GREENSBORO, Ga. — The Social Circle Redskins took care of business on Friday with a 26-14 road win over Lake Oconee Academy in a preseason scrimmage.

One week shy of the start of the 2025 season, Social Circle put a lot on display as they look to make it back to the top of Region 4A-Division I.

Many new pieces continued to settle into their roles as other familiar faces for the Redskins continued to make an impact — and it began on the first play of the game.

Hamilton shows playmaking skillset and ability to bounce back

From the very start of Friday’s action, senior Elliot Hamilton picked up right where he left off from last year.

Social Circle received the opening kickoff and it landed in the hands of Hamilton, who ran between the hashes before going off the races.

Hamilton would have put Social Circle ahead if it was not for a touchdown-saving tackle to stop the senior on the Titans’ eight-yard line.

However, it did not take long for the Redskins to cross the goal line.

Just a few plays later, junior Kayden Fears scored on a one-yard rush to put Social Circle ahead 7-0 on the first drive.

After a Titans’ touchdown on the next drive from quarterback Jake McDonald, Hamilton found himself in another spot to make the play.

Hamilton took another kickoff and looked to have an opening, but a Lake Oconee defender closed in and knocked the ball out for a turnover from the senior that set the Titans’ offense up around midfield.

Just a few plays later, Hamilton got it right back.

McDonald dropped back and looked to make a throw to his right, but Hamilton jumped the route for the interception that gave the ball back to the Redskins in Lake Oconee territory.

For head coach Rob Patton, Hmailton’s ability to bounce back after a mistake is just a part of who is.

“He is a winner,” Patton said. “He is a winner. He made a mistake, he knew it and he owned it. He went back out there and got the ballback for us. But he is the one of those guys that will have to play both ways but he is a good one to have doing it.”

Hamilton continued to make an impact for the Redskins on Friday on all sides of the ball as he came away with multiple receptions on offense, too.

Other points of emphasis from Friday

Friday’s game saw Social Circle’s new quarterback Remi Farmer get action for three quarters of play as he is set to take over after former quarterback Luke Cross graduated.

Farmer was efficient with the ball, but it was his ability with his legs that caught the eye of Patton.

“We were excited to see him running the football,” Patton said. “Thats the thing, he is going to be a big strength when we are able to cut him loose. He has done a great job and he has been a leader for us.”

Another area of the offense that has instilled confidence in the staff is the team’s crop of running backs.

Whether it is Fears, junior Christian Paggett, senior King Box or freshman Quentavious Smith, Patton discussed how the running back room has perhaps the most depth it's had since he became the Redskins’ head coach.

“The good thing is that we finally have competition there,” Patton said. “It's not a one man show. One guy makes a play and the next guy steps up. I am really proud of our young guys coming in at the end. Q Smith, he is a freshman and he was making all those plays at the end of the football game. We got five backs that can rally tote the mail.”

After his score on the opening drive, Fears went on to score again in the third quarter before the team moved to many of its JV and underclassmen players.

There, Smith took over as he took a carry 30-plus yards through the Titans’ defense for a decisive touchdown late in the game.

The other touchdown for Social Circle came in the fourth quarter as well as sophomore quarterback Drake Reynolds who took the ball himself and ran it in for the score.

For the Titans, offense proved to be a premium as Social Circle’s starting defensive front played stout throughout.

Lake Oconee spent most of the night under center with option plays and tosses to the outside, and it was the unit’s ability to adapt to an unfamiliar scheme that impressed Patton.

“They told us they were running the same offense as last year which was the shotgun spread, so we haven't done a single thing of under center and option-type stuff like they were doing,” Patton said. “So it was really proud to see the way our guys adjusted on the fly and played well. Because that is a tough kind of offense to defend with the dive, with the midline and the quarterback and the pitch so our guys handled it very well.”

If it was not for a roughing the passer penalty on Social Circle during Lake Oconee’s first offensive drive, junior AJ Bailey would have come away with perhaps the play of the game as he leaped over the receiver for an interception.

In the third quarter, a mistake from the Social Circle offense led to the Titans’ second and last touchdown of the game.

A pass from Farmer went through the hands of Bailey and into the hands of a Lake Oconee defensive back who took the ball 20 yards in for a pick six.

From there, it was all Redskins as the team closed out the win ahead of week one.

Albeit the mistakes, Patton was happy with how the team came out on both sides of the ball.

“They were very excited,” Patton said. “Just proud of the way we played. [There were] mistakes, a lot of mistakes on both sides — personal fouls, giving up a turnover right there that we should have had, jumping offside in short-yardage situations. Things that we need to learn from and get better from moving forward. But the guys were pumped. We made a lot of mistakes but we were physical. That was the most important thing — to come out and be physical.”

With the preseason now behind them, the Redskins will now prepare for a week one game at home as they take on the Oglethorpe County Patriots on Friday, August 15 at 7:30 p.m. Last year, the Redskins defeated the Patriots in a 48-41 shootout on the road.