Central Georgia Sports ReportComment

Central Georgia high school football scouting reports

Central Georgia Sports ReportComment
Central Georgia high school football scouting reports

By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

           The rankings are from the Georgia High School Football Daily composite.
Come back tonight for Central Georgia’s only live running scoreboard, and Saturday morning for Central Georgia’s most complete - names, stats, details - game-night coverage.

Class 5A
No. 6T Lee County, 7-2/3-1, at No. 6T *Houston County, 8-1/3-1
          It’s simple for the Bears. Beat Lee County for the first time in the 11-game history, one in which Houston County has only four losses by single digits and six by at least 20 points.  The last two games have had 15- and 9-point margins. This is Houston County’s best defense – led by Jase Jordan’s 11 tackles a game and 6 sacks and Jecorien McCoy’s 3 interceptions – in awhile, and sophomore QB Ryan Maxwell has been a revelation with a 66.4 percent completion rate and 20-7 interception ratio. The Trojans average 135 passing yards and 200.7 rushing yards a game. Both have among the top-10 toughest schedules in 5A. A Houston County win gives the Bears their first home playoff game since since 2015, a stretch of 14 straight road trips, and sends Lee County on the first-round road for the first time since 2022 and only the sixth time in head coach Dean Fabrizio’s 14 playoff seasons.

Class 4A
*Warner Robins, 5-4/2-2, at Perry, 4-5/2-2
          Seeding for a road game is at stake, as are two streaks. Warner Robins has had eight straight above-.500 regular seasons, while Perry has had seven in a row. The Demons lead the series 8-5-1, but this is only the second time the teams have played since 1965. Warner Robins upset ranked Perry 27-24 last year after the Panthers had clinched their fourth region title in five years. Versatile Decorrion Daniels leads the Perry ground game with 644 yards and 11 touchdowns, and senior Reid Ginn has 1,454 yards, but only 2 more TD passes than interceptions. Janaris Reeves tops the Perry defense with 9.2 tackles a game while Jaiden Coleman has a staggering 14.5 tackles for loss. Johntavious Carswell is  a ball hawk with 5 interceptions. Warner Robins does not post public stats.

Locust Grove, 8-1/7-1, at Jones County, 6-3/5-3
          The luster fell off of the meeting last week when Eagle’s Landing, whose season ended Thursday night, stunned Jones County 30-24. The loss dropped the Greyhounds from a chance to play this week for a top seed and home playoff game into a fourth with a chance to miss the playoffs. They’re tied with Hampton at 5-3, a game behind Ola and Stockbridge. Jones County loses the tiebreaker with Ola, but wins head-to-head tiebreakers with Stockbridge and Hampton. If Jones County loses, it needs tied-for-eighth ELCA (2-7/2-6) to beat Hampton or tied-for-eighth Woodland (3-6/2-6) to beat Stockbridge.

Class 3A
Howard, 2-7/1-6, at Baldwin, 3-6/2-5
          Finishing a disappointing season – for both teams – on a high note is at stake with the Huskies and Braves. The Braves won 49-36 last year and own the series 10-0. The Huskies nearly broke that streak with a 20-19 loss in 2023.
Monroe, 3-6/1-3, at No. 8 *Peach County, 8-1/3-1
          Despite its run nearly all season of being in the top 5, Peach County is on the bubble suddenly just for a first-round home playoff game. Cairo did that with last week’s mild upset. Ashton Barton is 27 yards from 1,000 for the season, with 15 rushing touchdowns. The Trojans are without top receiver Zion Hudson (season-ending injury), and haven’t been completely healthy at quarterback in weeks. Peach County hasn’t lost two straight since 2023, head coach Marquis Westbrook’s first season. Monroe is playing for fourth place, while Peach County is tied with Westover for second, but wins a tiebreaker -
Whitewater, 4-5/3-4, at Mary Persons, 5-4/3-4
          Three teams entered the week tied for fourth in 2-AAA, and here are two of them. One dropped out Thursday when Upson-Lee’s season ended with its 26-14 loss to third-place LaGrange. Mary Person lost last year’s meeting 38-27 to end the odd season derailed by early forfeits. Whitewater finished 5-6. The Wildcats are outscored by 6 points a game, while the Bulldogs have a positive margin of 8.6 points. That took a hit with last week’s 44-0 loss to Sandy Creek, one of the biggest of Brian Nelson’s career at Mary Persons. The Bulldogs are a playoff lock with a win over the team three spots behind them in the postseason rankings, and must sweat things out with a loss.

