AA in brief: Bremen welcomes itself with big win

ajc.com

All the hype that was built leading into the season has passed, as has Week 1. But it didn’t pass without a major shakeup to the rankings. The Bremen Blue Devils officially welcomed themselves into Class AA with a 13-10 win over the No. 3-ranked and state runners-up Rabun County Wildcats with a field goal as time expired.  With the win, the Blue Devils shot up from No. 9 to No. 6 in the new polls, while Rabun County fell to No. 8 and saw their 28-game regular season win streak come to an end.

Speaking of the No. 8 spot, it was previously held by the Jefferson County Warriors, who lost 14-12 to unranked Swainsboro. The loss boots them from the rankings, allowing Rockmart in at No. 10 after the Yellow Jackets shocked Cedartown — the then-No. 10 team in AAAA — with a 20-14 win.

The Thomasville Bulldogs moved up a spot to No. 4 with their incredible come-from-behind 15-14 win over Cairo in a game they trailed 14-0 with 7:25 left. Maxwell’s projections had the Bulldogs winning by one point and that’s what happened.

Other close calls include No. 2 Heard County edging AAAA’s LaGrange 10-3, and No. 7 Dodge County topping Bradwell Institute of AAAAAA by a score of 23-15.

No. 5 Brooks County (with a 43-6 win over Mitchell County)and No. 9 Fitzgerald (45-7 over Bacon County) were the only ranked teams to win convincingly, while No. 1 Hapeville Charter and No. 3 Callaway didn’t play.

Here's a glimpse at the updated rankings, with the previous week's rankings in parenthesis:

1. (1) Hapeville Charter (0-0)

2. (2) Heard County (1-0)

3. (4) Callaway (0-0)

4. (5) Thomasville (1-0)

5. (6) Brooks County (1-0)

6. (9) Bremen (1-0)

7. (7) Dodge County (1-0)

8. (8) Rabun County (0-1)

9. (9) Fitzgerald (1-0)

10. (NR) Rockmart (1-0)

Out: No. 8 Jefferson County

In brief

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