Camden holds No. 1 in AAAAA poll despite loss

The Class AAAAA rankings didn’t shuffle much despite a loss by No. 1-ranked Camden County. However, the Top 10 will need seat belts this week as eight ranked teams in the highest class meet current or recently ranked teams.

Camden probably has it easy Friday traveling to Benedictine (1-5) after a 42-28 loss to St. Thomas Aquinas of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in a game between nationally ranked teams. Camden, Georgia’s defending AAAAA champion, is 1-1 this season against nationally elite teams and maintains its spot atop the rankings. Camden beat Central of Miami last month.

There are at least five games this week that could shake up the AAAAA Top 10.

They include:

No. 7 Norcross at No. 2 North Gwinnett (5-0): One of Gwinnett County's better rivalries is renewed. These schools played for the Region 7 title in 2007 and 2008.

No. 4 McEachern (4-1) at Hillgrove (4-1): Hillgrove was formed taking primarily from McEachern in 2006 after bitter re-districting debates. This will be their first meeting in football, and it is a critical game in Region 4.

Newton (4-1) at No. 6 Stephenson (5-0): Newton tries to stay in the hunt for the Region 2 title against the defending champion.

No. 5 Lowndes (5-0) at No. 8 Valdosta (6-0): Georgia's most storied rivalry has both teams ranked while playing each other for the first time since 2005.

No. 10 Grayson (4-1) at No. 9 Dacula (4-1): Grayson is Region 8's defending champion. Dacula is ranked for the first time since 2007. This is for first place.

Class AAAAA
1. Camden County (4-1)

2. North Gwinnett (5-0)

3. Peachtree Ridge (5-0)

4. McEachern (4-1)

5. Lowndes (5-1)

6. Stephenson (5-0)

7. Norcross (5-0)

8. Valdosta (6-0)

9. Dacula (4-1)

10. Grayson (4-1)

Class AAAA
1. Northside-Warner Robins (5-0)

2. Clarke Central (4-0)

3. Tucker (5-0)

4. Kell (6-0)

5. Griffin (6-0)

6. Marist (4-1)

7. Flowery Branch (5-0)

8. Thomas County Central (4-1)

9. Chattahoochee (5-0)

10. Starr’s Mill (6-0)

Class AAA
1. Peach County (5-0)

2. Sandy Creek (5-0)

3. Cairo (5-0)

4. Carrollton (6-0)

5. Baldwin (5-0)

6. St. Pius (5-1)

7. Woodward Academy (5-0)

8. Gainesville (4-1)

9. Monroe Area (5-0)

10. Ridgeland (4-1)

Class AA

1. Carver-Columbus (5-0)

2. Buford (5-1)

3. Calhoun (5-0)

4. Cook (6-0)

5. Dublin (5-0)

6. Thomasville (5-1)

7. Westminster (3-2)

8. Swainsboro (5-0)

9. North Oconee (5-0)

10. Lovett (3-2)

Class A
1. Charlton County (6-0)

2. Wesleyan (6-0)

3. Clinch County (5-0)

4. Savannah Christian (5-0)

5. Wilcox County (5-1)

6. Lincoln County (5-1)

7. Eagle's Landing Christian (5-0)

8. Johnson County (6-0)

9. Darlington (4-1)

10. Marion County (6-0)