On the Football Fridays in Georgia podcast, hosts Hannah Goodin and Jon Nelson welcome WMAZ-TV sports anchor Marvin James to the show. He gives the lay of the land after the first week of the playoffs in central Georgia, and he takes a look at Round 2. Marvin also remembers Georgia high school football legend, Robert Davis.

TRANSCRIPT:

Jon Nelson: Welcome to another round of the Football Fridays in Georgia podcast here at Georgia Public Broadcasting. Thanks for accessing us however you are doing so: large device or small, on your favorite podcatcher — and there's like eleven billion podcatchers. So subscribe, like and get your notifications squared away on all your social media platforms so that when we have a new one of these, you know instantaneously that we have a new one of these. How was your Thanksgiving?

Hannah Goodin: Thanksgiving was good. You know, the last podcast, I was teasing some crazy stories. And surprisingly, I think it was one of the tamest Thanksgivings we've had in a while. We rotate families for holidays. So it was —

Jon Nelson: So you just swap out families? Hey, three houses down, it’s your time!

Hannah Goodin: Yes. Yeah, we stay put. No, I'm just joking. We go somewhere else. We just switch families. So it was my husband's turn.

Jon Nelson: You didn't like the first family, so you're just getting another one. We're switching families.

Hannah Goodin: That's basically what I’m saying. So we went up to Lake Hartwell, his family's lake house, and just had a beautiful Thanksgiving with nieces and nephews and family. And besides everyone getting a little too tipsy I really don't have any crazy stories this year, I'm kind of disappointed.

Jon Nelson: OK, well, so then I guess that leaves it to me. All right. So here's — here's what happened. All right. So last Wednesday, we had a massive day. That's our big day for taping and shooting things here at GPB where it is —

Hannah Goodin: You shoot three shows in a row.

Jon Nelson: After coming — after doing my morning show for soccer down here that went from 9 to 11. I left, came in, did Bracketology, which is live, which is live on Facebook, on a GPB sports Facebook, live at one [p.m.] — like, friend, and follow along there as well. Then we tape Recruiting 2020 and we had to do that live to tape, like, literally live to tape. There was no second chance. No, nothing. We did that at 4 and so at 4:30 on the nose that one was done because everything had rolled for the commercial break. And then five o'clock, you come in for Countdown to Kickoff. 5:30, we're off the air. Then I change clothes, hop in the car and drive to be with the boss and her mom in a town 20 minutes north of Dothan, Alabama. So literally it was a four-hour drive —

Hannah Goodin: I was worried about you

Jon Nelson: Got in there like about 9:15.

Hannah Goodin: OK.

Jon Nelson: So four hours. I mean, it was raining most of the time. So I, you know, the Beast really can't go 70 miles an hour anyway, or 75 or 80. So it's like 70 and your OK. The Beast is this close to 357,000 miles by the way.

Hannah Goodin: I-20 right?

Jon Nelson: No it was 85 to Montgomery and then 231 down to Ozark.

Hannah Goodin: You’re going 70 miles an hour on I-85 — I worry — I worry for you.

Jon Nelson: Because it's 65-mile-an-hour speed limit.

Hannah Goodin: Yeah, but —

Jon Nelson: But — but I also but I also couldn't do that when it was raining so, you know,

Hannah Goodin: I know, I’m just kidding.

Jon Nelson: I’d hydroplane! I go to — go to the boss's house with her mother-in-law. So we're there. And she wanted to do some new traditions. And so —

Hannah Goodin: I'm just glad you made it, by the way.

Jon Nelson: Thank you.

Hannah Goodin: And made it back.

Jon Nelson: All right. So otherwise you'd be doing this show by yourself.

Hannah Goodin: Yes. And that would be interesting, everybody.

Jon Nelson: And listenership would increase about eightfold. So —

Hannah Goodin: I don't think so.

Jon Nelson: All right. So I get — I get to Ozark.

Hannah Goodin: OK.

Jon Nelson: And mother-in-law wanted to do new traditions for Thanksgiving, so she —

Hannah Goodin: I thought we passed new traditions.

Jon Nelson: Uh-uh. No, this is brunch. This is like brunch.

Hannah Goodin: OK.

Jon Nelson: Instead of doing like breakfast, she wanted to do brunch. And so we went to — I went to the restaurant chain that is a house that deals in waffles. And she wanted a pecan waffle. And the boss wanted a double order of hash browns with a lot of stuff on it and —

Hannah Goodin: The only way.

Jon Nelson: And I wanted two grilled cheese sandwiches on wheat bread with a triple order of hash browns with nothing on it.

Hannah Goodin: Nothing? You know, no smothered, no covered?.

Jon Nelson: No, no. Patty — Patty went all the way to peppered.

Hannah Goodin: Wow.

Jon Nelson: She goes all the way to that.

Hannah Goodin: Wow.

Jon Nelson: Yeah. And so we did that. And then for dinner we had ham. There were like nine different casseroles that had vegetables in them that I didn't eat. And there's this rice recipe that is a family rice recipe that is absolutely amazing. It was one of the first things that Patty ever made for us when we were dating. It's like, you know, you know, you see, if you don't like my cooking or anything.

