Georgia’s Corky Kell Classic re-branded

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Since the 1994 death of Atlanta-area football coach Corky Kell, Dave Hunter has been the driving force behind the Corky Kell Classic. Now, Hunter is now sharing the marquee with his late friend.

On Tuesday, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of the Atlanta Falcons, the kickoff classic, a staple of the Atlanta high school football scene since the early 90’s, added Hunter’s name to the game. From here on out, the 11-game event will be known as the Corky Kell Dave Hunter Classic.

Hunter, who led Brookwood to a state championship in 1996, has been serving as the event executive director since retiring coaching. During Tuesday’s news conference announcing the new name, Hunter told the crowd that he’s been driven to grow the event since having a conversation with Coach Kell before his death in 1994.

The Corky Kell Classic began in 1992 at the Georgia Dome with just two games. Since then, the event has grown to 11-games at four different venues, including Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Related: 2022 Corky Kell recap

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About the Author

Jeff Fisher
Jeff is an award-winning journalist and expert in the field of high school sports, underscored with his appearance on CNBC in 2010 to talk about the big business of high school football in America.Jeff turned to his passion for high school football into an entrepreneurial venture called High School Football America, a digital media company focused on producing original high school sports content for radio, television and the internet.Jeff is co-founder and editor-in-chief of High School Football America, a partner with NFL Play Football.