Westminster has an impressive opening; Calhoun rolls in Corky Kell

The opening weekend of high school football produced quality results from the usual suspects at the top of Class AAA, but there were some surprises.

Two ranked teams suffered losses – No. 7 Lovett to No. 3 Greater Atlanta Christian and the most surprising -- Class AAAA Oconee County beating No. 6 Jefferson 20-13. The Dragons dropped to ninth place in the polls because of the loss.

The most impressive start of any of the ranked teams had to be Westminster's take-down of Class AAAA No. 5 Woodward Academy, 56-31, at Alfred E. Thompson Stadium. The performance jumped Westminster from No. 9 to No. 6.

The Wildcats, who won the 2015 AAA title after entering the playoffs with four losses, relied on a five-touchdown performance from quarterback Parks Harber, who also stars on the Westminster baseball team. Westminster scored three touchdowns in the second quarter, and its stifling defense held Woodward scoreless through that stretch, which put the Wildcats ahead 28-10 after being behind 10-7 at the end of the first quarter.

Harber finished the game 14-of-20 passing for 196 yards. His 32-yard touchdown pass to John Izlar was Harber's longest completion of the night. Harber also passed to Ben Allen (7 yards), Luke Jannetta (14 yards), Lowell Jones (25 yards) and Nance Hill (14 yards) for touchdowns.  

If momentum exists in high school football, Westminster will need to find a way to ride it into its game on the road against third-ranked Greater Atlanta Christian on Friday. In the 12 times that Westminster has faced GAC, it has won four and lost eight. The last Wildcats victory (24-13) in the series came on Sept. 17, 2010.

Top-ranked Calhoun won in a business-like manner in its debut. The defending-champion Yellow Jackets were convincing in their 45-21 defeat of Class AAAA Ridgeland in the Corky Kell Classic's opening game at Rome's Barron Stadium.

"Well I thought we played well the second half," said coach Hal Lamb. "We didn't play very well the first half, and we turned the ball over too many times."

The game was tied at 14 at the half before Calhoun outscored Ridgeland 31-0 in the third quarter. Lamb made adjustments and his team regained control of the game.

"The bottom line was the execution in the second half," he said. "We have a lot of weapons on the outside in (Luke) Moseley, (Brannon) Spector and (Bralin) Barton. So we have a lot of receivers we can get the ball to if we spread it around. We know (Gavin Gray) will make plays; he didn't play great (against Ridgeland), but he got better in the second half."

Translation: "We have talent all over the field and good luck to secondaries across the state. See you in December." – Probably. Calhoun will rest this week before hosting Therrell on Aug. 31.

How the rest fared:

1. (1) Calhoun (1-0): Defeated Ridgeland 45-21 in the Corky Kell at Rome's Barron Stadium. (see above)

2. (2) Cedar Grove (1-0): Defeated Summerville, S.C. on the road, 21-7. Receiver Jadon Haselwood, a UGA commit and the No. 1 recruit in the state and third in the nation, finished with four receptions for 26 yards and a touchdown. Haselwood, who is Cedar Grove's primary kick returner, also returned a punt to the Summerville 5-yard line to set up a Saints touchdown. Back Robert "Pop" Jones rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.

3. (3) Greater Atlanta Christian (1-0): Defeated No. 7 Lovett 24-21 at home. Quarterback Josh Rose rushed for two touchdowns and passed for one as the Spartans held on against Lovett at the Spartan Sports Complex. Rose led the game-winning charge and scored on an 8-yard run after Lovett's Nick Jackson scored to put the Lions ahead 21-17 midway through the fourth quarter. GAC hosts No. 6 Westminster on Friday.

4. (4) Peach County (0-0): Faces Class AAAAAA No. 4 Northside-Warner Robins on Saturday at Mercer in its opener.

5. (5) Benedictine (1-0): Held on to win 23-22 against Burke County at Paulson Stadium in Statesboro in a thrilling finish early Sunday morning. According to Dennis Knight from the Savannah Morning News, it was a special moment for head coach Danny Britt, who played at Georgia Southern. When the Cadets stopped a 2-point conversion with 47 seconds left to seal the victory, Britt's emotions were on full display.

For the rest of the story from the man in Savannah, follow the link here.

6. (8) Westminster (1-0): Beat Class AAAA No. 5 Woodward Academy 56-31 at home. (see above)

7. (7) Lovett (0-1): Lost to No. 3 Greater Atlanta Christian 24-21 at GAC. It was a late interception that did in the Lions against the Spartans. The showing gives promise for the future of a talented Lovett squad. Quarterback Blaine McAllister rushed for a touchdown from 4 yards out and passed for touchdown to David Shepherd (26 yards). McAllister, a 6-foot-3, 201-pounder, has offers from N.C. State, California, North Carolina and UCLA, to name a few. He passed for 1,794 yards, rushed for 258 yards and had 28 total touchdowns last year.

8. (9) Liberty County (0-0): Will travel to Bradwell Institute on Friday for its opener.

9. (6) Jefferson (0-1): Jefferson lost to Class AAAA Oconee County, 20-13. The Dragons were sloppy in their opener, and an injury to quarterback Colby Clark didn't help. Even though he was down for just one play, it hurt as the backup threw an interception in his only attempt. The mistake was compounded in the fourth quarter on a fumble and easy Oconee County touchdown with 4:08 left in the game. Jefferson will rest this week and will have time to adjust before it travels to West Hall on Aug. 31.

10. (NR) Westside-Macon (1-0): The Seminoles defeated Southwest-Macon 21-0. Victor Dixon Jr. passed for 196 yards and a touchdown on 17-of-31 passing. Back Tyshaun Freeman added 97 yards rushing. The Seminoles will face Harris County on Friday.