Hannah Goodin: Win you over with the secret rice recipe.

Jon Nelson: Oh, yeah, she did, because this is absolutely amazing. And literally here it is. And this is a third-generation usage of this recipe. It is white rice —

Hannah Goodin: Are you about to spill the family secret right here on the podcast?

Jon Nelson: Well, but it’s Stacey’s Rice.

Hannah Goodin: OK. I mean, but, you know, I'm write — I'm writing this down

Jon Nelson: Seriously. All right. So here's what it is. It is white rice in a  — in a bowl, beef consommé, two cans.

Hannah Goodin: OK

Jon Nelson: And now, this is how old the recipe is. It's an entire stick of oleo, is how it is written.

Hannah Goodin: Wow.

Jon Nelson: Not — not butter or margarine, oleo, that's how it's written. OK, and so but, you know, it's a whole stick of butter into this — into this glass bowl with the beef consommé and the white rice. The white rice turns brown literally because of the consommé. And it is absolutely amazing. And I will have it as a meal in and of itself, because when Patty will make it, she'll always make a lot more and I'll have it for lunch the next day on its own. It's that good.

Hannah Goodin: Wow.

Jon Nelson: And so we did that. And key lime cake. Not key lime pie.

Hannah Goodin: Hmm, I’ve never had key lime cake.

Jon Nelson: Key lime cake is like vanilla cake on the inside, but you have key lime icing on the top and then on the —  and then on the in betweens you have the key lime filling in between the sections. So that was what we did for new traditions.

Hannah Goodin: That sounds delicious.

Jon Nelson: We had ham and I ate all the rice and had ham and the key lime cake, I had two pieces of key lime cake at like 3:30 in the afternoon. Completely spoiled everything for me, but it didn't really matter. So that was, that was the new traditions. Then, came back. We had our game on Friday. Then I stopped talking because I'd been pretty much talking ever since Wednesday.

Hannah Goodin: Rest your voice, Jon.

Jon Nelson: And so that's pretty much where it was. So what did we do on Friday night?

Hannah Goodin: Well, you know, I'm glad you had a good Thanksgiving. We hope everyone out there had a great Thanksgiving, too. I'm sorry, I don't have more stories to report. My meals turned out good. No one burned anything. It was really just a beautiful Thanksgiving. So I hope everyone else had the same as well. But let's talk a little football. So our Football Friday Game of the Week was the big Round 1 catfight fight between Camden County and Parkview at the Big Orange Jungle in Lilburn, one of my favorite places to broadcast from. I love the energy at the Big Orange Jungle. The Panthers dominated on offense most of the game, especially senior running back Cody Brown. Wow, was he good on Friday night! The Wildcats held on defensively, though, taking this one to OT. Parkview eventually pulled it out with a 24-17 win. I thought Camden County did a great job of holding on, Jon.

Jon Nelson: They did.

Hannah Goodin: But Cody Brown.

Jon Nelson: Oh yeah.

Hannah Goodin: I think on the last podcast that I said, you don't know which Cody Brown you're going to get this season. I don't know if he's necessarily been struggling with an injury, but he's had his ups and downs and he was up on Friday.

Jon Nelson: 273 and three on 43 carries. There's a reason that he was the Georgia Cotton Commission player of the game — the Georgia Cotton Commission, the natural choice for Georgia. So there you go — 43 for 278. And Jamie Felix, you can't discount what Jamie Felix did on the ground for Camden. Also, Michael Morris playing both ways. Jamie Felix playing both ways for Camden — Camden County, great effort. What else stuck out to you in round one across the board?

Hannah Goodin: Across the board? Well, my board is kind of zeroed in on 7A. And these are some of the games that I was watching. Parkview will advance to play East Coweta. I was watching that game East Coweta versus Marietta. The Indians defeated them 37 to 28 on Friday, so that'll be a really good matchup to watch this week. Parkview versus East Coweta.

Jon Nelson: Yep. That's going to be — that's going to be a real interesting one and I think that you're going to — whatever team gets the stop is probably going to be the one that's going to stick with you. Across the board, seventeen lower seeds got wins. Wow. We figured there were going to be some threes knocking off some twos. We had some fours knocking off some ones as well. We'll get into that with Marvin James of WMAZ with one specific four knocking off a one coming up around the corner. What else was on your mind?

Hannah Goodin: We'll talk about this one, too, with Marvin. But No. 2 Colquitt County took an early lead over Brookwood and never looked back, defeating the Broncos 49 to 3. The Packers will face Walton in Round 2 on Friday. That's going to be a good one. No. 4 Collins Hill pulled away from Alpharetta 21 to nothing in the first quarter. They went on to win 42 to 7 and will face Denmark next. Roswell versus Mill Creek was a close one. The Hornets won by just one point, 28 to 27. Roswell will face Norcross. And the last one on my list: North Gwinnett defeated Cherokee 29 to 16. The Bulldogs will now play West Forsyth.

