Dynamite Dozen: Americus-Sumter’s Kierston Harvey a multi-faceted leader

AMERICUS — Kierston Harvey has juggled a lot of new things this year.

The Americus-Sumter quarterback picked up a new offense that requires a lot of thinking on his feet. He has also picked up a lot of responsibility on the leadership front. The senior has also earned the distinction of being a 2018 Albany Herald Dynamite Dozen selection.

One of the new things Harvey has enjoyed about playing for a new head coach is something that doesn’t take place between the sidelines.

Like many high school football programs, Americus-Sumter takes part in community service projects throughout the year. Larry Harold, who became the head coach in the spring, made those projects a priority. And Harvey quickly bought in.

“We take time out to go play with some kids, play football and basketball with them,” Harvey said. “The young kids see what we’re doing, and they want to come up and do the same exact thing we’re doing. We’re basically building our feeder program right now.”

It’s one of the ways Harvey, who threw for 2,031 yards and 21 touchdowns last year in leading the Panthers to the GHSA Region 1-4A title last year, has taken on a leadership role.

Harvey has put in a lot of work, both on and off the field. He has spent the past several months learning a new offense, one that is much more up-tempo.

“We’re running a nonstop, no-huddle offense now,” Harvey said. “Last year, we huddled up after every single play. You have to learn how to make plays quicker.”

Harold, who previously was the head coach at Macon County, Brunswick and Central-Macon, puts a lot of trust in his quarterbacks.

While at Macon County, Harold helped develop K’hari Lane, a quarterback who, following Harold’s departure for Brunswick, set the Georgia high school single-season touchdown record en route to leading the Bulldogs to a state title. Lane is now a redshirt freshman at Arizona.

“He’s a kid who likes being responsible,” Harold said of Harvey. “We’re giving him, on offense, autonomy to make a lot of plays. Any leader wants that responsibility, and he’s embracing it.

“Playing fast-paced, one of things about that is that you have to be in good condition and you have to be able to think. One of the things I’m pleasantly surprised about these kids here is that they’re very football savvy, and that’s because of the history they have of having a great football team. Their family members have been great football players, and they’ve passed that knowledge down. We’re able to put a lot on them because they pick it up so quickly.”

Harvey said he sees himself as a balanced quarterback, one who likes to throw but will take the opportunity to run when it presents itself.

It’s enough, Americus-Sumter defensive back Trevian Thomas said, to keep opposing defenses on their toes.

“He’s a competitive quarterback,” Thomas said. “He’s smart. You have to watch him. He’s sneaky. He’ll go to throw it, sit there in the pocket. If he sees a hole, he’ll shoot it.”