Archive for September, 2011

Class AAAAA

1. McEachern (5-0) def. South Cobb 45-7

Next week: vs. Hillgrove

2. Camden Co. (5-0) def. Treasure Coast, FL 59-14

Next week: vs. Benedictine

3. Grayson (5-0) def. Shiloh 42-14

Next week: vs. Dacula

4. Stephenson (5-0) def. Luella 35-14

Next week: at Newton

5. Lowndes (5-1) did not play

Next week: vs. Valdosta

6. North Gwinnett (4-1) did not play

Next week: at Norcross

7. Hillgrove (5-0) def. Harrison 21-14

Next week: at McEachern

8. M.L. King (5-0) def.Valdosta 16-3

Next week: at Luella

9. Walton (6-0) def.Lassiter 34-10

Next week: Does not play

10. Norcross (5-0) did not play

Next week: vs. North Gwinnett

Class AAAA

1. Tucker (5-0) did not play

Next week: vs. Mays (Adams)

2. Northside-W.R. (5-0) def. Warner Robins 32-24

Next week: vs. Lee County

3. Flowery Branch (5-0) did not play

Next week: vs. Habersham Central

4. East Paulding (6-0) def. Sprayberry 31-0

Next week: Does not play

5. Statesboro (6-0) def. Effingham Co. 34-7

Next week: vs. South Effingham

6. Ware …

Continue reading How the Top 10 Fared »

By Jack Morbitzer

Score Atlanta

The host Falcons held on to a 14-0 halftime lead to defeat the visiting Mustangs. Quarterback C.J. Goodman ran for two touchdowns and threw a touchdown to receiver Justin Sims. Sertonuse Harris ran for 150 yards of the Falcons 278 total yards.

Continue reading Pebblebrook 21, Kennesaw Mountain 14 »

By Jack Morbitzer

Score Atlanta

The host Panthers remained perfect in region play by holding the Patriots to 97 total yards of offense. Chris Carson ran for 132 yards and three touchdowns while the offense recorded 342 total yards. Keanu Mole returned an interception 40 yards for a score.

Continue reading Parkview 41, Berkmar 3 »

By S. Thomas Coleman
For the AJC

Ladies and gentleman, another quarterback has officially entered the race as Georgia’s best. Say hello to Alpharetta’s Joshua Dobbs.

The 6-foot-3, 190-pound junior completed 29 of 37 passes for 373 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Raiders to a 27-14 win over West Forsyth (5-1, 1-1). The win puts Alpharetta (5-1, 2-0) alone in first place in Region 6AAAAA, and avenges last season’s 20-17 loss to the Wolverines.

Dobbs managed Alpharetta’s fast-break offense with pinpoint precision all night, calling checks at the line of scrimmage signaled to him from the sideline.

“Our coaches can see the coverages and things from the sideline, so they signal the plays in,” said Dobbs, who is receiving overtures from the likes of Stanford and Princeton. “I’m comfortable doing that. It worked well for us tonight.”

Dobbs and the Raiders wasted little time getting on the scoreboard, as they took the opening kickoff and marched 81 yards in 10 …

Continue reading Alpharetta 27, West Forsyth 14 »

By MICHAEL ALPERT

For the AJC

Zach Moon threw three touchdown passes, and Jamaal Cole ran for two scores and caught a pass for another as Brookwood scored 31 consecutive points and beat visiting South Gwinnett 59-21 in a Region 8-AAAAA game.

Brookwood’s second consecutive victory over its Snellville counterpart upped its stranglehold on the teams’ series to 24-4 dating back to 1982. Importantly, it was a third consecutive win for the defending state champion Broncos (4-2, 3-1) after a 1-2 start and kept them in contention to repeat as region champions.

Combined with their 56-14 victory over Central Gwinnett, the Broncos have scored 115 points in their last two outings.

“We talk about winning and controlling your own fate and not waiting on somebody else to beat someone else,” Broncos coach Mark Crews said of his team righting its slow start. “At this point, every game is an important one.”

Moon broke open a 14-14 tie with a 15-yard scoring pass to B.J. Sammon 1:27 before …

Continue reading Brookwood 59, South Gwinnett 21 »

By Jeff Haws

For the AJC

Washington had its chance, doubling Grady in yardage and time of possession in the first half.

But the Grey Knights still led by a touchdown and Hughston Leaks’ 162 yards on 20 carries led Grady to a 26-12 win to remain undefeated.

