GHSF Daily asked Georgia head coaches to answer these four questions. We'll report from a different head coach each day.
Ron Duncan, Screven County
1. What is the real difference-maker in winning and losing in Georgia high school football? "I think you must have a combination of talent, coaching and team chemistry. I think team chemistry is the most important factor, but you can't underestimate the role the administration plays in supporting the vision that the coach has for his program. You can have the others and maybe have a good team, but you will never be able to build a great program without that support."
2. Which player that you've coached is memorable mostly for his character or inspiration? "I would say the center we had on last year's team was a once-in-a-lifetime player to coach. Stephen Thompson had an unmatched work ethic. He was the first one to the field and the last one to leave. I know without question, that during his four years in our program, he never took a shortcut. He was our school's valedictorian and a leader by example in everything he did."
3. What is the best atmosphere for a high school game that you've experienced away from home? "The best environments I have ever coached in would be the two state championship games we played at the University of South Carolina while serving as the defensive coordinator at Camden High School and the one we played in while at Strom Thurmond High School in South Carolina. As a head coach, I would say playing at Blackville-Hilda in the semifinals in 2005. The game was sold out by Wednesday of game week."
4. As a player or coach at any level, which game do you wish you could play again?"I would like to replay the last 17 seconds of the Callaway game from last year's quarterfinals. I still have nightmares on that one and probably always will." [Callaway won 35-34 after a 98-yard drive. Callaway's Braylon Sanders, now an Ole Miss freshman, turned a short pass into a 47-yard touchdown in the final seconds.]
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