Jon Nelson: Yeah, a couple on my board. Lincoln County, a big underdog, knocked off Chattahoochee County in Single A Public. So that was one that stuck on my board. You know, you look at just a lot of first-time winners. Congrats to places like River Ridge, who won for the first time in overtime over Kennesaw Mountain. Also, you know, you look at Cherokee Bluff, a very young school, got into the postseason for the first time this year. So, good win for them. A lot of the — a lot of the top seeds went through. And so it's going to be interesting as we're filling out all of our brackets in pen now with what's going on. So it's going to be really interesting, especially here in Round 2 and that we got a guest.

Hannah Goodin: Our guest and we talk a lot about middle Georgia and we talk about a lot of these games that we just mentioned with Marvin James, the WMAZ sports anchor. Hey, Marvin.

Marvin James: Hey, how are you?

Jon Nelson: All right, Marvin. You know, we really can't officially start this particular segment without a particular start. And I think that, you know what I'm talking about here. Every single Friday night, you start by asking a particular person a particular task. So do you want to go ahead and kick us off this week?

Marvin James: I say, Mr. Collinsworth, “Leggo!”

Jon Nelson: There you go.

Hannah Goodin: Oh, my —

Jon Nelson: See now this is where Hannah comes in and asks her a question.

Hannah Goodin: I still don't know what question you want me to ask, Jon, but the “leggo” is what got me so tickled during last year's championships. Jon completely caught me off guard when we're going to highlight's and he goes “Leggo!” and I laughed for 20 minutes and could not compose myself on TV. You know, we don't have a prompter or anything during championships. We're just going by the seat of our pants. And I could not concentrate and I completely lost it. And that was amazing.

Marvin James:  Well, it was very entertaining, he actually saw me prior to and told me that he was going to do it and I said, “OK, well, if you could fit it in.” But he managed in typical Jon fashion. He managed to fit in it. And it was hilarious. Actually, as soon as he did it, I started getting texts in my inbox immediately where people were like, “oh my gosh, oh my gosh.” So it was — it made my day. It was — it was amazing. Even though my alma mater lost that day and it poured down raining immediately after, it made my day, that was so good stuff.

Jon Nelson: Where did that start?

Marvin James: I'm honestly just — just the kids, the kids are always like — if you’re ever around any game or anything like that, they're always saying, “Let's go, let's go.” And, you know, and in typical what is it, Southern drawl, you know, you just slur things together. It went from “Let's go” to “Leggo.” And we used to start the show off every — every — every Football Friday night we have a show from 11:30 to 12:00.

Jon Nelson: Excellent plug, sir, nicely done.

Marvin James: You know, you know, after — after our — our news at 11. So we just would kind of just give a quick tease of where we went. And we had four guys and they would all say where they went. I was the last guy. And I would say, you know, “I'm coming from Warner Robins, so get ready. We're about to start the show. Leggo!” And it just — it stuck. And I can't tell you how many times I go to — Well, I can't tell you now because of COVID, but when I go out to restaurants, people are always like, “Leggo!” Behind my back and I'll turn around and they'll start smiling and stuff like that. So it kind of stuck around here, so —

Jon Nelson: Kinda stuck?

Marvin James: Well, I didn't realize how long I've been doing it until I saw some of these memories — Facebook memories pop up. But yeah, they just kind of like it. So I'll do it until they tell me to stop and they get tired of it. I'm sure somebody is tired of it.

Hannah Goodin: Well, I'm glad he warned you, because if you go back and watch that show, they never muted my mic. So I'm laughing underneath the entire highlight. I'm laughing when we come back on camera. I'm laughing, sending it. And I remember somebody after the show was like, well, “Y'all — y'all are getting a little silly.” And I was like, “Jon’s getting silly!”

Jon Nelson: Well, duh, if you're — if you can't have fun doing sports then you're not doing it right.

Marvin James: Exactly. And — and I've got to tell you, I really wanted the job for that — I want to thank you both. I mean, that was — that was pretty awesome. I mean, let's let's be real. When the state championships are on, you guys are, like, must-see TV. Everybody across the state and neighboring states that can get it are watching. So, you know, everybody's dialed in. And for you to do that, that was just that was pretty awesome for me. And I just really appreciate it.

Jon Nelson: I mean, dude, it's — you’re part of the fabric that — you're part of the fabric of the state. And for me to have an opening like that or I can toss to a central Georgia highlight package and — and hijack one of your lines. Of course, I'm going to hijack one of your lines. Are you kidding?

Hannah Goodin: Just warn me next time, Jon.

Marvin James: North and south Georgia may have been confused, but —

Hannah Goodin: I was confused.

Jon Nelson: Hannah was convulsing in laughter. All right. Before — before we continue to talk about this the entire time — surprises in Round 1, I guess, from 30,000 feet, what's your view of Round 1 from a central Georgia perspective?

Marvin James: OK, well, Central and Northeast, two teams from Macon, pretty exciting news for both those squads taking wins on Friday and Saturday. We had split games. Especially Central. Central — this is a special year for those guys. This is their, what? 45th anniversary of the last time a team from Macon won the state championship in 1975.

Jon Nelson: Right.

Marvin James: Roger Jackson and those guys won it from Central. And so this is a special year for them. They've had some really good wins. And for them to go on the road and get a win over Liberty County was a pretty big deal. Dodge County won, Blakley County won, Perry won, and Baldwin won. So we're not looking too bad. And Warner Robins won. I think we were all expecting that. But those were probably the biggest things that I was almost — I won't say surprised but pleasantly surprised about. And I'm glad to see that Central and Northeast won big.

