AAAAAA blog: Best five matchups of the first round
Five best first-round games in Class AAAAAA …
Mill Creek (7-3) at Alpharetta (7-3)
- It matches the state’s leading passer in Alpharetta’s Joshua Dobbs and perhaps the state’s best interior defensive lineman in Mill Creek’s Kelsey Griffin. Plus, these teams played last season in an odd game. Mill Creek won 42-7, but didn’t make the playoffs, finishing 5-5. Alpharetta went on to win 5-AAAAA, the school’s first region title.
Milton (7-3) at South Gwinnett (8-2)
- Milton has never won a state playoff game, but this is probably the best team in school history, which dates to the 1950s. DE Carl Lawson (Auburn commit) has more than 20 sacks, and Peyton Barber (Ole Miss) has rushed for more than 1,500 yards. South Gwinnett has bounced back from a 3-7 season and taken the No. 2 seed in Region 8 after beating Parkview and Brookwood in the same season for only the third time in history. Watch for QB Jordan Ramey, who most of his junior season injured but has bounced back to become one of the top passers in this classification.
Colquitt County (7-3) at McEachern (8-2)
- Can Region 1 sweep Region 4? Colquitt County, ranked No. 9, is a pretty good No. 4 seed. Region 4’s champion, McEachern, is unranked, but also is the hottest team in AAAAAA outside of Grayson and undefeated Norcross and Lassiter. The Indians have won eight straight games after losing to 2011 finalists Grayson and Walton. They haven’t been handles since QB Ty Griffin has been at full health.
Parkview (7-3) at Walton (7-3)
Parkview’s bid for a first region title since 2004 was lost when South Gwinnett kicked a game-winning field in the final seconds of last week’s game. Final score, 16-14. Parkview went from a potential No. 1 seed to the No. 3, which means a road game in the first round. But Parkview would find no small consolation in getting its first playoff victory since 2005. The opponent is walking-wounded Walton, which will be missing Super 11 RB Tyren Jones to a knee injury.
Hillgrove (6-4) at Camden County (9-1)
No one is expecting Hillgrove to win this one. The Maxwell Ratings project Camden as a 29-point winner. But there is intrigue here. Hillgrove defeated Camden County 28-26 in the 2010 second round at Camden in one of the biggest upsets in state history. Camden was the two-time defending of Class AAAAA and ranked No. 1 at the time. Further, Camden’s bid for a 10-0 regular season and unbeaten run through Region 1 this year was upended last week by Colquitt County in a 13-12 loss last week. It could’ve cost Camden a national title. Camden was ranked as high as No. 2 in one poll. Given the history, this is probably not a good time for Hillgrove to visit Kingsland.
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77 comments Add your comment
Fred
November 15th, 2012
10:53 pm
@AVikingFan – Hope you had a great fishing trip. It has been “interesting” this week to say the least! We just might get to see each other after all. Hope your boys have a safe game.
bksmith14
November 15th, 2012
11:05 pm
i will pick valdosta to beat north cobb…but it cd be interesting. i wouldnt be shocked if valdosta lost…north cobb is good…they score a lot, but they will give up the points also…could be who is gonna score the most in a high scoring game…i see both teams having over 24 points but both scoring less than 40. a 35-28 type of game 28-24 or something like that
GwinnettDad
November 15th, 2012
11:12 pm
bk – I think some of the highest scoring competitive games in the State came out of Cobb County this year. Nobody questions their ability to score against each other. Question will become if they can do that to the rest of the State. We’ll soon find out.
sportsnut
November 15th, 2012
11:27 pm
@ BBD == I still think they have enough to handle this. Parkview is very slow on D.
EMTEEDUB
November 15th, 2012
11:28 pm
Winners
Alpharetta
Milton
Colquitt
Walton
Camden
GwinnettDad
November 16th, 2012
12:13 am
Parkview defeated Grayson and held them to 7 points. This is called a slow “D”. Please don’t pay attention to nonsense.
GwinnettDad
November 16th, 2012
12:24 am
Parkview can’t pass. QB will bootleg – that’s their best play. The strength of the team is defense, slow or not, and the offensive line for the run. I’ve never been a believer, however. Stack the box, as Norcross had to have done, and Parkview can be beaten.
Camden74
November 16th, 2012
12:34 am
The Cross……Judging by the video you posted, you have a lot of free time on your hands don’t you?
bksmith14
November 16th, 2012
1:03 am
cam 74….i got cross back and my video shows what he does in his spare time
TItletown USA
November 16th, 2012
8:26 am
Do not know much about North Cobb, but if they do not have a decent run defense they are in trouble with the Cats tonight. I think Colquitt Co is in for a dogfight against MacE, but prevails and Region 1 goes 4-0 tonight.
GoBigBlue!
November 16th, 2012
10:37 am
It’s football time, So get up! Can hardly wait to get out of this office, put on my winter gear and enjoy a good game!!! Best of luck to all the teams, above all, have fun!
