Improvement Tracker: Tucker solidifies its place atop Class 5A with rivalry win

Tucker solidified its hold on first place in the AJC Varsity Improvement Tracker with its 20-7 victory over Southwest DeKalb last week. The win left Tucker (6-0, 2-0) as the main challenger in Region 5-5A to No. 4 Mays (7-0, 3-0) and avenged a 2025 defeat to a DeKalb County rival.

Tucker is 6-0 for the first time since 2013. The Tigers were 6-5 in 2025.

AJC Varsity/GHSF Daily will rank the top five teams and their head coaches in each classification weekly based on improvement in the computer Maxwell Ratings from previous seasons and beating preseason expectations.

To qualify for the final standings, teams must have a winning record, make the playoffs and improve on their playoff advancement or seeding from 2025. Only teams with winning records are included in the weekly or final rankings.

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

• +16.14 — Newton (Josh Skelton)
• +11.75 — South Forsyth (James Thomson)
• +9.74 — Parkview (Adam Clack)
• +8.64 — Westlake (Kevin Whitley)
• +8.52 — Brookwood (Chad Nighbert)

Class 6A

• +14.81 — Coffee (Mike Coe)
• +13.17 — Lassiter (Sean Thom)
• +11.01 — Heritage (Conyers) (Quincy Carter)
• +10.95 — Lee County (Dean Fabrizio)
• +9.82 — Sequoyah (James Teter)

Class 5A

• +14.91 — Tucker (Lonnie Jones)
• +9.62 — Dalton (Chris Prewett)
• +9.39 — Cartersville (Conor Foster)
• +4.55 — Richmond Academy (Keenan Grissett)
• +3.04 — Blessed Trinity (Ed Dudley)

Class 4A

• +11.42 — Howard (Trey Porter)
• +7.31 — Peach County (Marquis Westbrook)
• +5.89 — Cairo (David Coleman)
• +4.59 — Troup (Tanner Glisson)
• +4.35 — Baldwin (Kevin Patterson)

Class 3A

• +25.51 — KIPP Atlanta Collegiate (Corey Jarvis)
• +9.32 — Columbia (Greg Barnett)
• +6.85 — Toombs County (Buddy Martin)
• +6.84 — Hephzibah (Daniel Dorsey)
• +1.55 — Hart County (Biff Parson)

Class 2A

• +12.57 — Heard County (Shane Lasseter)
• +12.05 — Model (Jeff Hunnicutt)
• +11.99 — Bremen (Davis Russell)
• +11.07 — Jeff Davis (Lance Helton)
• +8.64 — Commerce (Lenny Gregory)

Class A

• +15.09 — Randolph-Clay (Charles Truitt)
• +7.11 — Taylor County (Jess DeVoursney)
• +6.13 — Washington-Wilkes (Alex Bradford)
• +4.19 — Johnson County (Don Norton)
• +1.84 — Mitchell County (Kaream Hess)