*Roswell 30, Grayson 26: Roswell QB Quintarius Neely threw a 35-yard TD pass to A.J. Smith with 10 seconds left for the winning points. Grayson took a 26-23 lead on a field goal with 35 seconds left. Neely threw a 35-yard pass to Jackson, then quickly got up to the line to spike the ball, setting up the final heroics. Neely was only 12-for-32 passing, but he threw for 280 yards. Jayden Comma had six catches for 139 yards. Grayson's Cameryn Brent rushed for 217 yards on 36 carries.
What it means - Roswell is back in the finals for the first time since its co-championship season of 2006. With Grayson and Mill Creek out, Gwinnett County will have no presence in the finals of the highest class for the first time since 2009.
*Colquitt County 52, Mill Creek 31: Colquitt County QB Chase Parrish threw for a school-record 431 yards and six touchdowns against a defense that hadn't allowed more than two touchdowns in any game. Colquitt led 35-31 early in the fourth quarter when a roughing-the-punter penalty extended a Colquitt drive. Moments later, Parrish hit Kiel Pollard on a 73-yard TD pass. Pollard finished with six catches and 125 yards. Colquitt had 565 yards in total offense. Mill Creek had been allowing 142.7.
What it means - With a 29-game winning streak, Colquitt County remains in contention to become the third school to complete consecutive perfect seasons in the highest classification. Valdosta (1960-62) and Parkview (2000-02) were the first two.
Class AAAAA
*Allatoona 28, Northgate 7: Allatoona took control early with touchdowns on its first three possessions to lead 21-0 less than one minute into the second quarter. QB Brandon Rainey had two 1-yard TD runs and a 93-yard scoring pass to Turner Cockrell. The Buccaneers held Northgate, which had two 1,000-yard rushers this season, to 196 total yards (83 rushing). Rainey attempted just nine passes but completed six for 213 yards.
What it means - Allatoona is the seventh Cobb County Schools team to reach a state final, first since Walton in 2011. None has ever won a championship. Northgate's bid to become the first champion from Coweta County is over.
*Glynn Academy 24, Ware County 16: Glynn Academy led 24-14 with less than a minute remaining but gave up an intentional safety and then needed a game-saving tackle at the 1-yard line on the final play to preserve its second victory of the year against its Region 3 rival. Glynn Academy's Garrison Hurd rushed for 85 yards and a touchdown, Kendall Cross had a 23-yard touchdown run, and Deejay Dallas threw a 45-yard scoring pass to Randon Jernigan.
What it means - Glynn Academy is in the finals for the first time since its Class AAA championship team of 1964. Glynn is one of two unranked teams in the finals. Westminster is the other.
Class AAAA
*Buford 35, Woodward Academy 18: Martin Mangram rushed for 119 yards on 15 carries and scored three second-half touchdowns, when Buford came back from a 18-14 halftime deficit. Woodward led 18-7 with 3:37 left in the first half, but Buford drove 80 yards for a touchdown in the final minute of the quarter and dominated from there.
What it means - Buford, the defending champion, is in position for its eighth state title in nine seasons. It was Buford's 27th consecutive playoff victory at home, one short of Marist's state record.
*Cartersville 38, Bainbridge 7: Kobie Whitfield's 70-yard punt return gave Cartersville a 24-7 lead in the second quarter, and QB Trevor Lawrence (13-of-25 passing, 209 yards) threw his second and third TD passes in the third quarter to finish it. Bainbridge's only touchdown was a 96-yard kickoff return by Dameon Pierce, who also rushed for 110 yards. But Cartersville held Bainbridge to 6-for-20 passing for 42 yards with two interceptions.
What it means - A semifinalist last season, Cartersville is in the finals for the first time since its Class AA championship team of 1999 that featured future NFL first-round pick Ronnie Brown.
Class AAA
*Westminster 24, Cedar Grove 8: Westminster's Zay Malcome ran for 126 yards and a touchdown and set up another score with a 24-yard punt return to lead the Wildcats to a victory over their Region 4 rival. QB Rankin Woley added two short touchdown runs. Westminster seized the momentum on the fourth play of the game, converting a fake punt that moved the ball into Cedar Grove territory and led to a 45-yard field goal by Blake Gillikin.