Hannah Goodin: Elaborate on Warner Robins a little bit. That's where you are right now, correct? That's where you're based out of.

Marvin James: Yes. Yes.

Hannah Goodin: Tell me about the team this year and how impressed you were with them.

Marvin James: It's hard to say that Warner Robins continues to get better because they've been so good for a long time. This is their third straight time they went to a state championship and come up empty handed. This year they look like they're all on point to go again, led by quarterback Jalen Addie, who was really good, a dual threat quarterback, who can throw it and run it as well as anybody. They have a kid named Ahmad Walker who was a fullback-slash-running back, and he was just a great leader. He's being recruited by everyone from Liberty Jordan to Southern, a lot of mid majors. He's doing really well. And, you know, they're just — they're just a really strong team. I think the team is — is really, you know, represents the fabric of their head coach. And second-year head coach Marquis Westbrook is doing such a great job coming in and continuing laying the foundation of what Mike Chastain did a couple of years ago. Their offense is really fun to watch. They're wide open. They do a lot of think and dunk, but they just are constantly moving up and down the field to score a lot of points. And our defense shuts down a lot of people. Victor Burley, he's a sophomore. He's been recruited by all the SECs. He's been offered by everybody in the SEC. He's a big-time defensive tackle. He's about 6’4”, 290lbs. So it's just a fun team to watch. They put a lot of points on the board and they shut a lot of people out of the endzone. So, big win for them over Union on Friday night. And they're just looking to pick up steam and hopefully seal the deal in a state championship.

Jon Nelson: And they are in a murderous quadrant where they've got Woodward Academy coming to town. But then they've also got the possibility of the, you know, if they get through that one, which everyone's anticipating they are, it's the winner of Decatur and BT to finish up your quadrant. I mean, that's — that's what we get because of — of how things are mixed up in year to year with all of the rotations. But that is a murderous quadrant. Upper right.

Marvin James: Yeah, yeah, it definitely is, and I think these guys really relish the competition from that, because if you look at it, a couple of years ago when they first entered the state championship run against Rome, you know, Rome was the big guy on the block. And they have been back-to-back state champs. And they pretty much, you know, just ran through Warner Robins because they were just that much better.

But now Warner Robins is that team, you know, four years straight, three years straight, they've gone to the state championship. So everybody is looking at Warner Robins as being the team to beat. So I'm sure Blessed Trinity and I'm sure Woodward and all those guys know that they're coming into a place or facing a team that pretty much has a lot of momentum and a lot of experience on our side. I mean, it's not too many times you can have a senior that has played, you know, we're talking entering 45, almost 60 games.

Jon Nelson: Eleventy billion.

Marvin James: Yeah, yeah. Almost 60 games as a — as a high school player. So I'm not saying that is going to be a cakewalk, but I just say these guys know how to play in the big moments and they really look forward to it. So that's the thing that makes them, you know, pretty special.

Hannah Goodin: Bleckley County, another big team you cover, they're 7 and 3 under Von Lassiter.

Jon Nelson: Big Mims!

Hannah Goodin: Big Mims! They will play Early County. They got through one seed Vidalia in Round 1 of the playoffs, playing Early County. What are your thoughts on Bleckley County this year?

Marvin James: Bleckley County has done really well. I've seen them play at least three or four times, and I know Von really well when he coached with Houston County and Jake Fromm for all those years. They're just a strong team. I mean, you talk about Big Mims, this kid is like the real deal. And you come into the stadium. There's no doubt when you're like everybody is always asking, “Who's the five star?” Take a look on the field. You see —

Hannah Goodin: Who’s the huge guy towering over everybody down there?

Marvin James:  It doesn't look real to see a kid that big in high school. I'm just like, wow. I remember watching them play South Atlanta. They beat South Atlanta very convincingly. And look at how well South Atlanta is playing right now. They're also in the second round of the state playoffs.

So I think that, you know, what you get with that coaching staff over there at Bleckley County, they have a lot of top notch coaches on that staff. Stacy Noble, who used to be the head coach at West Lawrence and a big standout at Liberty when he played back in the day, you know. And you look at Von and what he's bringing to the table, there's just a lot of experience on that, that coaching front and the team is just really strong. Dom Sasser is a quarterback who kinda leads the team and it kind of runs through him. So I'm excited to see what they're going to do. I know they're hungry. I know they didn't finish the regular season like they wanted to, winning a region championship. They lost — I think they’re the third seed, but they're not a typical No. 3 seed. So you're going to get a lot from that team.

Jon Nelson: Marvin James, sports anchor extraordinaire, WMAZ-TV down in Macon, hanging out with us here on the Football Fridays in Georgia podcast this week. Let me go to Triple A and let me ask you: For those that haven't had the chance to see what Chad Campbell has been building at Peach, what are they missing out on when they've seen — when you and I have been able to see what Chad has been able to do over a long period of time, a sustained period of time in Peach County. Had no problems with one of the best nicknames in the state, the Atom Smashers of Johnson's Savannah last week. But what are folks missing out on by not knowing about Peach County?

