Lee Hutto, Westside (Augusta) head coach
Today’s interviewee is Westside of Augusta coach Lee Hutto, whose team defeated Aquinas 21-16 last week on a 73-yard TD pass in the final three minutes of a game between the highest-rated teams in Augusta. Westside is 5-0 overall and 3-0 in Region 4-3A. The only other region rival without a region loss is Harlem (4-0, 2-0). Westside has not won a region title since 2000.
1. Tell us about the winning touchdown. What was the down and distance? What was the play call, and why did you call that play? What happened on the play? What was the reaction of the team? “Our team was down 16-14 with under three minutes left in the fourth quarter. We were out of timeouts. We went two-minute offense, and the down and distance was second and 10. We were on the right hash and went trips to the field, and the play call was Y Hulk. The routes were two hitches and a corner route by the No. 3 receiver. The quarterback is taught to read the corner, and if the corner bails, throw the hitch. If he jumps the hitch, throw the corner behind him. The corner bailed, so our quarterback [Jaylen Stone] threw the hitch. Our player [Jahvon Williams] broke a tackle and took it down the sideline for a touchdown. Unfortunately, our team rushed the end zone, and we received a penalty. We kicked the extra point, which put us up by five points. We then had to kick off to Aquinas to stop them one last time.”
2. What did this win mean to your team? And do you view it as a championship of Augusta? “Most importantly, the win put us 3-0 in the region. We still have a chance to compete for a region championship. It puts us at 5-0 for the first time in over 22 years. It's very gratifying to see our seniors experience success and have a good season thus far. We've had two very tough years, and our seniors have continued to work hard and trust the process. Now, our seniors are seeing the results of their hard work and dedication to our program. We did not see this as a city championship but as a region game against a very good opponent.”
3. What does this team do well that has put itself in this position as a region contender? “We run the football and are a very physical football team. The strength of our team is our offensive and defensive lines. We have an excellent running back in Nari Kamga. However, we worked very hard in the offseason to get better at throwing the football, and we have improved in that area. Our quarterback has played well, and we have some very capable receivers that can make big plays. The biggest difference in our team is that we are older and more experienced. The last two seasons, we had to play a lot of sophomores and freshmen. Now, we are playing nothing but juniors and seniors, and that has been the biggest difference in our program this year. Our staff worked hard in the offseason and summer helping our kids to get bigger, stronger and faster. Once again, we made a conscious effort to get better at throwing the football and expanding our offense.”
4. You have coached in Augusta for a while. Is there something about Augusta football, in terms of challenges or the landscape, that makes it a little different? “There are definitely challenges to coaching in Augusta, but there are challenges everywhere. We do not focus on what we don't have, we just focus on working hard every day and doing the best we can do for our kids. We have great support from our school, administration and our community. Our parents and alumni are very active in our program and very supportive.”
