The high school football season gets under way next week, and all but two – Brunswick and Pope – of the 57 Class 6A are on the schedule. The action begins Wednesday night when North Atlanta takes on Johns Creek at Kell High School in the Corky Kell Classic.
Here’s a look at each of the eight Class 6A regions, with a peek back at the 2022 and some projections of what could happen in the weeks ahead.
Region 1
Defending champion: Thomas County Central
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Lee County, 2. Northside-Warner Robins, 3. Houston County, 4. Thomas County Central, 5. Veterans, 6. Tift County
Recap: Thomas County Central was perhaps the biggest surprise in Class 6A last year, going 10-0 in the regular season, winning the region title and advancing to the quarterfinals, all after finishing 5-6 in Class 4A in 2021 before moving up in reclassification. The Yellow Jackets’ 39-30 victory over Lee County essentially decided the region championship and ended the Trojans’ five-year run of region titles. This will be the most wide-open race in Class 6A this year, as Lee County (1), Northside-Warner Robins (8), Houston County (10) and Thomas County Central are all in the top 12 of the computer Maxwell Ratings’ preseason Class 6A forecast.
Region 2
Defending champion: Brunswick
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Brunswick, 2. Glynn Academy, 3. Effingham County, 4. Evans, 5. South Effingham, 6. Lakeside-Evans, 7. Grovetown
Recap: Teams from this region have struggled in the playoffs recently, and that was true again in 2022 as Brunswick, Effingham County, Glynn Academy and Evans all lost in the first round. The loss was particularly tough for region champion Brunswick, which went 10-0 in the regular season but was knocked out 29-28 in overtime by Houston County, which was the No. 4 seed from Region 1 but went on to reach the quarterfinals. Brunswick is the region favorite again this year, but the Pirates are the only projected champion that’s not in the top 10 of the computer’s preseason forecast. Effingham and Glynn Academy are likely to be their top challengers.
Region 3
Defending champion: Woodward Academy
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Woodward Academy, 2. Lovejoy, 3. Mundy’s Mill, 4. Jonesboro, 5. Alcovy, 6. Morrow, 7. Rockdale County, 8. Forest Park
Recap: Woodward Academy moved up from Class 5A and won a region championship for the seventh time in nine seasons, clinching the title with an 11-10 victory over third-place Mundy’s Mill in the next-to-last week of the regular season. Mundy’s Mill, in its first season under coach Earthwind Moreland, won seven games for the first time since 2014. Morrow also had an up year, finishing 5-6 and reaching the playoffs for just the second time since 1998. Woodward Academy and Lovejoy appear to be safe bets for the top two spots this season, so look for Mundy’s Mill, Jonesboro, Morrow and Alcovy to battle it out for the other two playoff berths.
Region 4
Defending champion: Marist
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Marist, 2. St. Pius, 3. North Atlanta, 4. Riverwood, 5. Dunwoody, 6, South Cobb. Lakeside-DeKalb is playing a non-region schedule.
Recap: Marist moved up from Class 4A and won its third consecutive region championship and reached the quarterfinals. The War Eagles’ rival, St. Pius, moved up from 5A and finished in second place, losing to Marist 30-27 in the title-deciding game. Marist played three Class 6A region champions and lost all three games, against Gainesville (34-23) and Woodward Academy (28-21) in the regular season and Rome (17-7) in the playoffs. Third-place North Atlanta, in its third season under Jamie Aull, had the best season in program history, posting a school-record eight victories and winning a playoff game (30-17 vs. Lovejoy) for the first time.
Region 5
Defending champion: Hughes
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Hughes, 2. South Paulding, 3. Douglas County, 4. Newnan, 5. Alexander, 6. Paulding County, 7. East Paulding, 8. New Manchester
Recap: State champion Hughes dominated the classification in 2022. The Panthers set a state record for points in a season (792) and finished as the only 15-0 team in the state, winning every game by at least 26 points except the state final, a 35-28 victory over Gainesville. The Panthers are likely to start this season at No. 1, as well. One thing to watch will be some of the head coaching moves, as two of the region’s head coaches got new jobs within the region. New Manchester hired Olten Downs from Alexander, and Paulding County hired Eric “Sumo” Robinson from South Paulding. In both cases, the coach’s former team beat his new team in 2022.
Region 6
Defending champion: Rome
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Rome, 2. Allatoona, 3. Creekview, 4. Sequoyah, 5. River Ridge, 6. Etowah, 7. Woodstock
Recap: Rome won its fifth region championship in seven seasons, finishing 12-2 with losses to 7A runner-up Carrollton (23-6) in the third week of the season and 6A champ Hughes (42-3) in the state semifinals. The Wolves’ closest game in region play was a 42-19 victory over Allatoona, which finished tied with Sequoyah for second place. Allatoona will have a new coach this year, as former Loganville coach Brad Smith is taking over for Gary Varner, who retired. Varner started the program in 2008, and his teams reached the playoffs every year since the Buccaneers began playing a region schedule in 2010. Allatoona won a state title in 2015.
Region 7
Defending champion: Roswell
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Roswell, 2. Blessed Trinity, 3. Alpharetta, 4. Sprayberry, 5. Johns Creek, 6. Pope, 7. Lassiter
Recap: Newcomers dominated the region in 2022. Roswell and Alpharetta moved down from Class 7A and finished in first and second place, respectively. Blessed Trinity came up from 5A and finished third. Fourth place, and the final playoff spot, went to Sprayberry, a team that had been in 6A but moved over from Region 6. Those are the projected playoff teams again this season. Roswell’s Nykahi Davenport and Chase Davenport and Alpharetta’s Ethan Barbour were named to GHSF Daily’s preseason Class 6A all-state team. The region championship was Roswell’s first since 2019 but was the Hornets’ fifth in eight seasons.
Region 8
Defending champion: Gainesville
Maxwell Ratings’ forecast for 2023: 1. Gainesville, 2. North Forsyth, 3. Shiloh, 4. Lanier, 5. Habersham Central, 6. Jackson County, 7. Apalachee
Recap: Gainesville went 11-10 in Class 7A in 2020 and 2021, but new head coach Josh Niblett came over from Hoover in Alabama and immediately turned the program around. The Red Elephants rolled to 14 consecutive victories, only one of which was closer than 10 points, before losing to Hughes 35-28 in the final. Gainesville had not won more than six games in a season or won a playoff game since 2015, and its region title was the school’s first since 2013. Gainesville is the heavy favorite to repeat as region champ, but North Forsyth hopes to challenge. The Raiders’ 34-21 loss in 2022 was by far the closest game Gainesville had in region play.
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