This week features several big games for Class AA.
The Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes, ranked No. 2, travels to face the Irwin County Indians, the No. 6 team in Class A. The Indians are 1-0-1 after opening their season with a 7-7 tie to Early County. The Purple Hurricanes have dominated the all-time series and lead 41-17-3. Two years ago, the two teams tied each other, but the Indians haven't won against Fitzgerald since 1999. Fitzgerald won 40-12 last year.
No. 3 GAC will host Eagle's Landing Christian, the top-ranked team in Class A. Both programs have a 1-1 record. The two teams met for the first time last season, with the Spartans edging Eagle's Landing 23-16 with a late touchdown. The loss for the Chargers was part of a six-game losing streak to open the season, though they still managed to reach the state title game. The Spartans didn't lose until the last game of the season, the AA finals against Benedictine.
The surging Pace Academy Knights have emerged this season as a legitimate state title contender. Currently ranked No. 5, they host Landmark Christian, the No. 5 team in Class A. It's hard to pinpoint why the Knights are so much improved, but they're definitely a team that has been trending upward for some time.
They've done nothing but improve since the arrival of coach Chris Slade, who is now in his third season. Before he took over the program in 2013, the Knights finished with a 3-7 record. They went 5-5 in 2013, then went 7-6 last year when the reached the state quarterfinals. That was the deepest playoff run in the program's eight-year history.
The Kings' showdown with Landmark Christian will be a good measuring stick for how much Pace has improved. The War Eagles own a 5-1 lead in the series and won last year, 27-21.
No. 8 Lovett will try to hold on to a top 10 spot and also collect their first win of the season when they host Marist, the No. 6 team in AAAA. The two teams are a combined 0-3, with Marist losing it's season opener last week against Florida's Coconut Creek in the Battle of the Borders Showdown. Marist holds a 2-1 series lead and won 27-7 last year.
The remaining AA ranked teams - No. 1 Benedictine, No. 4 Macon County, No. 7 Vidalia, No. 9 Rabun County and No. 10 Darlington - face unranked opponents. No. 6 Lamar County has its bye week.
Source: GHSFHA.org.
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