By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

          Justin Rogers has said from early on in his Jones County career that there was no reason to look for another job or think about another job.

          But apparently one of the state’s marquee positions – for a variety of reasons lately – has found him.

          Internet and social media reports have been backed up by sources that Rogers will become the next head coach at Colquitt County, and is expected to be approved Monday night at a school board meeting.

          Texts Friday and Saturday to Rogers went unanswered, and phones went to voicemail, two directly.

          Athletics director Barry Veal said late Friday afternoon that he was not in the market for a football coach.

          “Justin Rogers is our football coach,” Veal said. “Justin Rogers is our football coach. Justin is a very, very good friend. … Justin and I are very, very close.

“I want the best for all involved. I love Justin, and I love our kids. My worry right now is on our kids.”

As of Friday afternoon, Veal said Rogers has not resigned, and he didn’t appear to expect that to change on Friday.

          Rogers is 45-15 after five seasons at the Class 5A program, already putting him in second place all-time in wins at the school, one behind John “Bubba” Williams, who went 46-57-1 in 10 years. Rogers is the most successful head coach in Jones County history by far at 75 percent, followed by G.M. Charles Sr., who won 58 percent of his games from 1930-40. Rogers is one of only four coaches in Greyhounds history above .500.

          Colquitt County has been a center of attention for years, never moreso than since Rush Propst took over and then when Propst was suspended in February and fired in March.

          Propst was dismissed nearly a month ago amid charges of, in short, violating standards of the Georgia Code of Ethics for Educators, in legal compliance, conduct with students, honesty, and public funds and property. This list of violations uncovered by the county school board: providing pills to students (ostensibly football) players; owing more than $300,000 in federal and $143,000 in state income tax; interfering with the hiring of the Colquitt County principal; insubordination; trying to charge an unapproved hotel room to the school system; among others.

          The school board passed along its findings to the state’s Professional Standards Commission.

          A Moultrie Observer report on the firing also quoted superintendent Doug Howell saying the board did not have a specific head coach in mind when it dismissed – unanimously – Propst on March 15.

          Propst issued a long statement last week defending himself.

          The paper reported that a small collection of fans were supporting the candidacy of Tom Knotts, currently head coach at Dutch Fork in Irmo, S.C., and who has never coached in Georgia. Supporters of his spoke up at a recent board meeting, with no comment from board members.

          For years, Rogers’ name would be linked – from a distance, and pretty much only as part of the name-linking game when certain jobs came open – to assorted quality high school football vacancies.

          And almost from the start of his success at Jones County, Rogers dismissed them, regularly stating in simple terms that there was no reason for him to look, no reason for him to leave.

          The reasons were simple: Jones County had a good school system, making for an easier process in having a good football and athletics program; Gray and Jones County made for a good place to live, a growing small town only 20 minutes from a city; and the school system was spending money on the school system and athletics.

          And Rogers said in every such conversation that he wanted to build a program, one like Northside: Why look around for what you already had?

          But Colquitt County has many things Jones County doesn’t, including a split community still loaded with Propst supports and thus an anti-board faction, putting his successor in an immediate PR bind. The challenge to reunite the Colquitt County fan base, a huge task regardless of Propst’s successor, is greater than maintaining a playoff program, barring any rash of transfers, even in 7A.

          Colquitt County played in four of the last five Class 7A state title games, losing 14-13 to Milton last December to ruin a perfect season and give Propst a 119-35 record in 11 seasons at the school. The Packers’ last losing season was in 2008, Propst’s first, when they went 4-6. Only twice since then did they fail to win at least 10 games.

          Colquitt County taxpayers voted to fund and built a huge indoor facility, more than 73,000 square feet, a full football field in length with “overhead coiling doors” that open to allow airflow, as well as a weight room, locker room, “food prep room and nutrition center’ and three conference rooms, according to the football website.

          Ironically, among the list of construction items at growing Jones County was a 10,000-square foot athletics building that includes a markedly expanded weight room plus offices, a nutrition center, additional locker rooms for girls sports, and meeting rooms.

          The Greyhounds have gone 10-3, 9-2, 7-5, 11-2, and 8-3 under Rogers, and are 5-5 in the postseason, with two quarterfinal trips countering two first-round losses, and a second-round defeat.

          It’s the second time in program history Jones County has made the postseason in back to back years, first time with three straight trips, let alone five straight.

          Making a sixth trip in a row is almost automatic, the Greyhounds returning almost as many regulars and starters in 2019 as in any year under Rogers. Five underclassmen on offense were all-region picks in 4-5A, and about half of the defensive starters are back from the 8-3 team that lost in the first round to eventual state champ Bainbridge.

          The offense returns quarterback Hunter Costlow (2,413 yards passing, 64.1 percent) and talented wideouts Jontavis Robertson , Maleek Wooten, Caden Mutchler, and John Walton (who combined for 125 catches, 2,240 yards, and 26 TDs) as well as offensive linemen Rhett Huckeba and Conner Griffin.