Rome and Carrollton had played each other only twice in their football histories before spending six seasons in the same region beginning in 2016, first for four years in Class 5A and then the past two in 6A.
They’re no longer together, as Carrollton has moved up to Class 7A, but they decided to keep the rivalry going, and they will meet Friday night at Carrollton’s Grisham Stadium in one of the most high-profile matchups in the state in Week 3.
The series is tied 4-4, but Rome won four of the six meetings as region rivals.
Rome won last year 45-27 behind five touchdowns (four rushing, one on a fumble return) by Bryson Hill, now at Cumberland University, but the teams ended up in a three-way tie for first place with South Paulding in Region 5-6A. Rome earned the No. 1 seed for the playoffs through region tiebreakers but lost in the first round. Carrollton was the No. 2 seed and advanced to the state semifinals, where it lost to Buford 21-6.
This year, both teams have outstanding quarterbacks. Carrollton freshman Julian “Ju Ju” Lewis is 35-of-56 passing for 506 yards and nine touchdowns. Rome’s Reece Fountain is a junior and three-year starter who has thrown for 3,618 yards and 30 touchdowns in his career.
Other players to watch include Carrollton RB Bryson Hicks, who has 199 yards rushing and 120 receiving this season; Rome CB/WR Martel Hight, who is committed to Vanderbilt; and Rome DL Stephaylin Green, a preseason all-state selection.
Here are some of the other notable games this weekend involving Class 6A schools. All games are Friday.
*Bainbridge at Thomas County Central: Thomas County Central, in its first season under coach Justin Rogers, was under the radar as it jumped two classes from 4A, but the Yellow Jackets have raised some eyebrows with lopsided victories over Cairo (50-7) and Thomasville (31-0), two smaller but well-respected programs. A win over Class 4A No. 5 Bainbridge would be the biggest one yet.
*Glynn Academy at Camden County: Brunswick and Glynn Academy were the top two Region 2 teams in the computer Maxwell Ratings’ preseason projections, and this game will give Glynn a chance to see how it stacks up with its neighborhood rival. Camden lost to Brunswick 16-10 last week, dropping the Wildcats to 0-2 after a surprising 13-10 loss to Columbia in the season opener.
*Roswell at Marietta: Roswell, which dropped from 7A this season, is playing three teams from the highest class in the non-region part of its schedule. The first was Denmark, which Roswell beat 35-10. Marietta is the second, followed by rival Milton next week. In between, the Hornets defeated Class 5A Centennial 35-14. These teams haven’t met since 1999, but Marietta leads the series 12-3.
*St. Pius at Jefferson: Both teams are off to somewhat disappointing 1-1 starts. Jefferson lost to Alpharetta 47-46 in the opener and St. Pius lost to Flowery Branch 9-0 last week. Both have two-way stars. St. Pius DB/RB Jack Tchienchou was rated the top player in 6A on GHSF Daily’s preseason all-state team. Jefferson LB/RB Sammy Brown is the top LB prospect nationally among juniors.
*Warner Robins at Northside-Warner Robins: Warner Robins leads this rivalry 39-25 but had taken a beating in recent years, losing 16 of 21 from 1996 to 2016. Now the pendulum has swung back to the Demons, who have won five straight in the series. Both teams lost their openers, but Northside rebounded with a big victory against Peach County last week while Warner Robins was off.
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