With high school football summer practices in full swing, the Lake Oconee News is doing a series breaking down the schedules for Morgan County, Greene County, and Lake Oconee Academy. We’ll start the series with Morgan County.
Morgan County had a stellar 2023 campaign, going 10-2 overall, winning its first region championship since 2017, and reaching the second round of the postseason since 2012. The ‘Dogs hope to keep that momentum rolling into this year.
However, Morgan County will enter unchartered territory next season as it moves from Class AAA to Class AA. The Dogs will play in a new region comprised of Westside (Macon), Jackson, Rutland, Callaway, and Pike County.
Morgan County head coach Clint Jenkins thinks the Georgia High School Association’s reclassification will benefit his team.
“I think we’re an AA team, but I don’t know how much it will affect us. I think [the reclassification] will even things out,” Jenkins said. “From a depth perspective, it will help us. I think AA is typically what we are. It’s a good move for us.”
Morgan County’s non-region schedule will feature Oconee County, Putnam County, Greene County, Warren County, and Cedar Shoals. Three of those five - Oconee County, Putnam County, and Greene County - were playoff teams last year.
Jenkins highlighted having rivals Putnam County and Greene County back on the schedule in the same season is huge.
“It means a lot. Each rivalry is different, depending on who you talk to around the community. Putnam County is the big rivalry to the older generation,” he said. “If you talk to others, Greene County is the big rival. For some people, it’s Monroe Area. I think it’s true on all accounts, but getting Putnam County, Greene County, and even Oconee County back in the same year is good because it’s great competition.
"The other part is that we get to stay close to home. We’re playing teams nearby. The games mean a lot more when we’re playing our neighbors. It’ll be good for us.”
The Dogs will open the season with Warren County, a Class A Division II team that went 2-8 last year. Next, they will face Putnam County, Oconee County, and Greene County before finishing their non-region schedule with Cedar Shoals.
“Our non-region schedule is as tough as last year,” Jenkins said. “We thought it was pretty tough last year outside of a few games, but probably for us, we have Warren County first. I don’t know much about [Warren] and think they will be athletic, but after that, it’s Putnam, Oconee, and Greene. Then we go to Cedar Shoals in Athens. I don’t know much about [Cedar], but their coach will do a good job of getting them ready.
"I think Oconee, Greene, and Putnam will be tough. Overall, we have a very competitive schedule, and the non-region part will help us prepare for the region.”
After a bye, Morgan County will begin its region slate on Sept. 26 at Westside in Macon. The Seminoles went 9-3 overall last season and returned a lot of starters from last year. Their matchup with the Dogs could decide the region title.
Next, Morgan County will have two home games against Rutland and Jackson, two teams that struggled last season. The final road game will be Oct. 25 against Pike County, a program that went 0-10 last year but has a new head coach.
The Dogs will end the regular season at Callaway the following week. The Cavaliers made a run to the quarterfinals last year.
Jenkins believes his team’s new region may be more challenging than it has played in the last few years.
“We’ve got Westside-Macon. They’re coming off a good year, and we’ve got to go across the state to play Callaway, a quarterfinal last year in AA,” Jenkins said. “They’ll be challenging games. I think the competition is just as good, if not better. It’s hard to tell because teams like us, with our size, are going down, but I am happy with where we landed.”