LaFAYETTE, Ga. - The "dead period" is officially over and football fields all over the Chattanooga area were bustling Tuesday. That included LaFayette High School, where 10 schools went head-to-head in a 7-on-7 passing camp.
No scores were kept, trophies given out or position battles decided in six hours of play in muggy conditions. However, in the no-contact competition in shorts and helmets it was noticeable which teams had veteran quarterbacks and which teams didn't.
"We're fortunate to have a two-year starter in Cooper Hodge," Boyd-Buchanan coach Grant Reynolds said. "We do about five of these each summer and it gives us a good head start to the season, and offensively right now we just want to work on getting our routes and our timing down."
The Buccaneers, with Hodge and tight end Jack Keebler working inside, moved the ball at will in early competition Tuesday, as did two other teams with experienced quarterbacks.
North Murray showed off its explosive offense and senior quarterback Will Swantic, who transferred from Southeast Whitfield when his father, Scott, was hired as an assistant coach. The quarterback quickly is getting to know his receivers, including dynamic senior Jordan Adams.
"When you do these type things, it helps develop the quarterback-receiver relationship you've got to have," North Murray coach David Gann said. "Will is so experienced, and so are our receivers, and now we just have to get them in sync. Today, after a slow start, you could really see that happening."
Sonoraville, fresh off a pair of playoff appearances, picked right up as three-year starting quarterback Cody Long picked defenses apart. His experience is allowing the Phoenix to tweak their playbook in trying to be more efficient.
"Cody is getting better every day, and it's nice to have that experience," Sonoraville coach Jim Kremer said. "We're trying to simplify our terminology, which had gotten kind of wordy in the past. We want to speed up our pace of play, and this should help us. Having Cody back there will make that easier."
Several of the other schools were using the day to start the search for a new quarterback, including host LaFayette. Ramblers oach Chad Fisher is having to replace 2,000-yard passer Evan Head, with senior Conner Green and junior Logan Teasley in a heated battle.
"Each gives us a different element to what we're trying to do," Fisher said. "We spent a lot of time in the spring running the football, and a lot of things we do are going to be based on the run this year. Right now I can't tell you who our starter is. Whichever one is playing hot is the one that's going to be running it."
Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6296.