IT'S KICKOFF TIME

By BONNIE SAYLES and FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

Tonight is the kickoff of the regular prep football season for both the Tift County High Blue Devils and the Tiftarea Academy Panthers. The Blue Devils host Coffee High at Brodie Field, and the Panthers travel to Statesboro to face Bulloch Academy.

On Thursday, the head coaches of Tift County High and Tiftarea Academy shared their plans for the season at a tailgate luncheon of the Tifton-Tift County Chamber of Commerce. 

Both coaches said they have young teams this year. Blue Devils Coach Noel Dean said Tift County is starting only five seniors on offense and defense.

Coming to Tift County High after nearly 30 years coaching in Michigan has reaffirmed for Coach Dean that relationships matter the most: “That’s the critical piece that we have to have at Tift County High and Tift County Schools, period.”

Building relationships, Dean said he has visited each of the county’s eight elementary schools about 10 times and has attended 30 functions at the two middle schools. 

“It’s all about kid engagement. I believe that when kids know you care about them and you love them, they’ll play harder and do the right thing,” Dean said. “We’re here to make the people of Tift County proud with the way we act and do the right thing.”

Dean added: “Why I show up every day is there is some kid wanting me to change the course of their day. Those things matter more than talking about X’s and O’s.

“What a great sport; it teaches young men a selfless attitude.”

Tiftarea Coach Erik Soliday struck a similar theme.



“We never talk about winning and losing; all we ever talk about is getting better every day. Winning and losing takes care of itself, Soliday said. “We have a really young team, but that’s OK. Young kids have a way of getting better every week.”

Football is the only game where practice is more important than the game, Soliday said. “You practice way more than you play football. Without that whole week of preparation, you can’t play the game.” 

Soliday said that people in the stands don’t see all the things that teams go through to be prepared. “It’s tough to win,” he said. “One hundred and 20 teams started college football, and only one won. You have to do things different to win. You have to prepare. You can’t do the same things everybody else does.”

He said the Panthers are coming off a fourth straight trip to the state semi-finals, and they hope to go all the way this year. “That’s a little bit of motivation for this young team because nobody wants to be the team that drops the ball.” 

SOCIAL MEDIA THREAT IN TIFT SCHOOLS WAS 'HOAX,'

TIFTON POLICE SAY

By FRANK SAYLES JR.

Tifton Grapevine

A social media threat about an impending school shooting in Tift County has been determined to be an out-of-state hoax, Tifton Police said Wednesday.

Police said a threat on Snapchat was posted and shared on social media throughout the Tift County School District late Tuesday. After an investigation, police said the threat was "not real and originated in another state and passed throughout South Georgia.

"We have also learned that several other communities that received word of this social media threat have investigated it and found it to be a hoax. We take all threats to our school system seriously and investigate them to the fullest," Tifton Police said.

After hearing about the threat, Tifton Police and Tift County School System security officers worked together to track it and put a plan in place to protect students. Out of caution, Tifton Police, along with other local and state law enforcement agencies, increased patrols and security at all Tift County schools on Wednesday.

"Tifton Police investigators worked throughout the day, interviewing multiple people and exhausting all leads to making sure there was no threat to our schools," police said in a written statement.

"Investigators found no evidence that showed any connection to any student in our school system nor any connection that the threat was made toward any of our schools in this district."

Tifton police thanked the Georgia Department of Homeland Security and other local and state agencies for their assistance in the investigation.

TOTAL COVID-19 CASES RISE IN TIFT BY 306 WITH

ANOTHER DEATH, DPH SAYS

Tift County's total COVID-19 cases have risen by 306 in the past two weeks, along with one additional death, according to the state Department of Public Health (DPH).

That number includes rapid tests and confirmed PCR tests. It represents only those results reported to the health department and do not include at-home testing.

Confirmed PCR tests during the past two-week period totaled 67. There was also one additional related death reported in Tift County in the past week.

Tift County’s total positive cases represent 749 cases per 100,000 population, the measure used across the country to compare case rates among communities and states. Tift's testing positivity rate for the two-week period was 26.8%, the DPH said.

Tift has seen a total of 6,619 confirmed cases with 169 confirmed deaths, the DPH said.

The state has recorded a total of 2,182,643 confirmed cases and 32,735 related deaths, the DPH said. There were 26,936 more total cases reported in the past week and 125 additional deaths statewide. There also were 917 COVID-related hospitalizations in Georgia in the past week, the DPH reported.

The state reports COVID-19 data once a week.

COOK HIGH GRAD GETS SOUTHWELL HEALTH SCHOLARSHIP

Southwell healthcare system recently awarded a scholarship to Cook County High graduate Caroline McDaniel.

McDaniel was this year’s recipient of Southwell’s $500 scholarship for Future Health Professionals. She completed the Allied Healthcare Pathway and went to class while in high school to become a certified phlebotomist. 

She was an honor graduate who was nominated as Best Business Student and recognized for having the highest average in chemistry her sophomore year. McDaniel served as president of the Cook High School chapter of HOSA, future healthcare professionals. She is attending Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College to study nursing. Her goal is to return to Adel and give back to her community.

GREAT GEORGIA POLLINATOR CENSUS SET FOR FRIDAY, SATURDAY

The Fourth Annual Great Georgia Pollinator Census is today (Friday) and Saturday. The citizen science project, created by the University of Georgia, is designed to count  bees, flies, butterflies, ants, and other pollinators on plants.

People may join the count in their own backyards by spending 15 minutes observing single plants and tallying the pollinators that visit. If it rains, the counting may be done on Sunday, Aug. 21, and Monday, Aug. 22.

A website provides information, training materials, a printable 2022 Counting Sheet, and the 2022 Insect Counting & Identification Guide to help people know what they are looking for. 

YOUR GUIDE TO ACTIVITIES THIS WEEKEND IN THE TIFTAREA

Today, Sunday, Aug. 21, is National Senior Citizens Day. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed the day to raise awareness about issues that affect senior citizens and their quality of life. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, approximately 78 million people aged 65 and older will reside in the U.S. by 2035, surpassing the under age 18 population for the first time in the nation’s history.

FRIDAY, AUG. 19

• Pollinator Census at Gaskins Forest Education Center, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., 3359 Moore Sawmill Road, Alapaha
• Sylvester Steak and Swine Fest, 5 p.m., Train Depot, Downtown Sylvester
• Guided Nature Trail Tour, 6 p.m., Reed Bingham State Park, Adel
• Tiftarea Academy Panthers varsity football @ Bulloch Academy Gators, 7 p.m., Statesboro
• Tift County High Blue Devils football vs. Coffee High School Trojans, 7:30 p.m., Brodie Field, Tifton

SATURDAY, AUG. 20

• Sylvester Steak and Swine Fest, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Train Depot, Downtown Sylvester
• Pollinator Census at Gaskins Forest Education Center, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., 3359 Moore Sawmill Road, Alapaha
• Tiftarea Junior Gardener's Club, 2 p.m., Tifton-Tift County Public Library, Tifton
• Little River Paddle Tour, 6 p.m., Reed Bingham State Park, Adel

ADVERTISE YOUR

YARD SALE HERE

TO ADVERTISE YOUR YARD SALE,

CONTACT US at 

yardsales@tiftongrapevine.com 

or 478-227-7126

Fees are $1 per word, paid in advance

“Raisin,” a happy pooch, is among the pets available for adoption at the Tift County Animal Shelter on Highway 125 South between 1-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. For additional information, call 229-382-PETS (7387).