When Mario Mincey took the Bryan County girls basketball coaching job 18 years ago his goal was to rebuild a once proud program.

From that humble beginning Mincey now stands only three wins away No. 300 which he could hit before Thanksgiving. The Redskins, who played a scrimmage game at Statesboro on Wednesday night, played their first four games on the road:  Nov. 16 against Greenbrier in the Tip-Off Classic at Evans, followed by a game at Liberty County three days later and on Nov. 23 they went to South Effingham County.

Their home opener is Dec. 6 when they take on Portal.

“I’m not sure about the number of losses,” Mincey said. “I’m still working on totally those up but when I came here from Jenkins County (where he was an assistant in several different sports) I didn’t envision being here 18 years,” Mincey said. “I just came here to rebuild a program.”

What Mincey has done at Bryan County from humble beginnings can serve as a model for others and this season, despite going into an expanded region due to reclassification, will more than likely be a repeat of what Redskins fans have come to expect.

Bryan County has won 20 or more games in seven of the last eight seasons, going 172-49 over that span, including a 9-12 mark in the 2021 COVID season. Actually, that season was going to be one of Mincey’s better teams but the Board of Education had a rule that if an athlete was not attending in-person classes they would not be eligible to play. Four Redskins starters chose to take online classes thus they could not play.

Mincey never complained. He just went about his business. He played a lot of young players, mostly freshmen, and the past three years those freshmen who took their lumps proceeded to a 70-16 including a 26-4 mark last year that was highlighted by a region championship and a trip to the Sweet 16 in the state playoffs. The 26 wins tied the school record for most in a season set by the 2019 team which was 26-3.

The Redskins lost only leading scorer Kayley Wedlow and Tashiya Burlingame, so hopes are high although Region 3A-DII is expected to be a strong challenge with Metter, Portal and Screven County all having veteran teams.

Heading the Bryan County returnees is junior point guard Jasmine Mikell who has started 58 games and runs Mincey’s system to near perfection. She has shown she’s a more than capable scorer who is also an excellent distributor of the ball while playing outstanding defense.

Mikell will be joined in the starting lineup by junior Liz Harvey, senior Soniya Whitaker, senior Nevaeh Lovett and 5-foot-9 senior Katelyn King who was the Redskins’ most improved player last year and over the last third of the season was a key reserve.

A notable name missing from that starting lineup is 5-8 senior Ashanti Brown who is on the verge of becoming Bryan County’s first 1,000-point, 1000-rebound player. Brown got into Mincey's doghouse and while she will play, Mincey said, her playing time will be determined by her actions on and off the court.

The varsity roster shows five seniors, eight juniors, one sophomore and two freshmen. One of the freshmen is his oldest daughter, Layla, who is a 5-9 forward.

As is his custom Mincey will not hesitate to put any of them on the floor in any given situation.

“It’s pretty much the same bunch of kids as we had last year,” Mincey said. “The seniors and juniors have played together for a while and they know the system. The freshmen know what they’re getting into.”

The Redskins will have more size than usual as nine of the 16 players on the roster are listed at 5-7 or taller with junior Caelyn Bell topping out at 5-10.

Another key reserve who could easily be a starter is 5-8 junior Briana Crawford who, like King, was a force off the bench down the stretch last season. Crawford is an excellent athlete who excels in track and has a physical presence.

The roster with number in parenthesis:  (1) Jasmine Mikell; (2) Azaiah Brewton, (3) Briana Crawford, (5) Shaniya Joyner, (10) Laney Sehr, (12) Nevaeh Lovett, (13) Ashanti Brown, (15) Mckinnley Walker, (21) Elizabeth Harvey, (22) Erianna Morgan; (23) Layla Mincey, (24) Soniya Whitaker, (25) Sariah Whitaker, (32) Katelyn King, (33) Caelyn Bell, (35) Anna Hilla.