Class AA
Rutland, 0-9/0-4, at Pike County, 3-6/0-4
          Rutland can break a long losing streak with a win, but also knock Pike County from the playoffs. The Pirates are on the postseason bubble and remain alive with a win. The Hurricanes suffered a heartbreaking 16-14 loss last week at Westside, while Pike County fell 41-7 to powerful unbeaten Morgan County. Rutland lost 60-27 to Morgan County, the most points the Bulldogs have given up this season.

Tell people where the most high school football coverage in Central Georgia is. Names, details, stats=coverage

〰️

Tell people where the most high school football coverage in Central Georgia is. Names, details, stats=coverage 〰️

Jackson, 3-6/2-2, at Westside, 3-6/2-2
          The final home game in Spoon Risper’s career will be a tight one. Only two spots separate the teams in the Postseason Rankings, and Jackson needs the win more than Westside, which can perhaps survive a very close loss. Perhaps. The Seminoles can match the program’s worst mark of 4-6 in 2021 with a win, while also recording a winning region mark. Westside leads the series 4-3 and won 29-23 last year.

Class A/Division I
ACE Charter, 5-4/4-4, at Washington County, 4-5/4-4
          It’s a playoff game in Sandersville, sort of. While it appears both teams will make the playoffs, neither wants to chance it with a loss. And the better the seed, the better the chances of a win. The Golden Hawks are on the positive side of the bubble. An ACE win gives the Gryphons a fourth straight winning season – no matter the playoff result – under head coach Keith Hatcher, and hands Washington County its third sub-.500 regular season under fourth-year head coach Robert Edwards.

*Dodge County, 7-2/6-2, at No. 7T *Dublin, 7-2/7-1
          The neighbors have played 59 times, with the Irish up 36-22-1. This one? A Dodge County win swipes knocks Dublin from the second seed and solidifies the Indians hosting a first-round playoff game. A Dublin win pushes the Indians on the road, and gives the Irish a share of the region title but with the second seed. It would also be the 15th time in Roger Holmes’ seasons that the Irish have won at least eight games. Dodge County QB Kain Mincey missed the second half of last week’s loss to Northeast with an injury, and if he can’t play or isn’t notably healthy, Dublin gains a serious advantage, unless Dodge County’s defense – which has kept everybody under 30 points and five opponents to two touchdowns or less – can play fundamental and disciplined defense against Dublin’s Wing-T.

East Laurens, 3-6/3-5, at No. 4 *Northeast, 7-2/7-1
          The Falcons of second-year head coach Jesse Hicks went from playoff team to playoff spoiler in two weeks after losses to Washington County and Jefferson County. Northeast is focused on no spoiling of the Raiders shot at their first outright region title ever and first top seed since 2009. Northeast can become the first Bibb County public school to win an outright region title since Westside in 2012, and only the fourth such team overall to do so (Westside in 2002 and 2008 under Robert Davis, along wth 2012 under Spoon Risper). But for that to happen, Northeast needs to win and have Dodge County (7-2/6-2) knock off Dublin (7-2/7-1).

Southwest, 2-7/1-7, at Jefferson County, 2-7/2-6
          Going into the offseason with a win is the focus for both teams, out of the postseason picture. Jefferson County is no longer the region doormat after losing 19 straight and 25 of 26. The Warriors of Washington County grad Marlo East showed improvement early in losses, and knocked off playoff contender East Laurens 14-13 on the road last week. Southwest is on a four-game losing streak during which the Patriots have been outscored 118-41. Southwest won the second meeting, 26-7 last year. Jefferson County won 48-14 in 2017.

