle is also the team’s second-leading rusher with 280 yards and five scores.
Mingle likes to get the ball to his playmakers at wideout, such as seniors Demonta Lester and Shariq Meadows, along with sophomore KJ Wylie. They are Washington-Wilkes’ top three receivers through six games.
The Tigers also have two talented ball carriers in senior Dre’vioun Davis and sophomore Calvin Wynn Jr. They’ve carried the load for their offensive attack, combining to rush for 682 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2025.
Washington-Wilkes likes to spread the ball around, and in last year’s game, Stewart’s defense didn’t tackle well.
“Last season, our problem was just tackling,” Lake Oconee Academy’s fourth-year head coach said. “They have some athletes, and when you get them in space, we just have to get them down on the ground. That’s our goal.”
Defensively, the Tigers have struggled, allowing 20 or more points in five of their six games. They are giving up an average 30 points per game, while the Titans are only averaging 6.6 points per game on offense.
Stewart said most of the bye week was spent working on the offense, and he’s confident in this week’s game plan.
“I think we’ve got a really great plan offensively, and we continue just to get better every week,” he said. “That’s a great thing, especially with our young team. So I think we have a really good feeling about this week.”
Lake Oconee Academy’s offense will look to get its rushing game going, with players such as quarterback Jake McDonald, along with running backs CJ Stembridge, Marcus Rhodes, Alden Barreras, and Kam Geter.
“They’re doing great, man. Marcus Rhodes has had a heck of a past couple of weeks,” Stewart said. “CJ is finally back healthy. Jake McDonald is doing a really good job of controlling the offense and taking things under his control out there, doing a good job of being our coach on the field. And then we have had some other individuals step up, such as Alden Barreras and Kam Geter. They’ve done a great job so far this season.”