Pounded at Lowndes: Can we write off Peachtree Ridge?
If they play again in November, will it be the same story?
I didn’t see the Lowndes-Peachtree Ridge game, but hearing from a few who did, and reading newspaper reports, it sounds like Lowndes played a great game, while Peachtree Ridge got knocked down hard early and couldn’t get up. Result: 51-17.
Tyler Hunter, the son of former Georgia receiver Brice Hunter, returned the kickoff for a touchdown, then ran a fumble in for a touchdown. Lowndes also scored on an interception return.
Don’t misunderstand: If I didn’t think Lowndes were the better team, I wouldn’t have put the Vikings at No. 1 in preseason. A few people grumbled at my sticking by Lowndes after its QF exit last year and the loss of Greg Reid. If Lowndes played Peachtree Ridge tomorrow, I’d expect Lowndes to handle the Lions again.
But it’s a long ways until November. Just ask Tucker and Marist. Or just ask Lowndes, for that matter. Just curious of how others view the significance of this game.
Can we write Peachtree Ridge off? I don’t see how a team that reached the final in 2008, played Camden County to the wire and returned two-thirds of those starters can’t still win a state title this year.
But Lowndes is the favorite. 51-17 settled that.
In other news, Holy Innocents’ and Chattahoochee County in Class A are ranked for the first time in their histories, and Treutlen is there for the first time in 10 years. HI plays No. 1 Wesleyan this week.
Etowah got pounded, leaving a hole in the rankings. I picked Woodstock. Who was your choice? McEachern? Roswell? South Gwinnett is looking good, fwiw.
Big game this week: Carver-Columbus vs. Northside-Warner Robins. I think I’m taking Carver.
Also watch Buford vs. Lovett.
CLASS AAAAA
1. Lowndes (2-0)
2. Grayson (2-0)
3. North Gwinnett (2-0)
4. Camden County (1-1)
5. Stephenson (2-0)
6. Northside, Warner Robins (1-0)
7. M.L. King (2-0)
8. Newnan (2-0)
9. Peachtree Ridge (1-1)
10. Woodstock (1-0)
CLASS AAAA
1. Tucker (2-0)
2. Griffin (2-0)
3. Southwest DeKalb (1-1)
4. Westside, Macon (2-0)
5. Statesboro (2-0)
6. North Clayton (2-0)
7. Hillgrove (2-0)
8. Sandy Creek (1-1)
9. Clarke Central (2-0)
10. Bainbridge (2-0)
CLASS AAA
1. Carver, Columbus (2-0)
2. Gainesville (2-0)
3. Flowery Branch (2-0)
4. Baldwin (2-0)
5. Peach County (2-0)
6. St. Pius (2-0)
7. Carrollton (2-0)
8. LaGrange (1-1)
9. Washington County (2-0)
10. Burke County (2-0)
CLASS AA
1. Buford (2-0)
2. Calhoun (2-0)
3. Fitzgerald (2-0)
4. Thomasville (1-1)
5. Jefferson County (2-0)
6. Pepperell (2-0)
7. Lovett (2-0)
8. Brooks County (2-0)
9. Jefferson (2-0)
10. Charlton County (1-0-1)
CLASS A
1. Wesleyan (2-0)
2. Wilcox County (2-0)
3. Lincoln County (2-0)
4. Wilkinson County (2-0)
5. Savannah Christian (2-0)
6. Johnson County (2-0)
7. Bowdon (2-0)
8. Chattahoochee County (2-0)
9. Holy Innocents’ (2-0)
10. Treutlen (2-0)
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236 comments Add your comment
Decatur 4 Life
September 10th, 2009
9:23 am
plowboy
That’s exactly what I’m talking about, they just have one. And yes that one was when they were in the highest classification. Now they aren’t because they don’t have the student size they once had. I’ve always respected you guys down there, just tired of hearing about this superiority. Valdosta is winningest high school program in the nation, I boasted that all the years I was in Baton Rouge while in college. Everyone from Louisiana, Texas, and other surrounding states talked about how their football was better than Georgia. I’ve always liked the stronger teams from S. Georgia but there’s a reason why you’re so successful and you guys don’t want to hear it. My thing is, we never rub in your face the fact that we’re more successful in basketball and you guys can’t come up here and win. The fact is we don’t care. Just be happy Valdosta isn’t the only one worth talking about in Lowdnes County NOW!!
