Cedar Grove will be making its fourth trip to the state quarterfinals when the Saints host Westside-Macon on Friday at Hallford Stadium.
The No. 3-ranked Saints (10-1-1) last reached the quarterfinals in 2010 when they lost to Burke County. Cedar Grove got to the Class AA finals in 1991, when the Saints went 14-1 and lost to Cartersville in the final.
Cedar Grove shared the Region 4-AAA championship in Blessed Trinity. The Saints have done it with a high-scoring offense and a defense that’s loaded with college prospects.
The Saints are averaging 32.3 points. They’re rushing for 238.8 yards and throwing for 140.8 yards per game. Quarterback Jelani Woods has thown for 1,690 yards and 18 touchdowns, with Jesse Reveria (42 catches, seven TDs), Earl Russell (16 catches, three TDs) and Israel Spivey (15 catches, one TD) his main targets.
Cedar Grove’s running attack is led by Labron Morris, who has rushed for 1,561 yards and 18 touchdowns, and Tre Shaw, who has run for 670 yards and 10 TDs. Morris missed the opening game of the playoffs with an injury and Shaw filled in to run for 258 yards and three touchdowns.
The Cedar Grove defense features All-America selection Antwaun Jackson (88 tackles, 9.5 sacks) and linebacker Adrian Fendell (57 tackles, eight sacks). The defense is stout against the run (144 tackles for loss) and can put heat on the passer.
Cedar Grove will need to slow the Westside offense that centers around quarterback Savion Knowlton, who has thrown for 1,856 yards and 24 touchdowns. He has two outstanding receivers in Georgia Tech commit Steve Dolphus (49 catches, nine TDs) and Gerimie Mitchell (46 catches, 10 TDs).
