The coaching staff at Chestatee High would be the last ones around to try and strip the emotional aspect out of the game. They’re well aware of the fact that playing with passion can make the job of the opposition that much more difficult in clutch situations.

For the War Eagles, it seems to be taking hold.

The passion for the game at Chestatee can be traced back to the practice field. War Eagles defensive coordinator Matt Mays has a voice that can drown out the rest, paired with a hop in his step as he barks out instructions to his players. In turn, that zest for playing carries over to the field for Chestatee (1-1), which won its first game of the season last Friday against Johnson at War Eagles Stadium.

"This team has bought into being unconditional in the way it plays the game," Mays said. "They’ve got a great attitude, which is a huge thing."

Chestatee displayed that passion early last Friday against the Knights with a stellar defensive stand.

With the game scoreless, the War Eagles defense was thrown into a tough situation after a turnover and the Knights looking at first-and-goal at the 3-yard line. Instead of pointing fingers for being put in such an undesirable situation, the Chestatee defense wore it like a badge of honor to show how tough they were.

After two failed runs by Johnson and a broken-up play-action pass attempt, the Knights were forced to settle for a field goal.

"This year, we have a defense that is excited to have that kind of opportunity," Mays said. "We really saw some emotional leaders start to emerge."

Those emotional leaders include senior Keaton Summerlin who had two sacks and an interception in last week’s win, Robby Poole who had 16 tackles from his linebacker position, and defensive ends Ben Johnson and Chandler Farrow who had a combined 26 tackles against the Knights.

Chestatee head coach Stan Luttrell says that cohesiveness all stems from his team’s motto: many, but one.

"In terms of our defense, they had their backs against the wall and just continued to play hard-nosed defense," Luttrell said. "They play with the mentality that the other team isn’t in the end zone yet."

"We play with the attitude that whoever gives the most effort is going to win," Poole said. "We have a great team bond and are like brothers."

There was nothing easy about the way the schedule set up for the War Eagles early in the season. Two of the first three games for the War Eagles were against teams ranked in the top five in the preseason in Gainesville and Flowery Branch.

The Falcons bring a matching 1-1 record to War Eagles Stadium on Friday, as well as some of the most prolific offensive weapons in the area with quarterback Connor Shaw, running back Imani Cross and a slew of talented wide receivers.

"We know that Flowery Branch has good athletes," Summerlin said. "But we feel like we have pretty good athletes too."

After beating Johnson, the challenge for Luttrell is to see if the War Eagles can put together two good defensive efforts back-to-back.

"Connor is a great decision maker, great athlete, and athletic enough to avoid the pressure," Luttrell said. "And they have a good running back too.

"This is going to be another tough night in Region 7-AAA."

Chestatee’s defense makes it a point to not let the other team score a touchdown. No matter the situation, they try to clamp down and force the opposition into a field goal.

"Everything we do is as a team," senior defensive back Lamar Brooks said. "There’s no I or me on this team."