Is Gainesville High a breeding ground for top college quarterbacks?! A case could be made for that argument.
Case in point: In just 12 months two former Gainesville High quarterbacks have been featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Just this month Deshaun Watson was featured and is in the middle of a National Championship run with his No. 1 ranked Clemson Tigers and a possible Heisman nod. Watson is only the second Clemson Tiger ever featured on the cover of SI and led the Red Elephants to its first state championship in 2012.
“It is exciting to see former athletes getting so much attention in the sporting news,” said Gainesville High football coach Bruce Miller. “We are very proud of them and wish them well as they continue their careers. GO BIG RED!!!”
Former Red Elephant Blake Sims was featured on the SI cover in 2014 and is the former Crimson Tide quarterback who led the University of Alabama to an SEC title last year. Sims holds the record at Alabama for the most single season passing yards which had previously been held by AJ McCarron.
Both players exhibit natural talent that was molded by exceptional high school and college coaches.
Gainesville City Schools Superintendent Wanda Creel added, “We are so proud that two Red Elephants have stomped onto the cover of Sports Illustrated in one year.”
Currently, Gainesville football (8-3) is in the midst of a 5-A State Championship run led by the quarterback Messiah Dorsey and will play the Stockbridge Tigers (11-0) on Friday in Stockbridge.
