Archive for the ‘4ABlog’ Category

It’s really no surprise that Northwest Whitfield and Ridgeland are off to 4-1 starts. Ridgeland was a playoff team a year ago. Northwest Whitfield went 6-4 for its eighth straight winning season.

Here’s what is shocking: Dalton is 2-3, has allowed an average of 35 points per game and is two plays away from being 0-5. That’s not the only strange-looking thing in Region 7-AAAA.

Things we learned in AAAA this week:

7-AAAA records are deceiving: At least in Division A they are. Cass and Cedartown are both 4-2, but they sit looking up at Pickens and River Ridge after the first week of sub-region games. River Ridge, a fourth-year program, overcame 254 yards and four touchdowns by Cedartown’s Nick Chubb to take a 35-27 win Friday according to the Cherokee Tribune. In Division B, Northwest Whitfield and Ridgeland are both 4-1 after winning their sub-region openers.

Washington can survive a tight game: The No. 6 Bulldogs, in their second year under head coach Rodney Hackney, downed …

Continue reading Things looking odd in 7-AAAA »

The deeper we go into the season, the more topsy-turvy Class AAAA looks, particularly if you follow the rankings. No. 1 Sandy Creek has been a constant, but a couple of upsets last week prompted a shuffle among spots 2-9.

Which brings us to this week’s games. Among the ranked teams, four face opponents with one or no wins while four others play teams that have one loss, giving potential for a rankings jumble again this week. If I were doing the rankings, I’d make sure I had a coin handy.

Here are the top games to keep an eye on this week:

No. 6 Washington (4-0) at South Atlanta (3-1), Lakewood Stadium: This is the 6-AAAA Division A opener for both schools.Washington is one of three 4-0 teams in the region, while South Atlanta is one of three teams at 3-1, which lends the impression that this is a really deep region. Washington has won all 10 games between the two schools, the last of those a 45-0 win in 2005.

No. 9 Griffin (4-1, 1-0) at Riverdale (4-1, 1-0), Tara Stadium: …

Continue reading Class AAAA games to watch »

Many schools are at the halfway point of the regular season, and most are just getting to the thick of their region or sub-region schedules. With most of the non-region play completed, here’s a quick look around the classification and how the regions look at this point.

7-AAAA
My vote for the best developing story in Class AAAA this year is in Cartersville, where long-time little brother Cass is looking all grown up in 2012. The Colonels, who skidded to an 0-10 record in 2011, are 4-1 after beating Dalton last week behind more than 300 yards of total offense from QB Brandon Etheridge in what has to be considered a signature win for the Bartow County team. Cass, which has finished above .500 three times since 1983.

It’s not that they’ve been abysmal all that time; 10 times in that span they’ve finished with either four or five wins. So with four halfway through the season, it would appear they’re cresting. And they have a chip in their collective shoulder.

“Go look in our …

Continue reading Class AAAA: Cass surging in 7-AAAA »

The Stockbridge Tigers aren’t far off from being really good. The Tigers edged Griffin 17-14 with a last-second field goal, but the truth is the game shouldn’t have been that close. Stockbridge, which became the first Henry County school to beat Griffin, finished six of its seven possessions inside the Griffin 12-yard line. The Tigers left a potential 13 points on the field, missing two field goals and coming up a yard short of a touchdown as the first half expired.

Monroe Area can handle being ranked: The No. 10 Hurricanes, who had scored more than 50 points in each of their first four games, trailed twice against Lanier but rolled behind QB Stanton Truitt, who accounted for three touchdowns.

Donquell Green looks more unstoppable by the week: The Burke County quarterback ran for three touchdowns, scored another on an interception return and passed for another in the Bears’ 55-6 win over Cross Creek Thursday. Considering that Burke beat Cross Creek 84-7 in 2011, perhaps the …

Continue reading What we learned in AAAA: Stockbridge turning heads »

Games to watch this week in Class AAAA

Stockbridge (3-1) at No. 2 Griffin (4-0): In a Region 4-AAAA crossover game, Stockbridge visits Griffin in search of a signature win, not only for it’s own sake, but for all of Henry County. Griffin is 28-0 all-time against Henry schools according to records pulled from ghsfha.com. Stockbridge will need to slow down Griffin QB Jaquez Parks and a Bears offense averaging 40 poins per game to put an end to that streak.

Chestatee (2-1, 1-0) at No. 5 Stephens County (4-0, 1-0): This could be the AAAA shootout of the week. Visiting Chestatee averages 39.7 points per game and is coming off a 57-56 double-overtime win against Eastside-Covington last week. Stephens County, behind running back Chaz Thornton and receiver Tomas Colbert, is averaging 45.5 points.

No. 10. Monroe Area (4-0) at Lanier (3-1, 1-0): This tilt serves as a litmus test for both teams. Lanier’s three wins are against opponents who are a combined 2-8. Monroe Area, behind …

Continue reading Class AAAA games to watch this week »

Fans are forever questioning how rankings are put together, especially when their team(s) are victims of a perceived slight.

