By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

Rankings are from the Georgia High School Football Daily Composite poll. Stats are mostly based on what teams report to MaxPreps.

GHSA

Class 6A

Houston County, 4-4/2-2, at Northside, 3-5/1-3
The Bears broke a points-challenged 2-game losing streak by thumping Veterans 42-0, while Northside is amid a points-challenged 2-game losing streak, to Lee County and Coffee by 74-7. Led by RB Austin Stinson, Houston County outgains Northside by nearly 200 yards a game. The Bears lead the series 21-7 with 4 straight wins.

Tift County, 3-6/0-5 at Veterans, 4-4/1-3
The Warhawks have a run-game advantage, but Tift County gets almost twice as many passing yards a game. Veterans is in a scoring slump, outscored 91-0 in the last two games, against Lee County and Houston County. The series is tied at 1.

*Editor’s note: Thanks to FPD, John Milledge, and Dublin for sending game information Friday night to The Central Georgia Sports Report., and Perry on Saturday.*

Class 5A

Warner Robins, 5-3/3-1, at Jones County, 5-4/4-1
Ola is the common opponent, Jones County winning 17-14 last month and Warner Robins losing 35-21 last week. That ended the Demons 3-game winning streak that started after losing 70-14 to Newton and included 2 straight shutouts. The Demons outscore opponents by 6.6 points a game to 5.6 for the Greyhounds. Warner Robins has won 4 straight in the series for a 6-3 lead, the last game a 42-28 win at home in 2023. Laquan Pendleton leads a deep Jones County backfield, joined by Travis Miller and Kaden Canty to team for more than 200 rushing yards a game. Warner Robins isn’t posting public stats.

Perry, 4-4/3-1, at Eagle’s Landing, 0-8/0-4
After a rough 1-4 start, Perry has won 3 straight, by 43, 2, and 44 points. Perry QB Mardi Cobb averages 188.3 yards passing, completing 64.3 percent of his passes with 11 touchdowns and 3 INTs. This is the first meeting.

Class 4A

No, 2 Peach County, 8-0/5-0, at No. 11T Baldwin, 6-2/3-2
A week after a quality win in front of a surprisingly small home crowd, Baldwin goes for its biggest target in years with Peach County’s visit. Defenses will have to be on point against one offense getting 449.6 yards a game and another racking up 530.3 a game. Baldwin QB Kam Patterson has passed for 2,565 yards with 26 scores and 5 picks. Meanwhile, Peach County Ace Blunt has 4 interceptions (The Trojans aren’t posting any other defensive stats). QB Caiden Ivory has 1,280 yards passing, with 10 TDs and 6 INTs, while Ashton Barton leads the ground game with 137.3 yards a game and 18 touchdowns. The Trojans, who have had only two four-quarter battles, lead the series 10-7. Baldwin is 4-0 at home this season, after going 1-3 last year.

CENTRAL GEORGIA’S BEST HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL COVERAGE

This week
🏈 Scouting Reports: This week’s GHSA and GIAA games
🏈 Maxwell Predictions
🏈 Who’s going to win this week’s games?
🏈 Central Georgia state composite rankings
🏈 Central Georgia rankings
🏈 Macon Touchdown Club players of the week

Last week
🏈 Dublin goes from being stunned by Dodge County to stunning; Baldwin knocks off Mary Persons; John Milledge survives Stratford; Big nights for Perry, Jones County, Peach County, Jasper County
🏈 Scouting Reports: This week’s GHSA and GIAA games
🏈 Maxwell Predictions
🏈 Who’s going to win this week’s games?
🏈 Central Georgia state composite rankings
🏈 Central Georgia rankings
🏈 Macon Touchdown Club players of the week

Two weeks ago
🏈 Roundup: Mary Persons sweats out Howard in OT; Romps for Dublin, John Milledge, Westfield; East Laurens rallies on the road; Houston County battles; Windsor throws shutout
🏈 Scouting Reports: This week’s GHSA and GIAA games
🏈 Maxwell Predictions
🏈 Who’s going to win this week’s games?
🏈 Central Georgia state composite rankings/CGA Maxwell ratings
🏈 Central Georgia rankings
🏈 Macon Touchdown Club players of the week

Three weeks ago
Roundup: Perry handles Jones County; Rutland rolls; Dublin passes up Swainsboro; Macon County stopped in OT; Windsor comes back to beat Gatewood
🏈 Scouting Reports: This week’s GHSA and GIAA games
🏈 Thursday: Northside wins late; Lassiter now atop the Bleckley County list; shutouts for Northeast, Hawkinsville
🏈 Maxwell Predictions
🏈 Who’s going to win this week’s games?
🏈 Scouting reports, Thursday edition
🏈 Central Georgia state GHSFBD composite/Maxwell rankings, notebook
🏈 Central Georgia rankings, notebook
🏈 Macon Touchdown Club players of the week

Troup, 8-0/5-0, at Howard, 4-4/3-2 (Ed DeFore)
Howard’s tough stretch continues with a top-3 team, after playing Mary Persons and Peach County. The Huskies get 293.8 yards a game to 462.3 for the Tigers, led by Javarris Warner’s 201.5 yards a game on the ground. Troup was last challenged in late September by Mary Persons, holding on 24-21 with a last-second field goal to win.

