Blessed Trinity’s route to the championship game has not been easy. But it might have been much different if coach Tim McFarlin had been better at calling a coin flip.
At the end of regulation play in the Region 4-AAA championship game against Cedar Grove, a monsoon flooded the field and made it unplayable. It had become a safety issue and each team agreed to share the championship.
But someone had to be the No. 1 seed from the region, which would guarantee at least two home playoff games. But there was a problem: From the looks of thing, the right side of the playoff bracket was much tougher, with defending champion Calhoun, Jefferson, Elbert County, Dodge County and Peach County all waiting. The left side of the bracket, while not easy, seemed more scalable.
So when officials decided to declare co-champions, a coin flip was necessary. When McFarlin and Cedar Grove coach Jermaine Smith met to call the toss, it was determined that the winner of the flip would have their choice of being the No. 1 or No. 2 seed from the region.
Cedar Grove won the flip and chose to play as the No. 2 seed. While some around the state voiced concern, the decision was done above-board, with a GHSA official on the phone and with officials from both schools present.
Blessed Trinity, playing at home, defeated Cook and Jefferson, lost a flip to Dawson County and had to play the quarterfinals in Dawsonville. The Titans won the coin flip for the semifinals and got to play Calhoun at home.
Cedar Grove easily won its first-round game against Pierce County, survived a tight road game to beat Oconee County, and returned home to defeat Westside Macon. That set up a game against Westminster, the No. 3 seed from Region 4. But Westminster short-circuited the plans by beating the Saints.
Here’s the odd thing. If Blessed Trinity had won the flip the night of the region championship, the Titans would probably have chosen to play as the No. 2 seed, as well. That would have put them against Westminster in the semifinals, rather than the finals.
Instead there is a rematch of the two private school rivals, with the matter to be resolved on Friday at 4:30 p.m. at the Georgia Dome.
What has never been in question was the manner in which the Roswell community has come together to support both Blessed Trinity and Roswell High, which will play for the Class AAAAAA title on Saturday night.
“You’ve got two schools about 500 yards apart both playing for the state championship,” McFarlin said. “There’s going to be a lot of green down there.”
There remain plenty of good feelings for McFarlin in the Roswell community. He coached there for 10 years and led them to a shared state championship in 2006.
“The cooperation has been outstanding,” he said. “The booster clubs, the fans … it’s been amazing. Both sides are really pulling for each other.”
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