Mays and Northside-Warner Robins will play for the Class AAAAA football championship at 8 p.m. Friday in the Georgia Dome. Here are five things to watch in that game:
*Willie Jordan: Northside's senior running back has set school single-season rushing records this season with 2,173 yards and 31 touchdowns. He is averaging 155.2 yards per game for the season, but has been especially strong in the playoffs, rushing for 183.3 yards per game. Jordan ran for 218 yards against Glynn Academy in the quarterfinals and 234 against Allatoona last week.
*Asahnia Aderhold: The senior quarterback for Mays also has been at his best in the postseason. Aderhold has passed for 1,821 yards and 18 touchdowns for the season, but half of the touchdowns and almost half of the yardage (858) have come in the playoffs. In the quarterfinals, he threw for a season-high 352 yards and four touchdowns, including the game-winner on the game's final play.
*Line play: Both teams are tough in the trenches. Mays is big and strong on both sides of the line and wears teams down as the games go on. The Raiders have major college prospects in OL Dallas Warmack (6-2, 306, committed to Alabama) and DL Natrez Patrick (6-3, 220, Georgia). Northside has been stout as well, rushing for 332.4 yards per game while allowing just 61.4 per game on the ground.
*Common opponent: Jones County was the only team to play Mays and Northside this season. The Greyhounds beat Region 2 rival Northside 45-37 on Sept. 19 in the regular season, handing the Eagles their only loss. Northside was 3-0 and ranked No. 1 at the time. Mays beat Jones County 44-41 in the state quarterfinals on Aderhold's 17-yard touchdown pass to Julius Whitehead as time expired.
*History: Mays has advanced past the second round for the first time in the history of the school, which opened in 2001. The Raiders are trying to become the first Atlanta Public Schools team to win a state title since Southwest in 1973. Northside is in the finals for the first time since 2009 and sixth time overall. The Eagles were 2-3 in their previous appearances, winning titles in 2006 and 2007.
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