After reaching the playoffs in 2008 - Tyronne Davis' first year as head coach - the Georgetown High football team entered the fall looking to build on last year's success.

But the season did not play out as the Bulldogs had hoped, as they were unable to duplicate their feats from a year ago and finished the '09 campaign with a record of 2-8 overall and a 1-4 mark in Region 7-AAA.

"It was not the season we wanted," Davis said. "We had some opportunities, but we were unable to capitalize on them. Missing out on them made a difference."

Given the Bulldogs youth and inexperience, Davis was hoping for a fast start which would have allowed the team to build confidence as the season went along. However, Georgetown lost its first three games to Carvers Bay (25-7), Andrews (28-10) and Johnsonville (14-6) and never really was able to recover.

Though the Bulldogs were competitive in all three games, the lack of timely breaks and an inability to produce a big play at the right time left them short on the scoreboard.

"We felt like we were in all three games," Davis said. "If we could have one or two plays back in each game, it might have changed the outcomes. We weren't able to build any momentum at the start and that carried over into the rest of the season."

Injuries played a part in setting Georgetown back as well with sophomore lineman Leeshawn Cromedy, junior lineman Darius Brown and sophomore running back Daunte Gardner among several players who were sidelined for portions of the year.

"Injuries like that really hurt in the long run," Davis said. "One area we know we have to work on is building depth. We have to have more players who can step in and contribute and we don't want to have as many guys who have to play (both offense and defense)."

Georgetown totaled just 94 points for the season, but a bright spot for the offense was the running of sophomores Leonard Leak, Tevin Johnson and Devante Geathers. The trio accounted for more than 1,300 yards on the ground, led by Leak, who rushed for 638 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Davis said for the offense to improve, more must be gained from the passing game and the coach says bolstering the air attack begins up front.

"We have to do a better job of blocking and on pass protection," Davis said. "We'll go back and look at what the best fits are for the offense. We have to play to the strengths of our players. There is a learning curve for everyone."

Georgetown's defense played well at times, but with the offense struggling to move the chains and put points on the board, the defense wore down as the year progressed.

"To win championships, you need a strong defense," said Davis, whose team yielded more than 29 points per game. "We left our defense on the field too long at times, but there were also too many mental mistakes. We missed assignments defensively and that allowed (opponents) big plays. We have to fix those things."

According to Davis, some of that work has already started.

"Our players understand we need to have a productive off-season," Davis said. "We need to get into the weight room, improve our conditioning and work on becoming bigger, faster and stronger. We don't need to wait until January or August to start with that. We want to start now."

Helping the Bulldogs in '10 should be a corps of new players from what was a successful junior varsity squad this season.

"I'm very pleased with what I saw from the junior varsity team this year," Davis said. "We'll have some kids coming up to the varsity level next year who will be able to help us.

"When your JV team makes progress, eventually that is going to show up on the varsity level."