Lowndes replaces Brookwood at No. 1; Collins Hill, Marist, Lovett enter Top 10
Lowndes is the new No. 1 team in Class AAAAA this week. Brookwood, which lost 14-6 to Lassiter, became the first No. 1 team in AAAAA to lose its opening game since Lowndes lost to Warner Robins in 2000.
In other changes, Collins Hill (AAAAA), Marist (AAAA) and Lovett (AA) entered the rankings. Brookwood, Brunswick and Thomasville fell out.
Class AAAAA
1. Lowndes (1-0)
Last week: Beat South Gwinnett 45-13. Tijuan Lang had two interceptions, blocked a punt and returned a kickoff for a touchdown. Josh Harvey-Clemons, an AJC Super 11 pick, rushed for 56 yards on 12 carries, caught a 36-yard pass, scored a touchdown and made three tackles for losses, two unassisted. He lined up at quarterback, halfback, wide receiver, cornerback and safety. He also knocked a South Gwinnett receiver out of the game on a jarring hit. Lowndes rushed for 243 yards. Lowndes had lost its previous two games in metro Atlanta – to McEachern in 2010 and Grayson in 2008. Next: Friday vs. Pebblebrook (0-0)
2. Camden County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Savannah (0-1)
3. Colquitt County (1-0)
Last week: Beat Cook 31-0. After allowing more than 30 points per game last season, Colquitt got an opening-game shutout under new defensive coordinator Travis Pearson. Cole Segraves and Daniel Mobley alternated at quarterback and threw for 170 yards. Colquitt was upset by Cook 15-9 last season. Next: Friday vs. Madison County, Fla. (0-0)
4. Grayson (1-0)
Last week: Beat Kell 7-0. Grayson capitalized on Kell’s misplay of a punt midway in the fourth quarter and scored on a 5-yard run by DT/RB Robert Nkemdiche to avenge a 13-10 opening loss from 2010. Grayson’s Obi Motanya recovered the critical misplay. Grayson held Kell to fewer than 75 yards of total offense and only 12 rushing yards. Next: Saturday vs. Edgewater, Fla. (0-0) at North Gwinnett
5. McEachern (1-0)
Last week: Beat North Gwinnett 26-17. McEachern scored two touchdowns in the game’s final 10 seconds to win for just the second time in the last six Corky Kell Classics. Chris Nwagbara scored on a 4-yard run to give McEachern a 20-17 lead, and CJ Cody returned an interception 37 yards for a touchdown on the game’s final play. McEachern quarterback Trent Thompson completed 21 of 42 passes for 337 yards and threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Amba Etta-Tawo. Next: Sept. 2 at Lowndes (1-0)
6. Stephenson (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Parkview (0-0) at Hallford Stadium
7. M.L. King (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Sept. 1 vs. South Gwinnett (0-1) at Hallford Stadium
8. Hillgrove (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Sprayberry (0-0)
9. Collins Hill (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Roswell (0-0)
10. North Gwinnett (0-1)
Last week: Lost to McEachern 26-17. QB Scott Hosch was 15-for-25 passing for 177 yards and threw two TD passes to Chad Scott, who finished with six catches for 98 yards, but McEachern’s two final-minute touchdowns proved fatal. North Gwinnett had won 20 consecutive regular-season games. Next: Saturday vs. East St. Louis (0-0)
Class AAAA
1. Tucker (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Thursday vs. Southwest DeKalb (0-0) at Hallford Stadium
2. Northside-Warner Robins (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Union Grove (0-0)
3. Statesboro (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Brunswick (0-1)
4. Flowery Branch (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Madison County (0-0)
5. Chattahoochee (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Sept. 2 vs. Lambert (0-0)
6. Kell (0-1)
Last week: Lost to Grayson 7-0. Kell was outgained 227-55 but stayed in the game until misplaying a punt in the fourth quarter, leading to Grayson’s one-play, 5-yard TD drive. Kell entered with a 16-game regular-season winning streak. A year ago, Kell ended Grayson’s 24-game regular-season win streak. Next: Sept. 2 vs. Etowah (0-0)
7. Ware County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Coffee (1-0)
8. Starr’s Mill (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Coosa (0-0)
9. East Paulding (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at South Paulding (0-0)
10. Marist (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Douglass (0-0)
Class AAA
1. Sandy Creek (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Whitewater (0-0)
2. Carrollton (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Oxford, Ala. (0-0)
3. Peach County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Warner Robins (0-0)
4. Cairo (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Drew (0-0)
5. St. Pius (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Westminster (0-0)
6. Burke County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Baldwin (0-0)
7. Cedar Grove (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Veterans (0-0) at Panthersville Stadium
