Today’s interviewee is Appling County coach Jordan Mullis, whose team defeated then-No. 1 Pierce County 13-6 to win Region 3-2A. Appling County (7-2) is now ranked No. 1 for the first time in program history. Mullis’ teams are 39-9 in his four seasons with semifinal appearances in 2021 and 2022. Appling has beaten Pierce three straight seasons, each time while Pierce was ranked in the top three.
1. How were you able to win this game? What was the game plan? “I can’t let all my deep, dark secrets out. But you have to play football the right way to play with them. Our kids have been able to do that the past few years. We like to throw the ball and score points. Your ego will want you to take shots. When we beat them last year, we only snapped the ball 37 times. This year, it was 33. We usually average 55 to 60. You’ve got to tell yourself all week this is how it’s going to be. You get a few first downs, and the crowd is cheering, and your ego gets going. You’d better douse it and keep the ball away from them. When you’re limited to 35 snaps, they’d better be good ones and they’d better be efficient, and you better not be drawing up things in the dirt. They are a boa constrictor with what they do offensively and the players they have. They can sustain drives down the field. That’s what makes it tough when they do throw it up. You have to have eye discipline. You have to play like a mad man but keep your eye on this, but not too long because the quarterback will run you over.” [Mullis credited his defense coordinator, Bubba Walker, as Appling held Pierce to 124 rushing yards on 38 carries and 3-of-10 passing for 55 yards and intercepted two passes.]
2. You and coach Ryan Herring at Pierce County are friends, and you said last year he was the best coach in the state. How did you friendship develop? “Ain’t no doubt he is [the best coach]. We talk a lot. It’s really guerilla war for each other’s mind, but it’s mutual respect. The way he gets those kids to play so hard in today’s world and be physical, whatever compliment you can give him, he gets it. They’re always sound and have a good plan. He was really complimentary of me as a defensive coordinator [before Mullis became Appling’s head coach in 2021]. We did some things to give them some trouble. We went and played them in a JV game my first year as head coach, and they beat us 2-0 on a safety. That was my first time talking with him. We were shaking hands, and he was like, ‘that’s the kind of games I like, 2-0.’ I said, ‘coach, I’m a baseball coach, but that ain’t no fun.’ Ever since then, we bounce things off each other. We think each other does a good job.”
3. What’s been the story of your team this season? “We’ve survived some real tough stuff this year. We’ve actually missed three weeks of school because of the hurricane. We got thumped by Ware County [40-10] in Game 1. All credit goes to Ware, but we didn’t get time to prepare for them like we should have, so they thumped us pretty good. The majority of our fair-weather fans kind of tossed us to the side and stopped coming and talking about us, so we started getting in a bunker a little bit. Then we lose a four-year starter and all-state player and one of the best punters [Dayson Griffis] for the season. That knocked us back a little bit. We went down to DeLand, Fla., and played a 7A school, and they kicked our butt [38-7]. That’s when we broke. We had an ugly, tough meeting that Sunday because of the way our kids acted and the way we coached and the way we didn’t clean up the locker room because we were in our feelings. “We benched a bunch of guys and kicked some guys off the team. Some guys left. Ever since then, we’ve started to grow and come together like you hear those clichés people talk about. Our kids trust our freshman quarterback [Harrison Hickox]. They trust us as coaches. That tough love has created relationships where they play harder and more efficiently. The word this year is intent. Do you like to put on your uniform and look up in the crowd, or is your intent on the daily operation to get ready to play at 7:30 for 48 minutes every Friday night? I give them that message every day. This team has had a lot of trauma, but tough times create tough people. Now that we’ve become a tougher football team, we can win those tough games.”
4. Everybody in Class 2A has lost a game. How do you think this class will play out? “Burke County dropping down from 4A is a problem. I’ve played them and know what kind of kids and program they have. It wouldn’t be hard to think they could bully people around. Their facilities and school and program is a big dog when they come down to our level. Obviously Carver-Columbus has had NFL dudes, so when they get that thing going, that’s a problem. Pierce is going to be the most consistent, physical team you play. Callaway always seems to be in the mix like we are. Morgan County has got something going on, but I don’t know much about them. I don’t have time to do bracketology. That’s what my young assistants do. I just know there are teams in AA and in A from this area that can play with anybody.”
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