Ranking the most surprising and notable games of the weekend:
1. Toombs County 33, Rome 29: Toombs County, the No. 1 team in Class A Division I, defeated 28-point favorite Rome of Class 5A in the biggest upset of the week, according to the computer Maxwell Ratings. It was the first time Toombs has ever beaten a top-10 team from a higher classification. Rome, which lost to Class 6A No. 1 Carrollton in its first game, fell out of the 5A top 10 this week.
2. Southwest 30, Bleckley County 29: Southwest stunned then-No. 9 Bleckley County, a 24-point favorite, for its first victory of the season. The Patriots opened Region 2-A Division I play with three consecutive games against teams that were ranked at the time (they lost to Northeast 36-14 and Dublin 56-34) but have just one more ranked opponent remaining (Dodge County on Sept. 27).
3. Whitewater 28, Troup 10: Whitewater picked up its first victory of the season when it beat 13-point favorite Troup in the teams’ Region 2-3A opener. It also was the 100th career win for head coach Chad Frazier, in his fifth season at the school after stops at Heritage (Conyers), Villa Rica and Union Grove. Troup (1-2), which beat the Wildcats 56-7 last year, has a losing record after three games for the first time since 2020.
4. Greenbrier 43, Statesboro 14: Greenbrier, which went 1-19 over the past two seasons, is 2-1 under first-year coach Sean Tiernan after a 43-14 victory over Statesboro in the teams’ Region 1-5A opener. Greenbrier had lost 15 consecutive games against Statesboro and scored just six total points in the past four meetings. Statesboro now leads the series 15-2.
5. Early County 32, Schley County 6: Early County lost its first two games to Class 3A teams Westover and LaGrange by a combined score of 81-8 but beat five-point favorite Schley County of Class A Division II for its first win. Schley County went 34-6 over the past three seasons, reaching the finals in 2022 and semifinals in 2023, but is off to a 1-3 start. Schley County beat Early County twice last season.
Worth noting: Decatur defeated 10-point favorite Stephenson 32-20 in the first meeting in 27 years between these schools located 11 miles apart in DeKalb County. Class 5A Decatur is 3-0 for the first time since its 2021 team went 8-3. Stephenson, playing in Class 3A for the first time since 1997, is 2-2. … Gordon Lee defeated 14-point favorite Heritage of Ringgold 38-28 in the first matchup of these northwest Georgia schools in 15 years. It was the second consecutive victory by Class A Division I Gordon Lee against a team from Region 7-3A (the Trojans beat LaFayette on Aug. 23). ... Hillgrove defeated two-point favorite Marietta 24-21 for its first 3-0 start since 2019, the final year of Phil Ironside’s 14-season run as the school’s first head coach. Marietta, which beat the Hawks 17-7 last year, fell to 0-4 for the first time since 2011, not including forfeits. … Locust Grove beat 13-point favorite Eagle’s Landing Christian 28-14 in a matchup of previously winless teams in a Region 2-4A game. ELCA is 0-4 for the second straight year, and at 0-3 in the region is in jeopardy of missing the playoffs for the first time since 2011. … North Clayton beat four-point favorite Riverdale 28-20 for its second consecutive victory against its county rival after losing 10 of the previous 11 meetings. North Clayton, coming off a 6-4 season, is 2-2 and seeking its first .500-or-better season since 2011.
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