8. Allatoona (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Kennesaw Mountain (0-0)
9. Eastside (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Alcovy (0-0)
10. Baldwin (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Burke County (0-0)
Class AA
1. Buford (1-0)
Last week: Beat Blessed Trinity 42-0. Buford led 35-0 at halftime and spoiled the return of new Blessed Trinity coach Tim McFarlin, who led Roswell to a state title in 2006. Buford had 277 yards rushing. QB Sam Clay was 6-for-8 passing for 92 yards. Virginia-committed WR/DB C.J. Moore caught a 33-yard TD pass, and all-state DE Rick Legrant returned a fumble 20 yards for a touchdown. Buford has not lost a season opener since 1998, to Lincoln County. Next: Friday vs. Gainesville (0-0)
2. Calhoun (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Dalton (0-0)
3. Carver-Columbus (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Spencer (0-0) at Columbus Memorial Stadium
4. Greater Atlanta Christian (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Columbia (0-0) at Avondale Stadium
5. Westminster (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. St. Pius (0-0)
6. Cook (0-1) Last week: Lost to Colquitt County 31-0. Cook preseason all-state quarterback Zack Folsom was 3-of-15 passing for 22 yards, and Class AAAAA Colquitt County avenged a 15-9 loss from last season. Folsom was intercepted three times. Next: Sept. 2 at Americus-Sumter (0-0)
7. Brooks County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Valdosta (0-0)
8. Swainsboro (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at ECI (0-0)
9. Lovett (1-0) Last week: Beat Thomasville 14-12. Grant Haley scored two touchdowns, the second a 62-yard run that gave Lovett a 14-6 lead in the third quarter. Lovett scored first after Thomasville lost a fumble on its first snap from scrimmage, setting up Lovett’s 31-yard drive. Thomasville outgained Lovett 312-173 but scored only on big plays – a 54-yard punt return from Quintez Spear and 61-yard run from Mario Cherry. Lovett QB Luke Hart was 12-of-22 passing for 100 yards. Thomasville missed an extra point and a conversion attempt and field goals of 39 and 48 yards. Next: Sept. 2 vs. Towers (0-0)
10. Fitzgerald (0-1)
Last week: Lost to Tift County 29-22. Tift County QB Kris Miller, taking the place of injured Tadric Jackson, ran for the tying touchdown and threw for the game-winner, a 15-yarder to Donell Tuff in the fourth quarter. Jackson, a sophomore, threw TD passes to Tuff (37 yards) and Drew Davis (75 yards) before leaving with an ankle injury that is not believed to be serious. Fitzgerald QB Kaleb Nobles scored a touchdown and threw for one. Fitzgerald had beaten this Class AAAAA opponent four of the previous five meetings, including 40-26 last year. Next: Friday vs. Worth County (0-0)
Class A
1. Eagle’s Landing Christian (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Briarwood Christian, Ala. (0-0)
2. Clinch County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Pierce County (0-0)
3. Savannah Christian (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at McIntosh County Academy (0-0)
4. Wilkinson County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Johnson County (0-0)
5. Emanuel County Institute (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Swainsboro (0-0)
6. Wesleyan (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Seminole County (0-0)
7. Wilcox County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday at Miller County (0-0)
8. Darlington (1-0)
Last week: Beat Sonoraville 35-14.Darlington led 35-0 at halftime and cruised as QB Brad Butler was 7-of-8 passing for 153 yards and TD passes to Cameron Gibson and Nigel Matthews. Next: Friday at Dade Christian, Fla. (0-0)
9. Lincoln County (1-0)
Last week: Beat Harlem 69-6. Lincoln County was held scoreless in the first quarter but scored five touchdowns in the second. Freshman Jamar Taylor rushed for 107 yards and scored three touchdowns on four carries. Craig Jones rushed for 122 yards on 10 carries. The score was 42-6 at halftime. It was the second time in two seasons that Lincoln has hit 69 points. The Red Devils beat Twiggs County 69-14 last season. It was Harlem’s worst loss since a 70-0 defeat to Washington County in 1997. Next: Friday at Abbeville, S.C. (0-0)
10. Charlton County (0-0)
Last week: Did not play. Next: Friday vs. Brantley County (0-0)
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484 comments Add your comment
horn of da ram
August 25th, 2011
9:10 am
Grayson Finest-GHS has qualified players on the bench instead of on the playing field,it is called good ole bubba politico game, the conn should be off the field with his bubba staff,sorry GHS does have 3 knowingly coaches that should replace the conn bubbas,we will not even point out the favorites one by one because the whole team knows,enough of this stuff,see ya at the Edgewater game, i will be cheering for the players really.
