By Greg Chrapek
Wyoming-Kentwood News Today Contributor
greer@wktv.org
After a breakout season last fall, a Godwin Heights football team loaded with veteran talent is poised for even bigger accomplishments this year.
Last season, the Wolverines qualified for the playoffs for the first time since 2018 other than the 2020 covid season when every school in the state was in the playoffs. After turning in a 7-2 regular-season record, Godwin Heights also hosted a playoff game for the first time in years and finished with a 7-3 overall mark, notching the most wins in a season since 2017.
This year, with a wealth of talent returning from that team, the sky’s the limit.
“We’re feeling good,” said Godwin Heights Coach Brandon Kimble. “We have a lot of players back. We lost some good senior talent, but we brought back a lot of skill positions, a lot of linebackers, so we have a lot of good players coming back so we’re excited about the season.”
One of those returnees is at the quarterback position, junior Martellis Forest (6-1, 205), entering his third year as a starter. A talented athlete, Forest has a college-level arm and can make all the throws that a big-time quarterback makes.
“I mean, we’re biased, but I’ll be honest, I think he’s for sure the best quarterback on this side of the state,” Kimble said. “There’s a lot of talent at quarterback this year and I think he’s ready to try to make his case for being the best in the state, but we’re excited about Martellis.”
Forest has a wealth of targets to throw to as the Wolverines return all of their wideouts from last year.
Leading the list of returning receivers is senior Isziah Walker. Toss in Martise Raphael (5-10, 155), Aiden Jackson (5-8, 155) and Jakhari Davis (5-11, 150), and the Wolverines are loaded at receiver.
“Receiver is one of the positions where we are the deepest,” Kimble said. “All of our receivers return. Isziah is really explosive, but then we follow that up with Martise, we follow that with Aiden Jackson, I throw in Jakhari Davis and our tight ends can make some noise, so we are really deep at the receiver position.”
While the Wolverines have a high-octane passing game, they are anything but one dimensional thanks to the return of a big-time running back in senior Julius Hoskins (5-9, 175). Hoskins is a workhorse at running back who can also supply the dynamic big play.
“He’s special,” Kimble said. “I think that he’s going to really make some noise and do some things this year. He had some 200-yard games last year and he’s already put on some weight in the offseason. I’m excited myself to see him play.”
Up front, the offensive line graduated a pair of players but has a trio of veteran linemen to build around. Returning to anchor the line are senior tackle Jeremiah Lee (6-5, 220) and juniors Jayden Ingram and Ethan Spears. Filling out the other two starting spots will be some young linemen.
“We feel the cohesion is there,” Kimble said. “It’s just the development, the communication and learning each other. I think the three leaders on that line are going to be able to push us early on until they get that experience.”
On the defensive side of the ball the Wolverines return some key starters with plenty of young talent mixing in.
“We lost a core of our defense, but we also will return a lot in our defensive backfield. We’re returning two corners, we return one safety and then we’re also returning a linebacker. So, we lost some key spots, but we also have a lot of juniors now that played as sophomores.”
Up front, the Wolverines are led by Ingram and Lee. Senior Barnard Davis (5-11, 190) has plenty of potential and is set to make a big impact along the defensive line.
Senior Josiah Cox-Guyton (6-0, 215) is a big-play performer up front who will make an impact at defensive end or outside linebacker. A returning all-conference player, Cox-Guyton is versatile and can line up at a variety of spots along the edge and provide impact plays. He also has the potential to play college linebacker. Senior Jesus Gutierrez gained experience last year and is poised to step up and play big minutes at the “Mike” linebacker position.
In the secondary, the Wolverines are loaded with talent. At cornerback, Godwin returns a talented sophomore cornerback Jonquil James, who brings big-time talent to the position.
Another big-time talent in the secondary is junior Theus McCranie (6-2, 195), who’s a talented cornerback, but looks to play safety.
“I think we have a lot of opportunity, but we have to put it all together,” Kimble explained. “We look good on paper, but we got some work to do, but we are excited for what it shows on paper.”
