CLASS 5A (by Brian Jones)
The first round of the playoffs consisted of many upsets, and the big one was Woodstock upending Walton. The second round had only one major upset, as the Wolverines again came up with a big win, this time over Norcross by the score of 14-10. This is the first time in school history that the Wolverines have made the quarterfinals of the playoffs. … Down in Kingsland, Camden County rallied past Northside-Warner Robins 28-20. Greg Baker and Daniel Valdez scored fourth-quarter touchdowns to help the Wildcats slide past the Eagles. … It was a shootout between North Gwinnett and Lassiter as the Bulldogs win big 41-23. Quarterback Michael Tamburo threw four touchdown passes in the second half; C.J. Uzomah caught three of them. … Peachtree Ridge and Harrison went at it for the second time this year and the Lions were able to come out on top with a 17-7 victory over the Hoyas. Led by Kevin Minter, the Lion defense held the Hoyas to five punts in the first half and 56 total yards. … Grayson remains undefeated as the Rams beat East Paulding 17-7. The team was led by Ean Pemberton, who rushed for 162 yards on 39 carries. Other big winners from 5A were Lowndes, Newnan and Chapel Hill, which all dominated their opponents.
CLASS 4A (by Ricky Dimon)
Cinderella stories are usually reserved for the month of March, but a November version is in the making after the second round of the Class 4A state playoffs wrapped up Friday night. Mt. Zion-Jonesboro (8-4), which got shut out twice in the regular season and lost to a 3-7 Ola team, rolled to an emphatic 19-0 drubbing of 2007 semifinalist Ware County. The Bulldogs, seeded fourth out of Region 4-AAAA, next face Marist (11-1), which defeated fellow Top 10 team Sequoyah 28-12, a score that belied the true competitiveness and intensity of the game. … Statesboro (11-1) also fended off a spirited bid for what would have been a minor upset. A late defensive stand preserved the Blue Devils’ 14-12 win over North Clayton. … Another squad with upset on its mind, Rome, will battle Statesboro for a spot in the semifinals. The Wolves (10-2) set up that encounter with a 19-13 road victory over previously undefeated Sandy Creek. … Seemingly immune to any and all surprises, top-ranked Westside-Macon (12-0) hammered Jonesboro 49-11. A dangerous Tucker team is next up for Westside-Macon. The Tigers (11-1) dispatched Hillgrove, the No. 4 seed out of Region 7, 48-15. … Cedar Shoals got blanked 13-0 by Southwest DeKalb (9-3), leaving Mt. Zion-Jonesboro as the only No. 4 seed still alive.
CLASS 3A (by Fletcher Proctor)
As we go deeper into the playoffs, the games get tougher. Several of the power teams struggled before ultimately pulling out the win. Baldwin needed 15 fourth-quarter points and all of Rico Ford’s 265 yards and three touchdowns to advance past Shaw 29-19. Javonte Edwards also tallied a score for the Braves in the win. … Meanwhile, top-ranked Cairo was paced by Reggie Bryant’s 229 yards and two scores, and also got two scores apiece from Angelo Pease and Ronnie Wooten in a 41-28 victory over Burke County. … Blake Sims of Gainesville passed for over 200 yards and three scores in a 42-28 win over Cartersville, and Eastside advanced past Carrollton 21-9. … A good 24-hour stretch for the Shaw family continued as Conner Shaw threw the game-winning touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to knock off Region 6 No. 1 Ridgeland, 21-14. Just one night earlier former Flowery Branch QB Jaybo Shaw helped GT knock off Miami. … Finally, despite outgaining North Hall 410-65, Dunwoody had to hold on late for an 18-13 win. Dunwoody turned the ball over late, allowing North Hall to stick around. Wildcat QB Erick Cooper threw for a score in the win.
CLASS 2A (by Corey Mitchell)
Class 2A got a reminder of who last year’s runners-up were, as this year’s edition of the Lovett Lions pulled off a stunning 34-24 win over Jefferson on Friday evening, ending the Dragons’ 11-game winning streak. The Lovett offense was clicking with tailback Zach Boden piling up nearly 200 yards and three touchdowns while quarterback Jonathan Carkhuff had 271 yards through the air with two passing scores. So hopes are dashed for the clash of unbeatens in the state championship, replaced with the possibility of a championship game rematch. … Buford had little trouble with North Oconee in their second-round game, winning 44-7 at Tom Riden Stadium. The 12-0 Wolves played the game like they did all throughout the regular season: Dominate early and rest starters for the next game. The Wolves will try to impose their will onto fellow No. 1 seed Dublin next week with a trip to the final four in the balance. The host of the game will be determined by a coin flip over the weekend. … Pepperell beat Callaway 40-20 and Fitzgerald defeated Henry County 45-20 to set up another good quarterfinal matchup. Brooks County will face Lovett next week after its 27-7 win over Jefferson County. The final eight were rounded out by Toombs County and Calhoun, who will face off in the quarterfinal round. Toombs ended Cook’s Cinderella aspirations with a 19-7 win ,while Calhoun handled Westminster 31-20
CLASS A (by Derek Wiley)
Emanuel County Institute, the defending Class A state champion, found itself down 14-7 at halftime to Clinch County but rallied behind 255 yards rushing and four touchdowns by Washaun Ealey to win 33-21. The Bulldogs will play Bremen next week, which beat Athens Academy 28-20 on Friday night with three touchdowns by quarterback Clayton McIntosh. … Wilcox County was most impressive defeating Schley 34-13. Antonio Marshall rushed for 213 yards and three touchdowns. … Turner County defeated Brookstone 20-14 in an upset that eliminated Region 4 from the playoffs. Turner will play Wilkinson County next week, which beat up on Whitefield Academy 38-8. … Lincoln County, the Region 7 champ, defeated Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy 7-0 behind a stout defense that forced four turnovers. The Red Devils defense will be tested even more next week when they play Wilcox County. … Wesleyan got revenge on an earlier loss to Holy Innocents’, winning this time around 21-7, while holding the Holy Innocents’ offense to only 93 yards. Kyle Karempelis rushed for 124 yards and a touchdown. Wesleyan will play Miller County next week, as Miller defeated Savannah Christian 20-13.
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