AVikingFan
August 25th, 2011
9:14 am
Good luck to NG and Grayson this weekend playing teams from out of state. Hope you win and represent GA well!
CobbFan
August 25th, 2011
9:50 am
Just one more comment about North and South GA; there has always been great talent in North and South GA, South GA has been so dominant because of their commitment to excellence. The kids in the metro areas for the most part, only care about bettering their situation. There are only a handful of Metro teams that compete. These 5a schools are Brookwood, Grayson, North Gwinnette, Mceachern, Stephenson, Walton and now Hillgrove, just to name the most recent. These schools have coaches that don’t allow kids just to show up and worry about themselves. They spend the summer weight training and in passing leagues and not in the mall and at Six Flags. I know it is very tough to compete in Cobb because the county doesn’t put in money into athletics. They want each school to be around 1800 students for academic reasons, but when they build a new school like Hillgrove they will pay for the field but will not pay for any stands to be built. We only have one side so if we make a playoff run again it will be totally on the road. We parents have to pay for everything, I mean everything. If you want your child to have a decent helmet, you have to pay extra. Don’t get me started on that! We give much respect to the South GA programs because they are who we measure our programs against. My son and I talked about it all summer that the intensity level is way different when they played against Camden and Brookwood, other than the Mceachern game of course. That’s what they used in the spring and summer to help them get better. So to all the South guys it’s better for the state for Cobb and Gwinnette to get better. To everyone, let’s have a great season!
Camden74
August 25th, 2011
12:06 pm
Cobb Fan………Nice post and good luck this season!
yo
August 25th, 2011
12:52 pm
Gold and Blue when we play teams from the Atlanta area the game
usally has plenty of seating on the visitors side. We have a large area for seating on the visitors side and schools from the Atlanta area don’t usually bring that many. There will be some Lowndes fans over there but not nearly enough to fill the stands. Maybe ya’ll will be different, but I doubt it.
I got a feeling you aren’t playing a Jekyl and Hyde team that you
played last year. Lowndes is gonna show up this time and be ready.
To all of ya’ll that complain about Lowndes band playing during the game it is no different than yours playing. In fact generally the Lowndes band plays less so than the opponents. The problem is you can generally hear our band and quite well. When visiting Lowndes all you have to do is ask the refs to quiet the band. It’s that simple…LOL…but a warning to ya……we do take that personal in the stands.
JAB
August 25th, 2011
12:54 pm
I love this site and (ALL) the hype about High School Football this year! Enough said,, it will be won under the lights, Friday night lights. Stephenson jags will sore this year starting it’s first bring down of the year (Parkview)! GO JAGS…
GA Fan
August 25th, 2011
1:24 pm
******** Cobb Fan *******
Good post. Sports in Cobb is very expensive!
OMacG
August 25th, 2011
1:57 pm
Man- the last several posts have been some of the classiest I’ve ever seen on this or any vent. bksmith14, totally agree about the Indians/Vikes game being just a regular season game. It should be another intense, competitive battle that will pay dividends for both down the road. The boys in Blue and Gold are gonna get a big ol’ helping of playing a Region 1 opponent on the road; the coaches have a huge task of getting them mentally ready to compete in that environment. No matter the outcome, they’ll always remember this game.
