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RINGGOLD TIGERS
Head coach: Robert Akins (80-69 here; 253-184 overall)
Returning starters: 9 offensive; 8 defensive
Last year’s record: 5-5, did not qualify for playoffs
Key players: Kori Dumas (5-10, 185) Sr. RB, Kyle White (5-10, 185) Sr. HB/DB, Mason Parker (5-9, 175) Sr. QB, Levi Gunn (6-2, 255) Sr. OL, Malachi Hill (6-0, 180) Sr. WR; Peyton Williams (5-11, 190) Jr. WR/RB
Season outlook: Akins has, obviously, seen a lot of football in more than three decades of coaching. He has had teams exceed expectations, and he’s had some fall below them. He won’t saddle the 2021 Tigers with a prediction, but he knows what a large group of seasoned seniors is capable of achieving.
“I’m excited about this team,” Akins said. “I’ve got 21 seniors. Some are new, but most of them have played since their sophomore seasons. My expectations for them have more to do with them going on the field and playing up to their potential rather than meeting some set goal. I think we focused too much on that last year.”
There is talent across the board, starting in a loaded backfield where returning quarterback Mason (1,700 total yards in nine games), Dumas (1,200 total yards, 24 touchdowns), Hill and Williams give the Tigers the ability to strike quickly or put together clock-chewing drives. Akins said the offensive line “should be as good as it’s ever been.”
Defensively, what the Tigers lack in size they make up for in athleticism, led by White, who had 142 tackles in 2020, and linebacker Cole Carlock, who added nearly 100 stops. Heritage transfer Donte Harris brings even more speed to the linebacker corps.
“These seniors, most of them anyway, played as sophomores and paid their dues,” Akins said in reference to an 0-10 season in 2019. “It’s their time.”