Trainer: Donna Williams

#….Players…………………Age
14..Warner Basnett……..16
82..Alexander Fortin…….14
47..Andrew Gifford………13
48..Levi Hibbard………….14
9….Frederick Kittle………14
64..Jarrod Lane…………..14
17..Michael Minter……….17
20..Julian Saviano……….16
27..Edson Oeseburg……13
16..Mitchell Tietze……….16
7….Victor Vassil…………..13
73..Enrico Welborn………14
18..Brad White……………15
75..Jeffery Williams………13
71..John Williams…………15
Josh Salinas
Michael Fletcher

Assistants
Media Coordinator: Mary Lou White
Communications Director: Pat Lane
Chain Crew
Russ Williams
David Lane

2005 Bartow Generals Football Schedule

Aug 19: NCA Lions 49 Bartow 0 in Cartersville

Game Summary:
Bartow Leading Rusher: Michael Minter with 50 yards
Bartow Leading Defensive Players: John Williams – 7 tackles (named Player of the Game)
Warner Basnett – 7 tackles
Josh Salinas – 6 tackles and 1 sack

Aug 26: Bartow 0 West Georgia 54
Sept 2: East Atlanta 32 Bartow18
Sept 9: War Hill 67 Bartow 6
Sept 16: North Georgia 50 Bartow 0
Sept 24: NCC Crusaders 60 Bartow 6
Sept 30: Bartow 18 Georgia Force 69
Oct 7: West Georgia 88 Bartow 22

_____________________________________________________

Article from the Bartow Neighbor Sports Editor

“GFL ensures football dreams continue for area group”
Wednesday, August 10, 2005 1:21 PM EDT
By Ryan Peck

Last fall, while thousands of fans filed into area high school stadiums on Friday nights, Mike Gifford quietly sat and watched a different brand of football at Dellinger Park off Pine Grove Road. A Georgia Football League (GFL) team from nearby Woodstock, North Christian Athletics, played its home games at Dellinger, and Gifford had a particular interest in scouting them.

“Last summer was my son, Andrew’s, final year of recreational football,” Gifford said. “I knew about the Woodstock team and that they played at Dellinger. I decided to do some research.”

Andrew Gifford, like Mike’s three other children, is homeschooled. As such, he is ineligible to play football for any public school in the state of Georgia. For Mike and his wife, Shannon, enrolling 13-year-old Andrew in a public school for the sole purpose of continuing his football career was not an option.

“Parents homeschool their kids or enroll them in private schools for a reason,” Gifford said, “whether it be for religion or academics. As a result they may have to give up some things.”

But Gifford has ensured that football, for Andrew, is not one of those sacrifices. Thanks to gracious financial support from the community and the efforts of Gifford and assistant coaches Jeff Davis and Jim Vassil, the Bartow County Generals will compete this fall as the newest member of the GFL, now comprised of eight total teams. The league, which plays eight-man football as opposed to the traditional 11-man format, features high school level football for players ages 13 to 18, who are homeschooled or attend private schools that do not have football programs.

“We abide by GHSA [Georgia High School Association] rules and we play on a GHSA regulation field,” said coach Gifford, whose Generals also will play their home games at Dellinger this fall. “It’s real high school football, and we play on Friday nights.”

The Generals’ 2005 roster lists 15 names, 12 homeschool players and three private school students from Excel Christian Academy: Levi Hibbard, Edson Oeseburg and Victor Vassil. Gifford said the average age of the team is 15, but what the Generals may lack in years they more than make up for in work ethic.

“We stress fundamentals, and the kids are very well-conditioned,” Gifford said. “The one thing I think will impress people is how quick the kids learn. They are very anxious to play.”

So, for the second straight fall season, the sounds of boisterous cheers and loud popping of pads will resonate through the Bartow sky not only from the four high school campuses, but from neighboring Dellinger Park. Gifford said the GFL has given 15 area players a chance to continue playing a sport they love at a competitive level.

“The kids have been given an opportunity they otherwise would not have had,” said Gifford, who also thanked Greg Anderson and Houston Suggs of the Parks and Recreation Department for allowing the Generals to practice and play at Dellinger and Hamilton Crossing. “They understand the value of that.”

__________________________________________________

DIRECTIONS TO HAMILTON CROSSING PARK (31 Beavers Dr NW, Cartersville, GA 30120):

1. Take 75 north towards Chattanooga.
2. Take Exit 290 (towards Rome)
3. Turn left at Hwy-20 (Ga Hwy 20) & go approx 2.3 miles
4. Turn left at Hwy-411/Ga Hwy-20 & go approx 197 feet
5. Turn right at Ga Hwy 20/Ga Hwy 3 & go approx 3.7 miles
6. Slight left at Ga Hwy 3 & go approx 341 feet
7. Turn left at Boyd Morris Road & go approx .1 mile
8. Turn right at Cassville Rd/Ga 293 & go approx .9 mile
9. Turn right at Beavers Dr & go approx .1 mile
Hamilton Crossing Park (football field) on left

_________________________________________________________________________

View Larger Map