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DawsonNewscom
Wednesday, May 25, 2022
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Hughes takes 6th at State Golf Championship
Dawson County ends with eighth-place team finish
By Rio White
riowhite@dawsonnews.com
Alex Hughes put together two
solid rounds at Bartram Trail
Golf Club near Augusta during
the Class AAA State Golf
Championship, finishing in
sixth place as an individual and
leading Dawson County to an
eighth-place team finish.
The Tigers faced a full slate of
stiff competition for two gruel
ing rounds on Monday, May 16,
and Tuesday, May 17.
In addition to Area rivals
Westminster and Cherokee
Bluff, the Tigers faced a strong
host team in Richmond
Academy.
“I’m happy for our guys. It’s
crazy to say that we are disap
pointed to finish top 10 in the
state,” head coach Will Anglin
said. “I think it says a lot about
our program and where we have
come from. At the end of the
day, we finished eighth in a very
competitive classification and
that’s something to be proud of.”
Hughes led the charge for
DCHS by shooting an even-par
72 in his first round before find
ing himself in the red after a
second-round 1 -under 71.
With his performance,
Hughes finished as one of only
six golfers out of more than 75
to play the course under par at
the end of two rounds.
While the gap between the top
two teams and the rest of the
field was large, the individual
scores at the top were much
closer. Hughes finished just
eight strokes off the individual
champion.
As a team, the Tigers finished
with an aggregate score of 662,
good enough to place eighth out
of 12 teams playing.
“I think the biggest adjust
ment we had to make was pre
paring for the heat,” Anglin said.
“Leading into the tournament
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Alex Hughes
points to his
score following
his two-day
aggregate of
1-under par 143,
which earned
him a sixth-
place finish at
the class AAA
State Golf
Championships.
Photo courtesy of
DCHS golf
A life of passion and service
Photo courtesy of Paige Sweany/Sole Photography
George Moser speaks to the football team this past season while undergoing treatment for stomach cancer.
Moser passed away on Monday, May 16, after 17 years at DCHS.
Tigers football mourns loss of longtime coach Moser
By Rio White
riowhite@dawsonnews.com
For the past 17 years, one of Dawson
County’s most recognizable faces —
and voices — was that of community
football coach George Moser, who died
Monday, May 16, aged 67.
During his time with the Tigers,
Moser served as a mentor, motivator,
organizer and so much more — all with
out taking a dime.
While his official role was a special
teams assistant, his knowledge and per
sonality shone through the entire team.
Not a single player or coach was exempt
from his positivity, nor his sharp wit.
“He had a great relationship with the
kids,” head football coach Sid Maxwell
said. “They could see his passion and
love for them. He was out here volun
tarily to make sure that he could watch
these boys grow up.”
Moser had plenty of coaching experi
ence before deciding to join Dawson
County in 2005 and could have moved
solely into his career outside football,
but his heart told him otherwise.
After joining then-coach Jeff Lee’s
staff, Moser would later forge a coach
ing partnership and friendship with
assistant coach Gary Wilson that lasted
15 years.
Wilson would then get to witness
first-hand who Moser was as a person,
which directly reflected who he was as a
coach.
“He never met a stranger,” Wilson
said. “First day I go on the field...he
puts his arm right around me and said ‘I
hope you’re good.’ There was never a
dull moment with him.”
That sense of immediate camaraderie
defined Moser’s character not only
toward fellow coaches, but to every
player as well. He made it an effort to
make each member of the roster feel
like a part of the Tigers family.
“It didn’t matter if it was a last-string
ninth grader or if it was the superstar on
the team, he was always building every
single one of those guys up,” Wilson
said. “It was a pleasure to be around
somebody with that much energy and
that much love for not just the game of
football but the kids and coaching staff.”
Despite his ongoing treatment for
stage-three stomach cancer last fall, he
refused to allow his condition to prevent
him from influencing the football team.
Even with the chemotherapy and sur
gery, Moser kept showing up to games,
kept his confidence and kept his head in
the game.
Following the news of his passing,
hundreds of community members and
former DCHS football players shared
their condolences and support for Moser
and his family.
On the football team’s Facebook
page, the profile picture was switched to
a photo of Moser from last season
depicting him triumphantly holding up a
football while surrounded by players
and coaches.
The football team also posted a photo
on its Twitter page from Moser’s funeral
service on Thursday, May 19, with a
caption that fittingly paid tribute to his
memory.
‘We love you, Coach Moser.’
Burt looks
forward to
role as new
baseball coach
By Rio White
riowhite@dawsonnews.com
Former Dawson County baseball player
and alum Logan Burt recently landed the
job as head baseball coach for the Tigers,
as confirmed by the school
on Wednesday, May 11.
Burt will be taking on
the role following the
retirement of Dwayne
Sapp, who served the past
seven of his 27 years as a
high school baseball coach
with the Tigers.
After graduating from
DCHS in 2014, Burt
attended the University of
North Georgia, where he
was a part of two Peach
Belt conference champion
ship teams.
“Playing here and being
from here, I’ve always said Sapp
that I wanted to come back
and give back to the community that sup
ported me from the time I was young,”
Burt said. “Even [at UNG], Dawson
County supported me and came to watch.”
Since graduating from UNG, Burt has
served both as an assistant under Sapp and
as a math teacher at DCHS.
In the time he has served as an assistant
coach, Burt has been able to use his youth
ful perspective to connect with the players
while also learning invaluable lessons from
coach Sapp’s breadth of experience.
“[I’ve learned] how to manage people...
and that baseball is not just about the Xs
and Os, it’s all the stuff behind that,” Burt
said. “[Sapp] was great about letting me
ask questions and I’m grateful for that. I
still call him most days for some advice.”
Burt will be inheriting a team on the rise,
with the Tigers winning 19 games this past
season en route to their first state playoff
berth since 2017.
While there were six seniors on last sea
son’s roster, there was also a strong core of
underclassmen who will have the next sev
eral months to help prepare the team for
See Burt 12B
Dawson High holds spring
football game at East Forsyth
By Rio White
riowhite@dawsonnews.com
In preparation for the upcoming sea
son, the Dawson County football team
held their spring game, with this year’s
game played at East Forsyth.
While scoring was not officially kept,
the Tigers offense started strongly in the
first half, with rising sophomore Davis
Glass handed the start at quarterback.
Glass, Matt Bennett, and Kade
Moledor helped spark two drives in the
first half that would result in touch
downs.
Meanwhile, the defense kept East
Forsyth scoreless during the first half.
Later, rising junior Sawyer Bearden
took over at quarterback and helped
lead the Tigers to a third touchdown.
Dawson County will be looking to
make another state playoff run this fall,
with a slightly different schedule com
pared to past seasons.
See Football 13B
Rio White Dawson County News
Davis Glass looks for an open
receiver during the spring game
against East Forsyth.
Player Of The Week!
Alex Hughes
This weeks
player of the week is
Alex Hughes,
who finished 6th at the
State Golf
Championship.
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