By: Jeff Doke

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

When Frederica Academy fell to the eventual State Champion Valwood Valiants in the semifinals last year, the mood was still celebratory.

Jordan Triplett had set numerous state records for both the season and his career. His high school football career, however, was over, and the question started to get asked. It’s a question that Coach Brandon Derrick is used to hearing. ”What is next year going to be like?”

“Well, we’re going to be young, very, very young,” Coach Derrick told me recently. “You know, I think that’s our biggest thing is youth.”

And as usual, he’s not kidding. Heading into final preseason practices, the Frederica roster consists of four seniors, three juniors, 12 or 13 sophomores, and 8 or 9 freshmen.

For those of you scoring at home, that’s a best-case scenario roster size of 29 players. Another season of being David to everyone else’s Goliath seems to be on tap.

“Well, the way it’s set up right now offensively, we’re going to have to have multiple people,” Coach Derrick explained.

“(QB/DB) Jaylin Baldwin’s going to have to be a big-time player. He’s got to make big plays. (WR/DB) Jayden Gibson’s got to make big plays. He’s got to be very productive, and he’s worked on it. He’s really worked on being a bigger part of the offense because he was just really focused on defense a lot last year as a freshman. So, he’s focused this year on the offensive side of things.”

One new face on the offense that should make some noise is rising Sophomore WR Jordyn Rollins, a transfer from Brunswick High.

According to Coach Derrick, “he’s pretty athletic and could be a really, really good player. He’s just got to get in there and get in the weight room and be physical and learn what we’re doing.”

Rounding out what Coach Derrick refers to as the “4 Js” is 6’4” 200 lb freshman JC Wessel. The Coach explains that “he hasn’t played football in a while, but he’s a guy that could be a big-time player.”

And then of course Hayes Carter. “He’s played the sniper back and blocked for Jordan Triplett the last two or three years, but he’s got to be able to run the ball some, and he’s going to be moving to different spots on offense,” Derrick says. “But we’ve got to keep him healthy, too, because he and Gavin Grantham are the two anchors on the defensive side, too. We’ve got to be very good at what we do.”

Thankfully, one of the strong points of the ’24 Frederica squad will be the lines. “Our biggest area that we have depth is the offensive and defensive line, which is helpful” according to Coach Derrick.

“That’s where our most experience is going to be. We’ve got three of our seniors that are offensive and defensive line, and so, that’s big for us. But, you know, those young kids have been working pretty hard. So, I feel pretty good about playing some of those sophomores in their offensive line right now as well. They’ve done a good job this off-season. The ones that have been here really have focused on what they need to do.”

Coming into the final weeks of the offseason, the main person they’ll be protecting is still up in the air.

“Right now, it’s a three-dog race for QB – Jaylin (Baldwin), Davis Durkin, and Braxton Sykes.”

On special teams, Mary Ford Fitzjurls should be returning if her national soccer team responsibilities don’t overwhelm (they shouldn’t), and A.J. Manning has been working on punting duties as well.

The schedule will be your typical Frederica buzzsaw lineup. The Knights will have scrimmages against Bethesda and Brantley. And then, Savannah High’s going to come in and West Nassau’s going to be big and athletic. Frederica also has Valwood, who’s the state champ. Not to mention games against Pinewood and Bulloch Academy.

In short, expect more fun, Frederica style football from the boys (and girl) in green and grey.