2018 HHJ Football Preview: New Era of Veterans Football begins

A new era of football, the Milan Turner era, begins

at Veterans High School this season. Turner, a football coach for more than a

few years, will take over a football program that will be starting over at more

positions than just head coach. Starters at quarterback, receiver, running

back, linebacker and in the secondary have moved on and in their stead will be

a group of seniors that will get the opportunity to make their own names.

Milan Turner will get the opportunity to start the 2018

season with some senior leaders who got the chance to play with some of the

programs best players, players like Leyton Pinckney who will be playing

baseball at Mercer University next season, Jaylen Lowder, currently a sophomore

tight end at nearby Fort Valley State University, incoming freshman receiver at

University of Tennessee Martin Jeremy Horton and Tennessee Tech freshman

linebacker Josh Lee. For the previous four years Turner worked as an assistant

at Coffee High School and before that was the head man at Emmanuel County

Institute, the man knows football. He also knows Houston County, Turner worked

as an assistant coach at Warner Robins High School as well.

Starting with the quarterback position, Veterans

will have an entirely new look in 2018. Pinckney started behond center for the

past two years and now the Warhawks will have a triumvirate of players, two

seniors, at the helm. Seniors Cole Hooks and Sebastian Verger got the bulk of

the snaps a few months ago during the spring game against Westside High School

and are expected to do the same during the season. Dark horse candidate,

sophomore Kedrek Smith, will be in the plans down the line but for the time

being the pair of seniors are going to lead the Warhawks offense.

Both signal-callers will have a unique pair of

receivers to throw the ball to in seniors Cordelle Clark and Zytorian Williams.

Both players spent the 2017 season working their way up the depth chart and now

will get the bulk of receptions along with fellow senior Jordan Brown. Clark,

6-1, 180 pounds, had a career year last season and also had a solid season on

the track.

The strength of the Warhawks last season was its

defense and despite the loss of a number of starters there will be some

talented players taking those spots on the field and as leaders in the locker

room. Seniors Jacob Pierce, a free safety that also player receiver last season

and Connor Sherwood, a versatile linebacker, are back to anchor a young

defense.

Special teams is a major asset to any team’s

success (See both Warner Robins and Northside last season) and the Warhawks

will have a leg up on the rest of the region with the return of rising senior

kicker/punter James Tinney who made all seven of his field goal attempts last

season, including a 38 yard attempt.

The Milan Turner era at Veterans begins on Friday,

August 17 in Thomaston against Upson-Lee High School. His first regular season

home game will come a week later against former Houston County High School head

coach Von Lassiter and Bleckley County High School. The Warhawks will also play

their annual games against Houston County (neutral site) and at Perry High

School on their new turf field.

It is going to be an interesting first season for the new coach and a

team full of players looking to make their presence felt.

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