Packer 89
September 10th, 2009
9:26 am
i believe that the 5a playoff teams will be Lowndes Northside Valdosta Warner Robbins these will be the schools representing my region. What makes me so frustrated is that the Atlanta schools and Savannah schools get to put 4 teams into the playoff bracket as well. How much better could the playoffs be if the state put the best teams in the playoffs and were not forced to take the top 4 from each region?
Any thoughts on that?
Decatur 4 Life
September 10th, 2009
9:40 am
Reeze
Man please, “2800 to 3000 students in our schools” no not quite.The schools that I’m referring to don’t have no where near that many students. It’ s impossible for a new school to open in the same district and keep the same number of students. If that was the case majority of the schools in Dekalb County would be in the highest classification and they aren’t. The school I teach at barely has 1400 students and the same goes for the other 3 or 4 schools in this area.
You guys talk about the student numbers don’t mean anything but I wouldn’t expect it to mean anything to a town with a few schools. You ever wonder why Valdosta and Lowdnes don’t have great dynasty teams at
the same time. What about Northside and WR? Not enough athletes to go around like that it’ll either be one or the other. It wasn’t until Valdosta fell off a little that we started to take Lowdnes serious.
AVikingFan
September 10th, 2009
9:55 am
Packer 89: Changing the playoff structure might undo something that was changed, in part because of Colquitt county. Do you remeber when there was a three way tie in our region for 1st place AFTER THE REGULAR SEASON, AND THE REGION COACHES GOT TOGETHER and voted Colquitt “out” and Valdosta & Thomas County Central “in” when only two teams advanced from each region to the playoffs? And those two teams had to play each other with the winner advancing.
I like the current playoff structure pretty well, but would rather see only three teams advance. Our 1999 team won the state title after finishing 3rd in region 1AAAA, and beat 4 straight undefeated teams in the playoffs, including beating a 13-0 Southwest Dekalb team at their stadium! But I don’t remember a 4th placed team ever going all the way. Maybe our historian and fact guru Todd Holcomb can help me with that.
Decatur 4 Life
September 10th, 2009
9:56 am
EagleNationRising
I appreciate the research but I wasn’t comparing anything. Just stating the fact that it’s a reason why you guys are so successful, that’s all.
“You guys in DeKalb County like to pretend that there are only one or two good programs outside of metro Atlanta”. Who said that, I never have. You can call it an excuse or whatever you like, I don’t mind the truth hurts people sometimes. I never even heard of Northside until I went to school with a guy in college that was a former student. Before this recent success you guys were a doormat in middle Georgia or whatever yall call it. It wasn’t until Warner Robins fell off a little that we even found out you exsist. The lonely little championship we do have we went through Warner Robins in their “hay day” and sent them home talking about what a talent Quincy Carter was.
AVikingFan
September 10th, 2009
10:22 am
I heard the Carver Columbus coach said last night that his team hasn’t practiced this week because the players are all still drawing straws to see who HAS TO PLAY against mighty NSWR Friday. H-mmmmmmm!
Believe that if you want to! CC comes before NSWR in the alphabet, and may Friday night also. But is’s tough to beat a good AAAAA team at home. I think NSWR will find a way to win over all those all-world players at CC. I bet ENR agrees with me on that Wonder who Todd the fact guru will pick? (I say “fact” instead of “trivia” because the guy knows his stuff!)
HeadEast
September 10th, 2009
11:19 am
Lowndes Rules! Don’t discount Grayson because they only got 10 against Warner Robins. I’ve only seen a couple of their games, one in person, but it looks like that is their style. I’m not saying they didn’t try to score more but they don’t seem to mind running three plays, and some clock, and then punting and letting their D do the job once they are up by more than a touchdown.
