Camden County and Woodward Academy upset No. 1-ranked teams, Bryan County and Telfair County advanced the semifinals for the first time and Mill Creek, Buford, Colquitt County and Gainesville met the end of the road Friday night in the high school football quarterfinals.
Camden County, unranked in Class 7A, defeated Mill Creek, the defending champion and No. 1 team, 39-20 while making the longest road trip (666 miles round trip) of any team in the quarterfinals.
Camden County was 7-3 entering the playoffs and not assured of making it until winning its final regular-season game, against Lowndes. The Wildcats now have won three consecutive playoff rounds on the road to reach the semifinals for the first time since its state-championship season of 2009.
Buford, the preseason No. 1 in Class 7A, was ousted by Grayson 19-14, while No. 3 Colquitt County lost to Milton 39-37. Both winners were playing at home.
The 7A semifinals will be Camden County at No. 2 Walton and No. 10 Milton at No. 6 Grayson.
Woodward Academy defeated Class 6A’s No. 1 team, Gainesville 20-17. Woodward Academy, ranked No. 10, had made the semifinals as recently as 2019 in Class 4A, but this semifinal comes one class from the top. Gainesville, the 2022 runner-up in 6A, finished 12-1.
The 6A semifinals will have Woodward Academy at No. 3 Douglas County, making its first final four since 1988, and No. 2 Thomas County Central at No. 8 Marist.
In 5A, the four highest-ranked teams advanced, and the semifinals will have No. 3 Jefferson at No. 2 Creekside and No. 1 Coffee at No. 4 Cartersville.
Class 4A’s No. 1 team, Benedictine, defeated No. 2 North Oconee 48-26 and will travel to No. 6 Stockbridge, a 35-14 winner over previously unbeaten Spalding.
In the other 4A semifinal, No. 7 Perry, in its first semifinals appearance since 1959, will play at No. 8 Starr’s Mill, which beat previously unbeaten Central-Carroll 35-29. Starr’s Mill won on a 41-yard TD pass from Logan Inagawa to Lincoln Delaire on the final play of the game.
Class 3A’s top two teams advanced as No. 1 Calvary Day defeated Wesleyan 42-21 while Cedar Grove beat Mary Persons 28-14. The winners will meet at Cedar Grove next week. The other semifinal will have No. 9 Carver-Columbus at No. 4 Savannah Christian.
The Class 2A semifinals will be No. 10 Fitzgerald at No. 3 Pierce County and No. 9 Cook at No. 6 Rockmart.
In Class A Division I, 10th-ranked Bryan County defeated No. 3 Commerce 24-16 to reach its first semifinal ever. Bryan started football in 1976. The Redskins (12-1) had never won a playoff game until this season.
Bryan County will play at No. 1 Prince Avenue Christian, the defending champion, next week. No. 8 Swainsboro will play at unranked Brooks County in the other semifinal.
Telfair County, an unranked Class A Division II team that lost its final two regular-season games, defeated No. 3 Macon County 38-14 to reach its first semifinal. Telfair County started football in 1967.
Telfair County will play at No. 3 Manchester next week. No. 1 Schley County will play at defending champion Bowdon in the other semifinal, a rematch of last year’s final.
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