The Georgia high school football playoffs, normally in the semifinals by now, enter the second round Friday, with 64 games scheduled from Christian Heritage in Dalton to Benedictine and Savannah Christian on the coast.
The pandemic pushed the season back two weeks, meaning a record 128 teams are playing past Thanksgiving with dreams of going past Christmas, when the state finals will be played at Georgia State’s Center Parc Stadium.
Last week’s first round produced few upsets as only four ranked teams were beaten, none in the top five. The computer Maxwell Ratings picked 112 of 124 games correctly, and most of the misses were projected as tight games.
Each round puts more stress of the state’s best teams, and there are 19 games this weekend between top-10 teams.
Here are more facts and figures from the second round.
All suited up: Barring late news, every game scheduled will be played. That’s a first this season. After hundreds of canceled games during the regular season, and three in the first round, all 128 teams are planning to tee it up.
Barely made it: Though short on upsets, the opening round had some stunning finishes. Athens Academy, a 27-point favorite, needed a last-minute drive to force overtime and beat Mount Vernon 49-42. Parkview, River Ridge and Clinch County also needed extra periods to win games in which they were favored. Islands trailed 18-0 in the fourth quarter and beat Hardaway 22-18. Roswell trailed Mill Creek by 20 late in the third and won 28-27. LaGrange was down 26-17 to New Hampstead with less than five minutes left, then scored, recovered an onside kick and scored again to win 30-26. Harrison trailed Newnan 24-20 with seconds left with its opponent in victory formation, but recovered a fumble at Newnan’s 3-yard line and won 26-24. Jones County escaped with a 27-25 win when Wayne County fumbled into the end zone in the final minute. Archer and Bremen won games with touchdowns in the final minute, and Eastside advanced on a field goal as time expired.
Best teams: The No. 1-ranked teams are Grayson (Class 7A), Lee County (6A), Blessed Trinity (5A), Marist (4A), Cedar Grove (3A), Fitzgerald (2A), Prince Avenue Christian (1A Private) and Metter (1A Public). Metter barely got through last week, trailing 13-0 early and 19-14 late before escaping with a 20-19 victory over Turner County, a 20-point underdog. The rest won handily, and all are favored by at least 14 this week.
Best players: Seven of the AJC’s preseason Super 11, and 18 of the consensus top-25 senior recruits, are still playing. None of those had a better game in the first round than Barrett Carter of North Gwinnett. Carter rushed for 197 yards and four touchdowns while making eight solo tackles, four behind the line, with three sacks as his more natural position, linebacker, in a 29-16 victory over Cherokee.
Second-round regulars: Buford – 21-0 in the first round since 2000 – is the only team that has advanced to the second round every season this century. Other impressive second-round streaks belong to Calhoun (20 consecutive seasons in the second round), Ware County (14), Brooks County (13), Eagle’s Landing Christian (13), Colquitt County (12), Blessed Trinity (10) and Prince Avenue Christian (10).
Newcomers: Six teams are in the round of 16 for the first time. They are Cambridge (school opened in 2012), Cherokee Bluff (2018), Denmark (2018), Islands (2014), New Manchester (2011) and River Ridge (2009). Breaking long droughts were Jeff Davis (last made this round in 1997), Riverdale (2001), Northeast (2002), Decatur (2003) and Upson-Lee (2005). South Atlanta and Sprayberry won their first-ever state playoff games last week, although they’ve been in previous rounds or 16 or beyond in long-ago days of smaller playoffs draws.
Best second-round game: Brooks County is playing at Dublin in a rematch of the 2019 Class 2A championship game, only this time both are in Class 1A after reclassification. Dublin, which won the 2019 meeting 42-32, is ranked No. 2. Brooks is No. 3. Both are 9-1.
Other good ones: There are 18 other games between ranked teams, most notably No. 4 Athens Academy at No. 3 Fellowship Christian, No. 5 Flowery Branch at No. 1 Marist and No. 4 Lowndes at No. 8 North Cobb. The closest game, according to Maxwell, will be Rome at River Ridge, rated a pure toss-up. Hancock Central, trying to reach the quarterfinals for the first time in history, is a one-point underdog at home against Lincoln County. South Atlanta, a 27-year-old school, is a slight favorite to advance to the quarters for the first time by beating Bremen at Lakewood Stadium.
What’s next: The quarterfinals represent the first round in which region champions and other same-seeded teams can face off. The GHSA conducted what it calls a universal coin toss this week to decide home-field advantage in those games. No. 1-ranked Lee County of 6A, Marist of 4A and Fitzgerald of 2A could be on the road. But that’s next week. All must win this weekend to stay alive.
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