HeadEast
September 10th, 2009
11:26 am
All hail Lowndes for representing Georgia so well in the national polls. Woodstock Woody – It’s impossible to predict your game this week. I think you have to win with D. MAC has lit up both opponents so far this year but their D is also pretty solid. My guess is you’ll have to hold them under 21 to win. I don’t have a dog in that fight so good luck to both teams. If MAC can beat Etowah, Woodstock, and EP in consecutive weeks they’ll deserve the region title. Oops, I forgot, they’ll still have to beat the ‘improving every week’ Hoyas! LOL
SportsFan31313
September 10th, 2009
11:53 am
Reeeze Says:
Young man , I don’t think that you know what you are saying half of the time…….2006 Northside wins a close one 28 – 7 against Region 1 -AAAAA and X town foe WR Demons, who just happen to make it to the semi’s that year , but lost to Ptridge 13-7 Along the way the Demons defeated Lowndes , Valdosta and upset Camden county………2006 Northside defeats Region – 1 Hoco Bears 26 -14 ,who makes it to the qrts that year and losses to Roswell, the big shocker was Hoco defeating the 10-1 MLK Lions that season in the playoffs, at home……….Now what does that tell you about the lil ole 2006 Eagles……….Sportsfan31313 , I know you hear the BS on this blog about the size of enrollment ,school openings watering down talent and all the other BS ……,when it comes down to it ,a winning program will win no matter what…..The ATL metro schools will still have2800-3000 students if another school opens or not…..I don’t think you’ll ever hear any Northside or middle Ga posters on this blog complain about the numbers ,When you’ve seen schools in this area over the last 10 seasons or so ,like Peach Co ,Baldwin ,Waco ,Westside mcn ,Dublin to name .These are small schools with winning traditions over the years depending on which year would have spanked the best of AAAAA teams.
WELL REEZE LETS SEE IF YOURE RIGHT…..
Yo
September 10th, 2009
12:00 pm
The Cannon Rules!! the Facts don’t bother me, we were THUGGY last year and you are still in need of a HUGGY! Awwwww! Little “tick tick tick boooom person is in need of a HUGGY?
Yo
September 10th, 2009
12:03 pm
Soooo Decatur 4 Life when do you suppose someone in your region will fall of so your school can become legite?
SportsFan31313
September 10th, 2009
12:15 pm
Reeze,
Well you may be right about beating those AAAAA teams in 2006. But that was not my point. Realistically In the 2005 – 2006 season, Region 4-AAAA Northside Warner Robbins Eagles was in Class AAAA. They Lost to Region 3-AAAA Statesboro Blue Devils 13-10 in the State Finals. Statesboro Region 3-AAAA State Champions.
2006-2007 Region 4-AAAA Northside Warner Robbins beats Region Region 6-AAAA Marist 30-6 For the State Title.
2007-2008 Region 4-AAAA Northside Warner Robbins beat Region 3-AAAA Ware County 20-14 winning the State Title.
2008-2009 Northside Warner Robbins moves up to Class AAAAA assigned to Region 1-AAAAA.
Northside Warner Robbins loses in the 2nd round to Region 3-AAAAA Camden County 28- 20.
All I am saying is that you can’t too over confident down there in South Georgia. Especially in Region 1-AAAAA. You can be beaten. Just Remember last year between Grayson & Lowndes County. My point is that I wouldn’t right off Peachtree Ridge as of yet. It is still too early in the season. That is all I am saying……..
SportsFan31313
September 10th, 2009
12:26 pm
AVikingFan
September 9th, 2009
9:49 pm
AVIKINGFAN says: Sportsfan31313, How is your Bradwell team doing this year and what do you expect from them? They got much back from last year?
Greetings AVIKINFAN,
Bradwell Institute has a lot of young players. However; even though they are young, and inexperience, they are doing quite well. They are getting better as the weeks progress. In my opinion, they are playing better than they did last year at this time. My opinion is that they should have blown out Wayne County but you never know. This South Georgia Football. Wayne County Defense held Bradwell Institute the 1 first half, and Bradwell Institute wore them down. Some teams play some teams better especially when they have something to prove. My prediction is that Bradwell Institue will go at least 9-1 or better in the regular season. Bradwell Defense is fast and physical this year as some of the Region 1-AAAAA Defenses. I’m going to step out here and say this: If Bradwell Institute Defense plays very well, they should beat Houston County this year. If that happens, then what will that mean for Region 3-AAAAA? Last year, it was Bradwell Institute, and Camden County from Region 3-AAAAA who did very well.
