The Putnam County football team recently had several players earn All-Region 4-AA honors. The War Eagles had 13 players earn All-Region honors, with five receiving honorable mentions.
Putnam County head coach Joel Harvin said he was proud of each player who earned the recognition.
“These guys worked hard and deserve this prestigious recognition for everything they have done for our program,” Harvin said. “We look forward to having a great offseason and having even more next year.”
Senior running back Kaleb Crawford and junior offensive lineman Noah Long earned First-Team offense honors.
Crawford hopes to continue his career at the college level after leading the team in rushing with 927 yards on 101 attempts (5.7 yards per carry), including nine touchdowns this year.
“I credit my offensive line. I’ve been telling them all week that if they do things right, we’ve got y’all. We can win,” Crawford said after he rushed for 209 yards and two touchdowns in September against Jasper County. “We’re going to make the plays if they can create holes for us to run through. I couldn’t do (it) if it wasn’t for our offensive line. They showed out that night.”
Long also was a huge part of the War Eagles’ success on the ground, and the offensive line helped the offense rush for more than 2,500 yards and 31 touchdowns. He will be returning next year as a senior.
Senior linebacker Tyson Waller and junior punter Jason Clemons earned First-Team defense honors. Waller was a key piece on Putnam’s defense, while Clemons’ leg helped the special teams unit out.
“We had ups and downs and obstacles to overcome,” Waller said last week of his senior year. “With coach Pope retiring, it was a lot to take in. We had to learn a lot of new stuff under coach Harvin.”
Junior tailback Rashod Daniel, tight end Zacoree Wallace, and senior wideout Alan Hill earned Second-Team offense honors.
Senior defensive lineman Mark Little, junior defensive lineman Blake Tiller, senior linebacker Mark Watkins, sophomore linebacker Branan Griffin, junior defensive back Cory Foster, and senior defensive back Sharod White earned Second-Team defense honors.
The honorable mentions were offensive lineman Tyler Dennis, kicker Alex Jimenez, Ryan Parks, quarterback Jamarion Robertson, tight end Jayson Smith, and defensive back Bill Waters.
Putnam County went 6-5 overall in Harvin’s first season. The War Eagles were the No. 3 seed out of Region 4 but lost Nov. 11 to Fitzgerald in the first round of Class 2A state playoffs.