Matthew Osborne
It’s usually my job to ask the questions, but everywhere I go lately, I get the same question posed to me.
How are the Raiders looking this year?
I have given the same answer to everyone that I am cautiously optimistic that not only are the Raiders looking solid, but I think this could be a sneaky special year.
The Raiders were young last year, and with a few games on the schedule where they were simply outmatched, it was hard to get a real feel for how they might develop.
But with a new region and a new outlook, the Raiders could have one of their most successful seasons in recent years.
They played Hart County – usually a solid ballclub – in the spring game, and the Raiders more or less controlled the action when the varsity players were in. Their defense swarmed to the ball, and the offense moved it on the ground and in the air.
In that game, they showed off an offense that could both control the ball and make explosive plays. One of their drives ended at the 1-yard line without a score only because they used up the requisite 10 plays to get there and had to turn the ball back over by the parameters of the scrimmage.
In the summer round robin, the Raiders looked solid against a variety of teams, bolstering their own confidence and that of the folks who fervently support the team.
They just feel like a team that is ready to change the narrative. The Raiders have had four winning seasons since the vaunted 2007 Hall of Fame group graduated, all of those were 6-win campaigns. Habersham Central has five playoff wins in the lifetime of their current players.
But this group just feels like one that can make a splash. They aren’t built on one or two guys, but a really cohesive, deep unit.
This Raider coaching staff – which is consistent and talented – always gets the most out of its players, and that will be no different this year.
The only downer is that football season is here, but we have to wait until the end of the month to see the boys play at Raider Stadium. They travel to East Hall tonight, then wait two weeks to traverse the Currahee Mountain against Stephens County before finally returning home Aug. 26 to face White County.
The coaches and players should be looking at one game at a time, as the cliche goes, but that’s the great thing about being me. I get to look down the road, and I see beatable teams on the slate this year, especially in non-conference play.
But beatable does not mean automatic wins. The Raiders will have to keep putting in the work, but they are a threat to make a big move in 2022.
So long answer to a short question, yes, I like the Raiders’ chances this year.
Matthew Osborne is the editor of The Northeast Georgian. Reach him at 706-778-4215 or editor@TheNortheastGeorgian.com.