SportsFan31313
September 10th, 2009
12:29 pm
Greetings AVIKINGFAN,
To answer your question as to what do I think about Bradwell Institute this year, Bradwell Institute has a lot of young players. However; even though they are young, and inexperience, they are doing quite well. They are getting better as the weeks progress. In my opinion, they are playing better than they did last year at this time. My opinion is that they should have blown out Wayne County but you never know. This South Georgia Football. Wayne County Defense held Bradwell Institute the 1 first half, and Bradwell Institute wore them down. Some teams play some teams better especially when they have something to prove. My prediction is that Bradwell Institue will go at least 9-1 or better in the regular season. Bradwell Defense is fast and physical this year as some of the Region 1-AAAAA Defenses. I’m going to step out here and say this: If Bradwell Institute Defense plays very well, they should beat Houston County this year. If that happens, then what will that mean for Region 3-AAAAA? Last year, it was Bradwell Institute, and Camden County from Region 3-AAAAA who did very well.
Reeze
September 10th, 2009
12:54 pm
Decatur 4 Life……..I was referring to the Grayson’s and the Ptridges of the world when i said 2800-3000. I know Mlk has around 2000 and Stephenson has 2200.Around the same size of the 3 Warner Robins schools Hoco-2200 , WR-2000 and Northside -1900…..And I really don’t know how old you are , but a few years back ,I forget the year, when WR and Northside were in the same AAAAA region ,Wr was #1 and Northside was #2 in the state ,in 2001 or 02 Northside was #10 in the nation and WR was in the top 10 in Ga and both schools had smaller numbers then, than now…….As i told Sportsfan 31313, Numbers don’t matter . It’s about really about community support,when I say community it’s not just about the numbers shakin pom pom’s during the game…..It’s about sponsorship, having good youth football programs and middle school programs ,most of the kids in Warner Robins have been in pads since they were 5 or 6 years old……..You know the funny this is that Northside High school and your Dekalb county schools have to deal with the same problem ,your neighbors don;t want you to have any success….You know why in Dekalb ,In Warner Robins it’s economics……..Getting back to numbers, 2000 students or not ,. For the past two years MLK has come to Northside’s 7 on 7 comp and turned it inside out , I really can’t see why MLK should lose to anyone , your kids have the most talent on one team than anyone……Last season if Northside would have had your QB and just 1 of your recievers ,we would have been state champs……….Then what is it? Why shouldn’t MLK have success this year ?..The talent is there. Economics? No………Pahokee Fla ,32% of the population below the poverty line,their kids chase rabbits down as an agility drill,they beat the best in Fla…….MLK looks better this year than last ,if they don’t this year ,it just won’t happen ever.
Fred
September 10th, 2009
12:58 pm
Wow, so many of these comments make so littel sense. Oh well, that is another issue.
I think Decatur 4 Life hit the nail on the head. It is not really about the size of the school, it is the shear numbers of programs available. Let’s say you are moving to the metor area and have a kid or kids that are good football players. Unless you are tie to public transportation, you can live pretty much anywhere you want to in close to 6,000 square miles. Do you pick Paulding, Cobb, DeKalb, Gwinnett, Forsyth, Coweta, Buford City, Decatur City, etc. or some of the other south metro counties whose names escape me at the moment? (Sorry south metro, no slight just a senior moment.) Say you pick Gwinnett, my county. Counting the new schools that opened this year, there are 18 high schools in the county. Due to the growth, redistricting occurs and the attendance lines suddenly make no logical sense but do make numeric sense. I am physically closer to 2 high schools other than the one my child attends. What all this means is that I can choose to live within a five mile radius of my current home and potentially have my child attend 7 different high schools. You can talk numbers all day long but when someone has those kinds of choice within only one of the metro areas, it stands to reason that the talent pool is going to get spread out.