No. 9 *Lamar County, 9-0/5-0, at No. 10 *Jasper County, 9-0/5-0
          When Ashley Henderson took over, he saw a team that didn’t win a game the year before. Now, four years later, the Hurricanes enter the Game 10 as the No. 2 seeded team in the GHSA’s Postseason Rankings, in rare air at 9-0 and after a week or two at No. 1. The Hurricanes are in the top 130 in the state in the Maxwell Rankings, ahead of the likes of Bowdon, Warner Robins, Central Gwinnett and, well, Lamar County. The Trojans have been on or close to this stage for awhile, head coach Travis Ellington a win away from becoming the program’s winningest coach (he’s tied with Mark Wilson, in two fewer seasons) and most successful coach (three seasons or more). It’s for a perfect regular season, a region title, and a top-5 seed. a top-5. It’s the biggest game in Monticello in more than 30 years.

Class A/Division II
Dooly County, 1-7/1-4, at *Hawkinsville, 7-2/3-2
          Hawkinsville quarterback S Clark is 185 yards from 1,000 passing for the seaon, the senior completing 60.2 percent of his passes with 11 TDs and 2 INTs. Martin McDonald leads a deep run attack with 86.2 yards a game. Nakivius Releford’s 8.1 tackles lead the defense. Hawkinsville can get second and a home game with a win and a Treutlen loss to region champ Wheeler County. The Red Devils are seeking their first 8-win season since the 13-1 state title team in 2014.

Glascock County, 2-7/1-3, at Hancock Central, 3-6/1-3
          The battle for a playoff spot takes place in Sparta. A longtime doormat, Glascock County is now playing for its third straight playoff trip, which would also be the Panthers’ third trip ever. Hancock Central, which leads the series 6-1, is eyeing its fourth straight trip for the first time in program history, doing so under alum Brandon Nolley, who’s in his second season.

GMC Prep, 4-5/3-1, at No. 4 Johnson County, 9-0/4-0
          The Bulldogs are locked into a playoff spot for the the seventh time this century, but finishing with a non-losing regular season will take an epic effort. Johnson County won 41-0 last year and leads the series 17-4. Still, GMC under second-year head coach Gavin Tierce has made a nice turnaround from an 0-10 season.

*Taylor County, 7-2/5-0, at *Macon County, 4-5/4-1
          The neighbors have played 28 times, with Macon County leading 19-9 and on a 10-game winning streak. Not many in that stretch have been close, and few have come late in the year with both battling for a region title or top seed. Taylor County won outright titles – their only two – in 1997-98 – and this year’s group can match that with a win. A loss spoils their first perfect region mark since 1998. Macon County’s last sub-.500 regular season was in 2022, between 11- and 10-win seasons.

*Wilkinson County, 3-6/3-1, at Twiggs County, 0-9/0-4
          Quarterback Quenterrion Stanford is 128 yards from 2,000 for the season, completing 63.5 percent of his passes with 19 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. That’s what Twiggs County, facing its fifth winless season sicne 2011, has to deal with. The Warriors are tied with GMC Prep, a major underdog to region champ Johnson County, for second, so a win clinches a first-round home game for second-year head coach Jamoski Ward.

GIAA Playoffs
Class AAA
9. Piedmont, 6-4 at 8. Lakeview, 5-5
          The Cougars missed the playoffs last year for the first time since 2016, and are back, under first-year head coach Aubry Payne. Piedmont has its best points scored/allowed ratio (199-160) since 2021’s 9-4 season that ended in a 27-13 championship loss to Thomas Jefferson.

Class AA
10. Heritage, 1-9, at 7. Gatewood, 3-7
          The Gators haven’t finished a season with only 3 wins since head coach Jeff Ratliff’s second season, a 3-9 year. The last time Gatewood didn’t win at least one playoff game? Back in 2011 when the Gators finished 5-6 after falling 33-7 to Valwood in the first round.

9. Augusta Prep, 2-8, at 8. Windsor, 4-6
          The Knights are amped, getting  a home playoff game in their second season back in the 11-man world of GIAA football. They’re on a nice little roll, winning a defensive battle (16-14) over rival Central Fellowship and then exploding for a 51-35 win over Heritage-Newnan. unior quarterback Heath Woodard was 24 of 31 for 409 yards and six touchdowns, setting school records for completions and yards, and tying the school's single game record for touchdowns in last week’s win.