And CobbFan- great point about the improvement of metro ATL programs helping strengthen the state as a whole. Commitment to excellence in rural Georgia to the game of football is exactly what gives them an edge over most metro schools, IMO. Not impossible to reach that level of intensity up here…but very, very difficult. Dorsey saw this in the late ’80s and began scheduling the big boys from rural Georgia. Hockman is taking the same approach…and it will no doubt pay off once again. I’m not opposed to programs going up against powerhouses from other states- helps our state rep when we win- but we have plenty of programs within our own boundaries that’ll give you all you can handle.
Fred
August 25th, 2011
2:41 pm
@CobbFan, I think the situation you are describing in support from the school system is pretty much the same in all the large systems. The Gwinnett system doesn’t really support the football programs that well. At the new schools, it is up to the supporters to help take the program to the next level. I know at Grayson, the school system built the field and I think set the lights and then the Touchdown Club took it from there. We now can seat 8,000+, have a main and secondary/visitor concession stand, former weight building now used by other athletic activities and very nice field house with locker rooms and offices. While perhaps not quite as nice as Valdosta and Lowndes, I believe we have done a credible job building up decent facilities.
I think if you look at it, the programs that excel anywhere in the state are the ones where there is very strong parental and community involvement. In those programs, there is parental involvement in the rest of the school as well as athletics cannot exist in a vacuum. I hate to mention them but Meadowcreek in Gwinnett is an example of what happens with a lack of support. The population in the Meadowcreek district does not have a football heritage and doesn’t support football very well. When we played there last year, there were 33 dressed out players on the home side. There weren’t enough parents in the stands to have more than 1 per players and band member. They are projected to have the 7th largest enrollment out of I think 19 high schools in Gwinnett and can’t put together a football program that amounts to anything. I find that very sad.
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
2:55 pm
Does anyone know how Ware County looks this year?
battleaxe kid
August 25th, 2011
3:01 pm
Enter your comments here
bill james
August 25th, 2011
3:11 pm
22 seniors, very fast,stiff D. very improved passing game
battleaxe kid
August 25th, 2011
3:12 pm
P-Falcon Fan You wana make a gentlemen’s wager? Just after the game, post a response or the score. Demoralize young men that play their hearts out, NOT at all. Play to win exactly IT IS A GAME. The better team will ,score will be 45-0. Now will that be an upset, And guess who will have 45??? I”ll wait upon your resonse Fri. nite. Be lookin forward to hearing from you. All in fun….. Games are played to have FUN, let um play.
bill james
August 25th, 2011
3:13 pm
that was to coffee trojan44
battleaxe kid
August 25th, 2011
3:14 pm
Lookin for the CH crusher…… Are you out there????? Somewhere?
bksmith14
August 25th, 2011
5:34 pm
Ware county will probablty beat coffee by 2 ior 3 tds at least this fri. they are good. going to be a heck of a game when they come to the palace. we slid by 3-0 last year. we had one td called back in that game on a horrible call, but we won 3-0. i ws just glad to get out of there with a win. one tough d line to deal with that is for sure. coffee will find out
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
6:34 pm
@bill james, What?
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
6:41 pm
@bksmith14, I think Ware can beat Coffee, but not by 3 tds. Coffee has a great QB now and has a good defense. I think Ware will beat Coffee 28-21. Go Trojans!!!
Camden74
August 25th, 2011
6:59 pm
Camden County is not playing like the number 2 ranked 5A team! You can definitely tell they have no returning starters on offense! Three possessions, 2 lost fumbles……Very sloppy!
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
7:25 pm
Does anyone have the Camden Co score?
camden wildcat
August 25th, 2011
7:27 pm
30-0 camden county 7:34 in the 2nd quarter!!! we had to get it together after those 2 fumbles…lets go cats!!!
camden wildcat
August 25th, 2011
7:46 pm
44-0 camden county 3:15 keft in the 2nd quater..brice ramsey just threw a touchdown…lets go cats!!
bksmith14
August 25th, 2011
7:51 pm
THIS JUST IN !!!!!!!!!!!!! CAMDEN leads 100-0 at haltime…….LOL
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
7:54 pm
51-0 Camden Co with 2:00 left in the 1st half.