I wouldn’t go as far as to say anyone was slighted in this week’s AAAA rankings. After the top five, things get quite muddied.

From Georgia High School Football Daily’s Todd Holcomb, who puts together the rankings the AJC uses:

“If you want me to go out on a limb, I’ll say this — except for Sandy Creek and Griffin, the 4-0 teams in AAAA are unproven, Monroe Area and Washington included. I don’t think I’d bet against Cairo, Baldwin or LaGrange in the first round, maybe even Perry, against any of the 4-0 teams except Sandy Creek and Griffin. If those teams are 9-1 or 10-0 in November, it might be different.”

It’s really hard to disagree with that. For instance, 6-AAAA has four unbeaten teams and No. 3-ranked Marist (3-1). There isn’t much of an argument to be made against Marist; that loss was to Thomas County Central. The unbeaten teams – Chamblee, …

Continue reading AAAA blog: Knock, knock, knocking on rankings’ door »

Things we learned in Class AAAA Friday night;

Dutchtown is legit: The unranked Bulldogs fell apart in the second half of the season opener, a 42-16” loss to Griffin. Since then, though, the Dogs have outscored three opponents 108-16, including Friday’s 38-0 shellacking of No. 9 Riverdale. “Riverdale’s a good football team, but we were able to get some breaks early. Everything went right,” said Dutchtown coach Jason Galt, whose team scored on offense, defense and special teams Friday. “This was a solid, all-around win for us.”

Griffin has a lot of weapons: Friday night, it was Devonta Freeman, who scored two rushing touchdowns and caught a touchdown pass in a blowout win over Woodland-Stockbridge. The Bears, ranked No. 3, are averaging 40.8 points per game. Can anybody slow them down? “Somebody will,” said Griffin coach Steve DeVoursney. “But right now we’re playing pretty good.”

So does Stephens County: Standout running back Chaz Thornton scored a pair of …

Continue reading AAAA: Dutchtown gets eye-opening win »

Five  sub-divided regions have pushed most standings games to next week or later. Still, the week carries some intrigue. 2011 AAA champion Burke County hosts Statesboro, a regular participant in the state playoffs. The two schools are less than an hour apart, but haven’t played since 2009, when Burke took a 35-17 win.

Games to watch this weekend in Class AAAA, where five:

No. 4 Statesboro (3-0) at No. 5 Burke County (2-1): Blue will be the color of the night in what could be a preview of the Region 3-AAAA championship. Burke is coming off an impressive road win at Class AAAAAA Coffee. Each team figures to try to neutralize the other’s centerpiece player. Burke’s Donquell Green accounted for 359 yards and four touchdowns last week. Statesboro’s DeQuan Daniels topped 100 yards in a win over Tattnall County last week.

No. 9 Riverdale (3-0) at Dutchtown (2-1): Riverdale takes the field as a ranked team for the first time this season coming off two solid wins over Drew and …

Continue reading Class AAAA games to watch »

Let the debate about the best quarterback in Class AAAA commence. I’ll throw a few names out and make a case. Feel free to make your own submissions; this is by no means an exhaustive list. Think of it as a starting point. Here goes …

The gunslinger: Sandy Creek’s Cole Garvin has passed for 690 yards, 7 touchdowns (to five different receivers) and just one interception in three games for the No. 1-ranked Patriots, and his attempts have been and limited by the fact that the Patriots have pulled away early in all three of their wins. Might be the best pure passer in AAAA; he has completed 70 percent of his passes.

The cavalry: Monroe Area’s Stanton Truitt has run for 369 yards and 7 touchdowns in three games, including a 94-yarder. Last week he torched Oconee County for 221 yards and 4 Tds in a blowout win.

The X Factor: Burke County’s Donquell Green. After being one head in a three-headed monster during the Bears’ state championship run, Green has become the featured …

Continue reading Class AAAA: These QBs are getting it done »

We’ve entered an era of pass-happy offenses, but Friday night belonged to the “plodding” ground game.

Exhibit A: Monroe Area, which got 290 rushing yards from Stanton Truitt and 275 from running back Kwan Brooks in a blowout win over Oconee County. The Hurricanes finished with 576 total rushing yards, according to the Walton Tribune.

Then there’s Cedartown’s Nick Chubb and Stephens County’s Chaz Thornton, who may have established themselves as the two top running backs in AAAA. Chubb, who topped 300 yards in each of the Bulldogs’s first two games, carried 24 times for 182 yards and four touchdowns in a win over LaFayette. Meanwhile, Thornton carried 33 times for 235 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Hart County, according to Anderson Independent-Mail. Chubb has 938 yards through three games.

Other things we learned in Class AAAA Friday night:

Griffin can win ugly: The No. 4-ranked Bears trailed in the first quarter and the fourth quarter, were flagged 10 times for 103 …

Continue reading Class AAAA: Big night for runners »

With the games counting toward playoff berths and seedings few and far between, there are nonethless some interesting story lines in Class AAAA this week.