No. 13T Mary Persons, 4-4/2-3, at Spalding, 5-3/2-3
The Bulldogs’ season of unpredictability continues up the road in Griffin against a team that’s beaten Mary Persons in 2 of the last 3 meetings. The Bulldogs outscore opponents by 7.4 points a game, and have lost 4 games by 10, 3, 8 and 5 points. QB Jordan Singleton has 1,254 passing yards, with 14 TDEs and 2 INTs while completing 68.6 percent of his passes. Camden Proctor leads the defense with 8.4 tackles a game, and 11 tackles for loss. The Bulldogs lead the series 11-3.

Class 3A

Butler, 3-5/1-3, at Washington County, 3-6/2-3
The Golden Hawks need to take care of business and get some help for a playoff spot. Both teams are on 3-game losing streaks, Butler being outscored 136-6 and Washington County 111-55. The Golden Hawks lead the series 10-3.

Rutland, 3-5/1-4, 5 Lamar County, 5-3/3-2
The Trojans are a solid playoff team looking to improve its seeding against a team its beaten 81-21 the last two seasons. Lamar County is off a solid 33-6 win over Pike County. Jayden Doctor leads a Lamar County run game getting 239.1 yards a game. Josiah Chambers leads a deep defense with 7.1 tackles a game and 13.1 tackles for loss. Billy Roquemore averages 72.6 rushing yards for Rutland.

Pike County, 5-3/4-1, at No. 4 Northeast, 7-1/5-0
Both teams are playing to improve playoff seeding, the Raiders at No. 12 and Pirates at No. 22. Northeast is on a two-shutout streak, over Central and Southwest. The teams haven’t played in more than a decade, Northeast winning 14-7 in 2011 and 33-13 a year earlier. Pike County’s Keylan Yates gets 137.8 rushing yards a game, countered by Jordan Wiggins’ 272.5 passing yards.

Southwest, 0-8/0-5, at Jackson, 3-5/2-3
Jackson is on the outside of the playoff bubble by 4 spots, and a loss would end those hopes. The Red Devils are outscoring opponents by 2.5 points a game while the Patriots are falling by nearly 26 points a game. They’re trying to avoid their first winless season since 2013, Joe Dupree’s first season as head coach.

**Visit ‘how to contribute’ on any page for ways to chip in.**

Class AA

No. 4 Bleckley County, 8-1/4-1, at East Laurens, 3-5/2-2
East Laurens playoff odds are mighty long, while Bleckley County wants to hold on to its high seed. The Royals are rolling behind RB Zyion Love (132 rushing ypg), QB Brody Fleming (213 ypg), and the duo of Cody Register and Landry Nobles teaming for 14.3 tackles a game, Willy Walters leading with 11 tackles for loss. The Royals lead the series 21-10, and have scored at least 40 points in the last six meetings.

No. 2 Dublin, 7-1/4-0, at Vidalia, 2-6/0-4
Dublin is off an epic 53-47 win over Dodge County and remains among the top 3 teams in AA. The Irish, who lead the series 15-12, get 316.5 rushing yards a game with one of its deepest backfields in recent years. The defense is allowing only 17.6 points a game, a number that jumped after last week. Vidalia has lost 4 straight, including 21-19 to East Laurens.

Jasper County, 5-3/4-1, at Aquinas, 6-2/4-1
The Hurricanes are off a huge 42-9 win over Putnam County and carry some momentum into the showdown. These two and Social Circle are 4-1 in region play. Aquinas is on a 3-game winning streak, and none were very close. The Fighting Irish get 352.9 yards to 274.5 for the Hurricanes, Aquinas QB Turner Stevenson good for 188.1 yards a game. The series is tied at 2, but the teams haven’t played since Aquinas’ 34-7 win in 2007.

Josey, 1-7/0-5, at Putnam County, 6-2/3-2
Josey’s odds at an upset got a lot tougher after Putnam County was thumped last week by Jasper County, putting the War Eagles on the bubble to host a first-round game, ending a 3-game winning streak. Kumari Thomas averages 123.2 rushing yards for Putnam County, which is posting no defensive stats.

