Kell traveled to McEachern to end spring practice Thursday, with both programs giving sneak peeks at what they will bring to the upcoming season while fans got their first look at which position battles were decided in spring and which ones will need to be settled in the coming months.
The quarterback position for both teams is still a question mark heading into the summer. McEachern junior Calvin Pittman and senior Cameron Brown split time at quarterback. Brown has prototypical size for a pocket passer at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds. He is contrasted by Pittman, who is a talented athlete who won the Cobb County championship in the 200-meter hurdles, and standing at 5-11, 160 pounds he is more than enough to play the position.
Both had good moments in the game.
Pittman had more big throws including a long touchdown pass, but Brown led some of the better drives of the game and helped the team score its first two touchdowns.
Kell’s quarterbacks, Landon Garretson and Kaleb Narcisse, are locked in a battle to start as both are vying to replace star Bryce Clavon, who is committed to play baseball at UGA. Garretson was the presumptive starter heading into spring, being the only returning player who recorded any passing stats for Kell last year, throwing 17 passes for 170 yards with one touchdown. However, Kaleb Narcisse transferring in from North Cobb led to a quarterback battle for the Longhorns. Narcisse had significant playing time for the Warriors in 2023, filling in for injured starter Nick Grimstead in both the Wheeler and Kennesaw Mountain games, leading North Cobb to wins in both games. Against McEachern, both quarterbacks struggled at times against the strong pass defense of the Indians. Both had good moments, but neither created too much separation heading into the summer.
McEachern star running back Jayreon Campbell showed why nearly every major program is offering the 6-0, 190-pound junior. As the engine behind the Indians’ offense, Campbell rushed for two touchdowns, fighting through contact. He showed his break away speed at times Thursday, which complements his violent running style perfectly.
On the other side of the field, the running back duo of Tyriq Green and Moonie Gipson were the majority of the Longhorn offense. The pair of high-end running backs have more than 40 Division I scholarship offers combined. Gipson had a 14-yard touchdown run and another 25-yard rush, showing how explosive he can be this coming season. Green showed flashes of his running ability while making a few big catches out of the backfield, including a big 20-yard catch.
The McEachern offensive line led by 6-4, 290-pound Troy-commit Paul Bowling was dominant against a great Kell front seven. The McEachern offensive-line showed how good they could be, holding elite Kell pass rushers at bay, like Bryce Robinson who has offers from the likes of Penn State, Vanderbilt and SMU, giving the quarterbacks time to find receivers and letting rushing plays develop.
The Kell defensive backs did a great job covering a talented McEachern wide receiver corps. Players like hard-hitting safety Tyriq Green and speedy cornerback Jalen Williams helped stymie the Indian passing attack for stretches of the first half and punished any pass over the middle. Green had multiple major tackles in the game, including coming completely across the field to make a huge hit on McEachern running back Cornelius Pettway to stop him just short of the goal line in the second quarter.
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