It was an incredible playoff run, beating three No. 1 seeds on the road, for Colquitt County that came up just short of a state title as North Gwinnett’s game-winning field goal capped off a wild final sequence. Archer’s five-point playoff loss to Colquitt keeps it No. 3, and Walton was the only team to defeat North Gwinnett this season and lost to Colquitt by seven points in the playoffs. Pre-playoff No. 1 Lowndes falls to No. 6 after its last-minute defeat to McEachern, which reenters the final rankings at No. 9. Mill Creek edges out Parkview for the final Top 10 spot.
Lee County survived a crazy semifinal game against Glynn Academy (which moved up to No. 4) and an overtime title game against region mate Coffee. Tucker stays No. 3 ahead of Glynn after a semifinal defeat to Coffee; the Tigers had a fantastic overall season. The Class AAAAAA rankings were a tough call all year from, roughly, spots No. 5 or 6 to spots No. 12 or 13. Here, we keep Harrison ahead of Allatoona, both quarterfinalists, as the Hoyas defeated Allatoona in the regular season. Douglas County stays No. 10 after a three-point playoff loss to Alpharetta.
Rome defended the first state title in program history by putting together one of the most dominate 15-0 seasons the state has seen in recent years. The top-ranked Wolves coasted through a challenging lineup of playoff opponents and repeated as Class AAAAA champs to unmistakably close out the season No. 1. State runner-up Warner Robins closes the year No. 2 and Buford rounds out the top 3.
Blessed Trinity completed an incredible run to the Class AAAA title and sits at No. 1 ahead of region rival Marist which defeated the Titans in the regular season before falling 16-7 in the finals. Cartersville comes in at a strong No. 3 only because of Marist’s win at Blessed Trinity this year.
Calhoun entered the playoffs as the fourth-ranked team in the class behind Peach County, Cedar Grove and Greater Atlanta Christian. The Yellow Jackets exited the playoffs on top as they held two of the highest-scoring offenses in the state — Peach County and Cedar Grove — to just six points each in the final two games of the year. In the semifinal, Cedar Grove came into the game averaging 42.3 points per game. In the championship game, Peach County entered averaging 45.7 point per game. The Yellow Jackets now have three titles in seven seasons — 2011, 2014 and 2017. Jenkins stayed in the No. 5 spot and Lovett, which entered the playoffs ninth, moved to sixth. Westminster jumped from No. 10 to No. 7. Liberty County, unranked before the playoffs, moved up to eighth. Pike County entered the rankings at No. 9 and Crisp County fell from sixth to 10th.
Seven years ago, Hapeville Charter came into existence, and now it’s a state champion. The Hornets, who don’t even have their own field, moved through Spencer and Elbert County in the first two rounds to set up a much-anticipated quarterfinal matchup against No. 1 Benedictine. Hapeville advanced past the Cadets 31-17 and then squeaked by Heard County 28-21 to earn the championship berth. Rabun County finished No. 2 after the championship loss. Benedictine settled to third. Heard County was ranked No. 8 at the end of the regular season but moved up four spots following the playoffs. Thomasville, fourth at the end of the regular season, fell to fifth.
ELCA romped to the state championship in one of the two games able to be played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Our top four stayed the same as the pre-playoff Top 10, and Stratford moves to No. 5 after a seven-point quarterfinals loss to Mount Paran. No. 6 Calvary Day defeated No. 7 Wesleyan by seven points in the playoffs, and Savannah Country Day nipped Mount Pisgah by three points in the playoffs. Whitefield Academy cracks the Top 10 in the final rankings; both Whitefield and Darlington lost to Prince Avenue in the playoffs, but Whitefield’s 6-0 win over Darlington in the final regular-season game gives it the edge.
In Class A-Public, Clinch County defeated Region 2-A foe Irwin County in the state title game for the second time in three years. ECI finishes No. 3 after just a three-point semifinals loss to finalist Irwin County, and Mt. Zion, which knocked off pre-playoffs No. 1 Manchester 10-6 in the quarterfinals, moves from No. 9 to No. 4. Trion and Commerce entered the playoffs in the Top 10, but Lincoln County and Marion County move into the final rankings at No. 9 and No. 10.
Class AAAAAAA
1. North Gwinnett
2. Colquitt County
3. Archer
4. Walton
5. Brookwood
6. Lowndes
7. Grayson
8. Tift County
9. McEachern
10. Mill Creek
Class AAAAAA
1. Lee County
2. Coffee
3. Tucker
4. Glynn Academy
5. Mays
6. Northside-Warner Robins
7. Alpharetta
8. Harrison
9. Allatoona
10. Douglas County
Class AAAAA
1. Rome
2. Warner Robins
3. Buford
4. Stockbridge
5. Carver-Atlanta
6. Jones County
7. Starr’s Mill
8. Carrollton
9. Eagle’s Landing
10. Wayne County
Class AAAA
1. Blessed Trinity
2. Marist
3. Cartersville
4. Mary Persons
5. St. Pius
6. Burke County
7. Thomson
8. Cedartown
9. Woodward Academy
10. Americus-Sumter
Class AAA
1. Calhoun
2. Peach County
3. Cedar Grove
4. Greater Atlanta Christian
5. Jenkins
6. Lovett
7. Westminster
8. Liberty County
9. Pike County
10. Crisp County
Class AA
1. Hapeville Charter
2. Rabun County
3. Benedictine
4. Heard County
5. Thomasville
6. Screven County
7. Brooks County
8. Toombs County
9. Dodge County
10. Callaway
Class A-Private
1. Eagle’s Landing Christian
2. Athens Academy
3. Mount Paran Christian
4. Prince Avenue
5. Stratford Academy
6. Calvary Day
7. Wesleyan
8. Savannah Country Day
9. Mount Pisgah Christian
10. Whitefield Academy
Class A-Public
1. Clinch County
2. Irwin County
3. Emanuel County Institute
4. Mt. Zion-Carroll
5. Manchester
6. Macon County
7. Charlton County
8. Washington-Wilkes
9. Lincoln County
10. Marion County
Loading ...
