A victory by Allatoona over Northside-Warner Robins in the Class AAAAA semifinals on Friday will guarantee that the winner of the final in the state’s second-highest classification on Dec. 12 at the Georgia Dome will be a first-time state champion.
Northside is the only team remaining in the field that has won a state championship. The Eagles won titles in 2006 and 2007 in AAAA, which was the second-largest class at the time. Allatoona and the two teams meeting in the other semifinal – Mays and Stockbridge – have played a combined 92 seasons of varsity football without winning a championship.
Here’s a look at the four teams remaining in the quest for the AAAAA title:
*The favorites: No. 4 Allatoona is the highest-ranked team remaining, although the rankings haven't meant much this year in a tournament filled with upsets. The Buccaneers also are the only undefeated team left after playoff losses by Ware County, Kell and Lanier. Allatoona was projected as the state champion before the playoffs began by the computer Maxwell Ratings.
*The veterans: Not only is No. 8 Northside the only team remaining that has won a title, but it is also the only team that has ever advanced to the semifinals. The Eagles are in the semifinals for the fourth time in seven seasons since winning their state titles. Mays had never reached the quarterfinals, and Stockbridge and Allatoona were each 0-2 in the final eight before winning last week.
*The low seed: No. 7 Mays is the only team in the semifinals that was not a region champion, finishing as the No. 3 seed from Region 6-AAAAA. The Raiders finished in a three-way tie in their subregion but lost out to defending state champion Creekside on the tiebreakers for a spot in the region championship game and had to beat Miller Grove in a play-in game just to make the playoffs.
*Under-the-radar team: Stockbridge, which moved up this season from Class AAAA, is the only team left that is not ranked in the top 10 (and was not in the top 10 at any point this season). The Tigers lost to Central of Phenix City, Ala., 30-21 in the season-opener and lost to Luella 7-6 in the first subregion game, but they rallied to win the 4-AAAAA title and are on an eight-game winning streak.
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