Improvement Tracker: Lassiter, Dougherty take lead

Lassiter and Dougherty moved into first place in the AJC Varsity Improvement Tracker for their classifications.

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Lassiter (6-1) clinched its first winning season since 2017 last week with a 52-7 victory over Pope. The 6-1 start is the program’s best since it began 7-0 in 2012. Shane Thom is the Trojans’ fifth-year coach.

Dougherty (6-1) is coming off a 26-23 victory over then-No. 4 Cairo in a Class 4A game. That moved Dougherty into the Top 10. Dougherty was 2-9 last season.

The Improvement Tracker is based on an objective formula that uses current and historical Maxwell Ratings. Improvement from 2025 counts most, but the formula also considers previous years to discourage rewarding traditionally strong teams that simply bounce back from a down year.

The year-end winners will receive awards, presented by Formetco, at the Georgia Football Coaches Association College Coaches Luncheon in February in Macon.

The schools are listed below. Coaches’ names are in parentheses.

Class 7A

• +14.70 - Newton (Josh Skelton)
• +12.65 - Valdosta (Shelton Felton)
• +9.32 - South Forsyth (James Thomson)
• +8.72 - Parkview (Adam Clack)
• +7.89 - Brookwood (Chad Nighbert)

Class 6A

• +13.57 - Lassiter (Sean Thom)
• +12.38 - Coffee (Mike Coe)
• +10.95 - East Paulding (Van Spence)
• +8.98 - Bradwell Institute (John Adams)
• +8.38 - Lee County (Dean Fabrizio)

Class 5A

• +14.84 - Tucker (Lonnie Jones)
• +10.58 - Dalton (Chris Prewett)
• +9.24 - Cartersville (Conor Foster)
• +8.76 - Richmond Academy (Keenan Grissett)
• +5.26 - Mays (Reginald Austin)

Class 4A

• +10.23 - Dougherty (Uyl Joyner)
• +9.62 - Howard (Trey Porter)
• +6.87 - Peach County (Marquis Westbrook)
• +4.89 - Baldwin (Kevin Patterson)
• +4.65 - Troup (Tanner Glisson)

Class 3A

• +25.69 - KIPP Atlanta Collegiate (Corey Jarvis)
• +9.97 - Toombs County (Buddy Martin)
• +9.23 - Columbia (Greg Barnett)
• +8.71 - Hephzibah (Daniel Dorsey)
• +4.20 - Hart County (Biff Parson)

Class 2A

• +13.85 - Heard County (Shane Lasseter)
• +10.54 - Bremen (Davis Russell)
• +9.35 - Model (Jeff Hunnicutt)
• +8.84 - Commerce (Lenny Gregory)
• +6.99 - Jeff Davis (Lance Helton)

Class A

• +13.79 - Randolph-Clay (Charles Truitt)
• +8.80 - Taylor County (Jess DeVoursney)
• +7.59 - Johnson County (Don Norton)
• +7.34 - Washington-Wilkes (Alex Bradford)
• +3.82 - Lake Oconee Academy (Patrick Stewart)