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Straughn (0-0) will return to Class 4A and begin the 2024 football season against Class 2A’s third-ranked team at Highland Home (0-0) on Friday, August 23, at 7 p.m.

Garrett Windham, a 2004 SHS alumnus, will make his debut as a head football coach after serving 16 years as an assistant coach. Justin Bragg also coaches his first game with HHS.

“Highland Home has had a ton of success the last few years, made some deep playoff runs, and has traditionally been a very competitive team,” Windham said. “They have some tremendous players and will be a great test for us to open the season. It’s the kind of team you want to play because they’ll have some dynamics we won’t see throughout the course of the season. They are a top-10 team in their classification, so it’ll be the type of game you want to play in from a competitive viewpoint and should be a great game day atmosphere as well.”

This game will be the 14th matchup between the two teams and their first meeting since 2001. The Tigers hold an all-time 9-4 series lead over the Flying Squadron. In the last meeting, Straughn hosted Highland Home and won a region matchup, 14-7.

Windham added that he hopes to see his team come out and execute and be efficient.

“In the first few weeks, you may not have your full playbook in, so it comes down to which team can execute at a higher rate. (We need to) play a clean game, obviously, and be disciplined to where we minimize any kind of procedural penalties. Those can kill or prolong a drive depending on what phase of the game you’re in. I’m excited to watch these guys play. They have worked extremely hard and are ready to get on the field,” he said.

Straughn finished the 2023 season with a 10-2 record and its fifth region championship in school history. Highland Home was also 10-2 a year ago and finished as the 2A Region 3 runner-up.

“I know we’ll be excited for game one, just as everyone in the state will be that first week. The big thing is to not let the emotions overcome you early on and get you out of focus of the main objectives for the night. Both teams will be fired up, so sometimes it is about weathering that initial emotional rush from your opponent and then settling in and executing the game plan,” Windham said.