Statewide crowning of region champs awaits

After a week’s rest, all of Region 1 will be back in action in Class AAAAAA tonight. Colquitt County sits alone at the top of the region and Tift County, Valdosta, Lee County, Camden County and Lowndes are all still in the hunt for a playoff spot. Colquitt County visits Tift County, Valdosta hosts Lowndes and Camden County hosts Lee County. Camden County sits in the basement of the region at 0-3 and Tift County and Lowndes enter Week 11 at 1-2 in the region. Lee County and Valdosta are each 2-1.

In Region 2, Lovejoy hosts Tucker for the Region 2 title. Tucker lost its first two games to Norcross (32-29) and B.T. Washington, Fla. (19-7) but has been one of the hottest teams in the state since. The Tigers have won six straight games by a combined 359-26. Lovejoy lost one-possession games to McEachern (7-3) and Mays (40-35) to close out September but has rebounded with double-digit victories over Rockdale County (43-21) Lakeside (42-7) and Newton (41-15) its last three games.

The other big Class AAAAAA matchups are Mill Creek at Norcross and Dacula at Archer. Archer topped Dacula 31-14 last season and can get a share of the lead in Region 8 with a victory over 8-0 Dacula. Norcross slowed down Mill Creek’s potent offense last year and essentially kept the Hawks out of the postseason with a 27-13 win. Mill Creek and Norcross are two of the four teams (North Gwinnett and Peachtree Ridge are the others) that are tied for first in 7-AAAAAA. Norcross can win its third consecutive region title outright if it wins its final two games and Peachtree Ridge loses to Collins Hill or Mill Creek

In Class AAAAA, Sprayberry at Kell is the big one to watch. Both teams stand undefeated in region action and the winner will face Dalton next week in the region title game. Class AAAA’s Sandy Creek was upset 28-7 last week by Woodward Academy and the Patriots will have to visit rival Carrollton tonight. Carrollton opened the season with a disappointing 0-3 start but has won four of its last five and still has a shot at the Region 5 title. The Trojans host Sandy Creek this week and close the regular season next Friday with Woodward Academy.

Class AAA features a must-see battle between region rivals and unbeatens. 8-0 Westside-Macon visits 9-0 Peach County, marking the first time the teams have faced since Peach County grabbed a 27-7 victory in 2011. In Class AA, No. 1 Greater Atlanta Christian visits defending champion Lovett . The Lions topped GAC 17-14 last season and the Spartans can win their first region title since 2001 and move to 9-0 with a victory tonight.

Irwin County has impressed this season and holds the edge in Region 2-A with a 5-0 mark and the battle for the No. 2 seed is set for tonight. Clinch County visits Charlton County in a game that will break the (4-1 region record) tie the teams hold. Clinch County won 34-7 last year but this year’s Charlton County team is off to a 7-1 start coming off of last year’s late run that took the Indians all the way to the state finals.