BEARVILLE — Pierce County, currently ranked third in Class AAA’s latest Top 10 poll, enjoys its first open date of the season this week after four weeks of action on the road.
The Bears played in a threeteam jamboree August 7 in Brunswick against the Class 6A Pirates and Class 7A Richmond Hill, and scrimmaged at Class 5A Wayne County August 14. They kicked off the 2026 campaign six hours from home in Gadsden, AL, against Class A Coosa Christian August 21, and played a very physical game last week at Class 2A Brooks County to close out August.
“We’re beat up after playing Brooks County,” said head coach Ryan Herring of the first of two bye weeks this season. “This is coming at a good time ... we have to get healthy, getting some guys healed up. I gave the players Saturday (August 29) and Sunday (August 30) off. Monday will be our normal Sunday with film study and weight lifting. We’ll practice Tuesday and Wednesday and have a light practice Thursday. We’ll do conditioning Friday.”
The Bears return to action Friday, September 11 for a five-game run up to the final bye October 16. They will finish the regular season with three games before the playoffs begin November 13 with the championship games set for December 14-16 in Atlanta.
Herring’s focus this week will be on special teams with the possible season-ending leg injury to kicker Fleming Cochran. The junior was injured during a Brooks County kick return in the first period of the Bears eventual 47-26 victory in Quitman.
“W have to find us another kicker,” Herrin said. “That’s No. 1. Second, we have to do a better job in punt coverage and kick coverage. We’re having a lot of special teams issues that need addressing.”
Brooks County’s George Lamons, an Auburn commit, torched the PCHS coverage teams. Lamons had a 30-yard return on the Bears’ lone punt at the two-minute mark of the first period. He sped 78 yards, spinning away from four would-be tacklers, for a touchdown on a kickoff return pulling the Trojans within 35-20 with 5:22 to play in the third quarter.
Another area of concern is in the trenches with the offensive line. The Bears punished the Brooks County defensive box helping Jae’Veon Williams, Dylan Johnson and Jack McClellan run for 398 yards (389 total rushing yards) on 54 tries.
“We still have to do a better job up front,” said Herring. “We’re still messing up. We have to do a better job of knowing our blocking rules.”
Defensively, PCHS has dropped Coosa Christian and the Trojans for minus-82 yards in rushing. Brooks County threw for 158 yards and a score.
“We have to work on our perimeter defense,” Herring said. “Usually, you work inside out, but we have to work outside in and stop teams from getting outside.”
PCHS will fully begin preparations Sunday, September 6 for the homeopener against Swainsboro.
The Tigers (1-1), opened the season ranked second in Class AA, but fell 36-35 at home to Cook in the opener and currently are ranked ninth. Swainsboro dropped from second to sixth after the opening loss and three more spots after last week’s narrow 28-21 victory over Class A seventh- ranked county rival ECI.
Swainsboro enters this week’s game hosting Class AAA top-ranked Toombs County in search of the 600th victory in the 106th year of a program that dates to 1919. The PCHS coaching staff will be there to scout the Tigers and get an early look at the Bulldogs, a team the Bears play in Lyons September 23.
The Tigers would become the 27th school in GHSA history to reach the 600 win mark.
Valdosta (43 region titles, 24 state titles, six national title banners) is the all-time leader with 973 victories through the first two games of the 2026 campaign covering 113 years. LaGrange is second with 822 wins in 122 seasons.
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