GHSA to discuss postponing Roswell-Thomas Central playoff semifinal
The Georgia High School Association will talk with Roswell and Thomas County Central officials Monday about the possibility of postponing their Class 5A semifinal football game Friday while the GHSA waits for courts to settle the matter of Gainesville’s suspended players.
The GHSA postponed the Gainesville-Hughes quarterfinal on Wednesday after a superior court judge granted a temporary restraining order preventing the GHSA from suspending 34 Gainesville players who were part of an altercation during a Nov. 21 victory over Brunswick.
The Gainesville-Hughes winner will play Rome, which won its quarterfinal game Friday night. Roswell will play at Thomas County Central, which is 250 miles away.
GHSA executive director Tim Scott said Saturday he prefers to have the semifinals played on the same date so that winning teams have the same rest period before the championship game.
“It’s the fairest for the teams,” Scott said. “You don’t want to play a semifinal on one side of the bracket while we’re playing a quarterfinal on the other.”
Scott said he spoke with Roswell and Thomas County Central on Saturday morning and informed them of a possible postponement. He wanted to wait until early afternoon Monday to make a decision.
“There’s a likelihood (a postponement) could happen, but until I get more information, I can’t say,” Scott said. “I want to wait and see what I find out Monday (primarily from GHSA counsel regarding the court cases) and get them together and talk about it. Roswell has to travel to Thomas County Central. If they have hotels they have to cancel before Monday night, we went to make sure we’re aware of that and we have that conversation.”
GHSA bylaws do not allow teams to play twice in the same calendar week except for makeup games with GHSA permission, so it would seem unlikely that Gainesville and Hughes would play their quarterfinal and a semifinal in the same week.
The Gainesville drama began with an altercation among players during a Nov. 21 game that Gainesville led 42-0 with 1:57 left in the third quarter. Officials stopped the game and Gainesville was declared the winner.
Players who participated in the altercation, either by directly engaging, leaving the bench area or moving toward the area of the fight, were suspended Monday.
Gainesville won the restraining order Wednesday afternoon that prevented GHSA from suspending the players until a court hearing. The GHSA announced later that day it was appealing that court’s decision and postponing the Gainesville-Hughes quarterfinal until there was a resolution.
The Class 5A championship game is scheduled for Dec. 16 in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Dec. 16 is a Tuesday, 10 days after Friday’s scheduled semifinals.
The GHSA could postpone the semifinals four days, to Dec. 9, and still give teams seven days rest between games, although there is no bylaw that prevents a shorter rest period except the one-game-per-week rule.
About the Author
Todd Holcomb covers high school sports across the state. He rejoined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2025 and has worked with the AJC in varying capacities since 1985. He is a co-founder and editor of Georgia High School Football Daily.
