Athens Hornets
Athens Hornets fought tough slate of opponents
When Athens drew the District 8-4A Division 1 assignment during re-alignment they knew they ’ d have a tough task every week .
When the last whistle blew at Athens ’ 42- 29 win over Palestine , the Hornets were 1-5 in the district and 3-7 overall .
“ I thought we finished hard ,” Coach Zac Harrell said . “ Some young kids really stepped up , which bodes well for the future . Anytime you end the season like we did if gives you a lot of momentum going into the off season .” Athens opened the year on August 26 , blowing out to a big lead over Brownsboro , then hanging in for a 34-27 victory . Week two brought another victory , by 30 over Life of Waxahachie . After that , the well ran dry and seven losses followed .
Athens , the smallest school in Class 4A Division 1 , could not afford key injuries this season , but that ’ s what happened . Starting quarterback Ty Arroyo , top running back Jamauri Manning and others missed action during the next few weeks , Harrell said the team wasn ’ t relatively healthy again until three weeks remained in the season . Unfortunately , the next two teams on the schedule were Top 10 , Kilgore and Chapel Hill .
Late in the season , the Hornets ’ defense was effective in their 27-7 at Athens . They held the Bulldogs to a 6-0 halftime lead .
“ Kilgore ’ s a great football team , Harrell said . “ Obviously , they played four rounds ( in the playoffs ). I thought we played lights out on defense .”
Next up was Chapel Hill , who won district and played to the state semi-final . They beat Athens 48-28 .
Then came the final week win over Palestine for the home crowd at Bruce Field .
“ Palestine was the fourth place team in the district and we really dominated that game for four quarters .
Statistics showed three-year starter Arroyo
16 | Greater Athens Magazine | January 2023