The Class AAA playoff schedule won’t be finalized until Monday. That’s because of a pair of key games on Saturday that have playoff implications and a series of the always-popular mini-games on Monday.
The Region 5-AAA playoffs are the most uncertain. Central Carroll defeated Central Carroll, so those two finished one-two. But on Monday, Pepperell, Cedartown and Rockmart will play mini games on Monday at 6 p.m. at Paulding County High School to determine the final two teams to represent the region.
The mini-games became necessary when Pepperell, Cedartown and Rockmart all finished with 2-3 region records. They were each 3-7 overall and neither swept the other two during the series. So they’ll meet on Monday in mini games to see who gets the privilege of going on the road to play Region 6 representatives No. 2-ranked Calhoun and No. 9-ranked Adairsville. (See below for an explanation of the mini-game process.)
In Region 1-AAA, Pierce County defeated Beach, which gave the four playoff teams from Division A a sweep over their Division B counterparts. Cook, Dodge County and Appling County won on Friday.
Here's what we learned on Friday night:
No. 5 Jefferson (10-0) won the Region 8-AAA championship with a 21-14 win over No. 8 Hart County (9-1) thanks to a goal-line stand in the final minute. Jefferson scored the winning points on a 4-yard pass from Evan Shirreffs to Hunter Gatlin in the fourth period. Shirreffs also threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Hill and Sammy Williams scored on a 1-yard run. Hart County scored on a 1-yard run by Keenan Dillon and a 1-yard run by Cameron Fouch.
In Region 6-AAA, No. 2 Calhoun completed an undefeated season and capped its 14th straight region championship by beating Coahulla Creek 67-0. The Yellow Jackets (10-0) used eight different running backs to accumulate 196 yards. The Calhoun defense allowed only one first down and held winless Coahulla Creek to minus-17 yards in total offense.
No. 3 Blessed Trinity defeated Cedar Grove 28-21 for the Region 4-AAA championship. Both teams won their subregion and Cedar Grove (8-2) will be the No. 2 seed for the playoffs. Milton Shelton ran for 163 yards and two touchdowns and quarterback Conor Davis scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard run with two minutes left.
In Region 7-AAA, West Hall nailed down its first region championship with a 35-0 win over Lumpkin county. The Spartans (9-1) were led by Tyquan Statham, who rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns. It was the fifth shutout of the season for West Hall.
In Region 1-AAA, Cook secured first place by whipping Beach 49-0. The Hornets (8-2) have won eight straight and coach Jon Lindsey became the third coach in school history to win a region championship in his first season.
In Region 3-AAA, No. 1-ranked Washington County hammered Westside-Augusta 54-7. It was the sixth straight game in which the Golden Hawks (10-0) scored at least 50 points and gives them 523 points for the season.
Other highlights:
Hephzibah beat Butler 14-12 behind Darrell Baker’s touchdown reception and pass interception and earned the final spot in Region 3-AAA. … Derrick Evans threw two touchdown passes to lift Central Macon to a 14-2 win over Kendrick and secure the final spot in Region 2-AAA. … Dodge Country rushed for 273 yards, including 108 and one touchdown from Kyle Glover, is a 31-15 win over Jenkins in the Region 1-AAA playoffs. … Antavius Grier rushed for 219 yards and three touchdowns in Jackson’s 38-20 win over Rutland to secure the No. 3 spot in Region 2-AAA. … Devin Watson threw three touchdowns and led East Hall to a 35-21 win over Banks County and third place in Region 7-AAA. … No. 9-ranked Adairsville beat Gordon Central 49-14 behind Sidnee Johnson, who ran for 117 yards and two touchdowns.
Here’s how the standings finished among the regions who have determined their playoff representatives:
Region 1: Cook, Pierce County, Dodge County, Appling County
Region 2: Peach County, Westside-Macon, Jackson, Central Macon
Region 3: Washington County, Laney, Westside-Augusta, Hephzibah
Region 4: Blessed Trinity, Cedar Grove, Westminster, Jackson Atlanta
Region 5: Central Carroll, Callaway, two mini-game winners
Region 6: Calhoun, Adairsville, Ringgold, Sonoraville
Region 7: West Hall, Lumpkin County, East Hall, Franklin County
Region 8: Jefferson, Hart County, Elbert County, Oconee County
How the mini-games work:
Each mini-game is made up of two five-minute halves. Standard rules apply and each half will start with a kickoff. There is a two-minute intermission. If teams are tied, they will use the GHSA 15-yard overtime tie-breaking procedure.
A coin flip will determine the participants of the first game. Team A and Team B meet in the first game. The winner advances to the state playoffs. The loser will play Team C in the second mini-game, with the winner advancing.
The winner of the regular-season meeting between the two successful teams will be the higher seed in the playoffs.During the regular season in Region 5-AAA: Cedartown beat Rockmart and lost to Pepperell; Rockmart beat Pepperell and lost to Cedartown, and Pepperell beat Cedartown and lost to Rockmart.
Teams involved in a mini-game will play their first-round state playoff game on Saturday, unless both teams agree to play on Friday.
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