I have to plead ignorance about the number of schools per county/city in mid and south Georgia. My perception is that in Lowndes County for example is that there is the county school and Valdosta and those are the only two choices. I think Camdem County is the only high school in the county and just don’t know if there are city systems in the area. So while the area one might choose to live in might encompass a large area, the choices for schools are fewer and the local talent tends to get concentrated a little more than might be so in the metro area.
Way back in the day, Decatur, Avondale and a few others regularly challenged south Georgia teams. Avondale beat Valdosta for the AAA (highest classification at the time) championship in 1963 and challenged before and after. (Anybody remember Calvin Ramsey at Avondale and Wright Bazemore at Valdosta? Did I just date myself?
) Anyway, the point is that there are both so many more programs to choose from and other sports that might not be supported as fully in the smaller systems (lacrosse, hockey, etc) that the talent pool gets spread thin.
In any event, I think we should al be proud of the high level of competition that exists across the state! High school football is fun!
Fred
September 10th, 2009
1:00 pm
Please forgive the typos above. I was hurrying and sometimes the fingers don’t listen to what the mind is trying to say.
SportsFan31313
September 10th, 2009
1:57 pm
Yes Fred, you just did LOL….. I remember the lendgendary Coach Wright Bazemore of Valdosta. Who wouldn’t back then? But I agree with you with what you are saying about the talent being spread out.
I can also recognize that if you have one school in the County, your talent is all right there attending one school. If you have for example: Region 3-AAAAA Bradwell Institute for a while had only one school. All of the talent was going to that one school. Now you have two schools there now. Region 3-AAA Liberty County, and Region 3-AAAAA Bradwell Institute. The talent is spreaded between the two schools, and your enrollment drops. Before the two schools, Bradwell Institute use to dress out 100 players. Now they probably dress out maybe 55 players. See what I mean?
Yo
September 10th, 2009
5:44 pm
So Reeze….since numbers don’t matter, How about letting Lowndes/Valdosta borrow 1/4 of your teams students and a pro rata amount of the football team before we play you guys. Numbers do play an important “part” of the equation, but you are right in that it is not the most important part of the equation. How good of a team could you put together if you could form your team from Warner and Northside students? Lets just say at Lowndes we would now be even more concerned about playing you then. Last week I quoted Peachtrees coach on this subject and this week I quote Tomberlin of Valdosta from his coaches notes. “Tomberlin said there’s not much difference in enrollment between Valdosta, a AAAAA school, and Jonesboro, which is a AAAA school.” He made that point for a reason and it was a football reason.
Any coach in his right mind and given all other things being equal(community support, program, coaching staff) would much rather be a part of a 3000 student enrollment than a 2000 student enrollment.
Yo
September 10th, 2009
5:48 pm
Fred…where you live in Lowndes county determins what school you attend. There is “no” choice in the matter. If one lives in the county they will attend the county schools and if one lives in the city they will attend the city schools. There is not choosing to go to where the better sports program may be. You are according to where you live.
AVikingFan
September 10th, 2009
6:31 pm
Sportsfan31313 – Hope ya’ll do well.
AVikingFan
September 10th, 2009
6:33 pm
I also hope Lowndes gets to play East Pauldin and hopefully a rematch with Greyson.
Reeze
September 10th, 2009
8:15 pm
Yo……….You ever see the movie 300? , I agree partly what you say ,but Nix wont pack up and coach for Meadowcreek to get a 1000 student boost……You have seen the 3 Warner Robins schools on the field , you know the difference , Northside is the smallest of the 3 ,but the difference is coaching and support……My point was to the Atl/Mero folks complaining about talent being watered down from school openings which i don’t agree with……Houston County has a population density of 291 per sqare mile,Lowndes county 183………Dekalb county 2,483 , Gwinnette county 1,360 . Yet this decade between Lowndes and Houston county there has been 7 state championships.Looking at the numbers if you were to open a new school each year in Dekalb or Gwinnette ,What difference could it really make?
AVikingFan
September 10th, 2009
8:28 pm
Reese, who are you picking between NSWR and CC? How bout you YO?
