The final week of the regular season is in the books, and the first-round pairings for the Class 3A football playoffs are listed below.
Two undecided regions – Region 1 and Region 2 – confirmed the pecking order Friday, alongside the other six regions which determined their champions last week.
-- Arguably the biggest upset of the night was an unranked White County (7-2, 3-2) beating ninth-ranked Region 7 champion Cherokee Bluff 49-7. Bluff was trying for its first undefeated season since forming three years ago. White got the scoring started on a 12-yard pass from J. Ben Haynes to Darius Cannon, then completed three other touchdown passes. Silas Mulligan had two late touchdowns to secure the victory. Sebastian Irons provided Cherokee Bluff’s only points on a 1-yard touchdown run. Cherokee Bluff will play LaFayette in the first round.
-- In Region 1, No. 8 Pierce County captured the No. 1 seed after a 28-21 victory against rival No. 5 Appling County. The Bears finished 8-1 and 4-0 in region play to win their third consecutive region title and second for coach Ryan Herring. Pierce County will host Burke County in the first round. Appling County will play Morgan County.
-- In Region 2, No. 3 Peach County, which cancelled its game against Central-Macon this week due to positive COVID-19 tests and is sidelined until the playoffs, is the No. 1 seed. No. 4 Crisp County took the No. 2 seed, with Central-Macon No. 3 and Upson-Lee No. 4.
We will break down each quadrant of the bracket Tuesday, but here are several things that jump out at first glance:
-- No. 2 Oconee County’s opening matchup against Region 5 No. 4 Westminster should be interesting. Westminster has a history of unexpected playoff runs.
-- No. 1 Cedar Grove, the No. 3 seed from Region 5 after four forfeits and games cancelled by COVID-19, should meet No. 4 Crisp County in the quarterfinals for rematch of last year’s championship game.
-- White County, the No. 4 seed from Region 7, is coming off its big victory against Cherokee Bluff and could cause trouble for No. 7 Rockmart, the No. 1 seed from Region 6, in the first round.
Class 3A first-round pairings
R4 #3 Morgan County at R1 #2 Appling County
R2 #4 Upson-Lee at R3 #1 Southeast Bulloch
R6 #3 North Murray at R7 #2 North Hall
R8 #4 Franklin County at R5 #1 Greater Atlanta Christian
R7 #3 Dawson County at R6 #2 Adairsville
R5 #4 Westminster at R8 #1 Oconee County
R1 #3 Tattnall County at R4 #2 Thomson
R3 #4 Johnson-Savannah at R2 #1 Peach County
R8 #3 Hart County at R5 #2 Carver-Atlanta
R6 #4 LaFayette at R7 #1 Cherokee Bluff
R2 #3 Central-Macon at R3 #2 Liberty
R4 #4 Burke County at R1 #1 Pierce County
R3 #3 Windsor Forest at R2 #2 Crisp County
R1 #4 Brantley County at R4 #1 Richmond Academy
R5 #3 Cedar Grove at R8 #2 Monroe Area
R7 #4 White County at R6 #1 Rockmart
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