It took eight weeks, but the storylines have really heated up across the state. We saw upsets across the state's seven classifications last night, but in Class AAAA it was a different story for the ranked teams. The top 10 in Class AAAA flat out dominated, and you will be hard-pressed to find a more dominant night of games for any classification’s crop of ranked schools. While No. 4 Jefferson, No. 5 Cairo and No. 10 Marist were on bye weeks, the remaining seven teams in the top 10 outscored their opponents by a staggering 325-26 or a 46.43 average margin of victory. A 24-0 win by Mary Persons over Upson-Lee was the narrowest margin of victory by Class AAAA’s top 10 this week. Here’s a quick look at just how impressive week 8 was for the top 10.
No. 1 Cartersville 52, LaGrange 7: Cartersville posted its 22nd straight victory Friday night as five-star quarterback Trevor Lawrence put together a historic first half performance. The junior ran in three touchdowns and passed for three touchdowns to fuel a 42-7 lead. Lawrence now has 26 passing touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns on the season. The Purple Hurricanes have held 18 opponents to single-digit points during this current winning streak.
No. 2. Thomson 70, Hephzibah 0: For the second consecutive week, Thomson lit up the scoreboard for 70 points. After dominating Clarkston 73-8 in its first game coming off a two-week bye, Thomson returned to the gridiron on Thursday to cruise to a 70-0 road win. The Bulldogs' run-first offense is averaging an astounding 50.5 points per game this season.
No. 3. Woodward Academy 42, North Clayton 0: Woodward Academy got five total touchdowns from quarterback Ryan Glover to roll over visiting North Clayton. The War Eagles led 14-0 after one quarter, 28-0 at halftime and by the final 42-0 margin going into the fourth quarter. They racked up 512 yards of total offense in the process–365 through the air and 147 on the ground. Glover completed 13 of 22 passes for 344 yards and four touchdowns and he also rushed for a score. Joshua Johnson made five receptions for 123 yards and two touchdowns, both of which came in the second quarter. Tahj Gary led the Woodward rushing attack with 105 yards and one score on 14 carries.
No. 6. Blessed Trinity 34, White County 7: Blessed Trinity scored all five of its touchdowns on the ground to overwhelm host White County early and often. The Titans led 13-0 after one quarter, 27-0 at halftime and 34-0 heading into the fourth quarter. White County finally got on the scoreboard early in the final frame of play on a 14-yard touchdown run by Conley Sosebee, but the Warriors could not get any closer. Blessed Trinity's first three touchdowns came on scampers by sophomore sensation Steele Chambers. He found the endzone on an 89-yarder, a 16-yarder and a 26-yarder. Chambers had 234 rushing yards on 15 yards by halftime before his workload was decreased in the second half with the outcome all but decided. Jake Rudolph and Drew Nichols added touchdown runs for the Titans.
No. 7. Mary Persons 24, Upson-Lee 0: Mary Persons coughed up two fumbles in the second quarter, but managed to maintain control of the game and take a 9-0 lead into the half. The Bulldogs Zach Harvey's second rushing touchdown of the game increased the lead to 17-0 in the third quarter, and Caleb Speir iced the game with a 25-yard touchdown pass to Malik Herring on a 4th down and 5 that increased the lead to 24-0 entering the final quarter.
No. 8. Burke County 55, Cross Creek 12: Burke County's game was moved up to Thursday night, and the Bears took care of business with a 43-point blowout. This win came two weeks after the Bears dropped their first loss of the season, a 28-21 home loss to Effingham County, and had a bye week to regroup. The 55 points were the most scored by a Burke County team since 2013.
No. 9. Ridgeland 48, LaFayette 0: Ridgeland moved to 5-0 for the first time in school history on Friday while completing their fifth straight 40-plus point scoring effort. The Panthers rushed for 425 yards. Markeith Montgomery finished with 122 rushing yards and three touchdowns off of five carries, while teammate Grayson Moore finished with 263 all-purpose yards on just five touches. Ridgeland's explosive offense used just 32 snaps to put up 48 points.
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