Assuming the conditions are by then favorable, two Athens-area athletes will be watching Georgia football’s season-opener against Virginia in Atlanta with a great deal of interest – in the Cavaliers.

Athens Academy’s Hugh Laughlin and Oconee County’s West Weeks this month both made verbal commitments to Virginia, so both rising seniors – who have favored the Georgia Bulldogs from the crib -- will have new loyalties when it comes to college football.

“I’m hoping to get a ticket to it,” said Laughlin, who lives about a mile from Sanford Stadium. “I’m looking forward to it. I can’t wait because I think it’s going to be a very good game. I’ll most definitely be pulling for the Cavaliers.”

“I’m definitely going to be pulling for UVA,” said Weeks, whose father played for the Bulldogs in the early 1990s.

The 6-foot-6, 285-pound Laughlin (who committed May 7) and the 6-2, 195-pound Weeks (who committed May 2) have been key components for the Spartans and Warriors, respectively. In Laughlin’s time at Athens Academy under coach Josh Alexander, the Spartans have gone 35-3 and have reached the Class A Private state finals twice. Under coach Travis Noland, Weeks and his teammates have gone 24-13 and played in the Class 4A state championship game last December.

Under the watchful eye of Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall, it is expected that Laughlin will play on the defensive line while Weeks will get a shot at linebacker.

“They offered me as an athlete, but I was mostly recruited by the defensive line coach (Clint) Sintim and I’m going there to play defensive line,” said Laughlin, who has played tight end and defensive lineman at Athens Academy. “I like that idea a lot.”

“They recruited me as kind of a linebacker/safety, like a position that can do a lot on the defense – playing a lot of pass coverage but at the same time playing a lot of blocks, too,” said Weeks, who has played a host of positions on both sides of the ball for Oconee County and registered a touchdown reception in last year’s state title game.

Although they’ve known of each other for a long time, Laughlin and Weeks have forged a friendship in recent months that they hope to continue in college.

“We talk all the time,” said Laughlin, the son of Leigh and Charlie Laughlin of Athens. “We’re hoping to room together when we get to Virginia. I’ve known about him forever, but we’ve gotten to be close in the last three months.”

“I’d heard of him before and then we just started hitting each other up and asking each other what we were thinking about school and stuff and we became friends through that,” said Weeks, the son of Erin and David Weeks of Watkinsville. “And we work out with the same guy. I definitely hope we can be roommates.”

As is the case with many sought-after student athletes, Laughlin and Weeks opted to commit early to minimize the distractions that come with recruiting during their senior seasons.

“It feels good,” said Weeks. “We can focus in on the team more... There’s no pressure now.”

“It definitely takes the pressure off,” said Laughlin. “I just remember my teammate Len’Neth (Whitehead, who signed with Tennessee), and he was stressing and worrying about it all football season long because he didn’t know where he wanted to go. Then UCLA came into the picture and then he was even less sure. I didn’t want anything like that. I just wanted to play, and I knew (Virginia) was the place for me.”

Laughlin and Weeks want to give their full attention to the upcoming season, as both feel there’s some unfinished business to attend to.

“I want to win a state championship for Athens Academy,” said Laughlin. “I think we’ve got a great team this year and hopefully we can get that done.”

“I’m getting ready for this season,” said Weeks. “Hopefully we can have a good run this year. We’ve definitely got (going for a) state championship on our minds.”