The three subdivided regions in Class AAAAA will determine their first-place teams and playoff representatives this weekend when they hold their championship and play-in games.
The most compelling games are likely to take place in 6-AAAAA. Defending state champion Creekside will face a rematch with Stephenson for the region title. Both teams are guaranteed state playoff berths. Creekside rallied for a 28-14 victory when the teams met on Sept. 19 and must beat the Jaguars again to earn the No. 1 seed. The other two state playoff teams will be the winners of the Mays-Miller Grove and Southwest DeKalb-Carver (Atlanta) play-in games.
In Region 7-AAAAA, third-ranked Kell will be trying to win its fourth region title in five years when it takes on Dalton in the championship game. Dalton won the 7-AAAA last season before moving up in classification. The play-in games match Sprayberry against Sequoyah and Cambridge against Creekview.
Stockbridge will face Drew for the championship in Region 4-AAAAA. Drew has clinched the second playoff berth in the program’s six-year history and is trying to win its first region title. Stockbridge won its only region title in 2012. The play-in games match Starr’s Mill against Dutchtown and Woodland-Stockbridge against Mundy’s Mill.
First-place teams to meet for 2-AAAAA title
Region 2-AAAAA is not holding an official region championship game, but it might as well be. Houston County and Northside-Warner Robins are tied for first place, and the winner of their game on Friday will be the region champion. Both teams have clinched playoff berths. Houston County can finish no lower than second place, while Northside could drop to third if it loses and Jones County beats Warner Robins. Houston County is 0-16 all-time against Northside and has never won a region title.
Three region champions shooting for 10-0
Four teams already have clinched region titles, and three of them will be looking to complete 10-0 regular seasons. Top-ranked Ware County, the champion of Region 3-AAAAA, will be 10-0 for the first time in school history if it wins at Brunswick (6-3). Fourth-ranked Allatoona can complete its second 10-0 season with a victory against winless Chapel Hill. The Buccaneers also were undefeated in the 2011 regular season, when they won their only other region title. No. 5 Lanier is playing its third full varsity season, and a victory against Apalachee (1-8) would make the Longhorns 10-0 for the first time. The other region champion, Harris County of 1-AAAAA, is 7-2 heading into the regular-season finale against Shaw, which is 4-5 and will miss the playoffs.
Playoff scenarios
Here’s a recap of the playoff races in each region heading into the final weekend of the regular season. The top four teams in each region qualify for the postseason. Only eight spots in the postseason remain unclaimed, six of which will be settled by region play-in games.
*1-AAAAA: Harris County and Carver-Columbus have clinched the top two positions. LaGrange and Northside-Columbus have clinched the other two playoff spots, and the winner of their game on Friday will earn the No. 3 seed.
*2-AAAAA: Houston County, Northside and Warner Robins have clinched three playoff berths. Jones County will get the other spot unless it loses to Warner Robins and Lakeside-Evans beats Cross Creek, in which case Lakeside would get in.
*3-AAAAA: Ware County and Coffee have locked up the top two seeds. Glynn Academy and Brunswick have clinched the other two playoff berths. Glynn Academy will be the No. 3 seed unless it loses to South Effingham and Brunswick beats Ware.
*4-AAAAA: Drew and Stockbridge are playing in the championship game to determine the top two seeds. The other two playoff teams will be the winners of the Starr's Mill-Dutchtown and Mundy's Mill-Woodland (Stockbridge) play-in games.
*5-AAAAA: Region champion Allatoona, runner-up South Paulding, Alexander and New Manchester have clinched the four playoff berths. The winner of the Alexander-New Manchester game will be the No. 3 seed.
*6-AAAAA: Stephenson and Creekside are playing in the championship game to determine the top two seeds. The other two playoff teams will be the winners of the Southwest DeKalb-Carver (Atlanta) and Mays-Miller Grove play-in games.
*7-AAAAA: Dalton and Kell are playing in the championship game to determine the top two seeds. The other two playoff teams will be the winners of the Creekview-Cambridge and Sprayberry-Sequoyah play-in games.
*8-AAAAA: Region champion Lanier, runner-up Gainesville and Winder-Barrow have clinched playoff berths. Salem will get the other spot unless it loses to Cedar Shoals (0-9) and Flowery Branch beats Gainesville, in which case Flowery Branch would get in.
