North Cobb had high hopes for the season after a run to the semifinals in 2012, but a Game 2 loss to Walton sent the Warriors packing from the Class AAAAAA Top 10.
North Cobb redeemed itself in full Friday with a 28-26 victory against second-ranked McEachern. The Warriors are favored to win their first region title since 2007. North Cobb defeated another unbeaten Region 4 opponent, Hillgrove, the week before.
Here are some other developments in AAAAAA and the other classifications:
- Archer's magic number for a first region title is 1. That's because second-place Grayson lost to South Gwinnett 28-21. Grayson had beaten South Gwinnett 40-0 and 41-0 the past two seasons but fell to 4-4 with the loss, meaning Archer (8-0, 6-0) is the only Region 8 team with a winning record overall. Shiloh moved to 4-4 by ending a 21-game losing streak (dating to 1992) against Parkview. The final was 23-21.
- Despite a 2-3 start, Lassiter suddenly is the team to beat again in Region 5 after defeating Milton 31-3 in a game between teams with one region loss. Meanwhile, first-place Etowah was upset by county-rival Cherokee 28-21. Lassiter and Etowah control their destinies and play each other Nov. 8, probably for the region title.
- In Region 6, the top four teams beat the bottom four Friday, so it looks almost certain that the playoff qualifiers will be Alpharetta, South Forsyth, West Forsyth and Lambert. Alpharetta (5-2, 4-0) is in the driver's seat.
- In a game between teams that hadn't lost in Region 3 play, Hughes dominated Newnan 30-3 on Friday and has won six consecutive games since the opening loss to Creekside. The Panthers (6-1, 2-0) will all but clinch their second consecutive Region 3 title next week if they win at East Coweta (4-3, 2-0).
Class AAAAA
- Ware County has taken control of the Region 3 race after knocking off Richmond Hill. Ninth-ranked Ware County is the only remaining unbeaten team in region play and is seeking to win the region for the second consecutive year. Jammar Johnson and Jaquez Bolds each rushed for two touchdowns to lead the Gators.
- Houston County's 27-23 upset of seventh-ranked Warner Robins doesn't change the fact that the Warner Robins-Northside game likely will decide the Region 2 champion, but it was a huge victory for the Bears. Houston County is 2-2 in region play and still has a realistic chance to finish as high as second place.
- McIntosh's dreams of a perfect regular season came to an end when Starr's Mill rallied from an early 20-0 deficit to defeat the Chiefs 42-27 in a Region 4, Division A game. Still, McIntosh has a chance to all but wrap up the subregion title if it can beat eighth-ranked Creekside next week.
- Deshaun Watson clearly enjoys playing against Clarke Central. Last year, the Gainesville quarterback had 413 yards of total offense and a hand in seven touchdowns in a 49-28 victory. In the Red Elephants' 56-28 victory Friday, he passed for 237 yards and three touchdowns, rushed for 67 yards and two touchdowns and had 20 yards and a touchdown receiving, according to the Gainesville Times.
Class AAAA
- Alexander was six minutes away from pulling off the biggest upset of the season. The unranked Cougars, who were 2-8 last year, took a 42-38 lead on defending state champion and top-ranked Sandy Creek with six minutes to play. But the Patriots responded with two late scores and pulled out a 52-42 victory, their 40th consecutive in region play.
- Malik Sheppard and Trey Chivers each ran for two touchdowns, leading second-ranked Carrollton to a 52-7 victory against Shaw. The 7-0 Trojans have outscored their opponents 344-54 this season. Carrollton hosts Sandy Creek on Nov. 1.
- No. 4 Monroe Area hammered Walnut Grove 75-0. It's the most points the Purple Hurricanes have scored since at least 1946, according to the Georgia High School Football Historians Association. Quarterback Stanton Truitt accounted for five touchdowns, and Logan Wall and Tyler Davis each recovered fumbles for touchdowns for the 7-0 Purple Hurricanes.
- In Region 2, Veterans, after an 0-3 start, won its fourth consecutive game, limiting Perry to 70 total yards in 29-0 victory. The Warkhawks improved to 4-0 in Region 2 play and kept pace with unbeaten and sixth-ranked Mary Persons. Akebren Ralls had 234 yards, and quarterback Cal King passed for two touchdowns to lead Mary Persons to a 47-20 victory against Rutland. The Bulldogs are 7-0 for the first time since 1997 and have yet to allow a point in the first half this season. Mary Persons hosts Veterans on Nov. 1.