It was a wild first 24 minutes, as the Bulldogs appeared to be controlling the game, marching down the field with two long early drives and stifling the Grady offense.

One of those drives ended with a Frank Barthelemy 1-yard touchdown run to get Washington (2-3, 1-1 in Region 5-AAA) on the board first, 6-0.

Meanwhile, the Grey Knights were getting little out of their offense and needed a spark to put up some points. They got it with three straight plays in the second quarter.

It started at the end of another time-consuming Bulldogs drive, as Aaron Cooper juggled and then grabbed a Ronnie Humphries pass behind the line of scrimmage and scampered 34 yards for the tying touchdown.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Bulldogs got …

Continue reading Grady 26, Washington 12 »

Alexander assistant football coach Monty Fountain had an award named for him this week, and he was surprised to be the first recipient.

The award, given by Georgia State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge, was created to recognize teachers who have had a tremendous impact on the education and lives of others, according to Georgia’s department of education Web site.

Barge showed up at Alexander on Wednesday and presented the award to his former teacher and coach at an assembly at the school.

“Monty Fountain taught me that the road to success would be paved with persistence, hard work and a strong work ethic,” Barge said. “One of the first things I wanted to do after being elected last year was name an award after Mr. Fountain and give others the opportunity to nominate teachers who helped shape their lives for the better.”

Story produced by Georgia High School Football Daily, a free e-mail newsletter. To join the mailing list, click here.

Continue reading State award named for Alexander assistant coach »

M.L. King coach Michael Carson says his team is looking for more statewide respect tonight when the Lions play at Valdosta in a game between unbeaten teams.

That’s odd that he’d think his team has more to prove because M.L. King is ranked, and Valdosta is not. But Valdosta has won 23 state titles. M.L. King hasn’t won any, nor has any Region 2-AAAAA team in more than 50 years.

“It’s the game everybody has been waiting for at the mid-point,” Carson said. “It’s a well-coached program that’s respected around the country, the winningest in high school football. This game could get us some respect. In fact, they came up here and beat us last year [43-28]. We’re hoping we can return the favor. It’s definitely big for us.”

Valdosta (5-0) reached the quarterfinals last season but isn’t ranked largely because of heavy graduation losses that included all-state receiver Malcolm Mitchell and tight end Jay Rome. Beating M.L. King would certainly put the Wildcats …

Continue reading No. 8 M.L. King seeking respect »

Since middle school, Lassiter quarterback Eddie Printz and Walton running back Tyren Jones dreamed of playing in big high school games such as the one tonight in Walton’s Raider Valley.

They just didn’t anticipate it would be against each other.

The former middle school and pound ball teammates are star players on unbeaten teams – Walton (5-0) and Lassiter (4-0) – that will play in what Walton head coach Rocky Hidalgo has called the “Super Bowl of East Cobb.”

The winner will be the front-runner in Region 5-AAAAA.

Printz and Jones were on a team together for the first time in the fourth grade and played for Wheeler middle school teams that won county championships. Both moved into the Lassiter district as ninth-graders, and Jones moved to Walton before this, his junior season, largely because the Raiders’ I-formation offense fits his running style.

“We’re good friends,” Jones told GHSF Daily this week. “We grew up together. We’ve known each other for a …

Continue reading Walton, Lassiter stars are friendly rivals »

566 – Emmanuel Westmoreland, Central Gwinnett

398 – Vito Antinozzi, Decatur

396 – Eddie Printz, Lassiter

392 – Will Anderson, Wesleyan

384 – Levi Sams, SE Whitfield

372 – Joshua Dobbs, Alpharetta

363 – Cole Garvin, Sandy Creek

351 – Deshaun Watson, Gainesville

343 – Eddie Printz, Lassiter

336 – R.J. Williams, Woodland (Cartersville)

332 – Zach Folsom, Cook

Source: GHSF Daily’s Top Performances. We realize this is not a complete list. Please let us know about any single-game passing totals that exceed these.

Produced by Georgia High School Football Daily, a free e-mail newsletter. To join the mailing list, click here.

Continue reading Top 10 single-game passing yardage totals in 2011 »

T. McFerrin is moving in on a milestone that he didn’t realize until notified last week. He can become the ninth coach to win 300 games in Georgia today when his Jefferson team plays North Oconee.

McFerrin’s overall coaching record is 323-98-4, with 24 of those victories coming in Tennessee, his home state.

“This is a tough game to try to get it on because this is the best we’ve played by far,” McFerrin said of North Oconee, which has a 4-0 record, same as Jefferson’s.

