Coming off a 7-3 season and an early exit in the state playoffs, the Bulloch Academy Gators have their sights set on making another deep run this season. To be successful, head coach Aaron Phillips knows he will have to count on his players in the trenches.

One player he has seen a lot of progress from over the past year is junior lineman Colin Grooms.

“Colin has really transformed himself into a collegiate player,” Phillips said. “He is getting a lot of looks and interest right now from numerous colleges and universities. At 6 foot 3 and 220 pounds, he has a lot of tools that will translate to the next level. He has really developed himself in the weight room and become a great player for us on both sides of the ball.

“He’s one of our 15 seniors, and has really taken off as a leader. He continues to show up every day and work really hard, and we are super excited for what this year holds for him. The biggest strength of our team as of right now in my opinion is our offensive and defensive line. In 2024 the strength of that championship team was our down five on both sides of the ball and I think this team has some of those same characteristics.”

“I feel like the summer has gone great so far and I feel like we’ve been making great progress every day,” Grooms said. “I feel like my role on the team as a senior is to set a good example for the younger guys and the upcoming seniors after us as well. I think it’s my duty to make sure they are held accountable and to also help them improve every day whenever I get the chance.

“I believe our run game is strong and we have a good returning group on the line who saw the field a lot last year. I think we’ll also be more than capable of passing the ball when we need to this year. I expect that it’ll be tough this year with our schedule and that we’ll have to really work hard at it, but I believe we have a great chance of surpassing what we accomplished last year.”