All of Class AAAA won't be in region play until Friday, Oct. 7, so the tantalizing task of sorting out the classification continues with nothing but style points and potential to gauge the field. Luckily, this upcoming week will offer the biggest challenges yet for two of Class AAAA’s top teams to validate their early success.
Defending state champion and No. 1 ranked Cartersville extended its winning streak to a state-best 17 games on Friday and is a no-brainer when it comes to Class AAAA’s most impressive teams these first three weeks. The Purple Hurricanes have outgunned Class AAAAAA’s Allatoona (30-14) and Class AAA’s Calhoun (56-0), but now they’ll host an athletic and talented Westlake squad on Friday out of the state’s highest classification. Westlake is coming off a 10-3 season and is 1-1 under first-year head coach Kareem Reid. Cartersville’s five-star quarterback Trevor Lawrence will be going up against one of the most talented defensive rosters in the state in this must-see matchup. Defensively, Westlake has Clemson-commit and four-star cornerback A.J. Terrell and three-star cornerback Tre Person patrolling the perimeter. At safety is four-star junior Myles Sims and at linebacker is 6-foot-2, 215-pound University of Georgia-commit Jaden Hunter. This will be the first time the two schools have met on the gridiron.
No. 2 Thomson dominated Jefferson in a 42-20 victory on Friday to move to 3-0 and will now face defending Class AA state champion and Class AAA No. 1 Pace Academy on the road this Friday. Thomson will have a two-week hiatus after Friday to regroup for the final six games of the regular season, but keeping this momentum going through the extended bye will be a difficult task if the Bulldogs can't slow down this star-studded and experienced Pace Academy team. Thomson’s early success has relied on the running ability of senior Michael Thomas. The 5-foot-10, 200-pound back has accounted for 123.7 rushing yards per game, while scoring five of the team’s 11 rushing scores. Pace Academy’s defense has allowed just 8.5 points per game during its 2-0 start thanks to a balanced offense that can methodically drive the ball down the field and a defense filled with two-way starters. Up front, the Knights have 6-foot-5, 310-pound offensive tackle Andrew Thomas and five-star junior guard Jamaree Salyer to march the field. Thomas is committed to UGA, as is wideout Trey Blount, who has four catches and a touchdown this season. Duke-commit Deon Jackson and Jordan Payne lead the Pace Academy backfield, while also starring on defense with Blount.
Check out Thursday’s Blog for a breakdown of the rest of Week 4’s biggest games.
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