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An all Athens affair: Athens Christian focused on slowing down Athens Academy attack - ABH
For Athens Christian, the game plan for Friday night is simple: Stop, or at least slow down, Athens Academy running back Len’Neth Whitehead.
If only it was that simple.
Whitehead scored five touchdowns for the unbeaten Spartans (6-0, 3-0) last week, two weeks after scoring three against then-unbeaten Prince Avenue. But the main challenge for the Eagles (2-4, 0-3) will be stopping the rest of the Athens Academy offense, which can score in a variety of ways.
Whitehead’s talent just adds more to the tough task the Eagles defense faces Friday at 7:30 p.m.
“We’ve got to rally to him,” said Eagles coach Chris Williams. “One man typically doesn’t bring him down. He’s a powerful young man, and there’s definitely some offensive linemen up front getting some work done too. ... But, they do a good job, they’re not one-dimensional by any means.”
Athens Academy coach Josh Alexander, meanwhile, knows he has a talented running back, and knows that while Whitehead may touch the ball on 90 percent of his team’s plays, he can be used to set up the rest of the Spartans offense.
“We like to run the ball and throw play-action passes,” Alexander said. “We like to throw screens and similar things. Not to discredit (Whitehead), but it’s a total team thing. The kids around him can make plays happen.”
The Spartans enter Friday coming off two close victories over Prince Avenue and George Walton Academy. The Spartans led the Bulldogs 28-13 after three quarters, but settled for a seven-point victory.
Athens Christian enters under much different circumstances.
A winless region slate and three straight losses make Friday’s game all the more important for the Eagles, who have been outscored 130-16 in their last three outings.
While stopping Whitehead and the Athens Academy offense remains an upfront concern for Williams and his staff, the Eagles offense has failed to produce since a 29-point outing against Landmark Christian. No offense against Athens Academy means little chance of victory, and Williams knows that.
“We’ve challenged our guys to be more consistent,” Williams said. “We’ve turned the ball over way too many times lately. We’ve completely shot ourselves in the foot offensively; moving the football, then turning around and turning it back over.”
The Spartans have won each of the last three meetings between the two programs, with last season’s 47-0 blowout victory the outlier in a rivalry series that traditionally produces tight contests.
The two contests before last season’s blowout finished 19-12 and 13-6.
So, it’s no real surprise that both coaches expect another close game this time around. Add in the fact that this year’s matchup serves as Athens Academy’s homecoming game, and there’s a bit more motivation for Williams’ team.
“I knew (it was Athens Academy’s homecoming). In our region, there’s a lot of games that you really don’t have to say a whole lot, just simply because it’s a rivalry game,” Williams said. “It’s a cross-town rival game. And we get that.”
Added Alexander: “Coach Williams does such a good job and always gets them to play hard. This game has always been really close for a long time, so it won’t be easy, no matter what people say.”
Athens Academy
Athens Academy is an independent, co-educational school for students in K3 through 12th grade, located on a beautiful 152-acre campus in Northeast Georgia. For over 50 years, Athens Academy has pursued its mission of Excellence with Honor through academics, athletics, fine arts, and service and leadership.