McFerrin’s 323 victories overall rank fifth among coaches who have spent most of their careers in Georgia. It is second among active coaches behind Lincoln County’s Larry Campbell.

“There are a lot of great coaches in Georgia that I have respect for who don’t have 300,” McFerrin said, “so it would be an honor.”

Here are the 10 coaches with the most victories in Georgia:

452 – Larry Campbell, Lincoln County

353 – Robert Davis, Warner Robins, Westside (Macon)

346 – Dan Pitts, Mary …

Continue reading McFerrin one victory away from 300 in Georgia »

Centennial’s Camrin Carty blocked an extra point with 35 seconds left to preserve a 21-20 win over Milton on Thursday.

On the previous play, Milton quarterback Colin McElroy scrambled in the pocket on fourth down and threw a touchdown pass to Ryan Jenkins over the middle. However, Carty prevented the tie by charging up the middle and leaping for the block.

It was a stunning win for Centennial, which trailed 14-0 at halftime and then rallied for three straight touchdowns.

Centennial quarterback Jimmy Meyer ran for a 6-yard touchdown, followed by Zietrick Smith’s 25-yard scoring run for a 14-14 tie.

Centennial’s Cyril Teal scored what turned out to be the game-winning touchdown on a 27-yard run in the fourth quarter.

Milton scored on its first offensive series of the game, with Treyvon Paulk breaking free for a 57-yard touchdown. Paulk is starting at running back in place of Peyton Barber, who is out with an ankle injury. Barber has early offers from Clemson and Central …

Continue reading Centennial 21, Milton 20 »

By S. Thomas Coleman
For the AJC

It’s Week 7. We look at three important games this weekend, one huge one on the horizon and check in with three programs making noise this season, one for the wrong reasons.

Mt. Pisgah Christian at Holy Innocents (Saturday). Holy Innocents might be the best team in all of Class A that nobody is talking about. The Golden Bears (4-1, 2-0) have racked up wins over Class AAA Riverwood (17-7), Washington-Wilkes (37-19), a perennial playoff contender, and shut out Region 5 North favorite Wesleyan (14-0). A win over the upstart Patriots would put Holy Innocents firmly in the driver’s seat for the sub region title.

“I know there are other programs that kind of have the spotlight,” said Holy Innocents head coach Ryan Livezey, who has guided the program since it began competing on the varsity level six seasons ago. “I’m OK with us flying below the radar screen.”

Mt. Pisgah has continued its steady climb toward making the playoffs for the …

Continue reading Class A blog: Three big games, one on the horizon, updates on three teams »

Some have asked why Valdosta can be ranked nationally in one poll, yet remain unranked in its own state by three human polls, including the AJC’s.

The answer is that Valdosta lost a ton of key players and wasn’t ranked in preseason. Then when
the ‘Cats beat Lincoln, a team that had been ranked nationally, that probably factored in the mind of the national pollster, but in Georgia, there were already teams ahead of Valdosta that hadn’t done anything ‘wrong’ to get replaced.

Further, I’d offer that very little separates No. 3 and No. 11 in the AAAAA state rankings. It’s just one of them deals, as they say in racin’.

Point of all this is this is – We’re fixin’ to find out how some people stand in this state’s highest class, with Valdosta, M.L. King, Walton and Lassiter chief among them.

Five things I’m eager to find out this weekend -

1 – How good are MLK and Valdosta? MLK travels to Valdosta on Friday. MLK is ranked largely because of its strong returning core from last season …

Continue reading AAAAA blog: Showdown time for MLK-Valdosta, Walton-Lassiter »

The most exciting week of the regular season might be next week, especially in Class AAAAA, where five of the top 10 teams will play teams that are ranked or undefeated. But if this week is the opening act, it’s a pretty good one. Look for Northside to win its cross-town war with Warner Robins, Walton to take control of Region 5-AAAAA with a victory against East Cobb rival Lassiter, and Valdosta to hand M.L. King its first loss in a non-region matchup. The top four teams in Region 1-A go head-to-head on Friday, with Brooks County and Cook remaining perfect in league play.

And congratulations go out to John Manning of Hartsfield, who was the Week 2 winner in the High School Football Pickoff contest. Manning was one of two contestants to correctly pick the winner of all 15 games and won the tiebreaker for the closest guess of the score in the Alpharetta-Northview game. Bruce McCracken of Valdosta also picked all 15 games correctly. Click here to sign up and participate in this …

Continue reading Look for Northside, Walton to prevail in big rivalry games »