Jefferson prepares for tough test against Elbert County
Jefferson junior Lane Sorrow is about 2 inches shorter and a few tenths of a second slower than Elbert County's Mecole Hardman.
But for the past week, he's had to be him.
"It's been very tough at practice to try to even get close to how good he is," Sorrow said.
Sorrow was Hardman's stand-in during the third-ranked Dragons' (5-0, 1-0 in Region 8-AAA) preparations for a game against fourth-ranked Elbert County (5-0, 1-0). Jefferson travels to Elbert County at 7:30 p.m. today.
The mobile Sorrow, who competed for the starting quarterback job this summer, plays receiver now for Jefferson.
And being Hardman is an important task. Hardman's a five-star recruit with nearly 30 collegiate offers and is the top-ranked athlete in the country.
The quarterback/defensive back has rushed for 797 yards and 13 touchdowns on 98 carries and has thrown for 308 yards and three touchdowns with four interceptions through five games. He helped guide the Blue Devils to routs of Cedar Shoals and Laney, as well as wins against Stephens County, Westminster and Hart County.
"Any time No. 4 has the ball in his hands, which is every snap on the offensive side of the ball, you have to account for him," Jefferson coach Ben Hall said. "The scary thing about that is they have so many other players who can make plays. Any time you have a quarterback with the ability of that guy, it changes things."
Certainly, it changes things from the teams' last meeting. Jefferson cruised to a 52-6 win last year on its way to a region title. But Hardman was out after meniscus surgery and Jefferson's coaching staff knew that going in. Preparation for him wasn't necessary.
This year, the prep has been ongoing. It started during the Dragons' off week in mid-September, right before the Dragons opened region play with a 24-7 win over Jackson County last week.
"You can't deny that this game hasn't been on the minds of our players," Hall said. "You can preach focus and one step at a time all you want but they know the big ones, and this is one of the big ones."
Sorrow agrees. He's been hearing about Hardman and the Blue Devils since the summer.
"Looking in before the season, at 7-on-7s and that kind of deal, everybody's always like 'Mecole Hardman,'" Sorrow said. "He's just one of those players that sticks out all the time. Everyone's like (mentioning) Elbert County. We were already thinking towards it, trying to keep it behind us until it's that time and we can let everything out and be ready to play."
Although they likely don't need the reminder, Hall's done his part to emphasize the importance of today's game in the form of a group text Tuesday, Sorrow said.
"(It) said 'the eyes of the Peach State will go to the Granite Bowl Friday night,'" Sorrow said. "I completely agree. ... We haven't played very physical and I think if everything goes right and we play a great game and they play a great game, we might be able to come out on top. It's all dependant on if we can play the game to the level that I know we can play."