Sports
FROM THE PREP ZONE BLOGS ON AJC.COM
The high school bloggers at ajc.com include Todd Holcomb (Class AAAAAA), Chip Saye (AAAAA), David Purdum (AAAA), Stan Awtrey (AAA), Adam Krohn (AA) and S. Thomas Coleman (A).
Class AAAAAA
Etowah and Collins Hill, the only unbeaten and unranked teams in AAAAAA, made strong cases for themselves Friday, each beating undefeated Top 10 teams.
Collins Hill defeated No. 5 Peachtree Ridge 35-28, and Etowah defeated No. 9 Milton 24-15. Collins Hill (5-0, 3-0) and No. 1-ranked North Gwinnett (5-0, 3-0) are the only unbeaten teams in Region 7. But Collins Hill first must face defending state champion Norcross (4-2, 3-1) next week.
Etowah (6-0, 3-0) emerged as the only unbeaten in Region 5 after Lassiter (3-3, 2-1) upset Walton (3-3, 2-1) 28-21. Lassiter or Walton has won its region every season since 2007 except for 2010 — when Etowah won it.
Here are other noteworthy items from AAAAAA and the other classifications:
- No. 2 McEachern trailed Campbell 28-14 before winning 49-35. No. 3 Colquitt County was behind 14-10 in the fourth quarter before beating Tift County 17-14. No. 6 Camden County beat Coffee 28-21 on a touchdown with 17 seconds left.
- Dacula, 1-9 last season after making the state quarterfinals in 2011, beat Brookwood for the fourth time in five seasons, 21-7. Dacula is 3-1 in Region 8 play under new coach Tommy Jones, a Brookwood graduate, with top contenders Grayson (win) and Archer (loss) trailing.
- Four Region 2 teams entered Friday without a league loss. Now there are two. Newton (2-3, 1-1) beat Alcovy (4-2, 1-1), and third-ranked Lovejoy (5-1, 2-0) beat Rockdale County (4-2, 1-1). Newton plays at Lovejoy on Oct. 25.
Class AAAAA
- North Paulding created a virtual four-way tie for first place in Region 5 with a 31-28 victory against South Paulding, which had taken sole possession of first place and earned the first ranking in program history with an upset of Allatoona last weekend. North Paulding (5-1) and South Paulding (4-1) join Allatoona (5-1) and defending champion East Paulding (4-1) as the region's four one-loss teams. But North Paulding, which already has beaten South and East, is the only one that controls its fate in the race for the region championship. North can win its first region title by winning its remaining four games, which include a trip to Allatoona on Nov. 1.
- Gainesville's Deshaun Watson, who entered the season as the state's all-time leader in career passing yardage, surpassed the 11,000-yard mark in a 51-6 victory against Cedar Shoals. Watson completed 23 of 28 passes for 289 yards and four touchdowns.
- Thomas County Central, the favorite in 1-AAAAA, recovered from a slow start to rout Bainbridge 50-23. The Yellow Jackets gave up two field goals and touchdown passes of 91 and 80 yards while falling behind 20-14 in the first half, but they outscored Bainbridge 36-3 in the second to win going away. Thomas County Central rushed for 446 yards, according to the Thomasville Times-Enterprise.
- Northside and Warner Robins remain the class of 2-AAAAA. The two perennial powerhouses outscored Houston County and Jones County 79-24 and are the only undefeated teams remaining in the region. Northside and Warner Robins meet Nov. 1.
Class AAAA
- Akebren Ralls returned a punt 62 yards for a touchdown, caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Cal King and set up a Dennis Miller field goal with a long kickoff return in sixth-ranked Mary Persons' 16-13 victory against Westside-Macon. Mary Persons (6-0, 3-0 2-AAAAAA) shutout Westside in the first half and has not allowed a point in the first or second quarters this season.
- Cedartown running back Nick Chubb rushed for 176 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries in the Bulldogs' 41-25 victory against River Ridge. Chubb, who committed to Georgia, has 1,532 yards and 24 touchdowns on the season, leading Cedartown to its first 6-0 start since 2003.
- Burke County knocked off No. 5 Wayne County 32-28, handing the Yellow Jackets their first defeat of the season.
- Statesboro rushed for 320 yards and held Swainsboro to 105 yards of offense in a 34-8 victory. The undefeated Blue Devils (6-0) open region play at undefeated Liberty County on Friday. Liberty County improved to 6-0 with a 21-19 victory against Glenn Hills. Super 11 linebacker Raekwon McMillan scored a 5-yard touchdown run for Liberty County.
