After a very eventful week, with Hurricane Helene impacting so many things around the state, Georgia high school football returns for week 8 with a great matchup between the 4-2 Creekview Grizzlies and the 5-1 Sprayberry Yellow Jackets in their first meeting since 2020.
The game will be broadcast live on the Peachtree Sports Network starting at 8 p.m., and digitally on Atlanta News First, ZEAM and the National Federation High School Network.
The overall series record is tied at 3-3 with Sprayberry having won the last two games against Creekview. The Yellow Jackets won a close game, 27-21, in 2019 and followed it up with a 34-14 win against the Grizzlies a year later in 2020.
While the two programs have met six times prior, splitting the all-time series, this will be the first matchup between the Grizzlies and the Yellow Jackets that will be counted as a Region matchup.
The traveling Grizzlies from Creekview are led by head coach Trevor Williams as he is currently in his sixth season with the program, posting a 36-22 record overall. Williams and the Grizzlies finished 7-4 a season ago and made the postseason the last season for the first time since 2021, losing to Blessed Trinity in the first round of the playoffs, 24-10.
Sprayberry is led by head coach, Brett Vavra who is in his eighth year with the Yellow Jackets, after going 6-5 a year ago. They were also eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, with a 56-0 loss to Rome. After just six victories a season ago, the Yellow Jackets are already one win away from matching last season’s win total and are gearing up to return to the postseason.
Leading the Yellow Jackets offense is junior Jaden Duckett, a dual-threat quarterback who uses his legs to hurt the defense on multiple occasions. Duckett has thrown for over 1,100 yards while rushing for another 400, keeping the defense honest by using his legs and evading pressure.
“The offensive mindset is to take what the defense is giving you and get the ball out to our playmakers in space,” said Vavra. “If it’s not there let’s use your athleticism and run, we have been trying to stretch defenses thin across the field.”
Sprayberry’s offense includes two players that play on both sides of the ball in Mark Manfred and Jorden Edmonds. Both Manfred and Edmonds are elite corners on defense, with Manfred committed to Missouri and Edmonds rated as a 4-star recruit, and have proved to be more than effective in the passing game as well. Edmonds has accounted for over 360 yards on 19 receptions and three touchdowns while Manfred has added over 330 yards on 15 catches for two touchdowns.
The Yellow Jackets offense has three players that have rushed for over 300 yards on the season, including Duckett. Rayshawn Simpkins and Ian Hulbert have proved to be more solid options in the rushing attack and have accounted for over 600 yards and five touchdowns through six games so far.
The Sprayberry defense is led by the dynamic cornerback duo in Manfred and Edmonds. The two elite cornerback prospects have combined for 47 total tackles, two tackles for loss and two pass breakups, leading a stout Yellow Jackets defense. Along with the two highly-recruited corners, Sprayberry returns senior linebacker Everett Currie, the counties leading tackler from a season ago to be the signal-caller for the Yellow Jackets.
The Yellow Jackets defense will have its hands full as they will be facing Creekview’s dual-threat quarterback, senior Austin Guest, a three-year starter for the Grizzlies. The three-time starting quarterback has been voted a team captain by his peers for the last three seasons, the only one Williams has coached during his time at Creekview. Guest has accounted for over 1200 yards of offense this season, throwing for over 800 and rushing for over 400 through six games, while accounting for 15 total touchdowns on the season.
“He is the only three-time captain I have ever coached and that’s voted on by his peers and his teammates which speaks volumes to his leadership and who he is off the field,” said Williams.
The Grizzlies leading receivers, senior Jackson Stanley and junior Nathan Agyemang have become reliable options for Creekview in the passing game, with Stanley accumulating over 300 yards receiving and four touchdowns on 25 receptions while Agyemang has added 230 yards on 10 receptions for one touchdown. Senior tight end Nick Vaccaro has added two touchdowns on the season as well with his 6-foot-5, 220-pound frame making himself an easy target.
Brant Freeman is the leading tackler on this year’s Grizzlies team as he has accumulated 59 total tackles with 11 tackles for loss on the season thus far. Along with Freeman from the linebacker position, Ryan Brooks 55 total tackles are the second-highest on the team along with six tackles for loss. Brooks is averaging close to nine tackles per game. Evan Wayland leads the backend of the Creekview defense as he has recorded 20 total tackles on the season, averaging around four a game.
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