Here’s what to look for this weekend in Class AAAAA:
- Carver-Atlanta (6-1, 2-0) can clinch the 6-AAAAA Division B title with a victory against Mays (5-2, 1-1), which would put the Panthers in the region championship game, most likely against Stephenson or Southwest DeKalb. If Mays wins, then eighth-ranked Creekside (6-2, 2-1) – which beat Mays but lost to Carver – is the subregion front-runner because of having the tiebreaker advantage if there is a three-way tie for first. Seventh-ranked Carver likely would finish third in the subregion.
- Drew (6-1, 4-0) moved into first place in 4-AAAAA Division A last week and can clinch the subregion title with a victory at Northgate (4-3, 3-1), which is one of three teams with one loss in the subregion. The other two – Mundy’s Mill and Starr’s Mill – already lost to Drew, which could still win the subregion outright with a loss this week if Northgate loses to Starr’s Mill next weekend.
- Fourth-ranked Allatoona (7-0, 6-0 in 5-AAAAA) can clinch the second region title in the program’s seven-year history with a victory against Paulding County. Alexander (6-1, 5-1) and South Paulding (6-1, 5-1) are tied for second place, but both teams’ losses came against the Buccaneers. Allatoona, which won 7-AAA in 2011, is off next week before closing the regular season against winless Chapel Hill.
- Harris County (5-2, 3-0) and Carver-Columbus (6-1, 3-0), two schools located about 26 miles apart, will meet for just the third time, and first place in 1-AAAAA will be on the line. Both teams will be favored in their remaining games, so the winner is likely to be the region champion. Carver has won seven consecutive region titles in lower classifications. Harris County won the only region championship in school history in 2012.
- Lakeside-Evans (4-3, 4-2) has overcome a 1-2 start in region play and can all guarantee itself a playoff spot with a win against Warner Robins (4-3, 4-2). With a victory, Lakeside would no worse than tied for third place with Jones County (5-2, 4-2), which lost to the Panthers 35-16 on Oct. 3. Lakeside closes the regular season against Greenbrier and Cross Creek, who are a combined 1-11 in region play.
- Salem (5-2, 5-1) can create a three-way tie for first place in 8-AAAAA if it upsets sixth-ranked Lanier (7-0, 6-0). Salem is tied for second place in the region with Gainesville (5-2, 5-1), which lost to Lanier and beat Salem. With a victory, Lanier would need just one win in its final two games (against fourth-place Winder-Barrow and winless Apalachee) to claim the first region title in program history.
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