If the Georgia Military Prep Bulldogs boys soccer program was not already a dynasty, their fourth state title ensures that they are now undeniably a dynasty.
Indeed, the Bulldogs captured their fourth state championship since 2019 last Friday, defeating the Atkinson County Rebels 3-1 in the GHSA Class A Division B state championship game in Thomaston.
The four state titles are tied for the most in Georgia since 2019. The Bulldogs technically have won four-outof- six state titles, as there was no state tournament in 2020.
Last Friday's championship game was more of a coronation. GMC busted out to a 3-0 lead before halftime and, though they went scoreless in the second half, they held the Rebels to just one goal and earned their fourth state championship in the last seven seasons. Seniors Tommy Carty and Grayson Robbins both scored goals and junior James Portwood scored as well en route to the 3-1 win.
GMC's path to a dynasty wasn't a smooth one, and the program comes from humble beginnings. There was no such thing as a GMC Prep soccer program until 2001. It all started when Bob Jaworski, a local restaurateur, made his pitch to then-President Peter Boylan and administrators. Jaworski got the green light, and the program was born.
Back then, practices were held at the old Bonner Park baseball field, which later became a dog park. Some home games were held at Walter B. Williams Jr. Park, while others were played at Davenport Field, which is the school's football stadium. Fielding a roster was difficult, and the first few GMC Prep soccer teams were c0-ed, out of necessity.
The program's first head coach was an old basketball coach – Bill Hodges – who worked at GMC during the latter stages of his career. Fun fact, Hodges was the head coach of Indiana State's 1979 basketball team, the one that featured Larry Bird and made it to the national championship game, which remains the most-watched college basketball game in history.
However, the program gradually improved, although it wasn't a straight line, and eventually soccer at GMC no longer was an afterthought. All the while, Jaworski served as a volunteer assistant coach, a role he held for the first 10 years of the program's existence. Jaworski stepped down as community assistant coach in 2011, and his son, Bobby, stepped in. Bobby Jaworski was a member of those original teams and someone with a strong desire to see soccer grow in Milledgeville. At some point, the younger Jaworski realized that his players needed more seasoning, more time on the pitch.
Club soccer was encouraged, and more energy and resources were poured into the Milledgeville-based Old Capitol Soccer League club teams. In turn, more GMC players began playing club soccer in the fall and honing their skills. More importantly, however, GMC had a run of really good players. The 2019 team was a runaway train, outscoring opponents by a combined 107-26 en route to the school's first state championship.
The Bulldogs (19-3) ran roughshod through the 2026 playoffs, beginning with a shutout 4-0 victory over Towns County followed by a 4-1 win over Mount Zion. The Bulldogs then hosted the Brooks County Spartans at the GCSU soccer fields and had their most dominant performance of the postseason in a 6-1 win to advance to the state championship game.
After the title game, Coach Dustin Jennette spoke about what this championship season means to him and the program.
“Every year in late October or November, we have a team meeting where we go over preseason workouts, tryouts, schedule, etcetera,” Jennette said. “This season our message was clear ‘win the last game.’ That became the message all the way through Friday. We started preseason workouts the first week of November and they went through until we could start kicking a ball. We consistently had 20 guys attend. Some days, the only ones missing were playing another sport. I knew then we had the commitment from the team. All season we were building for the playoffs. When making the schedule, we purposely spread in really tough games. We played Islands, who won the AAA state championship in dominating fashion. We played Tallulah Falls (17-1), who are currently in the GIAA AAAA semifinals. We played Union Grove and Apalachee, two schools much bigger than ours. We played Pike County, who were a penalty kick away from playing for the AA title, strategically right before the playoffs. We got through most of those games with a win, but that wasn’t why we scheduled them. It was to find out who we were and what we needed to work on. I think that’s why we went through the playoffs like we did.”
Jennette added that he is glad the seniors, some of whom he has known since they were nine and ten years old, went out as state champions.
“I got to follow them (seniors) around the state watching them win the presidents cup, one of the two most prestigious tournaments in the state,” Jennette told the Baldwin Bulletin. “A lot of these seniors get to go out as club and high school state champions. That’s pretty cool if you ask me. They deserve all of this, when people ask how we do this around here, it’s not me or coach Brent, it’s the work these boys put in for years and the coaches that help develop and shape them. Soccer in Milledgeville is in a great place and all the schools will be benefiting soon.”