Marvin James: I mean, I think — I think people just take it for granted, sometimes they take it for granted when they see teams repeatedly at the top and they just say, “Oh, they just got great athletes” and that is true. But it also takes a mastermind. And what he's been able to do in years past has been just that short of amazing. Of course, he has Kearis Jackson who’s a star in Georgia right now. And, you know, Quez Jackson, who is over at Georgia Tech playing linebacker, but, you know, those guys are far and in between. Obviously, you’ll have D-1's that come through. But he just does a great job with chess, with setting things up.

And even this year, it's been even more difficult now because of all this COVID protocol. He's had some issues with that the last couple of weeks where he's had to switch guys over that have never played a position but try to put them in the best situation. I mean, you talk about the Denver Broncos situation on Sunday.

Jon Nelson: Yeah.

Marvin James: And Chad is like, “Yeah, let me tell you, I got some stories” because he's literally swapping people in and out and still coming out with a 47-nothing win. And people say, well, that's just Peach County. And no, I mean, I think you have to give credit where credit is due. He's also been a team that has been in the state championship, you know, I think two out of the last three or four years.

So, you know, and we all know what happened a couple of years ago when they played Calhoun, you know, that controversial ending. But, you know, it was — it was still that team, that Peach County team. And they've just been juggernauts. They called themselves the Black Hats, and they played 40 minutes of Black Hat football. And I'm telling you, once you played against a Peach County team, you know, you've been there: Win, lose or draw, you're going to have respect for those guys because those guys will hit you and hit you and hit you. And it's just one of — something exciting to see. We talk about the coaching staff. His brother, Lee Campbell, was also defensive coordinator there, and he won a couple of state championships when he was at Hawkinsville. So to have two coaches on the same staff that have won state championship teams — have state championship caliber — you know, that's quite impressive.

Jon Nelson: What do you think Thanksgiving dinners like with Lee and Chad?

Marvin James: Yeah, yeah. “Let me show you my ring.” “Let me show you my ring.” They're definitely a — one of the top programs — top tier programs in the state bar none, bar classification. I put them up against anybody because they definitely produce.

Hannah Goodin: In Jon and I’s fashion we’re not going in any particular order here. So I was going to try to go up to 4A, but, you know, we're going to go back down to Single A Public. Brooks County and Dublin jumps off the bracket page to me. How big of a matchup is that?

Marvin James: That's a rematch, right?

Jon Nelson: A rematch at Double A’s title game last year. Yeah. So now they both dropped down to Single A. Shamrock Bowl!

Hannah Goodin: One seed and two seed.

Jon Nelson: That’s crazy.

Marvin James: I’m sure Maurice Freeman’s probably going to be taped up and padded up, ready to go because he was ready to play last year. Oh, look at the big monument of a man when he comes out there with that sledgehammer. But, yeah, Shamrock Bowl not a place you want to play.

Jon Nelson: No.

Marvin James: Just it's just an amazing high school experience. And, you know, that's one thing — Brooks, I'm sure, they've been there before and they know how it is. And Dublin obviously is not — not a fraction of what they were last year. Last year was something truly special.

Jon Nelson: Yeah.

Marvin James: It was like a Joe Burrow type moment right there in Dublin. But they definitely — they definitely aren't slacking. You know, they're really, really good. Coach Robert Holmes has those guys ready to play and they know how special this is. And I think the community knows. Now they appreciate: Look, you don't get a chance to win a state championship every day. And we're getting close so they know what they have to do to go out there and support. They have another amazing rushing attack that it's just like 2,000-yard rushers. So you've got to stop ‘em. There's no question they're going to pretty much just line up and tell you we're not going to throw the ball —

Jon Nelson: Delaware Wing-T, we’re coming right at you.

Marvin James: Yeah, we're going to run right here. We're going to run right here, you know, so you got to stop them. And they're another physical team, you know, another great program that, you know, I put up there with a bunch of them in the state. So it's going to be an exciting atmosphere. Like I said, nothing like the Shamrock Bowl on a Friday night.

Jon Nelson: All right. One more team that I wanted to get into discussion with. And this coach has been a part of the fabric of central Georgia football in different uniforms. And now he's doing it at Jones County with what Mike Chastain has done up there at Jones. They got the duke — they held on with the win over Wayne County, 27-25. Justin Rogers was there before he went to Colquitt. Mike Chastain was at Warner Robins before he was at Jones. What has it been like to see what Mike has done there in gray?

Marvin James: It was great to see a great transition from that too, because Justin was such a great guy, got a chance to catch up with him this year when he came down — Colquitt played Northside, and they beat them up pretty good. And he is just a great guy.

And for Mike to go ahead and transition to go over to Jones, I think was a great fit. I think it kind of surprised some people, but it was just a great fit. And what he's been able to do there, I mean, this year I knew it was going to be a follow up because he was losing their quarterback. This is his second season. So he had to really find a quarterback of his own. They started off 0 and 4. And, you know, anytime you start off 0 and 4, I don't care where you are, there's going to be grumblings everywhere.

Jon Nelson: Yeah.

