By Kevin Eckleberry

Sports Editor

The Callaway High Cavaliers are ready.

While most other wrestling teams are well into their seasons, the Cavaliers have yet to take to the mat.

That’ll change this morning when the Cavaliers, along with five other teams, participate in the Granger Duals at LaGrange High.

The other teams will be LaGrange, Bowdon, Harris County, Newnan and Smiths Station.

Each team will wrestle five matches, and the team with the best record takes the title.

“I know the guys are ready to wrestle,” LaGrange head coach J.J. Wahl said.

The full Callaway team wasn’t together until midway through this week because the football team’s season didn’t end until a week ago.

Wahl figures a tournament like today’s will be a good way to get the season going.

“It’s a great event,” he said. “The kids will get five matches, and it’ll be good to see where they stand. They’ll know what they need to get better at.”

Callaway has been participating in the tournament since the school opened in 1996.

“It’s always a lot of fun,” Wahl said. “The kids compete hard.”

Callaway is led by senior Brandon Hontz, who won an area title last year and seemed headed for a high finish at state before he was slowed with a shoulder injury.

Wahl said Hontz is “healthy and ready to go.”

Also back for Callaway are state qualifiers Zach McIntyre and Ryan Kiss.

The Grangers, meanwhile, are trying to win their tournament for the third straight year.

Weathers figures Smiths Station will be “the front-runner.”

“They’re really good. They beat us earlier this year. Of course we didn’t have our football guys, didn’t have our upper weights. We’re hoping that will help against them. It’d be nice to win it three years in a row.”

Weathers also said “Bowdon will be really good, and Newnan has improved a lot, although (Newnan) won’t have their football players.”

Newnan played a semifinal football game Friday night.

The tournament starts at 8:30 a.m., and Weathers figures it’ll be over in time for everybody to get home and watch the SEC championship game at 4 p.m.

In fact, he said some of the coaches asked him to start the tournament earlier because of the football game, and he accommodated them.

“I didn’t have any problem doing that,” Weathers said.