Grayson and Lowdnes are in the top 10 of the two most widely known national polls, USA Today and MaxPreps, and they have separated themselves at the one-third mark of Georgia’s regular season. Collquitt County also won a game Friday night that was good for the Packers' soul.
Here’s a look at how the top 10 fared Friday and how the seasons are unfolding for those teams and a few more.
1. Grayson – The Rams beat Archer 26-7. Archer is outside the top 10, but remember that Archer and Grayson have been arch-region rivals the past four seasons, so beating the Tigers is always a good win, even when they’re 0-3. Archer still might win Region 7. (Grayson is in Region 4 now.)
2. Lowndes – The Vikings beat Class 6A’s No. 2 team, Lee County, 38-13. This is Lowndes' most talented team since the 2003-08 era. One question mark was the transition from retired coach Randy McPherson to new coach Jamey DuBose. That question mark is fading as Lowndes is 4-0 heading into its off week.
3. North Gwinnett – This one is hard to explain. Coming off a 21-0 victory over then-No. 3 Parkview, North Gwinnett tumbled to unranked Lovejoy 19-7, scoring only on a pick six. It ended the Bulldogs' 27-game home winning streak. Letdowns are human. North Gwinnett was GHSF Daily’s team of the week, and Bill Stewart was the Atlanta Falcons' coach of the week. Was it too much love? Might do the Bulldogs well in the long run. North Gwinnett lost its opener in 2017, when it won a state title, so it’s a long ways until late December.
4. Colquitt County – The Packers beat Valdosta 24-10 in the return to Moultrie of Rush Propst, now Valdosta’s coach. Colquitt needed that, and so did Justin Rogers, the Packers' coach. There’s been no more important recent game for Colquitt mentally and spiritually that this one.
5. Mill Creek – The Hawks lost to No. 6 Brookwood 24-13. Not a bad loss. Mill Creek was coming off a nice win over Dacula and appears to have a solid defense again. The offense will come around.
6. Brookwood – The Broncos beat No. 5 Mill Creek. This puts them in line for their first top-five state ranking since they opened 2011 at No. 1 after the 2010 state championship. It was supposed to be a breakout year for the team, and it’s feeling that way. Sophomore QB Dylan Lonergan leads an exciting, talented offense.
7. Parkview – The Panthers bounced back from their loss to North Gwinnett to beat Loganville 42-0. Loganville is Parkview coach Eric Godfree’s former team from Class 5A.
8. Norcross – The Blue Devils beat South Gwinnett 45-14. It’s shaping up to be a good year for Norcross, which is 4-0 for the first time since the 11-1 team of 2016.
9. North Cobb – The Warriors were off.
10. Milton – The Eagles moved to 2-0 with a 43-18 victory over Class 3A’s No. 9 team, Hapeville Charter. Next is Cedar Grove, the No. 1 team in 3A.
Others: Two former top-10 teams are knocking on the door to get back in. Camden County beat 2019 champion Marietta 24-21 while Collins Hill beat 6A’s No. 10 team, Rome, 28-14. ... Newnan is 3-0 for the first time since 2009 after a 44-7 victory over Mary Persons. ... Hillgrove got its first win under coach Byron Slack and beat McEachern 38-29. Hillgrove leads the series with its arch-rival 6-5. ... Cherokee is 4-0 after a 14-9 victory over Creekview. ... Lambert, which beat Duluth 26-10, is the eighth team in history to start 4-0 after an 0-10 season. Thanks to Loren Maxwell of GHSFHA.com for helping research that statistic. ... North Forsyth also is 4-0 after beating Cambridge 42-14.