Marvin James: But he definitely has righted the ship, came back to win the region, come up with a first-round region win — I mean a first-round playoff win and their position and the place that they want to be. I think this team really is humble because they know they can be beat, but at the same time, they know they're pretty good. So it's going to be exciting. And if you have ever been to the “barking lot,” is what they call it. They have got a lot of things going on. They got the new —

Jon Nelson: Lightshow and everything, man.

Marvin James: SEC is going on and it is big-time and they're playing up to it. I think any time a kid can play in a stadium like that, you know, because everybody is not going to go to Georgia and Alabama. But, you know, that's a great experience and they definitely live up to it on Friday night. The whole town is in the stands and they’re cheering on their hands. So, yeah, I'm excited about what Coach Chastain has a chance to do. And I know they — they possibly have a chance to play Warner Robins, which would also be a good —

Jon Nelson: Oooooh irony. Wow. Wow.

Marvin James: Both of them have a lot in common with one another.

Jon Nelson: Uh huh.

Hannah Goodin: We've covered a lot of the top matchups in middle Georgia, I know that’s your specialty. Are there any other teams around the state that you are excited to watch in Round 2  of the playoffs?

Marvin James: It's kind of hard to really look outside, but, you know, when I hear those names that come up, we always look at the scores and see I mean, like, you know, Colquitt obviously, because I have an affection with Coach Justin Rogers. Calhoun, I'm always looking to see what they're going to do. They've got a set of twins up there that are playing really well, Christian and Chris Lewis, that are doing well for the Jackets. I just kind of always keep in South Atlanta just because they came through here and I've seen the turnaround that they're doing and making a run for Double A state championship.

So central Georgia keeps me plenty busy. But, you know, like I said, I'm a football fan. So anybody, anytime I can hear any of the scores or check out a game or just you know, I get the Georgia High School Football Daily that comes in and I'm always checking out the scores and stuff like that. So I'm excited to see how the playoffs continue to progress. I mean, we're here the week after Thanksgiving and we're just getting started. A little different.

Hannah Goodin: 7A Colquitt County versus Walton. That's going to be a good one. That might be one of my top games.

Marvin James: Is that the Pig Pen? Is that Moultrie?

Jon Nelson: Yeah, it's at the Hog Pen.

Marvin James: Yeah, man, at the Hog Pen? It's hard to play there. I played there in high school. It's a hard place to play. The fans are obviously, you know, crazy. I heard Coach Propst just got his 300th win.

Jon Nelson: Yeah. Down in Valdosta last week. Yeah.

Marvin James: Yeah. But yeah that place is just crazy to play. And Walton is going to come there and I'm sure they're going to air it out. But you know, the one thing about South Georgia football, they're very physical and that team is very physical and very fast watching them play against Northside earlier this year. So definitely gonna have my ears out listening for that matchup.

Jon Nelson: All right. So one more before we go. And knowing that you are an alum of Warner Robins High, went to go play at Georgia Southern and you know what it means — you know what high school football, you know what college football means to the state of Georgia and specifically to central Georgia. We lost someone a very short time ago that meant a lot to you. And this is how long I've been trying to get our schedules together, so you could be here on the show. When the Warner Robins community and all of Georgia high school football lost Robert Davis, for someone who didn't know Coach Davis, I know he was a great mentor to you, what did Robert Davis mean to Georgia high school football?

Marvin James: You can't mention Middle Georgia football without bringing up Coach Davis. I mean, he's a man who won three state championships, ’76 and ’81 were both also the mythical national championships on paper by USA Today. And then he won one in ’88.

He left Warner Robins, went to Westside and put that program on the map and finished as the third-highest winningest coach in the state of Georgia. Scores and scores of young men he sent off to college scores and scores of young men he sent off to be productive citizens at the next level. He was just a — truly a great man, and I think I had a lot. I learned a lot from him as a player, but the best part about him that I always remember was knowing a lot about him as a friend and mentor, after I graduated and after I graduated from college and got the chance to gp work with him as a journalist to a coach.

And there were so many times I go to practice and I'll be in awe and I go right back into that 16-, 17-year-old mode whenever he was talking because I had so much respect for him. I remember a story that I went to a game — a practice. There was a young kid that was all kicking and it was starting to get dusk. And he was kicking these extra points and he was lining the ball up by himself and he was just kicking. And I said, “Coach, it's getting dark out there and he's not going to be able to see anymore.” He goes, “Well, he’ll be all right.” He said, “I told him, ‘If you don't get started kickin’ better, he ain't going on the road trip with us on this Friday.’” And I said, “Really coach?” He said, “You figure it out. He's the only kicker we got. So we’ve got to go with him whether he makes it or not.” That's just the kind of guy he was.

He was great, great just brain trust when it came to the game and he knew how to get the best out of you and to motivate you and push you. And we definitely lost a great one. And I still kept up with him over the last couple of years. I got a chance to see him a couple of times this — this year before he passed, you know, and I'm thankful for that even with COVID. Obviously, you go and see him at the hospital before everything broke out. And then I got a chance to see him when he was at a rehab center through the window. But just a great man. I love him to death. I love him so much. I love his family. And like I said, you can't talk about central Georgia football, you can’t talk about state of Georgia football, Georgia football, period, without talking about Robert Davis.

