In case you haven’t peeked ahead at this week’s schedule yet, here’s the Cliff’s Notes version: Not much intrigue.
That’s not to say upsets can’t happen or that there aren’t meaningful games, but No. 4 Benedictine (at Jeff Davis) and No. 7 Thomasville (vs. Pelham) are the only top-10 teams facing opponents with winning records.
So, this seemed like a good time to look beyond this Friday at each region’s matchups in the playoffs. With full expectations that more than a couple will be wrong, let’s go ahead and make some predictions based on what we’ve seen so far.
First-round matchups this year feature Regions 1 vs. 2, 3 vs. 4, 5 vs. 6 and 7 vs. 8. Let’s take it region-by-region and see what that might look like come Nov. 14. And, as always, the No. 1 seed from each region faces the No. 4 from the opposing region, and No. 2 faces No. 3 in the first round.
You can get a full look at the bracket here.
Region 1
1. Brooks County/Thomasville
2. Brooks County/Thomasville
3. Fitzgerald
4. Early County
Region 2
1. Benedictine/Vidalia
2. Benedictine/Vidalia
3. Jeff Davis/Bacon County/Bryan County
4. Jeff Davis/Bacon County/Bryan County
This is the region combination that produces the most interesting possibilities. No matter how it shakes out (and Fitzgerald could definitely make things messy in Region 1) it looks like we’ll be seeing a battle of top-10 teams in the first round, with Region 1’s No. 3 seed facing Region 2’s No. 2.
As if the Benedictine/Vidalia game coming up in a couple of weeks needed any more import heaped upon it, the loser can expect to face a brutal draw in the first round. The No. 3 seed from Region 1 will be in a similar predicament. Thomasville took a big step toward avoiding that fate with its win over Fitzgerald on Friday, but numerous big games still have to be played in the final month of the regular season, including Fitzgerald at Brooks County on Oct. 17, and Thomasville at Brooks County on Oct. 31.
----
Region 3
1. Screven County
2. Jefferson County
3. Swainsboro/Dublin
4. Swainsboro/Dublin
Region 4
1. Lamar County
2. Macon County
3. Bleckley County/Monticello
4. Bleckley County/Monticello
Keep an eye on the Lamar County/Macon County game on Nov. 7. It will likely decide the region championship, and the loser faces the daunting prospect of facing the Region 6 champion (likely GAC or Lovett) in the second round of the playoffs.
----
Region 5
1. Bowdon
2. Bremen/Heard County
3. Heard County/Bremen
4. Chattahoochee County
Region 6
1. Greater Atlanta Christian
2. Lovett
3. B.E.S.T. Academy
4. Hapeville Charter
The top three teams in Region 5 have all yet to play each other, and no ordering of the three in the final standings would be a shock, especially if Heard County can get healthy. Finishing in the top two might be more important here than in any other region in the state. B.E.S.T. Academy is at least a borderline top-10 team, and Hapeville Charter is improving as the season goes along, but GAC and Lovett are two of the top teams in the state. Region 1 faces a similarly tough draw, with its third-place team matched up with either No. 2 Vidalia or No. 4 Benedictine – the difference is, as mentioned earlier, the No. 3 team in Region 1 will likely be a top-10 team and better equipped to pull off an upset.
----
Region 7
1. Darlington
2. Model
3. Coosa/Gordon Lee
4. Coosa/Gordon Lee
Region 8
1-4. Greene County, Rabun County, Union County, Washington-Wilkes
If you can make sense of what’s happening in 8-AA right now, let me know how in the comments. Greene County’s upset of Washington-Wilkes was one of the biggest surprises of the year to me. Even though Washington-Wilkes has struggled to score consistently this season, I believed they would have enough to get through the region unscathed. Clearly that’s not the case. I’m not fully ready to buy-in on Greene County as the new favorite yet, but they’re obviously in the mix. This week’s game against Union County is a true measuring stick for both teams. The one thing I feel confident in is that no Region 8 playoff team wants to get stuck with the 3 or 4 seed. Sure, it beats the heck out of staying home, but the can’t-get-there-from-here drive across North Georgia to face the defense of Darlington or Model would be highly unappealing.
