Calhoun linebackers hope to add to legacy

Calhoun's Owen Williams (18) falls on Monroe quarterback Chandler Byron's fumbled ball for a turnover during the Yellowjackets' second-round Class AAA prep football playoff game against the Monroe Area Purple Hurricanes at Calhoun High School on Friday, Nov. 17, 2017, in Calhoun, Ga.
Calhoun's Owen Williams (18) falls on Monroe quarterback Chandler Byron's fumbled ball for a turnover during the Yellowjackets' second-round Class AAA prep football playoff game against the Monroe Area Purple Hurricanes at Calhoun High School on Friday, Nov. 17, 2017, in Calhoun, Ga.

CALHOUN, Ga. - It was 2011, and like most recreational league football players in his town, Bailey Lester dreamed of one day wearing the black and gold of Calhoun High School.

More specifically, he wanted to be Hunter Knight. Or Alex Kirby. Or Gabe Freeman. It didn't matter which one, he just wanted to hit people the way the Yellow Jackets' starting linebackers did that season on the way to winning a state championship.

Lester, now a senior outside linebacker for this year's Jackets (12-1), who play at Cedar Grove (13-0) in a GHSA Class AAA state semifinal tonight, is part of another lethal trio who make trying to get yards against coach Hal Lamb's defense a big health risk.

"We've had some great ones here, and this group is up there with the tops," Lamb said of Lester, Davis Allen and Owen Williams. "They are very good, and we have some depth at that position. We feel we have five guys we can play there and feel really comfortable."

photo Calhoun leading tackler Davis Allen is part of an active, aggressive group of linebackers for the Yellow Jackets (12-1), who face Cedar Grove (13-0) tonight in a GHSA Class AAA state semifinal.
photo Dalton High School's Ahmaad Tanner (1) gets tripped up by Calhoun High School's Bailey Lester's (6) head on Friday, Aug. 26, 2016, at Harmon Field.

The three have a combined 316 tackles, and they get it done in very complementary ways. Allen is the 6-foot-5, 220-pound middle linebacker who can fill gaps inside while also chasing victims to the sidelines. Williams (6-1, 190) may be the most physical of the three, while Lester (6-foot, 210) is the most well-rounded and aggressive.

"They are three guys on a string, and they really feed off each other," Lamb praised. "Davis Allen is a quiet kid, but he's intense on the field. He's a go-getter and he loves to play the game. Owen Williams is very physical and reads his keys extremely well. He just likes to hit.

"Bailey Lester is the one who makes us go. He's the prototype linebacker, real physical, can run well and reads his keys well. They've all had great seasons, and they make each other better."

Lester, a senior who leads the team with 18 tackles for loss and nine sacks, loves the aggressive role he gets to play.

"I like to get sent on some blitzes and get after the quarterback," he said. "I'm more of an outside stunt guy, and my job is to find the football and get to it. If I have to go through a block and contain things, I don't mind that, either."

Calhoun's defensive system has remained consistent in Lamb's nearly two decades in charge. While the linemen eat up blockers and get penetration, the linebackers read and react and are usually free to make plays.

"The first time I saw the 2011 team I knew I wanted to play football because of them," Lester said. "Gabe Freeman, Alex Kirby, Hunter Knight man, they were pretty bad men on the football field. Heck, we all wanted to be those guys."

The similarities, Lester hopes, carry over for a couple more weeks. In 2011, Calhoun played a semifinal against Carver-Columbus and its famous running back, current Cleveland Browns rusher Isaiah Crowell. The defense held Crowell to fewer than 100 yards and the Tigers to 228 total in a 27-14 win.

Tonight the Jackets face another powerhouse, with Cedar Grove ranked No. 1 and having won 23 straight games, including last year's state final against Greater Atlanta Christian. It's the same Cedar Grove that ousted Calhoun from last year's playoffs, 47-21 in the quarterfinals.

"We have to prove we can stop their run game just like we have so far," Lester said. "We've faced a lot of guys on the stat sheet that show out, and it makes us want to prove ourselves."

The big difference from 2011 is tonight's game is on the road in the Atlanta area instead of at Phil Reeve Stadium. Lester believes last week's road win proves the Jackets travel well.

"To be on the road in that kind of setting, it's a great challenge," he said. "Last week I didn't hear a peep on the bus ride. Everybody was ready to do their jobs, and we took care of business. Friday, being underdogs just adds to it. We have nothing to lose, so we'll put everything out there."

Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6296; follow on Twitter @youngsports22.

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