Jon Nelson: All right. Time for the blatant promo for those that want to follow you, follow everything that's going on there in central Georgia with what you're doing and what you and — you and Frank and Ben and everybody are doing down there at WMAZ, how do they do it?

Marvin James: All right. Well, you can follow me on all platforms, Instagram or Twitter @SportsGuyMarv, @13WMAZNews. That's also where you can get the scores and in highlight clips that we'll be posting every Friday and all through the week. We cover a lot of Mercer basketball and all things high school. So anything in this area you want to follow me on @SportsGuyMarv, or @13WMAZNews.

And then on football on Friday nights at 11 and 35 Football Friday night on CBS. That's Channel 4 on your Cox cable in this area or 13 WMAZ, so you can catch us there. And we have Frank, Ben Jones and Avery Braxton. Carlos Stevens. We're going to bring you nothing but the great highlights of all that happens here in the state, man, and we're excited to bring it to you.

Hannah Goodin: Well, you said it. I just followed you. I don't know how we're not following each other already, but I just followed you on Twitter. So everybody out there.

Marvin James: Oh, yeah, I see you, Hannah!

Hannah Goodin: Yeah, there you go!

Marvin James: I just followed you back.

Hannah Goodin: Thank you!

Marvin James: Where are you in that profile? Is that ‘Bama?

Hannah Goodin: That is not Alabama. That is from the last football season up in Flowery Branch. And one of our crew members actually took that for me. And I was so impressed with how it came out that it's now my new profile picture.

Marvin James: So, I mean, it's really good. The confetti is coming down right there.

Hannah Goodin: Oh, the confetti! OK, the profile picture is from Flowery Branch last season. The confetti is from an Alabama national championship, yep.

Jon Nelson: OK.

Marvin James: Oh, yes. Oh, the profile picture is — oh yes, honey. You look great. Yes!

Hannah Goodin: Yes! Yes! I mean the lighting.

Marvin James: Yes! The lashes. Yes, come through, lashes!

Hannah Goodin: Oh god, yes. See, the appreciation for this is making my entire day.

Jon Nelson: Yes. Well Marv — dude, thank you for doing this. I really appreciate it. And I'm glad that we finally got that connect.

Marvin James: Thanks for having me.

Jon Nelson: Oh yeah. It was — it was a no-brainer because you're in the middle of it all and I mean that both figuratively and literally.

Marvin James: Yeah, right.

Jon Nelson: So thanks for doing this. We'll be keeping an eye on stuff and obviously I will be texting you the entire time. But thanks for being a part of the Football Fridays in Georgia podcast. You are awesome. Go enjoy your lunch and stay away from shopping.

Marvin James: No, definitely no — Amazon. I need to remove it from my computer.

Hannah Goodin: Me too.

Jon Nelson: Be good, my friend. I love you very much.

Marvin James: All right, y’all. Y’all be blessed. Thanks a lot.

Jon Nelson: All right, bye.

Marvin James: Bye bye.

Jon Nelson: I don't think you've still stopped laughing.

Hannah Goodin: I haven't. I was actually having to mute my mic during the podcast because I still get tickled thinking about that moment. I have never been so uncomposed on air in my entire 10-year career than that moment. And it still makes me laugh to this — to this very second.

Jon Nelson: Well, but that's the fun part about high school. It's one of the reasons that it's fun to do what we do because, you know, and I mentioned it to Marvin when we were talking to him, it's like any chance I get where we can sit there and connect with a local viewer who might just only see us on TV or see us as we're on a sideline or something for a game or a southern team comes north. Any chance that I get or I can connect to a viewer like that and steal one of Marvin’s lines, I'm going to do it just because it's fun. And, you know, and it kind of reminds us all that we're all in this as one big state for high school football.

Hannah Goodin: And a quick, humble brag: After that halftime show, we were in just such joyous moods. Our very next kickoff show — 30-minute show before the next game was Emmy-nominated. So we submitted that and we got a little nomination. We didn't win, but it was a fantastic show and everybody said the next show was the best one. So, you know what? Thank you, Marvin.

Jon Nelson: Yes. Thank you, Marvin. This Friday, what do we have?

Hannah Goodin: All right. Our Round 2 playoff game will be Lowndes at North Cobb. The five-time state champions and 2019 finalists, the Vikings will hit the road to Kennesaw to face a talented Warrior team. The winner of our game will face the winner of Archer versus Milton in Round 3. That's going to be a tough test to get through. But Lowndes at North Cobb, I am so excited to get the Vikings on air.

Jon Nelson: All right. And what else is on your mind for matchups this weekend?

Hannah Goodin: Let me pull up my bracket.

Jon Nelson: Yeah. So pull up your brackets and I'll defer — I won't — I won't mention others until you mention yours.

Hannah Goodin: OK.

Jon Nelson: Yeah? You got it — you got your bracket?

Hannah Goodin: Well, I'm looking at 7A.

Jon Nelson: OK, so then you got 7A.

Hannah Goodin: And I've already said this one, but Walton and Colquitt County is going to be on my list. Parkview, East Coweta.

Jon Nelson: Right.

