
Editor’s Note
This is the second of five stories unveiling the 2024 Bosshardt Realty All Area Football Teams. Click here to read about the Small School Offense, Big School Offense, Big School Defense and Coaches of Year.
Go to our 2024 All Area football landing page by clicking here.
Another football season, another state championship game appearance for the Hawthorne Hornets.
Hawthorne made its fifth consecutive appearance in the rural classification title game, and while the Hornets were unable to three-peat after a 21-14 loss to Madison County, Hawthorne still dominated the 2024 Bosshardt Realty All Area small school defensive football team.
The Hornets are joined by Chiefland with four representatives on the small school defense.
Hawthorne, who finished 10-2 with the state runner-up finish, was led defensively by senior linebacker Naziy Gent. Gent led the Hornets with 115 tackles and added a sack and an interception.
“Naziy is a ball player who has great field awareness and play awareness,” Hawthorne defensive coordinator Cedderick Daniels said. “He led the team in tackles and continuously made plays when the defense needed it.”
Gent is joined by fellow senior defensive lineman Jaheim Darby. Darby was second on the Hornets with 88 tackles and added five sacks.
“Jaheim was definitely one of the best interior linemen in the area this year,” Daniels said. “He had a heck of a year, especially the second half of the season. He was a quiet leader of the defense and led the front line with his competitiveness and his passion.”
Two Hawthorne players make up half of the secondary. Senior Zion Johnson had 63 tackles and two interceptions, while sophomore Nathan Jennings added 43 tackles along with a team-high three interceptions and nine passes defensed.
“Zion was the general for us on defense,” Daniels said. “He was our guy who played safety this season. Zion was a guy who moved from corner to safety and made great plays for us in both the passing game and the run game.
“Nate is a young guy with great ball skills. Nate led the team in interceptions for the second consecutive year. He has great instincts.”
Chiefland joins Hawthorne with four defensive players. The Indians were 9-1 in the regular season before being upset by rival Williston, 10-0, in the opening round of the rural playoffs.
Chiefland has two defensive linemen chosen in senior Reggie Adams and junior Wykel Howard.
Reggie Adams had 49 tackles and led Chiefland with 19 tackles for loss 11½ sacks.
“Reggie is a great football player,” said Chiefland coach Adam Gore, who stepped down after the season. “He plays with a high motor and is a great kid off the field. He won our War Indian award for our toughest player.”
Howard also had 49 tackles, including 14 for loss and chipped in six sacks.
“Wykel is a player that is just scratching the surface,” Gore added. “He’s long and lean for a big guy. Some of the best feet on the team. The sky’s the limit for him.”
Junior linebacker Jon Adams added 38 tackles, including 12 tackles for loss, and 4½ along with two passes defensed and two fumble recoveries.
“Jon is a great player,” Gore said. “He’s extremely athletic and the Division I offers are starting to come in. He’s a Louisville commit that will have a great senior year.”
The final Chiefland player is senior defensive back Osten Jones. Jones had 24 tackles and led the Indians with four interceptions and added four passes defensed.
“He’s a leader of the team on and off the field,” Gore said. “He does everything right and 100 percent. We need 11 on the field just like him.”
Williston, the team that knocked Chiefland out of the postseason, was only 6-4 during the regular season. But coach Robby Pruitt was able to get the Red Devils to the rural state semifinals before they were eliminated 28-7 by Hawthorne.
The Red Devils have two players named to the All Area small school defensive squad in senior defensive lineman Timothy Taylor and junior defensive back Ezekiel Taylor.
Timothy Taylor led Williston with 80 tackles including 10 tackles for loss and also had four sacks and an interception.
“Tim was one of the leaders of our football team,” Pruitt said. “He works extremely hard every day and those efforts translated into a great senior year for Tim.”
Ezekiel Taylor had 58 tackles along with two interceptions and three passes defensed.
“Coming off a bad knee injury, Zeke was a rock in the secondary for us,” Pruitt said. “He got better and better as the season progressed.”