What it means - Westminster is in the finals for the first time since its Class AAA championship team of 1978. Westminster is the first team to win four straight road games to reach the finals since Landmark Christian in 2011.
*Blessed Trinity 12, Calhoun 7: Blessed Trinity trailed 7-2 at halftime but got a 42-yard field goal by Brooks Hosea and a 28-yard touchdown run by Garrett Dupuis in the third quarter to take the lead for good. Calhoun had the ball inside the Blessed Trinity 5-yard line with less than a minute to play, but QB Kaelan Riley was stopped on fourth down and the Titans were able to run out the clock. Riley passed for 213 yards, but the Yellow Jackets were held to 17 yards rushing.
What it means - Blessed Trinity is in its first state final. Coach Tim McFarlin can become the 15th coach to win state titles with two schools (Roswell, 2006).
Class AA
*Fitzgerald 40, Jefferson County 20: Fitzgerald took a 27-0 lead at halftime and was never seriously threatened from there. QB James Graham rushed for 138 yards on 20 carries and passed for 99 yards, including a 43-yard TD strike to Montrell Harris that made it 20-0. FB J.D. King rushed for 108 yards on 21 carries. Fitzgerald led in total offense 427-293.
What it means - Fitzgerald is in the finals for the first time since 2000. Fitzgerald has not won a title since 1948.
*Pace Academy 45, Greater Atlanta Christian 20: Pace Academy trailed 14-7 in the second quarter but scored the next 38 points against GAC, a team that was ranked No. 2 and won the Region 6 title. Gunnor Faulk was 15-of-21 passing for 201 yards and three touchdowns. Trey Blount had four catches for 101 yards and two touchdowns. GAC QB Davis Mills was 29-of-45 for 280 yards and two touchdowns but threw two interceptions.
What it means - Pace Academy avenged a 33-13 regular-season loss from Oct. 9 and reached the finals for the first time.
Class A (public)
*Clinch County 26, Commerce 19: Clinch County drove 66 yards in eight plays for the winning touchdown with 2:30 left after Commerce had taken a 19-18 lead. Zebulon Johnson scored on a 30-yard run, but perhaps the key play was a 16-yard pass from Charles McClelland to Jerrod Jones that converted a third-and-15. To that point, Clinch hadn't completed a pass in three games. Machari Bighams made an interception at 1:51 to clinch it. Clinch's quarterback duo of sophomore McClelland and freshman Trezman Marshall combined for 207 yards rushing on 27 carries.
What it means - Clinch County is in the finals for the first time since its Class A championship team of 2010. Clinch can become the fifth Georgia program to win six state titles.
*Irwin County 19, Emanuel County Institute 15: Irwin County executed two goal-line stands in the final five minutes after taking a 19-15 lead on Zach Tolar's 35-yard TD pass to FB D.J. Pollard. ECI had first-and-goal twice after that. Pollard rushed for 182 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries. ECI's Ricky Lee had 124 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries.
What it means - Irwin County is back in the finals for the second consecutive season and seeking its first title since 1975.
Class A (private)
*Eagle's Landing Christian 35, Prince Avenue Christian 14: ELCA quarterback D.J. Hammond had touchdown runs of 27, 51 and 4 yards and threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Cam Merritt as the Chargers beat Prince Avenue, which had not allowed more than 14 points in a game this season. ELCA trailed 7-0 after one quarter but took control with a 21-0 second quarter that included a 62-yard punt return for a touchdown by Khaleb Hood. Hammond rushed for 152 yards on 13 carries and was 6-for-13 passing for 90 yards. Trevor Gear ran for 122 yards on 14 carries.
What it means - ELCA eliminated the No. 1 seed and will be in the finals for the second consecutive season. ELCA won the title in 2012.
*Aquinas 35, Stratford Academy 28: Aquinas squandered a 14-point lead in the final three minutes, reclaimed the lead with a 27-yard touchdown pass with 1:01 to play, then made a goal-line stand in the final seconds to preserve its third victory of the year against its Region 7 rival. D'Angelo Durham had touchdown runs of 29 and 26 yards and finished with 178 yards on 19 carries, according to the Augusta Chronicle. Liam Welch passed for 243 yards and two touchdowns.
What it means - Aquinas is in the finals for the second time in three seasons. Aquinas won in 2013.
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