Greg Barnett, Columbia head coach
Today’s interviewee is Columbia coach Greg Barnett, whose team defeated Camden County13-10 last week on the road. Camden had beaten Columbia 31-0 in 2021. The victory helped propel Columbia, a Class 2A school, into the top 10 for the first time in 25 years. Barnett, a Columbia alumnus, got the head-coaching job in 2020 after six seasons as a coordinator. In 2021, his team won a playoff game for the first time since 1997 and finished 8-4.
1. What does it mean for the program, the team, to win this one? “It’s a significant win going down to a traditional powerhouse with a great coach in Jeff Herron [who has led Camden to three state titles]. It gives our kids confidence that they can compete with anybody despite the numbers. We dressed out 40, and they had 100, but it’s having the best 11 at a time. We went down last season, and the score was definitely not in our favor, so the guys were aware of what they were getting into. They know the tradition and hype and all the fanfare, and they were locked in. Hopefully we can use this game to pay dividends for the playoff run we hope to go on this season.”
2. What did your team do well that allowed you to win Friday? “Defensively, we were able to stop them. They had two trips inside the red zone and came away with just three points. We played well on offense too and were balanced, but the defense showed up to play and trusted the game plan and executed it. Any time you’re playing against the wing-T, you’ve got to pay attention to detail. It’s corralling and gang tackling and keeping them in front to you.”
3. What was the key moment in the game. How did the game play out? “We went up 13-0. On the third play of the game Jadan Baugh took it 86 or 87 yards. That set the tone. That was our motto all week, hit first. They see how important it is to hit a team first. Camden responded and made a game of it, but we were able to stare adversity and come out on top. [Camden got within 13-10 with about four minutes left.] Our quarterback scrambled on a key first down, and they had a key roughing-the-passer penalty to keep the drive alive. We were able to run out the clock.”
4. When you got the Columbia job, the team had been fair to middling for years. What was the key to getting it turned around? “It’s just changing the scope about how people feel about the program. We’ve always had great talent but struggled to string wins together. We’ve gotten the community behind us. Being from Columbia, I know what gets guys going, and the community has a lot to do with rounding up guys to play. We’re not the same Columbia now. We have new ways and want to be a traditional program that’s winning.” [Barnett also spoke about a new weight room that was given to the program in April by Columbia graduate Future, a rapper and songwriter and childhood friend of Barnett’s. “He’s always supported my teams, and he asked me what was needed, and I said weights, and we got it within a month. I can’t keep the kids out of the weight room now. That’s been huge for our program.”]