The No. 1-ranked Sandy Creek Patriots, off to a dominating 2-0 start, plays tonight against East Coweta, the last team to beat them in a regular-season game. The Indians beat Sandy Creek 28-27 in in double overtime in the 2009 season opener. The Patriots have reeled off 31 straight regular-season wins since then.

Other games to watch Friday night:

No. 9 Jonesboro (2-0) at No. 4 Griffin (2-0): No. 9 Jonesboro no doubt has been looking forward to this one after a heartbreaking loss to Griffin in the first round of the state playoffs last year, a game in which the Bears scored twice in the final three minutes for a comeback win. Explosive Cameron Sutton and Patrick Petty have sparked the Cardinals to a pair of solid wins, while Griffin QB Jaquez Parks has put up big numbers in a pair of easy victories. Few series in the state …

Continue reading Class AAAA blog: Regular-season streak on line for Creek »

With most of the classification playing non-region contests this week, the Griffin-Jonesboro clash Friday night in Griffin has marquee flavor.

That wasn’t always the case in this series, which Griffin leads 37-2, and Griffin hasn’t lost to the Cardinals since 1981. This year, though, tThe Bears, ranked No. 4 in Class AAAA, face what could be their most difficult test of the regular season in the No. 9-ranked Cardinals.

“Their athletes are better than ours,” said Griffin coach Steve Devoursney, who has led Griffin to a 5-0 record against Jonesboro. “They do a good job with them and they put a lot of pressure on you.”

The winner keeps pace with Riverdale, which opened sub-region play with a win over North Clayton last week.

Jonesboro and Griffin agreed to play this week, Devoursney said, rather than have an open week and play later in the season. That mutual decision hastened a rematch from one of last year’s most entertaining games. Griffin scored twice in the final …

Continue reading Class AAAA: Jonesboro gets another crack at Griffin »

It was milestones and millstones for teams in Class AAAA on Friday night. Big coaching wins, big performances from a pair of running backs and a solid road win.

Things we learned Friday night:

Milestone reached: Carrollton coach Rayvan Teague notched his official 200th win Friday in a 42-12 win over Chapel Hill, thanks to 285 net team rushing yards and three interceptions from Malik Sheppard. Official, because when he was the coach at Swainsboro the school had to forfeit a handful of wins.

“It’s just a tribute to a lot of great young men I’ve worked with,” Teague said. t was his 107th win at the helm of the Trojans, placing him third among the school’s coaches behind Charles Grisham and Ben Scott.

Sports-drink shower afterward? “I try to stay ahead of that stuff. You don’t win 200 games by not paying attention,” Teague said.

Milestone 2: Mary Persons’ Brian Nelson notched his first career win, a 25-21 gut-check against Jones Nelson got a call from retired Mary …

Continue reading Milestones for two coaches, another 300 for Chubb in Class AAAA »

Region play in most of Class AAAA is still weeks away, which leaves plenty of room to tee it up in cross-classification showdowns, beginning with top-ranked Sandy Creek’s visit to AAAAAA Newnan. All of these games figure to challenge the ranked teams in AAAA.

Five games to watch:

No. 1 Sandy Creek (1-0) at Newnan (2-0): Sandy Creek won in a romp last week but the Patriots and QB Cole Garvin face two serious tests in the next two weeks, starting with Friday’s game at Class AAAAAA Newnan. The Patriots have won 30 straight regular-season games, dating back to the 2009 season opener. The Cougars have scored 62 points in wins over Marietta and LaGrange behind the play of sophomore QB Bailey Bryant.

No. 2. Marist (1-0) vs. Thomas County Central (1-1): The War Eagles and the Yellow Jackets have faced off six times, four of them coming in state semifinal matchups, according to the Georgia High School Football Historians Association. Marist’s only win in the series came the last time …

Continue reading Class AAAA blog: Cross-class games highlight early schedule »

One of the first things Cedartown coach Scott Hendrix wants people to know about junior running back Nick Chubb is his GPA: 3.7.

“He’s not just a kid who plays football,” said Hendrix.

Chubb has a lot of other numbers going for him, too. After rushing for more than 1,600 yards a year ago, Chubb opened the 2012 campaign with a 363 yard effort against county rival Rockmart in a 40-14 wins. Chubb carried 30 times, scoring on runs of 91, 64, 30 and 5 yards.

“We’d like to keep his carries around 25,” Hendrix said. “But he’s a phenomenal back and he doesn’t get real tired. [But] you can’t give him the ball that many times. We do have a long season.”

Hendrix said Chubb had 29 carries in the first half against Rockmart, and the coach’s approach was to keep running his bellcow until the opponent stopped him.

A big bart of the equation was that Cedartown returned all but one starter from its offensive line in 2011 …

Spreading the wealth at Westside: Westside-Macon routed …

Continue reading Cedartown’s Chubb churns the yardage »