Hannah Goodin: Let me — let me work my way down because — Ooh, Harrison — Harrison versus Grayson. That's going to be a good one, Phil Mafah — any update on him?

Jon Nelson: No, we need an update on him. Phil was taken off the field. Right knee injury was what they were looking at. Nothing definitive as of yet. Obviously, that will be one of the big storylines this week. In 6A, while you're looking for others —

Hannah Goodin: OK. You go.

Jon Nelson: Rush Propst, remember, got his 300th win there at Evans. Carrollton gets a home game, Buford gets a home game. Langston Hughes is at Glen Academy, that's a big one. Rome and River Ridge, Brunswick and Lee County. Richmond Hill and Westlake. Sneaky good game in 6A. Matt Lazotte and Richmond Hill comes north to take on Westlake. So that one's going to be a good one as well. Dacula and Allatoona.

5A, Ware County hits the road, they have to go to Creekside. Cartersville and Pius, that game could go either way. Great contrast to styles there. Cartersville with their wide-open offense. St. Pius wants to run the football and be out of there in an hour-and-a-half. Calhoun and Clark Central. Coffee on the road again but they’re at Starr's Mill. We talked about Woodward Academy, Warner Robins, Griffin, and Jones with Marvin. In Quad A, some of the highlights: Cairo, Benedictine. Hapeville Charter and Jefferson, low left. That one's going to be a good one. What's on your mind?

Hannah Goodin: Flowery Branch, Marist.

Jon Nelson: Yeah.

Hannah Goodin: Low right. That's going to be a great matchup.

Jon Nelson: Yep. Triple A, you've got Appling County with a home game. Thomson and Peach. Central Macon has to go to Blackshear to take on Pierce. Crisp at ARC.

Hannah Goodin: Crisp!

Jon Nelson: Crisp is going to be at ARC. Two great stories there as well. Cedar Grove, the three seed, has to go to Rockmart. I think this is the first time that these two teams will have ever played. But it's going to be a heavyweight battle there. Model’s at Rabun, Thomasville’s at Dodge in Double A, Lovett and Callaway. We talked about Bleckley and Early with Marvin. Heard County, Fannin County, great run so far by Fannin County this season. Fitzgerald's got a home game. Jeff Davis — one of the best games of the weekend — Jeff Davis in Washington County is a 2-3. Jeff Davis has to go to Jeffco. So it's Jeff Davis and Jeffco in Double A. Class A Private, you've got PAC hosting Darlington Stratford's at Eagle’s Landing Christian. Class A Public Mitchell County and Metter where what?

Hannah Goodin: Everything is just better in Metter.

Jon Nelson: There we go. Warren County in Macon County, Gordon Lee in Commerce, Wilcox and Irwin, old region rivals going at it there.

Hannah Goodin: Such a good one.

Jon Nelson: Lincoln County, Hancock Central. Good news out of Sparta this past week with their win. Clinch County in Pelham. Brooks in Dublin, obviously the heavyweight battle in Single A Public. What else is on your mind?

Hannah Goodin: North Crobb Christian. I did it again. Crobb.

Jon Nelson: North Cobb Christian.

Hannah Goodin: North Cobb Christian, Wesleyan.

Jon Nelson: Yes.

Hannah Goodin: That's a good one.

Jon Nelson: Yeah. So I think that's a show.

Hannah Goodin: There are so many amazing games this Friday.

Jon Nelson: We love all our children equally.

Hannah Goodin: I cannot wait for Friday. Round 2!

Jon Nelson: So what's the plan?

Hannah Goodin: What's the plan for what?

Jon Nelson: Broadcast, Friday.

Hannah Goodin: The usual.

Jon Nelson: We got to tell folks. Recruiting 2020 comes on at seven, Kickoff with Lowndes at North Cobb, little after 7:30. The halftime show with you.

Hannah Goodin: Absolutely. Score updates for both of us.

Jon Nelson: You’re gonna have the scores. Score updates all night long. Brackets, fill them out in pen. All of that stuff is good.

Hannah Goodin: Don't miss Countdown to Kickoff Wednesday at 5:00. Live at 5.

Jon Nelson: Live at 5:00 on Facebook Live. Yeah, and like, friend, be a part of the conversation while on GPB Sports on the app. Don't forget to download the app. Available iOS and Android. It is also on Facebook. We want to get to 40,000 likes. Yes, because we're getting close. We need like 2,500 likes to get us to 40,000.

Hannah Goodin: We got huge milestones last year, we got tens of thousands of new subscribers, likers, followers. It was amazing. So and — we're doing really great this year too, we're just happy to hear from you guys and we'd love to hear from you guys more. You know, send us a DM or Tweet at us or, you know, come on to our Wednesday Countdown to Kickoff and get into the comment section. And we want to hear from you all.

Jon Nelson: Yeah. So also on YouTube and Instagram as well. What are you on Twitter?

Hannah Goodin: I am @HannahCGoodin.

Jon Nelson: And I am @OSGNelson. So, for @HannahCGoodin, for @OSGNelson, for the irreplaceable Sean Bowers. That is the first playoff version of the Football Fridays in Georgia podcast. Play it safe, everybody. Enjoy the game.