Chattahoochee County is 4-0. Inside this ‘small-town football’ team’s historic start.
The stadium lights went dark as the home team emerged from its locker room. Music blared from the speakers: First, “Seven Nation Army,” then Disturbed’s “Down with the Sickness.” As the football players broke through a banner and ran onto the field, the lights shone again before flashing like they were part of a concert production.
This wasn’t Sanford Stadium, home to the Georgia Bulldogs. This was Chattahoochee County’s football stadium in the small town of Cusseta, Georgia. And it was packed with hundreds of fans ready to watch the Panthers go to work.
“It’s special to come down here on Friday nights and the stadium’s rocking, the lights are flashing,” Panthers first-year head coach Pierre Coffey said. “You hear the bull horns, and the keys, and the water jugs filled with pennies. It’s special.”
This season so far has been special for the Panthers.
ChattCo is 4-0 for the first time since 2009. The program has stayed just on the cusp of success the past two years, going 8-4 in 2018 and 7-5 in 2019 before losing to eventual state champ Irwin County in last year’s state playoffs. Now, the Panthers are ready to make the jump from fringe program to serious playoff contender.
And that small-town grit is a big reason why, their head coach says.
Small-town grit
Panthers linebacker Jakedrian Wright recalled a time over the summer when many players on the team nearly quit after one particularly grueling workout.
That session consisted of stadium runs and lifting weights while on the stadium’s steps in 90-plus-degree heat and high humidity. Breaks were seldom, and the whistles kept blowing.
“There were a couple of times I thought about quitting,” said Panthers receiver Carlos Dunovant, the team’s top recruit who has 14 college offers, including from Maryland and Army. “I ain’t never thought about quitting football. Ever. They worked us hard this summer, and everybody kept coming back. And that showed a lot. It showed that everybody wanted it.”
When asked about his team’s resolve, Coffey, the coach, pointed to the Panthers’ 6-0 home win over Marion County on Oct. 9.
The Eagles had driven to ChattCo’s 10-yard line with 2:25 left. The stadium’s PA announcer played a heartbeat noise over the sound system to reflect the Chattahoochee County School District’s motto of “#oneheartbeat.”
Pressure forced Marion quarterback Jamal Sampson to overshoot a wide open receiver in the end zone. One play later, on fourth-and-5, the Panthers defense broke through for a sack. ChattCo ran out the clock on the ensuing drive.
“It’s almost like they (the team) are extremely gritty in regards to, any time they’re challenged, they answer,” Coffey said. “Every single time.”
The Panthers offense has endured little trouble scoring this year, but when it has, the defense has carried the load.
The only time this season the Panthers have given up more than 10 points this season was in their 23-13 win over Shaw on Sept. 11. They allowed just seven points to Manchester and held Miller County to six points on Sept. 4, Coffey’s first game.
Wright said the defense aims for a shutout each week. They’ve done a solid enough job through four games.
“We’re fast, physical, hard-nosed,” Wright said. “We don’t want too many big plays. And we all want it.”
A historic start, but a long season still to play
Coffey is no stranger to football in the Chattahoochee Valley.
He coached for three seasons at Spencer, making the playoffs each year and ending a 22-season drought for the Greenwave. He was also an assistant at Greenville, and recalled the trips to Cusseta to face the program he now leads.
“I can remember then, in 2007, 2008, 2009, we’d come down here and play them, and regardless of their record, they were physical,” Coffey said. “You can tell that they were hard working.”
The time when the Panthers can celebrate their accomplishments will come. But four games into the season, the when remains in the distance.
ChattCo on Friday travels to Central-Talbotton, a team it should beat. But after that, the Panthers face region leader Taylor County and Schley County in back-to-back weeks.
The Panthers will find out more about themselves what they’re made of against those two opponents.
The team already knows it’s tough, gritty and focused, things it can lean on and build on, as the season continues.
“We’ve got to be motivated,” Wright said. “We’ve got to stay focused, because anybody can beat us. We’re not untouchable. We have good athletes, but every other team has good athletes. We’ve got to be more hungry than they are. We’ve got to play like we’re No. 1.”
Chattahoochee County at Central-Talbotton
When: 7:30 p.m., Friday
This story was originally published October 13, 2020 at 12:36 PM.
