Sports are the heart of Pierce County. That's what those in the community told First Coast News. The community's heart is filled with excitement as the Bears are coming off a big state championship.
The excitement for Bears football starts with shrines like the one at Jerry J's in Blackshear, and it extends all the way to the football field with a ton of support from the community.
Denise Bennett has three sons who play for the Bears.
"In a small town, what you do is go to high school sports," Denise Bennett said.
"We'll have a lot of customers come in here on Friday nights, and they'll be all decked out in their blue and white," Cheyann New said. "It's awesome how you see people reacting."
Jerry J's Blackshear night manager Cheyann New feels it's awesome to see the support as a Pierce County High School grad herself.
"Our community is really focused on football and sports in general," New said. "I'm overwhelmed with the amount of support everyone gives the football team."
"It's always exciting starting a new year," Luke Bennett said.
Senior Luke Bennett has talent on both sides of the ball. He plays both wide receiver and cornerback.
"It's a little bit more exciting this year because we just came back from a state championship win for the first time ever in school history," Luke Bennett said. "It was a really big deal for the community and for the school. It's unreal. We travel. Our fans travel. There's no fans like ours."
"They're just working hard, and you just want all their dreams to come true," Denise Bennett said.
Denise Bennett is Luke's mom. She said a lot of time, energy, and sacrifice goes into high school football for both players and their families.
"I've grown up with it. I'm a football mom. I think this community really surrounds itself at the games. Many, many people without a player are at the games," Denise Bennett said.
"I kind of hope it struck a fire under them gave them some motivation to keep that state championship title going," New said.
The community in this small town feels lots of hope and excitement for what the season holds.
The Bears have plans in the works to defend their state championship title.
“It's just another year. It's just another time to get better than we were before. The state championship doesn't matter this year. That was last year. It's a new year. We've got new goals, and we've got to accomplish those goals," Luke Bennett said.
Head football coach Ryan Herring said at this point in the season, the goals are to play hard and look like a well-oiled machine.
"We've got to block and tackle for sure," Herring said. "We've got to get the pieces of the puzzle, know what they are, and then put them together. We've got some guys that are out now and will be back. We've got some guys that are battling with COVID protocols, so we've just got to get everybody together."
About half a dozen players from the championship team on each side of the ball are returning, and some of them play both ways. Coach Herring said about 12 to 15 players are out now on COVID protocols.