South Walton riding the “three headed monster” of Hodges, Roberts and Spurlin

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) -For South Walton head football coach Phil Tisa, it’s a good problem to present to other teams! ”We’ve got problems. That’s what we’ve got. We create problems for other teams.” Tisa is talking about his trio of senior quarterback Kemper Hodges, senior receiver Cade Roberts, and junior receiver Pearce Spurlin. “You can’t double cover one. If you sit here and try and take away the passing game, then Kemper is going to hurt you with his legs, so it’s just problems for people.”

Those three have combined to rack up well over 2,000 passing yards this season, while leading South Walton to a 9-1 record and a second round playoff game Friday against 7-3 Baldwin.

“It gives me a great advantage to have open guys every single time.” says Hodges. “Every time I snap the ball, I know that if worst comes to worst, I can throw it up to Pearce and we have a good chance of him catching it, or I know that Cade is going to be open if I am looking downfield because they’re just un-guardable.” The trust is mutual. ”I think he is probably one of the best quarterbacks in the state.” says Roberts, a South Florida commit. “I mean, you see his stat line. He is so fun to play with. I mean every play, he makes something happen out of nothing. He always puts the ball on us. He’s a great player to play with.”

“Me as a receiver, knowing I can trust my quarterback, on and off the field, me and him are best friends.” says Spurlin “And that kind of just takes onto the field with what we do. We’ve got a connection. We can check any route and do whatever we want really, and it’s just a great feeling knowing that’s my quarterback.” The connection between the three goes deeper than the receptions you see on Friday night. “It’s been a blast, these past two years, especially.” adds Hodges. “I played with Cade in middle school in Georgia, and then, I had seen Pearce play in Atlanta, and then when we got down here, we just have this tight, really good friendship, and then on the field, it just gives us connections that most people don’t, it’s just awesome.” The triple threat, not something Coach Tisa ever dreamed he would have on his roster. “I don’t know if many people have had a trio like this before. I mean, we’ve definitely had good players, but to put this kind of nucleus together, to be able to do what they’ve done offensively, last year and this year, I think their numbers speak for themselves.” Coach Tisa hoping to make the best of the trio as they begin their playoff journey this week with a 7:30 game against Baldwin.

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