Calhoun returns to its state championship ways in ‘24
After six seasons at the helm, Calhoun coach Clay Stephenson and his seniors finally restored a tradition of winning state championships, leading the Yellow Jackets to a Class 3A title in 2024.
From 2001 to 2018, Calhoun was a dynasty, winning 18 straight region championships and three state titles (2011, 2014, and 2017) under the leadership of GACA Hall of Famer Hal Lamb. When Lamb retired in 2018, the program didn’t look far for its next leader. The Yellow Jackets promoted longtime assistant Clay Stephenson, one of Lamb’s former players at Upson-Lee.
Stephenson was raised in a football family. His father, David Stephenson, spent 15 years as a head coach in Georgia, with stops at Monroe Area, Charlton County and Upson.
As he grew closer to his dad, Stephenson grew closer to the game. Coaching, he said, always felt like destiny.
“I knew that was a goal of mine, one day, to be a head coach,” Stephenson said. “I didn't know where (or) when that would happen.”
In 2004, he joined Calhoun as a special education teacher. Fifteen years later, in 2019, he was named head coach.
Stepping into the role meant navigating the shadow of a coaching legend and the pressure of a community used to excellence. Within the program, Stephenson had his own decisions to make: What traditions should remain? What needed to evolve?
“Being in a place that is so successful where the expectations are really high, I feel like the first thing you’ve got to do is just go in and keep the program moving forward,” Stephenson said, remembering 2019. “I think that was the biggest key.”
When Stephenson took over Calhoun, the program still competed in Class 3A. But after his first season, the Yellow Jackets skipped 4A entirely and jumped straight to Class 5A - a dramatic leap in competition level.
As they battled to earn their place among the state’s top-tier programs, the Yellow Jackets made an improbable run to the 2021 state championship game, facing powerhouse Warner Robins. They would lose 38–21, but the significance of that game would linger, especially for the team’s freshmen.
That 2021 freshman class took the loss personally. Quietly, they began building something in its aftermath.
Stephenson knew the move to 5A would test his players in ways they hadn’t experienced before. It would teach them to face adversity on and off the field. But even he wasn’t sure how the team would respond.
“It was difficult when you go from winning 18 region championships in a row to not winning it,” Stephenson said. “That's a culture shock to a lot of people.”
Turning losses into learning moments wasn’t easy. But over time, Stephenson saw how those lessons hardened his team.
That resilience was tested again last season. Calhoun stumbled out of the gate, starting 1–3, losing to larger schools Cartersville, Cambridge and Creekview. This came after a 6-4 record last season and missing the playoffs for the first time since 1999. Something felt off.
But after that slow start, something clicked. It helped that Calhoun was back in Class 3A. The team got hot, really hot.
The Yellow Jackets rattled off 11 straight wins to close out the season, capped by a 20–7 victory over Jefferson in the Class 3A state championship game. Calhoun also defeated No. 1 Peach County on the road in the quarterfinals.
Stephenson wasted no time crediting the 2024 senior class - not just for their play on the field, but for the leadership, consistency and maturity they brought through the program’s most challenging moments.
While Calhoun started underclassmen in many key positions, including quarterback Trace Hawkins (quarterback) and Isiah Nalls (running back), both freshmen. Despite having limited Friday night roles, the senior class remained focused on a shared goal: returning to the state championship game.
“We had a lot of seniors that understood their role,” Stephenson said. “They weren't necessarily Friday night player roles, but they had other roles of either being on scout team or being in charge of cleanup or making sure this was done or that was done.”
It could have gone the other way. Seniors who don’t see the field often grow frustrated. But Stephenson said this group embraced its identity and lifted the team from behind the scenes.
“Throughout losses, throughout wins, those guys led us behind the scenes,” he said.
In preparation for defending their crown, the Yellow Jackets had an outstanding ‘Separation Season,’ a phrase Stephenson uses in reference to January through spring practice.
His message to the players during that period is simple.
Can we fight complacency?
The Yellow Jackets will be returning five starters on the offensive side and look to be led in the trenches by offensive lineman Trey Perkins and Tripp Steele. They also return sophomores Hawkins and Nalls (running back). Defensively, they return six and look for the front-six to lead the way.
Calhoun’s 2025 Schedule
8/15 Creekview
8/29 at Westminster
9/05 at Cartersville
9/12 Cambridge
9/26 at Adairsville
10/3 Ridgeland
10/10 at Northwest Whitfield
10/17 Gilmer
10/24 at Heritage (Ringgold)
10/30 LaFayette