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George MacIntyre on the changes at Brentwood Academy
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George MacIntyre on the changes at Brentwood Academy

BRENTWOOD ― Brentwood Academy quarterback George MacIntyre simply had to shake his head.

Torn between relief that his team found some offensive rhythm against Pearl-Cohn in Friday’s scrimmage and the thought of having to navigate the 2024 season without one of his closest friends, Kolbe Harmon, the Tennessee football commit simply shook his head.

“We’ve got to find a way to be productive and successful,” MacIntyre said after throwing a pair of touchdowns in a 31-14 win over Pearl-Cohn on Friday. “I think we took a step in that direction.”

When first-year coach Paul Wade took over the program last December, he envisioned having an offense that few in the state could match. Within a week, just two weeks into the season, that offense hit a snag.

Wade lost three-star wide receiver and cornerback Kolbe Harmon for the season due to an ACL injury. He lost point guard TT Hill just days ago after Hill announced his intentions to return to Oakland after spending last season with the Eagles. Brentwood Academy already lost wide receiver Shavar Young, who transferred back to Knoxville Webb in July after spending 2023 in Nashville.

That’s up 2,300 yards of offense and 23 touchdowns from last year.

Young, a Clemson commit, had 1,130 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. Harmon produced 682 receiving yards and nine touchdowns as a junior, while Hill had 568 receiving yards and two touchdowns and added 271 rushing yards with three TDs.

But Wade isn’t changing his offense. And MacIntyre, playing in his fourth different offense in four years, can’t afford to worry, even with the loss of Oakland transfer and 6-foot-7, 320-pound tackle Kaden Mowl, who injured his knee meniscus and is likely out at least a month.

“We’ve got some players who can really play,” MacIntyre said. “They’re going to have a chance to do something really special.”

Three players showed flashes of that in the scrimmage against the defending Class 4A state champions. Neo Clifton, an MTSU commit, caught four passes, one for a touchdown, and sophomore running back Larry Sanders III ran for nearly 70 yards. Sophomore wide receiver Kesean Bowman nearly connected with MacIntyre on a pair of deep passes.

“I actually talked to my mom about this year and having a bigger impact on offense,” Sanders said. “I’m only a sophomore and now that TT is gone, there’s some pressure on me to perform at my best. But my mom told me not to try to take over the world, to stay within myself. That calmed me down.”

Bowman sat out last year after transferring, but the 6-foot-10 wide receiver (who has offers from Tennessee, Michigan and Ole Miss, among others) was always behind Pearl-Cohn’s defensive secondary. MacIntyre never connected with Bowman, but the deep threat looks real. And the Eagles got offensive production from senior Luke Robison, who had a pair of impressive runs and caught a 45-yard touchdown.

While Wade didn’t seem overly concerned about skill-position players, he did talk about the need to see improvements on the offensive line.

“I wanted to see how our line is,” Wade said. “Our practice line hasn’t had what I would call a good day of practice yet. But I was pleased with what I saw (Friday). We have to protect George. George ran for his life last year. I don’t want him to do that this year.”

Reach sportswriter George Robinson at georgerobinsontheleafchronicle.com and on Platform X (formerly Twitter) @Cville_Sports.

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