Friday football recap: Valdosta, Carrollton, Roswell win region showdowns
Valdosta, Carrollton, Roswell, Sandy Creek and Hebron Christian won region championships in blockbuster games against top-10 opponents Friday night, while Jackson County, Locust Grove and Wheeler County claimed historic first region championships in the final week of the regular season.
Valdosta won the Winnersville Classic, defeating crosstown Lowndes 23-14 in Region 1 of Class 6A. Valdosta was ranked No. 9, while Lowndes was ranked No. 4.
Valdosta, Lowndes and Colquitt County finished with 9-1, 4-1 records, but the region title was decided on a tiebreaker – fewest points allowed in games among the three – which favored Valdosta. Lowndes will be seeded No. 2 and Colquitt County No. 3 for the state playoffs, which begin on Nov. 14.
The region title is Valdosta’s first overall since 2016 and first in the highest class with Lowndes as a region rival since 2011.
Also in Class 6A, No. 3 Carrollton beat No. 6 Douglas County 55-22 for the Region 2 championship. Cam Wood rushed for 149 yards and four touchdowns, and Rontre Welch broke the game open late in the third quarter with a 99-yard kickoff return.
The title is Carrollton’s fourth in a row, the longest streak of its kind for the school since the 1970s. It was Carrollton’s 21st straight region victory.
In Class 5A, No. 3 Roswell defeated No. 5 Milton 41-39 on Balint Vorosmarty’s 48-yard field goal with 42 seconds left. It was Roswell’s seventh region championship in 11 seasons, but first when both north Fulton County rivals were in the same region since 2015.
No. 1 Sandy Creek of Class 3A beat No. 4 Troup 42-17 in a game of unbeaten teams to win Region 2. It is Sandy Creek’s second straight title and first 10-0 regular season since 2013.
No. 1 Hebron Christian defeated No. 5 Prince Avenue Christian 43-6 in a rematch of the 2024 Class 3A-A Private championship. This game settled the Region 8-2A championship, which Prince Avenue won last year. The 37-point differential was the largest inflicted on Prince Avenue since 2017.
Making history was Jackson County, which beat Habersham Central 56-3 to win Region 8 of Class 5A. Jackson County (9-1) opened in 1980, and this marks the first championship or nine-win season in the Panthers’ history.
Locust Grove also won a region title for the first time. A Class 4A school in Henry County, Locust Grove beat Jones County 19-3 in Region 2. Locust Grove, which opened in 2009, had a 6-34 record over the previous four seasons before breaking through this season with a 9-1 record under fourth-year coach Garry Fisher.
Wheeler County’s first championship ended the longest dry spell, to 1966, when the southeast Georgia school first played varsity football. Wheeler County beat Treutlen 58-14 for the Region 4-Division II title.
Several teams clinched region championships on Friday or Thursday.
Winning in winner-take-all games were Buford (over Mill Creek), Hughes (over Lovejoy), West Laurens (over Westside of Augusta), Morgan County (over Callaway), Rockmart (over North Murray), Toombs County (over Savannah Christian), Lamar County (over Jasper County), Fellowship Christian (over Whitefield Academy), Heard County (over Pepperell), Screven County (over ECI) and Bowdon (over Trion).
Other teams that clinched were Grayson, Marietta, West Forsyth, Cairo, Stephenson, Jefferson, Appling County, Northeast, Johnson County and Taylor County.
In good games between top-10 teams that didn’t decide region titles, No. 8 Houston County beat No. 6 Lee County 34-28 in 5A, and No. 9 Cambridge beat No. 8 Blessed Trinity 31-28 in overtime in 4A.
In a game of interest among non-contenders, Chattahoochee beat Johns Creek 49-3. Johns Creek’s field goal represents the only points for the season in a 0-10 finish, and it avoided matching 1963 Sandy Springs as the only GHSA teams not to score over its 10-game schedule. Johns Creek coach Jim Rowell stepped down earlier this week. The interim coach was Nick Brigham.
About the Author
Todd Holcomb has been a contributor to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 1985. He is currently co-founder and editor of Georgia High School Football Daily.