Jammerz
August 25th, 2011
7:56 pm
ok somebody throw in the towel for Savanna, this one is getting ridiculas lol
camden wildcat
August 25th, 2011
7:56 pm
51-0 camden county 1:56 left in the 2nd…can you say ball game..lol, ohio here we come baby!!!!
Camden74
August 25th, 2011
8:00 pm
The Camden offense will have to play much, much better against Glenville!
Camden74
August 25th, 2011
8:03 pm
57-0………Stop it!
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
8:04 pm
57-0 Camden at the half.
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
8:35 pm
64-0 Camden with 9:00 left in the 3rd qtr.
BcS2010
August 25th, 2011
8:41 pm
Tucker 9 southwest dekalb 7
bill james
August 25th, 2011
8:51 pm
just want to say to all the grayson, mceachern,brookwood fans and who ever is arguing about north and south ga. football. im from ware county we are aaaa and we uesd to play aaaaa when we did we played up. now we are aaaa and we still play up bc of pop. by pop. we are aaa. we are surrounded by class aa and class a schools clinch co., charlton co. etc. when we played aaaaa im sure valdosta,lowndes,even camden from the past can tell you they lost to ware co. more than once. they also beat us. point being if we recruited down here ware co. would have 2000 students but instead we play with the talent we have which is good mind you so quit crying about sharing players with other schools. valdosta and lowndes are right down the road from brooks co. and they still are good. colquitt right down the road from valdosta they still are good charlton and clinch each within 35 miles of ware they are good. play the game win or shut your mouth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
bill james
August 25th, 2011
8:55 pm
re:cofee trojan 44
i was at game last week both teams were bad! if thats all you got ware will teach you a lesson
CoffeeTrojan#44
August 25th, 2011
8:58 pm
Does anyone have the Camden score?
camden wildcat
August 25th, 2011
9:34 pm
66-0 game over camden!!! we’ll see you guys in ohio next week!! lets root on for team georgia!!! Let Go Wildcats!!
camden wildcat
August 25th, 2011
9:35 pm
well on labor day!!!
BcS2010
August 25th, 2011
9:49 pm
Tucker 18 southwest 7
bksmith14
August 25th, 2011
9:57 pm
who dreesed out for savannah tonight? was it the cheerleaders with pads on? my gosh. they beat savannah every year by 100 points
bksmith14
August 25th, 2011
10:00 pm
camden hung 65 on savannah last year, so they decided to hang 1 more this year. lol
BcS2010
August 25th, 2011
10:20 pm
Wat Yall think bout dem tucker tigers?
Camden74
August 25th, 2011
10:39 pm
@bksmith14, actually, it was the ninth grade squad!
Camden74
August 25th, 2011
10:41 pm
Isn’t Tucker’s head coach a former Camden assistant?
rwdekalb
August 25th, 2011
11:21 pm
@BcS2010. Either Tucker is overrated or SWD is underrated. There no way u can honestly say that Tucker looked or played like the number one team in AAAA against an unranked team. Tucker is a good team and thats it! They will improve but so will some other good teams.
bksmith14
August 25th, 2011
11:29 pm
savannahs 9th graders went up against camden>???
camdens starters played most of the game what i heard, they substituted younger players in 2nd half
bksmith14
August 25th, 2011
11:38 pm
if lowndes beats mceachern next friday then lowndes is my pick to win it all this year followed by camden, then colquitt.
Camden74
August 26th, 2011
12:17 am
Yeah, Savannah didn’t want there starters to get hurt, so the played ninth graders against Camden’s first team……..
bksmith14
August 26th, 2011
12:25 am
Camden74 r u serious??? 9th graders ?? man that is a joke. why wdnt they play their starter/.?
cat doc
August 26th, 2011
9:43 am
I watched the Corky Kell last week. The only team that stood out was Walton. I know its early but Those other teams did not show much.
AVikingFan
August 26th, 2011
9:57 am
Camden 74 I think you are correct about Tucker’s coach. This is probably his 3rd year at Tucker.
Old Gold Panther
August 26th, 2011
10:16 am
Yea he was an assistant at Camden. This is his fifth year and has been pretty succesful. ‘07 semis ‘08 state champs ‘09 second round ‘10 semis