Swainsboro, 3-5/2-2, at Dodge County, 4-4/2-2
Both teams are round the playoff bubble, Dodge County at 25th and Swainsboro at 28th. The Indians are off a crushing 53-47 loss at Dublin after losing a fourth-quarter lead. QB Kain Mincey has more than 2,000 passing yards, while Swainsboro’s Kyle Johnson runs for 141.1 yards a game. Dodge County’s four losses are by 1, 14, 3, and 6. The Tigers lead the series 7-6 and have won two straight.

Class A

Chattahoochee County, 4-4/1-3, at Crawford County, 1-7/1-3
Chattahoochee County is on the postseason bubble, so this is a playoff-type game for the Panthers, who are going for their first winning season since 2021. The series is tied at 2, the Eagles taking a 28-21 win last year.

GMC Prep, 4-4/1-3, at Johnson County, 8-0/4-0
The Bulldogs’ playoff chances will take a hit if things go as expected on paper against the powerful Trojans, who have been a consensus No. 1 pretty much all year and lead the series 18-4. GMC has matched last season’s win total, an accomplishment after going 0-10 in 2024.

Macon County, 7-1/3-1, at Central-Talbotton, 3-6/0-5
The Bulldogs have sights set on their third 10-win season since 2021, which includes a playoff run. They went 11-1 in 2021, which included a 51-0 win over Central. Macon County leads the series 11-1, and have given up only 24 points in the eight straight wins since Central’s 33-13 win in 2011.

Marion County, 3-5/3-1, at Taylor County, 7-1/3-1
Taylor County has matched its highest win total of the last several years, dating back to going 8-3 in 2017, a year after finishing 10-2. They’re down 10-5 in the series with Marion County, but on a 3-game win streak, including 54-0 last year. Taylor County QB Leland Holder has just 1 interception in 126 pass attempts, against 15 touchdowns on a 67.5-percent completion rate.

Treutlen, 6-2/2-2, at Hawkinsville, 4-4/3-1
Both teams are pretty much playoff locks, but one team needs a win to get closer to assuring itself a first-round home game, and the other needs two wins to get into that conversation. Treutlen rushes for 287.3 yards a game to 201.6 for Hawkinsville, the Red Devils’ Martin McDonald averaging 102.7 yards a game on the ground. Hawkinsville is 17-1 against Treutlen, the lone loss coming in 1961. The Red Devils won 22-10 last year.

Wilkinson County. 3-6/2-3, at Hancock Central, 2-6/1-3
The Warriors and Bulldogs are longshots for the postseason, at No. 38 and 40 in the postseason rankings. Wilkinson County won 42-28 last year to take a 10-9 lead in the series. QB Quenterrion Stanford has completed 56.6 percent of his passes for 1,152 yards, 13 TDs and 6 INTs. Kaden Thomas leads the defense with 8 tackles a game.

GIAA

Stratford, 7-2/2-1, at Tattnall, 4-5/1-2
This is the 61st meeting, Tattnall holding a 33-27 lead. That’s the closest rivalry series in the Trojans’ history, followed by a 34-24 lead over FPD. The teams have split the last four games, the Eagles cruising 49-0 last year for the largest margin in the series. Stratford is off a 28-20 loss to John Milledge while Tattnall battled in a 26-12 loss to FPD. A nice QB battle awaits: Stratford’s Tucker Johnston averages 169 yards a game passing, while Tattnall freshman Angelo Bellamy Jr. counters with 142.3.

Westfield, 6-3/3-0, at Deerfield-Windsor, 2-7/1-2
The Hornets have sights set on a perfect 3-4A/3A season and outright region title and their first four-game winning streak of the season. Westfield is outscoring opponents by 9.3 points while D-W is getting thumped by 16.1 points a game. Westfield trails 26-17 in the series, and the Knights have had the Hornets number in four straight games, including 26-14 last year.

Central Fellowship, 0-9/0-4, at Windsor, 8-1/4-0
One of the best seasons in one team’s history is countered by one of the worst in the other’s as the two South Bibb rivals go at it. The Knights have won eight straight since opening up with the 35-7 loss to 4A Stratford. They came back to beat Flint River last week. CFCA leads the series 18-17, winning 16-14 last year to break a 3-game slide against Windsor.

Piedmont, 3-6/2-1, at Gatewood, 4-4/2-1
The teams are 6 and 7 in the MaxPreps rankings, so a win in the regular-season finale is huge to eliminate suspense. Gatewood averages 317.4 yards a game, led by QB Bennett Haley. Piedmont isn’t updating stats. The Gators were off last week after losing 30-17 to Windsor, and they lead the series 27-20-1

Riverside Prep, 2-8/0-5, at Trinity Christian, 2-7/0-4
It’s a non-region battle with two teams whose seasons appear done after ward. Riverside is No. 11 in 3A and TCS 11th in AA. This is the first meeting. It’s the Crusaders’ fourth game since head coach Bruce Lane stepped down at the end of September.