PREP FINAL: Lassiter rolls, Southwest DeKalb falls and more

Another round of the state playoffs is in the books and this Friday night will down as one of the best. The Lassiter Trojans are proving that they are the real deal as they blew out South Gwinnett 70-49. Hutson Mason had another record-breaking game as he threw for 530 yards and eight touchdown passes to keep the Trojans undefeated. They will take on Colquitt County in the quarterfinals, a team that defeated Stephenson 22-21 on Friday.

Southwest DeKalb was a favorite to win the Class 4A title and looked to make its way into the quarterfinals with a win over Clarke Central. The Gladiators had other plans and jumped out to a 12-0 lead. The Panthers were able to make a late rally, cutting the lead to 12-10, but Derrick Smalls came up with a 43-yard interception return for a touchdown and Clarke Central shocked the Panthers 19-17. The Gladiators will take on North Clayton in the quarterfinals next Friday.

Wesleyan looked as if it was going to win its second consecutive state title with little problem. But on Friday the Wolves faced one major problem and that was the Bowdon Red Devils, who pushed the Wolves to the limit. Bowdon was down 28-13 at one point, but Bowdon produced a late rally and were able to tie the game at 28 at the end of regulation. In overtime, Bowdon missed the field goal on its first possession and that’s where Wesleyan capitalized, as Conor Welton threw a touchdown pass to Harrison Cheeley and the Wolves win 34-28. The Wolves have won 24 consecutive games which is the state’s longest win streak.

Roswell came up with a big win last week against Collins Hill and looked to pull off a major upset as they faced No. 1-ranked Grayson. Unfortunately, the Rams were too strong and came away with a 24-14 win. Ean Pemberton returned to the lineup and ran for 155 yards while fullback Terry Williams had what could be the play of the game as he converted a fourth-and-1 on the Rams’ 29-yard line that sparked a nearly nine-minute drive in the fourth quarter that ended with a field goal to ice the game. The Rams will face Newnan in the third round; Newnan, like the Rams, are sitting pretty at 12-0.