Here’s what to look for during the second week of the high school football playoffs.
Class AAAAAA
Every Top 10 team in AAAAAA survived the first round, but at least three will be eliminated Friday as the playoff bracket has conspired to produce some second-round blockbusters.
Those are No. 8 Hillgrove at No. 2 Camden County, No. 3 Colquitt County at No. 10 North Cobb and No. 1 North Gwinnett at No. 4 Archer.
The home team is perhaps the underdog in two of them. Archer (11-0) is the only unbeaten team in the class, but seeks the respect that only a victory against a team such as North Gwinnett can provide. North Gwinnett has two victories against Top 10 teams. Archer has none.
North Cobb is the Region 4 champion, but Colquitt County is protecting a streak of four semifinal runs that have included several impressive road victories.
Region 1 champion Camden County is expected to defeat Hillgrove, but Hillgrove has won in the playoffs at Camden County before (2010).
Other things to watch for this week in AAAAAA and the other classifications:
- Jordan Ellis of Peachtree Ridge and Preston Williams of Lovejoy inserted themselves as player-of-the-year candidates with huge games last week. Ellis rushed for 263 yards and scored six touchdowns against Lassiter, and Williams caught seven passes for 275 yards and four touchdowns against Marietta. Peachtree Ridge is at Dacula. Lovejoy is at home against Lowndes.
- Two other running backs ran for more than 200 yards in the first round. Brookwood's Jesse Brown will face Norcross' tough defense, which pitched a shutout against Etowah in the first round. Hughes' Keion Davis plays against McEachern.
- Although ranked No. 7, Collins Hill is the team to beat in its quarter of the draw. Perhaps no team has a better running back/quarterback pair than the Eagles' Tyler Herman (2,530 yards passing) and running back Tyler Henderson (1,410 yards rushing). Collins Hill is at Alpharetta.
Class AAAAA
- For the second consecutive season, the only two regions to win three games in the first round were 5-AAAAA (North Paulding, South Paulding, East Paulding) and 6-AAAAA (Tucker, Mays, Stephenson). In 2012, the remaining six teams from those regions went head-to-head in the second round, with Region 5 taking two of the three matchups.
- No second-round game brings together two teams with more recent success than the matchup between Northside-Warner Robins and Ware County. Northside has won at least 10 games for a state-record 16th consecutive season, with state titles in 2006 and 2007 and runner-up finishes in 2005 and 2009. Ware County has won 10 games or more seven times in 11 seasons and reached the state final in 2007 and 2012. Ware County beat the Eagles 24-17 in overtime in the semifinals last season.
- Creekside had three consecutive seasons of 10 or more victories from 1998-2000 and 2004-06, but it had not won a playoff game since the most recent streak was broken. That drought ended in the first round when the Seminoles beat Lakeside-Evans 47-14 to improve to 11-0 for the fourth time in the program's 24-year history.
Class AAAA
- Monroe Area didn't stand up to Sandy Creek in a 35-0 semifinal playoff loss to the eventual-champion Patriots last season. The third-ranked Purple Hurricanes get a shot at another Region 5 perennial powerhouse, No. 4 Carrollton. "Carrollton doesn't have a weakness. They've got five or six (Division I recruits), spread out all over the field," Monroe Area coach Matt Fligg said of the Trojans, who are in the playoffs for the 26th consecutive season. "We're playing a legendary team." Carrollton's only loss came against No. 1 Sandy Creek.
- Marist beat Gilmer 56-0 in the first round last season. Gilmer coach Wesley Tankersley is changing his approach Friday, when the Bobcats travel to Marist. "Last year, we took charter buses down," Tankersley said. "We're taking the old yellow buses this time. We're trying to go blue-collar, keep the same routine." Gilmer is 2-9 all-time on the road in the preseason. Marist is 48-2 at home in the playoffs since 1987.
- Lanier hosts Alexander in the only second-round matchup featuring two unranked teams. The Longhorns are led by junior running back Tario Fuller, who has 1,458 yards rushing. Alexander counters with junior running back Mikell Lands-Davis, who is expected to surpass the 2,000-yard mark. Lands-Davis' 1,957 yards are the most of any player remaining in the playoffs in any classification.
