Coahulla Creek looking to use preseason game as a “learning experience” moving into regular season.

The Colts kicked off their 2024 season last night with a preseason scrimmage against the Gordon Central Warriors, with varsity action taking place through the first three quarters, and the JV taking on the fourth. Coahulla put forth some nice efforts, but fell short to the Warriors 23-7. 

Despite the loss, Coach Carter and the other coaches noted this is an opportunity to grow, and fix mistakes heading into the season opener next week vs. Northwest Whitfield. “ I thought we were inconsistent,” says Carter. “We had some good flashes, but we couldn’t string those good plays together enough to be successful. The positive that I took from it is that the mistakes are very fixable. Our effort was great, and our players responded to the coaching well”.

Senior receiver Andrew Russell viewed the game from the sideline and was impressed with how the defense played vs. running game. He also reflected on how the “simple mistakes cost us big time,” and in order to succeed this season they need to “lock in and focus on the little things rather than making big plays.” 

Coahulla started off strong during the first quarter with Kobe King intercepting the ball from the Warriors, and returning it 25 yards into the Colts’ redzone. The possession ended with a missed field goal, but the Colts capitalized later in the first when quarterback Waelyn Baliles connected with receiver Wyatt Mann for a 30 yard touchdown, giving the Colts a 7-0 lead at the 4:44 mark in the first quarter. This was the lone touchdown for Coahulla, with the Warriors taking the lead 15-7 with 10:23 left in the second quarter. Even though the Colts were trailing, Baliles continued to connect with his receivers, finding Landon Bryant for a 30 yard pass in the 2nd. “I was glad to see Landon Bryant offer some production to our offense. We need him to give us that depth at receiver,” says Coach Carter.

The defense had some great plays as well, with Chevy Joyce sacking the quarterback for a 5 yard loss, and the Colts also forced a fumble in the 2nd quarter. “I thought our defensive line was really tough,” adds Carter, as they applied pressure multiple times to the Warriors QB. 

The defense specifically performed well against Gordon Central’s run game “I definitely think we (the defense) performed better vs. the running game last night,” says linebacker/fullback Hudson Sherrets, “We were able to shut them down there.”

By halftime, the Warriors led 23-7 and that score remained intact until the end of the game. The Creek’s offense managed to collect a few more yards, but couldn’t find their way back into the endzone.

The Colts’ JV took over in the fourth quarter with Brody Howell rushing for a 22 yard first down. Howell continued for another first down, gaining another 10 yards for the Colts. The running back analyzed how the JV defense applied intense pressure to the quarterback, prohibiting the Warriors offense from finding the endzone. The JV had a great quarter between the rushing yards and keeping the Warriors out of the endzone. 

Coach Carter noted key players from the game included Jackson Lowery, Wyatt Mann, Chevy Joyce, Colby Ewart, and Kobe King. Russell and Sherrets agree that this game was a learning experience to prepare them for the rest of the season. “We just gotta put this one behind us, watch the film, correct our mistakes, and get back out there Friday night,” Sherrets explains. While the team had many big plays and many faults, this scrimmage was a time to observe what the Colts need to brush up on in order to succeed this season. 

“The overall expectation hasn’t changed. We expect to be a competitive team. The scrimmage gave us some specifics to focus on going forward” says Coach Carter.

The Colts will be back in action Friday night for their season opener vs. Northwest Whitfield. Kickoff is set for 7:30pm here at The Creek.

Article written by Ava Howell