- Chamblee posted its third shutout of the season in a 45-0 victory against winless Redan. It's the second consecutive shutout for the 4-1 Bulldogs, who have beaten their past two opponents by a combined score of 99-0.
Class AAA
- Ringgold has made a strong case for a state ranking. The Tigers scored an impressive 30-0 victory and ruined Sonoraville's homecoming. Ringgold (4-1) will be favored to win the next three games heading into the regular-season finale against No. 2-ranked Cartersville. Ringgold has not been state-ranked since 1967. Ethan Dalton rushed for a 1-yard touchdown, and Kile Sholl scored from 14 yards to give the Tigers a 14-0 lead after two possessions.
- How does 571 yards rushing sound? It sounds typical for North Hall, which had three players run for more than 100 yards in a 56-31 victory against East Hall. Quarterback Andrew Smith ran for 226 yards and two touchdowns and also threw for a score.
- Morgan County lost 56-14, but limited North Oconee's Kawon Bryant to 228 yards and three touchdowns. Limited? He scored eight touchdowns and topped 300 yards last week. Bryant has 1,335 yards rushing and has scored 24 touchdowns.
- The No. 2-ranked Cartersville Purple Hurricanes nearly set a school scoring record in a 76-13 victory against Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe. According to the Georgia High School Football Historians Association, Cartersville scored 76 points against Covington on Oct. 18, 1929. Most recently, the Canes scored 63 points against Coahulla Creek in 2012.
Class AA
- The No. 5-ranked Washington-Wilkes Tigers have put themselves in the state-title discussion, knocking off their Region 8 nemesis, the No. 4 Jefferson Dragons, with a 21-14 victory in front of the home crowd. The Dragons (3-2, 1-1 in 8-AA) served as a roadblock for the Tigers (6-0, 3-0) last season, as the Tigers marched to a 5-0 start in convincing fashion before losing to the eventual state-champion Dragons, 36-0. But this year is clearly a new year, and the Tigers are well positioned to win their first region title since 2006. Perhaps the only team in the Tigers' way is Rabun County, which improved to 5-0 with a 63-7 victory against Riverside Military. The Tigers and Wildcats meet Oct. 18 in Washington — the week after the Wildcats visit the Dragons.
- The No. 2-ranked Lovett Lions finally lost to an opponent from a larger classification, but it took overtime for Washington County, ranked No. 3 in AAA, to beat the Lions 36-33. The defeat ended an incredible run for the Lions, who opened the season with five consecutive opponents from larger classifications and a resume that includes victories against Marist and St. Pius.
- The rest of the top 10 remains intact, but the rankings will shuffle, with Jefferson possibly making way for Rabun County or Bowden.
Class A
- In the biggest shocker of the night, Claxton (3-2, 1-0) scored 15 points in the fourth quarter to stun Savannah Christian (2-2-1, 0-1) 28-21 and ruin the Raiders' homecoming. Trailing 14-13 after three quarters, the Tigers got two fourth-quarter touchdown runs from quarterback Cornelius Taylor (16 yards and 1 yard), and hung on for their first victory over Savannah Christian since 1999. It ended a seven-game losing streak in the series for Claxton, which is in the driver's seat for the Region 3, Division A crown. At the other end of the state, Christian Heritage (5-1, 2-0) won its fifth consecutive game in impressive fashion, 35-0 over Gordon Lee (3-2, 0-1). The victory for the Lions, in their third season of competition, sets up a showdown with Darlington next week for the Region 6, Division A lead.
- Mount Paran Christian (5-1, 2-0) and Mount Pisgah Christian (5-0, 1-0), appear to be headed for a huge showdown for the subregion crown when they meet Oct. 25 at Mount Paran. Mount Paran kept King's Ridge Christian (2-4, 1-2) reeling after a 45-3 thumping sent the Tigers to their third consecutive loss. The Eagles were led by wide receiver Emoni Williams. The junior had five carries for 129 yards and two touchdowns, two receptions for 68 yards and a score, and a 38-yard interception return for another touchdown, according to the Marietta Daily Journal.
- Perhaps no team in the state has had it as tough as Our Lady of Mercy (1-4, 1-1). The combined record of the four teams that have beaten the Bobcats is 23-5. On Friday, Our Lady of Mercy led 13-10 heading into the fourth quarter at No. 2 Landmark Christian (6-0, 2-0), but couldn't hold on as the War Eagles prevailed 17-13.
