Marietta, Kell show off new quarterbacks at 7-on-7

ROSWELL — Marietta and Kell both had quarterback questions coming off of last season, and coming off the Corky Kell 7-on-7 Invitational, both appear to have answered them with transfers.

For Marietta, senior Daniel Gray took all of the reps, and for Kell, it was junior Bryce Clavon, a multi-sport athlete, who took the snaps at quarterback for the Longhorns.

Gray transferred from Mount Paran Christian after last season, having led the Eagles to a 6-5 record and a second place region finish. In Mount Paran’s run-heavy attack, Gray completed 39 of 103 passes for 560 yards with six touchdowns and six interceptions.

Clavon transferred to Kell from Dutchtown after starting at quarterback for the Bulldogs last season. Clavon is a dual-threat quarterback, and will likely be a big threat on the ground for the Longhorns.

Gray is hoping to replace quarterback Tyler Hughes, now at William & Mary, as the quarterback for the Blue Devils. Hughes passed for 42 touchdowns and rushed for six in 2021 as the leader of the Marietta offense.

Gray looked sharp in Marietta’s opening tournament game against John’s Creek, throwing four touchdowns on the way to a 35-10 win.

Clavon missed some throws early in Kell’s first tournament matchup with North Atlanta, but bounced back after two empty possessions with two touchdown passes to lead the Longhorns to a 25-9 victory.

The two teams then faced off in the next round, with Marietta taking a close 21-13 victory behind three touchdowns from Gray. Clavon threw two touchdowns as well, but struggled at times with making decisions prior to the four-second count, taking multiple sacks.

Kell coach Bobby May said that although Clavon wasn’t perfect on the day, there were lots of positives to take away from his overall performance.

“He was a little bit rusty,” May said. “He’s a baseball player so he hasn’t been with us that much, but he’s a great talent and a great kid, and once he got going he made a lot of good throws.”

Marietta was knocked out in its following game in the round of eight against Lambert, a tight 16-13 loss that ended on an interception thrown by Gray.

In spite of the tough ending to Gray’s day, Marietta coach Richard Morgan said that there was plenty of good from his quarterback as well.

“He made a lot of good throws, got better at decision making, and when we made mistakes, we came back and corrected them,” Morgan said. “So we’re learning and growing, and that’s always a good sign.”