Author: Robert Preston

There was something about the way Kansas City Chiefs rookie and former Coffee Trojan Tyreek Hill darted into the end zone for his first NFL touchdown Sunday afternoon against the San Diego Chargers. It looked routine enough – quarterback Alex Smith took the snap and looked to his left, in Hill’s direction. Hill took a step off the line, Smith fired a strike to his lightning bolt of a receiver, and Hill did the rest. With a nice barrier of blockers in front of him, Hill eluded a couple of Chargers and scored the Chiefs’ first touchdown of the season.…

Earlier this week, the Douglas Lions Club grew by three members. The club welcomed Jessi Frost, Doug Walker, and Ashley Yaunches in the fold. The Lions Club, started in 1917 in Chicago, exists to to empower volunteers to serve their communities, meet humanitarian needs, encourage peace and promote international understanding through Lions clubs. Lions International strives to be the global leader in community and humanitarian service. These new members will help the local Lions Club make a difference in Coffee County and beyond.

At this week’s Broxton City Council meeting, the council signed a proclamation recognizing September as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Childhood cancer is an issue that touches every community in the country. Coffee County, however, seems to have had more than its fair share of youth who suffer from this dreaded disease. The proclamation provides some staggering facts. Consider the following: Cancer is the leading cause of death in the U.S. among children ages 1-14. Cancer also claims an estimated 1,350 lives annually from that same age group. There is a 1 in 285 chance that a child will be diagnosed…

The world is full of talented musicians. Tens of thousands of people with professional talent wake up every day and head out the door to a nine-to-five, much like those of us who can’t carry a tune in a bucket. Following the dream of being a professional musician is risky – how many of us know a starving yet ultra-talented singer, guitarist, drummer, or pianist? Eric Brigmond, 44, a 1990 graduate of Coffee High School is one of the rare few who not only had the dream but followed it. While he may not be a household name (outside of…

We’ve already seen a team take an early lead only to let the game slip away late in the fourth quarter. It happened last week when the Brunswick Pirates lost to the visiting Coffee Trojans after jumping out 14-0. It happened again today, only this time it was the Trojans getting out to a 14-0 advantage before inexplicably letting the wheels come off and eventually losing to the Ware County Gators 30-27 in Waycross. The two teams played the game on 1 p.m. Saturday due to Hurricane Hermine, which rolled through South Georgia and dumped a boatload of rain on…

Former Coffee Trojan Tyreek Hill, whom the Kansas City Chiefs selected in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft, has generated quite a bit of attention this preseason – of the positive sort. In his short time with the Chiefs, Hill, who wears jersey #81, has been praised for his work ethic, athletic ability, and, of course, his world class speed. Saturday afternoon, the Chiefs traveled to Chicago for a preseason matchup against the Bears. Hill had a pretty good day in the Chiefs’ 23-7 win over Chicago. He caught one pass for 58 yards, had two punt returns…

I wrote for In the Game High School Sports Magazine for nearly eight years. During that time, I had the opportunity to speak with a number of coaches who won state championships in a variety of sports. I had a standard question I asked each one, which was to what did they attribute their success. Each coach answered the question a little differently yet there was a common theme that woven into their responses: Community buy-in. There was not a single coach who won a state title without having tremendous community support. I have noticed over the years that we…

It was supposed to be a lazy, late summer Saturday. The kids are settling into school. The Trojans won a game they probably shouldn’t have the night before. Some people have already started the countdown to the holiday season. No, nothing serious was supposed to happen today. And yet it did. One day, two shootings, three victims — one with life threatening injuries. One shooting took place in the shadows of a church, the other happened blocks away from an elementary school. Two traditional havens of safety and security turned into places of bloodshed. First, let’s talk about the most…

Every successful football team wins at least one game a year it shouldn’t. The Coffee Trojans may have had theirs last night in Brunswick. After getting thoroughly thrashed by the Brunswick Pirates for three quarters, the Trojans finally snapped out of their funk and rallied in the fourth quarter to beat the Pirates 21-20. Coffee is now 2-0 on the young season. It’s hard to describe what actually happened on the field for the first three-fourths of the game. Yes, Coffee played a sloppy game. The Trojans turned the ball over, made silly mistakes, got penalized, missed assignments – you…

Diana Jacobs, who had been held in the Coffee County Jail for nearly two years on various charges related to the death of Alexander Hunter, 67, whose body was found buried in a shed behind Rosewood Manor assisted living facility in Nicholls, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors on Monday, Aug. 22. Jacobs pleaded guilty to concealing a death and exploitation of an elderly or disabled adult. Though initial charges included malice murder, Jacobs was never indicted on that charge. Jacobs’s husband, James Jacobs, was indicted for malice murder (among other charges) and remains in the Coffee County Jail. Diana…