Of the various postseason football awards out there, the most prestigious is the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s All State team. The AJC released its All State list this morning and several Trojans made the team.
Leading the way are Coffee’s head coach Mike Coe, who was named 5A Coach of the Year, and senior running back Fred Brown, who is the AJC’s 5A Offensive Player of the Year.
Offensive lineman Jerzabeon Grant and defensive back Anthony Paulk also made the AJC’s First Team All State while defensive end Elgie Paulk made All State Honorable Mention.
In his second year as head coach of the Trojans, Coach Coe has already amassed an impressive set of accomplishments. He has the most wins in Coffee history over his first two seasons (25; second best is Jerry Odom’s 13 wins in 2005 and 2006), he’s the only Coffee head coach to win 10 games in his first season, he won a region title quicker than any other head coach (Robby Pruitt won his first – and only – region championship in his fourth season), and he’s the only head coach to lead Coffee to an undefeated season and a state championship, to name but a few. That’s a career’s worth of work in just two seasons.
Brown made headlines all season long as he racked up impressive numbers from the first week of the season. This season alone, he broke the Trojans’ single season rushing record as he tallied 2,488 yards on 358 carries and 24 rushing touchdowns. He added four receptions for 84 yards and another touchdown. Brown averaged seven yards per carry and broke the 100-yard mark in all 15 games. In his career at Coffee, Brown has 556 carries for 3,809 yards and 45 touchdowns.
Grant, a 6’1”, 285-pound senior lineman, played in 14 games and recorded a team-high 53 pancake blocks.
Anthony Paulk, a 5’9”, 170-pound senior, played on both sides of the ball but really made a name for himself as a defensive back. This season, Paulk had 36 tackles, two interceptions, 18 pass breakups, and two blocked field goals. Offensively, he tallied 477 all-purpose yards and 10 touchdowns (five rushing, four receiving, and one kick return). Last week, he signed with Charleston Southern, where he will enroll early on January 4, 2024.
Senior Elgie Paulk was an anchor for the Coffee defense this season. He had team highs in tackles (78), sacks (11), and tackles for a loss (28).