Here’s what to look for this weekend in Class AAAAA:
- Defending Class AAAAA champion and fourth-ranked Creekside will receive a warm welcome into rugged Region 6 when it faces region veteran and third-ranked Stephenson in Fairburn on Friday. Because of reclassification, Creekside (moved from Region 4) essentially replaced Tucker (now in Class AAAAAA) in the region. Tucker beat Stephenson 31-28 in the regular season last year and lost to Creekside 52-28 in the state championship game. Stephenson went 9-3 and reached the second round of the playoffs in 2013.
- Four other Region 6-AAAAA teams will be among the six teams competing at the Georgia Dome on Saturday in the Domecoming Football Classic between DeKalb County and the Atlanta Public Schools. The event begins at noon when M.L. King takes on Carver-Atlanta. Southwest DeKalb will take on Mays at 3 p.m., and McNair and Washington will follow at 6 p.m. in a battle of Region 4-AAA teams. Carver, Southwest DeKalb and Mays have one loss each, while M.L. King is 0-3 and still looking for its first points.
- The four remaining 2-AAAAA teams that are undefeated in region play will meet on Friday, with the winners of the Houston County-Warner Robins and Northside-Jones County games emerging in a tie for first place and setting up a potential region title game later in the season. Only twice in the past 26 years – 2002 and 2008 – have Northside and Warner Robins both failed to win a region title in the same season. One-loss teams Evans and Lakeside also play this week as they try to keep pace in the playoff chase.
- Fifth-ranked Kell is the overwhelming favorite to win Region 7-AAAAA as it begins subregion play this week with a game against Forsyth Central. The Longhorns have won two consecutive region titles and three in four seasons, and they have won 20 consecutive regular-season games. That streak includes a 53-21 victory against Forsyth Central in 2012 in the only previous meeting between the teams. Kell is No. 3 in this week’s Class AAAAA computer Maxwell Ratings, while Forsyth Central (2-1) enters at No. 66.
- The most intriguing game in Region 3-AAAAA is Richmond Hill’s home game against second-ranked Ware County. Richmond Hill, which finished second to Ware County in the region last season, has lost just three regular-season games since the start of the 2012 season. Two of those losses came against the Gators (27-24 in 2012 and 34-17 last year). Richmond Hill set a school record with 10 victories last season and won a state playoff game for the first time since 1996.
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