Subregion titles in the three subdivided regions in Class AAAAA were decided on Friday, setting up the matchups for next weekend’s region championship and play-in games. The top teams in each subregion are guaranteed berths in the state playoffs, while the second- and third-place teams will meet in play-in games to determine the third and fourth seeds from each region.
Perhaps the most high profile game came in Region 6, where Stephenson beat Southwest DeKalb 25-7 to claim the Division A title. The Jaguars’ opponent in the championship game appears to be Creekside, which finished in a three-way tie for first place with Carver-Atlanta and Mays but won the tiebreaker by having the best record against AAAAA teams. That would leave Southwest DeKalb facing Carver and Mays taking on Miller Grove in the play-in games.
Another battle that drew attention was in Region 7, where Kell escaped with a 14-10 victory against Sprayberry to win the Division B title. Kell will play in the championship game against Dalton, which won Division B two weeks ago. Sprayberry will face Sequoyah and Cambridge will take on Creekview in the play-in games.
Both subregion titles were at stake in Region 4. Drew won Division A with a 49-13 victory against McIntosh. The Titans finished in a tie for first place with Mundy’s Mill but beat the Tigers two weeks ago. Drew advances to the championship game against Stockbridge, which tied with Dutchtown for first place in Division B but won the head-to-head matchup. The play-in games will be Dutchtown against Starr’s Mill and Mundy’s Mill against Woodland-Stockbridge.
Here’s a recap of some of the other big stories in Class AAAAA from Week 11:
- Jeremy Taylor's 70-yard interception return for a touchdown with 1:39 remaining sealed Lanier’s 21-10 victory against Winder-Barrow in an 8-AAAAA game and secured the Longhorns’ first region title in the history of the program, which began in 2010 but did not play a full schedule until 2012. Tario Fuller ran for two touchdowns as Lanier rallied from a 10-0 deficit in the second quarter. Despite the loss, Winder-Barrow clinched its first playoff berth since 2003, thanks to Heritage-Conyers’ loss to Clarke Central.
- Lanier wasn’t the only Class AAAAA team to clinch a region title. Harris County locked up Region 1 with a 44-34 victory against LaGrange, which will finish either third or fourth in the region, depending on the outcome of its game against Northside-Columbus next week. Top-ranked Ware County won the Region 3 championship with a 44-6 victory against South Effingham, which was eliminated from the playoff race. The other region title that has been decided is in Region 5, where Allatoona clinched last week.
- Houston County and Northside-Warner Robins won easily to set up their showdown at McConnell-Talbert Stadium in Warner Robins next weekend for the Region 2 championship. Houston County beat Evans 50-24, while Northside took care of Cross Creek 51-0. Northside won all 16 previous meetings against the Bears, including 45-10 last season. The Eagles are seeking their 12th region title in 17 seasons and their 14th overall. Houston County has never won a region championship.
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