SOCIAL CIRCLE, Ga. — The Social Circle Redskins held their spring game Friday night, showcasing what is to come in the 2023 football season.  

Following last year’s playoff season, the Redskins are looking to reload for another playoff push. 

Despite losing notable players from a season ago, head coach Rob Patton has high hopes for the 2023 season. 

“The best part of all spring was the guys competing for positions,” Patton said. “We graduated most of our entire roster this spring so getting those guys reps was huge for us.”

The Redskins’ spring game was intersquad. The coaching staff split up the varsity players into a red and a white team while also allowing the freshman roster to get playing time. 

Following the departure of four-year starter Logan Cross at quarterback, the question of who will lead the Redskins under center will be a big one as August approaches.

As for Friday,  the Red Team was led by Jude Nelson, while the White Team had Sean Crews at the controls. With starting spots up for grabs, both offenses created explosive plays on their first drives.

In his first possession, Crews eluded pressure on multiple plays before connecting with a long 60-yard touchdown throw on the run to put the white team ahead 7-0. 

Nelson didn’t take long to get his side of the offense cranking, either, taking his first snap of the spring game himself for a 60-yard touchdown.

“We have two quarterbacks right now who are competing and who are both very good athletes but also good leaders,” Patton said. “Both of them stood out and made good passes tonight and made plays on their feet. I am really proud of how both of them are competing.”

After the spring game, Patton made it clear that competition between the quarterbacks isn’t the team’s only spot up for grabs, saying that virtually every player is fighting for their roster spots.

It didn’t take long for each team’s defense to settle in after the back-to-back quick scores. 

The Red and White defenses kicked it into high gear as each front seven unit started to apply pressure to the quarterbacks. Both defenses continued their solid play into the second half, limiting any points while also intercepting both Crews and Nelson.

As the final seconds ticked off the scoreboard, the White Team took home the victory in the Redskins’ spring game 14-7 — the freshman teams’ scores notwithstanding. 

Following the game, Patton expressed his gratitude to the players who stuck it out for every practice in the spring while also stressing the importance for the team to start ramping it up as they get into summer practices.

“We have to clean up a lot of stuff but our defensive line is starting to finally play with some technique,” Patton said. “Our inside linebackers, [mainly] Bristol Evans made some big plays that really stuck out on the field. Our outside linebackers did a good job of containing. It is just the things we worked on in the spring, and it is good to see it show up in the scrimmage.”