Class AAA
- Perhaps the biggest upset of the season in AAA was White County's 21-7 victory against No. 4 North Hall. White County found a way to stifle a North Hall offense that had run roughshod over the rest of Region 7. North Hall had scored 306 points in its first six games. But the Warriors were able to limit the Trojans to their lowest point total since last year's 31-6 loss to St. Pius in the state playoffs. It was White County's first against North Hall since 2010 and the second victory over the Trojans in the last 20 meetings.
- North Hall wasn't the only ranked team to lose on Friday night. No. 8 North Oconee lost to Elbert County 28-23, while No. 9 Cedar Grove was beaten by No. 7 St. Pius 38-12. Elbert quarterback Mecole Hardman ran for two touchdowns, and Tra Barnett and Rantious Reed each scored one in the victory. But the deciding factor may have been Elbert's defense, which limited North Oconee's Kawon Bryant, the top rusher in AAA, to a season-low 142 yards and one touchdown. The Elbert defense recovered two fumbles and had an interception.
- St. Pius ran for 256 yards and overcame two turnovers to beat the Saints. After turning the ball over on their first possession, the Golden Lions scored on four of their next five times they had the ball. Dalton Wilson led St. Pius with 96 yards and two touchdowns and quarterback Joey Connors tacked on two touchdowns.
Class AA
- Region 5 has shaped up to be a two-way fight between No. 9-ranked Bowdon and Heard County for the No. 1 seed. The Red Devils (8-0, 6-0 in 5-AA) defeated Spencer, which was looking to tie Bowdon at the top of the standings, 40-8. The Braves (6-1, 5-0) defeated Jordan, 56-13. The Red Devils and Braves will meet in the season finale Nov. 8 at Heard County. The Braves beat Bowdon last year 28-13 on their way to the region title.
- The No. 10 Vidalia Indians edged Bryan County 34-2 to seize control of the No. 2 seed in 2-AA. The Indians improve to 7-1 and 6-1 in the region, while Bryan County, which entered the game No. 3 in the region standings, dropped to 5-3 and 4-3. The Region belongs to the No. 7-ranked Benedictine Cadets (9-0, 8-0), who won 56-0 against Bacon County.
- The No. 4-ranked Washington-Wilkes Tigers unofficially won Region 8-AA with a convincing 52-7 victory against the Rabun County Wildcats. Had the Wildcats won, there would have been a three-way tie at the top of the region between them, the Tigers and Jefferson. The Tigers (8-0, 5-0) have Oglethorpe County and Social Circle remaining and outscored those teams a combined 91-15 last season. The Wildcats (5-2, 2-2), meanwhile, are one victory from a second consecutive winning season and are chasing their first back-to-back playoff berths since the 1981-82 seasons.
Class A
- Landmark Christian knows how to win. The players proved it again Friday with a 17-10 homecoming victory against Pace Academy (4-3, 1-2). Just as it had against Our Lady of Mercy two weeks ago, Landmark Christian went into the fourth quarter trailing by a score, this time 14-10 after a third-quarter touchdown reception of 5 yards by the Knights' Kameron Uter — his second of the game. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound senior had an 81-yarder in the second quarter. But the War Eagles put together a nine-play drive that ate up nearly all of the game's final five minutes, and sophomore quarterback Stockton McGuire finished it off with a 2-yard touchdown run with 36 seconds left in regulation to keep Landmark Christian unbeaten and on a collision course with No. 1 Eagle's Landing Christian Academy in the last regular-season game Nov. 8.
- No. 1 Eagle's Landing Christian may not be the team it was last season, which featured five NCAA Division I players. But the Chargers still are the gold standard. Led by senior quarterback Dalton Etheridge and a physical offensive line led by senior offensive tackle Beau Beasley, ELCA pulled away from Our Lady of Mercy (2-5, 2-2) in the second half for a 32-6 homecoming victory. Etheridge ran for three touchdowns.
- The No. 7 Marion County Eagles (7-0, 3-0) got 91 yards rushing on 25 carries by senior running back Johnny Royal, including a 2-yard touchdown run with less than two minutes left in the fourth quarter, according to the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, and hung on for a 27-25 victory against Dooly County (4-3, 3-1). The victory puts Marion County in prime position to win its third Region 4 title in four seasons.
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