THOMASVILLE – Thomas County Central football gathered in the TCCHS cafeteria on Thursday night along with fans and friends to celebrate their season and their players.

The night began with head coach Justin Rogers recognizing and thanking the administration, the coaches and their wives, the media team, the booster and touchdown clubs, and parents. No one was left out, as Rogers was intentional to let everyone know how integral they were to the success of the Yellow Jacket football program.

Rogers presented the Spirit of the Yellow Jacket award to Matt Dukes, after which both the training staff and the film staff were recognized.

Rogers and his staff then recognized each player on the team, bringing them up and presenting them with a certificate.

The came the individual awards portion of the night. It began with Drew Reneau, who the coaching staff called “a Swiss army knife”. Reneau won Special Teams MVP after a season that saw him nail a 51-yard season-long field goal and score 100 points. 

Most improved when to JB Watkins on the offensive side of the ball and Amari Stephenson on the defensive side. Artem Korchagin was named lineman of the year and Christian Lawrence was named impact player of the year after racking up over 1300 rushing yards and 18 rushing touchdowns.

As the night then moved to the MVPs. Jayden Rubbo was named defensive MVP and received the scholar-athlete award after 107 total tackles, five fumble recoveries, and a 3.8 GPA, the highest on the team. Rogers described him as “an impactful human being”.

Jaylen Johnson was named the Yellow Jackets offensive MVP after a career season that saw the junior total 2724 passing yards and 29 passing TDs. He also broke Sam Brown’s record for single-season passing yards.

The awards took a momentary pause to recognize Cam Brooks. Brooks was invited to the prestigious Under Armor All-American game, often recognized as a proving ground for future NFL players. Brooks was given an honorary game jersey in recognition of his impressive achievement.

Finally, the time came for the Charlie Ward Jr. MVP award, presented by Ward himself. Senior and USC signee Dee Reddick was named the Yellow Jacket MVP.  

“Not only did he inspire his teammates, did he encourage his teammates, did he motivate his teammates, I believe he inspired and motivated you,” Rogers told the crowd.

Despite battling a shoulder injury sustained in the pre-season, Reddick was a leader on and off the field. On the gridiron, he was an impact player on defense and special teams. Reddick forced multiple turnovers, shut down passing games through out the year, totaled 359 kick return yards, and even found the end zone a handful of times.