Class AAA
Two of the state’s highly ranked teams flirted with disaster last week before they escaped. It’s unlikely that No. 2 Cartersville or No. 4 Carver will wriggle off the hook as easily this week. Cartersville (11-0) kept its season alive when West Hall missed a 41-yard field-goal attempt in the closing seconds, allowing the Hurricanes to sneak away with a 28-26 victory. Carver (10-1) needed four overtimes and two missed extra points to overcome first-year playoff participant B.E.S.T. Academy 38-32. Cartersville plays St. Pius (8-3), which finished second in the state last year. Carver will have to overcome Jefferson County (8-3), which brings an impressive defense into the game.
In other top games:
- Woodward Academy (9-2) at Buford (11-0): Buford warmed up last week with a 58-0 victory against outmatched Sonoraville, which was making its first trip to the playoffs. Joshua Thomas scored two of Buford's nine touchdowns. Woodward Academy put up big numbers against better competition, whipping North Oconee 53-21. This will be the first meeting between the two successful programs.
- White County (9-2) at Blessed Trinity (8-3): This is the only rematch in the second round. Blessed Trinity defeated White County 30-0 on Sept. 20. White's only other loss was against Buford. Each team has exceptional running backs: White County's Dalton Whitfield (237 yards and three touchdowns last week) and Blessed Trinity's Chad Manthey (228 yards).
- Cedar Grove (7-4) at Ringgold (9-2): The Saints were the only No. 4 seed to win a first-round game. Cedar Grove enjoyed a dominating defensive performance from linebacker Bryson Allen-Williams, who had 23 tackles. This week he'll be focused on slowing Ringgold quarterback Slade Dale, who ran for 164 yards and threw for 220 in a victory against North Hall.
Class AA
- The No. 5-ranked Calhoun Yellow Jackets will host the No. 3 Greater Atlanta Christian Spartans, with the winner likely advancing to the semifinals to face No. 1-ranked Lamar County. The Yellow Jackets and Spartans have played twice, with both games in the second round of the state playoffs. The Yellow Jackets hosted both games, with the Spartans winning 41-38 in 2002 and 26-7 in 2007. Calhoun is a No. 1-seed, GAC a No. 2-seed.
- All eight No. 1 seeds are still alive, but will all make it out of the second round? Aside from GAC-Calhoun, another matchup to watch will be the No. 9-ranked Vidalia Indians at the Laney Wildcats. Vidalia, a No. 2 seed, made easy work of its first-round opponent, Taylor County, winning 52-7. Laney barely survived its first-round matchup against Cook, winning 18-13.
- There are three teams remaining with perfect records: Lamar County, the No. 4-ranked Washington-Wilkes Tigers and the No. 6-ranked Benedictine Cadets. The Trojans host Thomasville. The Tigers host Bowdon. Benedictine hosts Fitzgerald.
Class A
Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy and Seminole County are the top seeds in the private- and public-school playoffs in Class A. Here’s a look at their first-round matchups:
- No. 16 Athens Christian (5-5) at No. 1 Eagle's Landing Christian Academy (9-0): ELCA is going after its second consecutive private-school state title and has established itself as one of the state's dominant programs. The Chargers have advanced at least as far as the state quarterfinals the past three seasons and are a combined 46-4 since 2010. Athens Christian battled its way into the playoffs with clutch victories in the final two weeks of the season to earn enough points to qualify for the final playoff spot on the private-school side. ELCA has won all four previous meetings between the two schools by a combined score of 144-34.
- No. 16 Wilkinson County (4-6) at No. 1 Seminole County (10-0): Seminole County went undefeated through the regular season for the first time since 1973 and won its third consecutive Region 1 title. Seminole was knocked out in the second round of last season's public-school playoffs by eventual runner-up Dooly County (34-28). Wilkinson County made the tournament despite having a losing record.
About the Author
