The Statesboro Blue Devil football team wrapped up their 2026 spring practices with a scrimmage May 15 at Womack Field against Johnson and Effingham County.
In a format that was more like padded camp scrimmages rather than a typical game-like conditions, the Blue Devils got plenty of reps against both teams and coach Matt Dobson was pleased with the results.
“We got what we wanted as we were able to run over 100 plays on offense and defense,” Dobson said. “This is much more than we would have been able to get out of a traditional scrimmage format, so it was just what we wanted. We now have a lot of film to look at on a lot of different players. We played about 90 guys and this is just what we wanted to accomplish.”
On the offensive side of the ball, the Blue Devils return six starters and Dobson felt like that side of the ball was pretty impressive Friday night despite seeing quite a few different looks from the two opponents.
“I thought our offense did some pretty good things,” Dobson said. “I thought quarterback Beckham Jarrard was efficient with the football for the most part. He didn’t put the ball in harm's way. I thought Matthew White, our receiver from Lakeside, was phenomenal. I thought receiver Todd Easter made a lot of plays as did Davis Harrison particularly blocking. Our offensive line was solid and we built some depth. At running back, D.J. Brooks was physical and I thought Jamon Chavers and Jhaden Perkins gave us some depth.”
The Blue Devil defense must replace nine starters, including their entire defensive line. Dobson saw some positives Friday but knows there is still plenty of work to do on that side of the ball.
“The biggest thing I took away from tonight on defense is we need to tackle better,” Dobson said. “I felt like our secondary gave up a few big plays early but then we did a good job on the back end of making plays and getting a few interceptions.
"We had a few takeaways but still have to get much better in the box. We had a couple guys out tonight that we expect to start and the ones we had played hard but still need some improvement.”
The Blue Devils open the 2026 season on the road at Southeast Bulloch August 21.
