The Class AAA high school football playoff bracket has been whittled down to eight teams, and one glance at the quarterfinal schedule shows that there aren't too many Atlanta teams left in this thing.
Second-ranked Cedar Grove (who I think will be a shoe-in for the state championship) and No. 10 Westminster, fresh off a convincing victory against Greater Atlanta Christian for the second time this season, are your Atlanta participants. But you might have to ride through some countryside to find the other programs.
Here are some of the highlights from the second round:
-- For 10 years, a quarterfinal berth has been business as usual for Calhoun, and the Jackets got their 11th consecutive spot Friday with a 21-6 victory against Lovett. Calhoun opened scoring with a 9-yard fade route from Gavin Gray to Brannon Spector less than two minutes into the game. The play was set up on a nice return by Bralin Barton on the opening kickoff. The score remained the same until Lovett cut the lead to 7-6 on a short run by Nick Jackson. Lovett's tricky two-point conversion play was unsuccessful. Calhoun's defense stepped up in the fourth quarter, beginning with Eric McKnight's interception on a ball thrown directly at him as he rushed the quarterback. Calhoun turned the interception into points on a 6-yard pass from Gray to Luke Moseley with 9:02 remaining. Davis Allen had the next interception and returned to midfield. Zach Fuller's run to the 10-yard line set up a short touchdown pass from Gray to Allen to give Calhoun the 21-6 lead.
-- No. 2 Cedar Grove built a 42-3 lead when the starters were pulled as it moved past North Hall 49-33 at home. Robert Jones had seven carries for 85 yards and two touchdowns. Mekhi Gilstrap, a backup, had eight carries for 97 yards and a touchdown in the second half. Austin Smith was 12-of-18 passing for 135 yards and a touchdown with one interception. Isaiah Ratcliff had 11 tackles with one for a loss. Rashad Cheney made six tackles, two for a loss. The Saints will travel to Savannah to face Benedictine on Friday.
-- Monroe Area earned its quarterfinal berth after moving past Dawson County 49-17. To recap: Chandler Byron had a hand in five touchdowns. Monroe Area controlled the game in all aspects as it took a 14-0 lead after the first quarter, a 28-7 lead at the break and a 42-10 lead after three quarters of play. Byron scored on touchdown runs of 60, 2 and 1 yards. He passed to Emmanuel "Uche" Okwudili for touchdowns of 15 and 9 yards. Monroe Area's Jakia Thompson scored on a 1-yard run. Dawson County's points came on two rushing touchdowns by Ahmad Kamara and a field goal.
-- Savannah's Benedictine held off Westside-Macon to advance. To recap: Benedictine's Jakeen Harris broke a 36-36 tie with a short rushing touchdown with 6:05 left in the game, and the Cadets defense held Westside-Macon in a goal-line stand minutes later to win. Benedictine opened the game with two quick touchdowns -- Rico Powers' 3-yard run and Holden Geriner's 47-yard touchdown pass to Powers --to take a 14-0 lead after the first quarter. Westside-Macon answered with a 21-point second quarter to take the lead. The Seminoles' got a short rushing touchdown by Tysahun Freeman and two touchdown passes from Victor Dixon Jr. to Jaylon Barden. Dixon was 11-of-21 passing for 207 yards in the first half. Geriner was 8-of-13 for 85 yards. Benedictine tied the game with a rushing touchdown by Powers early in the third quarter before Dixon found Landon Emery for a touchdown to retake the lead, 29-21, following a two-point conversion. Benedictine tied the game at 29 on a Harris touchdown and two-point conversion. Harris scored again with 9:53 left to push the Cadets' lead to 36-29. Westside tied the game again on a 55-yard touchdown pass from Dixon to Barden just 30 seconds later to set the stage for Harris' game-winning run.
-- Westminster will make a return trip to Peach County after falling to the Trojans in the quarterfinals last year. To recap: Westminster enjoyed a 21-7 cushion against GAC after the first quarter, and John Izlar's interception with two minutes left in the game thwarted any chance of a GAC comeback. Westminster opened scoring on a pass from Parks Harber to Nance Hill early in the first quarter. Will Hallmark scored on a 7-yard run with 6:08 left in the first quarter to give Westminster a two-touchdown lead. GAC responded, but Harber extended the lead with a rushing touchdown. The Wildcats defense blocked a punt in the second quarter, which set up another Harber rushing touchdown. Harber found Hallmark on a pass for a touchdown, and Charlie Ham added a field goal just before half to push the Wildcat lead to 38-13 at the break. Ham added two more field goals -- 30 and 52 yards -- to push the lead to 44-20. GAC cut into the lead, 44-34, before Izlar's interception sealed the victory.
-- Peach County defeated Liberty County 47-8 at home to earn its quarterfinal berth. To recap: Peach County blew open the game with a 26-point second quarter to take a 33-0 lead at the half. Liberty added a touchdown and a two-point conversion in the third quarter, but Peach responded with two touchdowns in the quarter to extend the lead before a scoreless fourth quarter.
-- Jenkins advanced with a 16-9 victory against Pike County in Savannah. To recap: Jenkins jumped to a 16-0 lead after the first half. Jenkins scored first on an 85-yard pass from Treshawn Brown to Jameal Smith and the two-point conversion made it 8-0 at the end of the first quarter. Donovin Hill extended the Warriors lead on a 1-yard touchdown run. Pike County cut into the lead with a 35-yard field goal by Parker Maddrey and a touchdown by Gerald Hines, but could come no closer.
Class AAA Quarterfinal schedule
Region 8, No. 1 seed Monroe Area at Region 2, No. 1 seed Pierce County
Region 5, No. 1 seed Cedar Grove at Region 3, No. 1 seed Benedictine
Region 5, No. 3 seed Westminster at Region 4, No. 1 seed Peach County
Region 3, No. 3 seed Jenkins at Region 6, No. 1 seed Calhoun
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