Micheal 18
September 10th, 2009
9:00 pm
woo plowboy you dont know football so get off, Buford averages like 10 players a year getting scholarships they went to ohio and beat the brakes of the defending 5A champ 35-0 they beat plenty of good schools class dosent mean anything football is footbal either you can play or you cant obviously you need to do sum research before u start talking
AVikingFan
September 10th, 2009
9:02 pm
Kyle Parker starting for Clemson tonight against Ga Tech as a redshirt freshman is the son of former Lowndes great receiver Carl Parker who went on to vanderbilt and Cincinatti Bengals.
Fred
September 10th, 2009
10:21 pm
Yo, I understand the city/county split and the lack of choice. I was basically trying to say that if you are not in the city, it doesn’t matter where in the county you live you go to the county school. In Gwinnett, where you live might put you into one of 12 high school districts. And oh by the way, that district might change if one school gets too heavily overloaded.
I do see the other side too. Heck, last year Grayson had 50 trailer classrooms. I don’t know for sure but it is possible that is more trailers than some of the smaller schools have in classrooms in the building! (Probably not at the 5A level but you get my point.)
HoyaFan
September 11th, 2009
2:09 am
“(Harrison is a pretty decent team, probably a 3-seed playoff team)”
Maybe not that good this year. But good enough to beat East Paulding, who is way over-ranked.
SportsFan31313
September 11th, 2009
10:54 am
Greetings AVIKINGFAN,
Thanks for the support. Houston County has a running game, and heard that their defense is playing a lot better than they did the last two years. Bradwell Institute has a young team and this is a rebuilding year for them as well. However; This time last year, Bradwell was 02 with one of the losses coming from Houston County at Houston County, and Bradwell Institute came back very strong winning 7 games in a row. Making it to the 2nd round of the playoffs. If Bradwell Institute. With that being said, Bradwell Defense is fast and physical this year. I’m giving the edge to Bradwell Institute because of this and them having home field advantage. I don’t think that this will be a high scoring game at all.
Colquitt County Packers Of Moultrie
September 11th, 2009
4:49 pm
Go Pack, Go Pack, Show lowndes who control 1AAAAA, Take back what is ours Packer, Colquitt County Packers should be ranked in the top 5 best teams, we didn’t have a such a easy schedule
SportsFan31313
September 11th, 2009
5:14 pm
Greetings VIKINGFAN,
Enjoy the butt thrashing that Lowndes County is going to put on Ware County…..
bamabone
September 11th, 2009
5:24 pm
as a valdosta grad, it is great to see a local team doing so well (my brother is a vike). hopefully the ‘cats will put up a better fight than they have the past several years.
SportsFan31313
September 11th, 2009
5:51 pm
Good Luck Tonight Football Fans….
HoyaFan
September 12th, 2009
8:45 am
“I saw the Ridge destroy Harrison and never dreamed they could lost to anyone by 34!”
__________________________________________________________________________
You must have seen this game in your dreams, because Harrison did not lose by 34. You can’t get 34 on the score board or by subtracting our losing score from their winning score. The score was 35-13 and that is a 22 point difference. Also one P-Ridge touchdown was from a fumble close to our line, and we had a huge run for a touchdown called back due to a penalty that IMO was not fair. Harrison showed me we had something if only the defense would gel. Harrison is getting better each game. Also I suspect Cherokee is better than their record shows, they started out against some tough teams. They will win some games, I suspect East Paulding will be one team both Harrison and Cherokee will beat.
plowboy
September 12th, 2009
9:11 am
where are all the buford faithful , did ya`ll play a private school last night and get beat , lowndes would destroy buford
SportsFan31313
September 12th, 2009
3:49 pm
Greetings Reeze, AVikingFan, and EagleNationsRising
I must say you were right and I was wrong. Houston County came to Hinesville and hammered Bradwell Institute 33-14. Houston County disclosed Bradwell Institute’s weakness on field. Bradwell’s offensive line is very very young and inexperienced. They couldn’t get anything going. Now my thoughts are Houston County has gotten very good over the past two years and very well be a contender in Region 1-AAAAA or they hammered Bradwell on Bradwell’s turf over a very young and inexperienced team that was playing against a tough Houston County Region 1-AAAAA. nevertheless,, Great job Houston County on your convincing win against Bradwell. We will probably meet again in the post season depending on the seed.