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The start of the 2024 football season is still months away, but excitement is building at Callaway and LaGrange High this week as the two teams were announced as participants in the 33rd Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic.

“This is going to be huge not just for our football team, but for our band, our cheerleaders and our student body,” Callaway coach Pete Wiggins said. “It’s going to be televised and I’m really excited about this opportunity for our school.”

This is a sentiment echoed by LaGrange head coach Matt Napier, who spent over a decade as offensive coordinator at Callaway under Wiggins.

“To play the first high school game in the state of Georgia this year is a big deal not just for our football team, but for our school, our fans, our cheerleaders, our band, it really is a great opportunity for all of us,” Napier said. “It’s an honor to be thought of to take part in this.”

LaGrange will be kicking its season off with a bang. The team is set to open the Georgia high school football slate when they travel to Atlanta to take on Douglass-Atlanta at 4:30 p.m. on Wed. Aug. 14. At Kell High School

“They have a five-star player that is an Ohio State commit and they have done a really good jpb developing a program,” Napier said. “We know they are a really good team and we will have our hands full. Anytime you play in a tournament like this you are going to be facing really good competition.”

This will be the first meeting between the two programs and the first appearance in the classic for each program.

All eyes will be on the Grangers that Wednesday and fortunately for them preparation will not be too abnormal for them as the scrimmage the week prior against Harris County is on a Thursday.

“It will throw us off our schedule a little bit, but I immediately thought this would be a great opportunity to put the spotlight on our community and our kids,” Napier said.

Callaway has to wait until Friday to kick off its season, but the Cavaliers are in for a doozy in Rome against AAAAA Cass High School.

“They have a great football team that was in the state quarterfinals as a 5A school,” Wiggins said, “They have great players and it is going to be a good game. It really is a big opportunity for our players on a big stage.”