Georgia scored an impressive victory in the national spotlight last weekend when Buford won 17-0 on ESPN2 against Trinity Christian, a defending state champion in Florida.
This week provides an even bigger opportunity to see how Georgia stacks up nationally as 13 teams from outside the state's borders will face GHSA schools. Three of those teams - Booker T. Washington and Miami Central of Florida and Hoover of Alabama - come in with top 15 rankings in several national polls.
The highlight of the weekend will be the Battle of the Borders Showdown, matching four of DeKalb County's best teams against teams from Florida on Saturday at Hallford Stadium. But there are other good matchups, as well. Here's a look at the 13 border wars this weekend:
Friday
*Bluffton (S.C.) at Effingham County, 7:30 p.m.: Effingham County won all three previous meetings with Bluffton, although the teams haven't played each other since 1972. Bluffton went 11-3 and lost in South Carolina's Class AAAA Division II semifinals last season. Effingham was 6-5 in 2013 but is off to a 1-0 start after beating Liberty County 35-7 last week.
*Central (Ala.) at Harris County, 7:30 p.m.: Central, of Phenix City, plays more Georgia teams that any school outside the state. The Red Devils opened the season with a 28-14 victory against Stockbridge and beat East Coweta 41-40 last year, when they finished 6-4. Harris County set a school record with nine victories in 2013.
*Hoover (Ala.) at Colquitt County, 8 p.m.: Hoover had its 30-game winning streak broken last week by Central Miami, but the Bucs are two-time Alabama state champs. Colquitt is ranked No. 1 in Georgia. Hoover beat Colquitt 24-10 last year after trailing 10-3 at halftime and did it by shutting down Colquitt's run game. Of course, Colquitt coach Rush Propst was Hoover's head coach from 1999 to 2007 and won five state titles there.
*Manatee (Fla.) vs. Ware County, 6 p.m., Martin Stadium: This game is the first of two to be played at Lowndes High School as part of the South Georgia Classic Doubleheader. Manatee, of Bradenton, went 11-1 last year, losing in the second round of the Class 8A playoffs. Ware County was 11-2 last year and beat Brooks County 31-6 last week in Franklin Stephens' debut as the Gators' head coach.
*Mount Zion, Carroll at Randolph County (Ala.), 8 p.m.: Mount Zion opened the season with a 42-19 victory against Temple and could get to 2-0 for the first time since 2008 with a victory against Randolph County, which went 4-6 in 2013. Randolph County, of Wedowee, holds a 2-1 advantage in the series, although the teams haven't met since 1997.
*New Hampstead at Ridgeland-Hardeeville (S.C.), 7:30 p.m.: New Hampstead of Savannah - playing its first season of varsity football - is 0-1 after losing to Calvary Day 54-12 last week. Ridgeland-Hardeeville went 7-5 last year, beating Savannah Country Day 20-14 during the regular season, and lost in the second round of the Class AA Division I playoffs.
*North Sand Mountain (Ala.) at Dade County, 8 p.m.: North Sand Mountain, of Higdon, beat Dade County in 2012 and 2013 and has won three of four all-time meetings. North Sand Mountain went 9-3 last year and lost in the second round of the Class 2A playoffs. Dade County was 7-4 and lost in the first round of the Class AA playoffs.
*Plant (Fla.) at Lowndes, 9 p.m.: Plant, of Tampa, has won four state titles since 2006 and reached the Florida Class 8A semifinals last season. Remember that Plant is the team that tied Sandy Creek 27-27 last season. Plant is best known in Georgia as the alma mater of former Georgia QB Aaron Murray. Lowndes opened the season last week with a 37-14 win over Roswell.
*Randolph-Clay at Abbeville (Ala.), 8 p.m.: These schools have not met since 2001, when Randolph-Clay won 42-6 for its third consecutive victory in a series that is tied 4-4. Randolph-Clay is coming off back-to-back 5-5 seasons and opened 2014 with an 18-12 victory against Lanier County last week. Abbeville, a Class 3A school, was 5-5-1 last year.
Saturday
*Booker T. Washington (Fla.) vs. Tucker, 8:30 p.m., Hallford Stadium: Miami's Booker T. Washington - which won mythical national titles last season - is ranked as high as No. 4 by Scout and is Florida's reigning Class 4A champion. The Tornadoes opened with a 57-21 victory against Oscar Smith (Chesapeake, Va.) last week. Washington also beat Norcross 55-0 last season. Norcross beat Tucker 32-29 in overtime last week.
*Godby (Fla.) vs. Marist, 11:45 a.m., Hallford Stadium: Godby, of Tallahassee, won Florida's Class 5A championship in 2012 and finished 10-2 in 2013 after being upset in the first round of the playoffs. The Cougars lost their opener 32-13 to IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) last week. Marist (0-0) went 11-3 and reached the Class AAAA semifinals in 2013.
*Miami Central (Fla.) vs. Stephenson, 5:30 p.m., Hallford Stadium: Miami Central is No. 5 nationally in the most recent USA Today rankings after knocking off Hoover last weekend. The Rockets went 13-1 last season and routed Armwood 52-7 to win the Class 6A state championship: Stephenson opened the season with a 41-6 win over Arabia Mountain.
*Norland (Fla.) vs. M.L. King, 2:30 p.m., Hallford Stadium: Norland, of Miami, finished 4-7 in 2013 but has made six consecutive trips to the playoffs. The Vikings lost to Stephenson 29-12 in their trip to DeKalb County last season. M.L. King is playing its season opener. Last year, the Lions were 7-4, their fewest wins since the inaugural 2002 season.
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