A pair of unranked teams, South Atlanta and South Paulding, defeated top-five opponents in their region opening games Friday night, both as heavy underdogs by nearly the same scores.

South Atlanta defeated No. 5 Lovett 34-33 in Region 6-2A while South Paulding beat No. 4 Rome 34-32 in Region 5-6A on a night when only 12 ranked teams lost. Two of those were ranked No. 1, however – Buford and Irwin County.

Buford lost 7-0 to Chaminade-Madonna, Florida’s No. 1-ranked team in Class 3A and winner of three state titles over the past four seasons. Buford was favored, ranked in some top-25 national rankings after its 3-0 start, and had not been shut out since 2015 when beaten by Cartersville 10-0 in the Class 4A championship game.

Irwin County, the No. 1 team in Class A Public, lost to a Class 7A school, Tift County, 16-14.

A couple of games between top-10 teams were surprising routs. No. 3 Mill Creek beat No. 10 West Forsyth in a 7A game while No. 5 Sandy Creek beat No. 7 Westminster 44-14 in 3A. No. 4 Prince Avenue Christian also won easily, 35-10, against No. 7 Wesleyan in Class A Private.

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Ceudy Gutierrez reads a book to her 2-year-old son, Matias, at their home in Buford, GA, on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2025. Ceudy Gutierrez is struggling to make ends meet for herself and her three young kids following her husband’s ICE arrest earlier this fall. (Miguel Martinez/ AJC)

Credit: Miguel Martinez-Jimenez