Sonoraville senior quarterback Cody Long leads the Phoenix into the Class AAA playoffs after setting season and career rushing records.
Kaelan Riley has continued the mold of Calhoun spread-offense quarterbacks who can run, pass and read defenses.
Ringgold quarterback Devin Lancaster passes during their prep football game against Northwest Whitfield at Ringgold High School on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2015, in Ringgold, Ga.As the playoffs begin for eight northwest Georgia prep football teams tonight, the spotlight naturally shines brightest on quarterbacks.
Four of those teams have quarterbacks that rank among the Chattanooga area's total yard leaders at the position, and though a quarterback getting 200-plus yards a game isn't necessary to win in the postseason, it's a great starting point.
Sonoraville's Cody Long, Northwest Whitfield's Luke Shiflett, Calhoun's Kaelan Riley and Ringgold's Devin Lancaster have put up prolific numbers this season. They've done it in different ways - Long has rushed for 1,322 of his 2,000 total yards while pure passer Lancaster has amassed 2,550 yards through the air - and they all possess different talents.
One thing they all have in common, though, is each team's offense is squarely built around the game's most important position.
"Cody has been outstanding for us," Sonoraville coach Jim Kremer said as the Phoenix prepared to travel to East Hall. "He set season and career rushing records here, and he's become a much better passer. He does a lot with his feet and he's real poised. He's just a real versatile kid who can play somewhere on the next level."
Long, at 6-foot tall and 170 pounds, runs harder than his size would suggest and has been clocked at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash. He's rushed for more than 200 yards twice this season, including 280 in a big Region 6-AAA win over Ringgold, a performance that caught Robert Akins' eye.
"Physically he's not imposing, but I just think he's a winner," said the Ringgold coach, who likened him to former Tiger Slade Dale. "I told him afterward that if we had 11 like you I wouldn't have to worry about coaching. You're going to win with guys like that with that kind of desire. You can knock him down but you can't knock him out."
Akins' own QB, Lancaster, gets his yards the old-fashioned way. The senior, who throws a 90 mph fastball and is headed to Tennessee Tech on a baseball scholarship, is a pocket passer who's as comfortable throwing 20-yard out patterns as he is 50-yard deep balls. The two-year starter's rise this season has been, his coach says, all about comfort.
"I think he is more confident," said Akins, whose Tigers play tonight at Dawson County. "Our toughest part of the schedule was the beginning, and he was running for his life as our line struggled a bit. He's doing better with his reads, and he's more focused. He doesn't want football to end, which is a tribute to him."
Football won't end for Calhoun's Riley, who will play the sport at Mercer University the next four years. After earning all-state honors a year ago, the 6-foot-4 senior has taken his game to a new level. Though he rarely gets to play more than a series in the second half of games, Riley has racked up 1,730 yards and 19 touchdowns passing and 443 yards and seven scores on the ground for the state's top-ranked Class AAA team.
The baby of the group, Northwest sophomore Shiflett, could end up being the best, according to his coach. The 6-2, 170-pounder overcame an injury early in the season to put up 1,420 passing yards and 17 touchdowns to go with 374 rushing yards and six touchdowns in eight games.
Ironically, it was during the two games he missed where things started clicking.
"When he was out, he got to watch a lot and help out," said Northwest coach Josh Robinson, whose team hosts Grady tonight in Class AAAA. "Prior to the injury his completion percentage was mid-50s. He came back two weeks later and he's completed 74 percent of his passes since.
"His decision-making has been great, and he throws the ball as well as just about any sophomore I've seen. He's the total package."
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296; follow on Twitter @youngsports22.