Spencer closes in on history
Spencer needs one win in final two games to clinch winning record
By KEVIN PRICE
kprice@ledger-enquirer.com
How long has it been since Spencer finished a season with a winning record?
Long enough that head coach Pierre Coffey had not been born yet. In fact, only one of the Spencer assistant coaches had been born at the time.
It has been 38 years -- 1977 was the year the last season the Greenwave finished above .500. They went 7-3 that season. The last team they beat that year was Baker, a school that no longer exists.
During the summer, Spencer's group of seniors set finishing with a winning season as one of its goals.
"Myself, I don't worry about those things," Coffey said Tuesday. "But the seniors set some goals for the team during the summer. One of them was to make history."
To make history, the Greenwave will have to overcome a lot of ugly history.
Since 1977 there has been a lot of misery for the school that is ironically situated just off Victory Drive. In the 37 seasons since, Spencer's record is 77-289. Six seasons the Greenwave didn't win a game, including three straight just a decade ago -- 2003-05.
Three times, the Greenwave finished .500 at 5-5. In 1992, they were 5-3 and lost back-to-back games to Peach County -- the second game was a Region 3-AAA playoff game. In 2007, they beat Hardaway in the final game to get to 5-5. Two seasons ago, they again had
two chances to guarantee a winning season, but they lost to Heard County and Kendrick.
Now, for the third time, Spencer stands 5-3 with two chances to secure a winning season. The teams standing in its way this time are Kendrick (today) and Jordan (on Nov. 6).
"We are all excited about the success we are having this school year," Coffey said. "With Kendrick and Jordan still ahead, those are two inner-city rivals. A lot of the kids played middle school together or grew up in the same neighborhoods. But I don't think that will be a distraction. They are excited to play Kendrick and Jordan."
Another of the goals set by the Spencer seniors was to make the playoffs -- something no Spencer team has done since 1993. With wins in both of its remaining games, the Greenwave would earn a playoff berth and likely be the third seed from 2-AAA. They can also make it with a loss, but they would need help from other teams.
The Greenwave have put themselves in this position with as four-game winning streak, the program's longest winning streak since 1993.
"This team has not looked past anyone," Coffey said. "We are preparing this week just like we did last week. At practice yesterday, the team was focused. They understand what they need to do.
"We have been playing sound football. We have been playing with a lot of enthusiasm and poise. We seem to peaking at the right time."
Kevin Price, Follow Kevin on Twitter @lesports
This story was originally published October 30, 2015 at 11:51 PM with the headline "Spencer closes in on history ."