Union County had another successful season, going 10-2 for coach Andrew Thomas and advancing to the Rural classification state semifinals once again. The Tigers season came to an end with a loss at eventual state champion Madison County.
Union County is represented on the small school defense by senior linebacker Trenton Klein. Klein led the Tigers with 78 tackles, 23½ for loss, and 7½ sacks and added six hurries and one interception.
The final member of the small school defense is Fort White senior linebacker Lecosta Byrd. Byrd had 99 tackles along with 10 tackles for loss and four sacks, which all led the Indians in 2024. Fort White advanced to the second round of the rural playoffs where they were ousted by Williston, 28-19.
Small School Defense (Rural-1A)
DL –Timothy Taylor, Williston (Jr.)
DL – Jaheim Darby, Hawthorne (Sr.)
DL – Reggie Adams, Chiefland (Sr.)
DL – Wykel Howard, Chiefland (Jr.)
LB – Jon Adams, Chiefland (Jr.)
LB – Lecosta Byrd, Fort White (Sr.)
LB – Naziy Gent, Hawthorne (Sr.)
LB – Trenton Klein, Union County (Sr.)
Secondary – Nathan Jennings, Hawthorne (So.)
Secondary – Zion Johnson, Hawthorne (Sr.)
Secondary – Osten Jones, Chiefland (Sr.)
Secondary – Ezekiel Taylor, Williston (Jr.)
Honorable mentions
Bell – Cole Rarey (LB, Sr.), Caelum Surrency (DB, Sr.), Alijah Klingerman (DB, Sr.), Elijah Vega (DL, Sr.), Jorge Gonzalez (LB, Sr.), Daniel Byers (DL, Jr.), Fran Kealey (LB, So.), RJ Leffler (DB, So.)
Branford – Cole Peyton (DL, Sr.), Jaxon Jones (LB, Sr.), Thomas Raulerson (DL, Sr.), Dawson Cannon (LB, Jr.), Tripp Schultz (DB, Jr.), Wyatt Derringer (DL, Jr.), Vernon Richards (LB, So.)
Chiefland – Michael Goodale (DL, Sr.), Trent Bright (LB, Sr.), James Hudson (LB, Sr.), Jamarion White (DB, Sr.), Jolan Doty (DB, Jr.)
Dixie County (Cross City) – Mister Williams (DL, Sr.), Jaheim Taylor (LB, Sr.), Drew Pleasant (DB, Sr.), Stewart Bray (LB, Jr.), Lukis Medlin (DL, Jr.), Keydran Teague (DB, So.)
Fort White – David Harps (LB, Sr.), Michael Peterson Jr. (DB, Sr.), Darion Brinson (LB, Jr.), Jayden Jackson (DB, Jr.), Desean Lally (DB, Jr.), Gavin Peterson (DB, Fr.)
Hawthorne – Leland Johnson (LB, Sr.), Ethan Thomas (DL, Sr.), Frandon St Fleur (DB, Sr.), Kyler Ingram (DL, Jr.), Kamari Debose (DB, Jr.)
Oak Hall – Aidan Jerkins (LB, Sr.), Tyler Peera (DB, So.)
St. Francis Catholic Academy – Avi Steiner (DL, Sr.), Dylan Koroly (DL, Sr.)
Trenton – Trent Patterson (DL, Jr.), Zaiden Bon (DL, So.), Gabe Romero (LB, Fr.)
Union County (Lake Butler) – Gavin Jenkins (DB, Sr.), Jesse Chaikin (DB, Sr.), Ashton Newsom (LB, Sr.), Garret Jackson (DL, Sr.), Connor Bresee (DL, Sr.), Ibn Williams (DB, Sr.), Jaden McCray (DL, So.), Bryan Tyson (LB, So.)
Williston – Trey Daniels (DL, Sr.), Jymir Williams (LB, Jr.), Danny Burchett (LB, Jr.), Noah Robinson (DL, So.), Maverick Jones (DB, Fr.)
GO HORNETS!