Camden74
November 16th, 2012
11:30 am
The day of reckoning is finally here! After this weekend, half of the playoff teams will be headed home to start basketball season. The smack talking from the regular season will be a thing of the past for some. Only a handful of the faithful will remain. Who will hoist the Title Trophy in Class 6A? Will it be Camden, Grayson, Lowndes, Lassiter, Colquitt, Norcross or a surprise dark horse that shocks everyone? Will the Gwinnett Teams lay claim to another 6A Title or will Region 1 step up and turn the tide? Will a Cobb or Dekalb Team make it’s presence felt? No one knows for sure, so stay tuned. The answers to these questions start tonight! If you have a weak constitution, maybe you should leave the comments section prior to tonight’s games. Because there will surely be some last minute, last time of the season for some, SMACK TALKING! Can you take the HEAT? Release the CATS! Go Camden County Wildcats!
sportsnut
November 16th, 2012
12:10 pm
Dekalb does not have a team in the 6A playoffs. Druid Hills is the only school from Dekalb in 6A
bksmith14
November 16th, 2012
2:32 pm
i expect a good game tonight between lowndes and marietta….as Les Miles puts it….”they are a quality opponent”…they have a good team and the #5 ranked qb in the nation according to rivals.com. 4.5 40 yd dash speed 608 yds rushing and almost 2,000 tds passing. Goin to be a challenge for the vikings. This will be the best defense Marietta has played all year. Lets get it on. Go Vikings!!!
Camden74
November 16th, 2012
3:01 pm
Well then, I guess Dekalb won’t have a shot at winning the 6A Title now will they!
AVikingFan
November 16th, 2012
3:22 pm
@Fred — Thanks. I DID have a good fishing trip. I own a place down on the gulf, and had a great time. At one point in six consecutive casts I caught 5 Reds!
We’re about to head out to the stadium. Hope Grayson wins, no reason why they shouldn’t. And, if we do oiur part the next couple of weeks we will “get” to drive up thru Jackson, Covington, and Loganville again. I just hate the long walk to your field and around to the far side. But a lot can happen before then. Heck, some folks are saying NG has your number! Course we’ve all learned not to put much stock in what the NG folks say.
I wonder if OMacG has fixed the scoreboard clock at his Indian Reservation. I do hope they hire refs who can count timeouts. I bet ole Propst can!!!!! And he ain’t timid about telling’em when they screw up!
Good luck to all 1-AAAAAA tonight. Let’s have a clean sweep!
AVikingFan
November 16th, 2012
3:25 pm
@bksmith14 — Come to the Holiday Inn Tuesday for the coach’s show and dinner! Would like to meet you!
The Pack is Back
November 16th, 2012
4:09 pm
Coach McPherson will explain Friday’s loss while Buzz Payne calls for hors d’oeuvres to be served with some well-timed hand signals to the waitresses.
David Crews
November 16th, 2012
4:21 pm
Any live broadcasting/streaming video of Camden Co game tonight (11/16/12)?
TItletown USA
November 16th, 2012
5:16 pm
I would think that bksmith14 would have a reserved seat at the Randy Mac show. I noticed that he had the credit line for the AJC photo that was used from the Winnersville Classic when Kenneth Durden #7 Lowndes beat Reggie McQueen #2 Valdosta on a slant post, although that was 2 years ago.
ATL
November 16th, 2012
8:59 pm
Final 4: Grayson, Lassiter, Walton, Camden
region4fan
November 16th, 2012
11:48 pm
Congratulations to the region 4 teams and their opponents in region 1.The two nail biters are split decisions and the blowouts were a split too. This year the Cobb teams can play a little football.
Fred
November 17th, 2012
12:10 am
@@Wildcat Will – Wheeler?…Wheeler?…Wheeler? To bad the team had almost NO support from the parents. If there were 50 fans there outside the band I would be surprised. Also, why did the Wheeler band not play if they went to the trouble to come. Oh and for the S GA people that complain about traveling, it took the Wheeler band 2:20 to get to Grayson.
Gwinnett's Finest
November 17th, 2012
8:56 am
SportsNut, nice evaluation. Parkview holds Walton to three total first downs. Walton’s QB and RB were trying to tap out all night. One in the first half, one in the second half and one in OT.
Looked like the best coaching in GA should include the weight room.
Speed kills, but speed and strength gives bloody noses.
grayram
November 17th, 2012
10:39 am
well i got 4 out 5 of these right
Camden
South Gwinnett
Mill Creek
Parkview
the one i missed was a good one..Colquitt over Mceachern
Lucky for me the AJC didn’t have Lassiter or Lowndes as a top game or i would have missed more
sportsnut
November 17th, 2012
12:49 pm
@ Gwinnetts Finest == Parkview is still slow. This game did not make them any faster. They will fall this week.
sportsnut
November 17th, 2012
12:50 pm
@ TitleTown USA == Hush