We have finally made it to Week-1 of the Georgia High School Football Season. This is part one of our weekly previews, Eight Greats Around the State which we look at eight intriguing matchups across the state of Georgia.
Our first stop takes us to Westlake High School, where the Lions will host the North Cobb Warriors. This game features several highly ranked and recruited players in the state. The quarterback battle is key as Westlake’s R.J. Johnson looks to out-duel North Cobb’s Malachi Singleton. Meanwhile down in Southeast Georgia, the Swainsboro Tigers host the Metter Tigers. Metter has not lost a regular season game in over two years. Swainsboro was the last team to beat them in the regular season. Can Swainsboro do it again and stop their streak?
Going a little deeper into South Georgia, the defending Class AA Champion, Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes will host the Irwin County Indians. Fitzgerald lost a lot to graduation, while Irwin County returns several key pieces from a team that played for a state title in Class A Public last season. Finally we take a look at the Battle of Polk County. Will it be Rockmart or Cedartown earning county bragging rights? That will all hinge on whether or not the Rockmart defense can slow down the explosive Cedartown running attack.
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Special thanks to the Georgia Helmet Project for providing each team’s helmet. You can find all of their work here: http://gahelmetproject.com
Special thanks to the Georgia Helmet Project for providing each team’s helmet. You can find all of their work here: http://gahelmetproject.com
Historical records are provided by the Georgia High School Football Historians Association. (ghsfa.org)
The Skinny
The Westlake Lions will begin a new era under coach Rico Zackery who last served as head coach at Villa Rica in 2018. Zackery inherits a Westlake team that averaged 38.6 points per game and a bevy of talented players. Quarterback R.J. Johnson returns for his senior season after passing for 2,673 yards and 25-TDs with just 4 picks. Jai’Den Thomas, the teams leading rusher is also back after rushing for over 1,100 yards and 10-TDs in 2021. There is a void to fill at receiver as the Lions will look to replace their top three pass catchers from a year ago. Defensively, Avieon Terrell and Christian Peterson will look to make the secondary a no fly zone for opposing offenses.
North Cobb looks to make a deep run in the playoffs as they return the top dual threat quarterback in the State, Malachi Singleton. Last season, Singleton threw for 2,168 yards and rushed for 872 yards and accounted for a total of 43 TDs. Joining Singleton in the backfield will be a combination of Benjamin Hall and David Mbadinga. Hall was second on the team in rushing in 2021 while Mbadinga moves over from Kell. Like Westlake, North Cobb will be looking to fill the void at receiver due to graduation. Look for David Eziomume and Darius Dye to help fill that role. The Warriors will have an experienced offensive line anchored by Robert Grigsby, Marselle Felton and Blake Ellsworth.
This game should be a shootout. We wonder how long it will take for the Lions to get comfortable with coach Zackery’s system. He’s a proven coach at the high school and college level, so experience for him is not a factor. North Cobb has the edge on the offensive line. We like for the Warriors to go on the road and edge the Lions by 4.
The Skinny
After one down season, coach Scott Roberts had the Swainsboro Tigers rolling again last season as the Tigers claimed a region title and made a run to the semifinals. Swainsboro returns dual threat quarterback Ty Adams, who quite frankly runs it more than he throws it. Adams passed for 451 yards and 4-TDs last season but rushed for a team high 1,778 yards and 23-TDs. The Tigers also return their other leading rushers Quindarius Brown and Demello Jones who combined for 1,383 yards. Defensively, Swainsboro returns their top tacklers from last season with Jonorian Foots (109 total tackles) and Jerrod Steward (148 total tackles).
The Metter Tigers also return a host of talent in the backfield including Kaliq Jordan, Reco Coney and Antwan Coney. Senior quarterback Trey Hall is also a talented runner that should give the Swainsboro defense fits. With all the talk about the offense, we are probably slighting Metter’s defense which allowed just 13.7 points per game and shut out four of their opponents last season. Look for Antwan Coney and Kaliq Jordan to star on that side of the ball as well. They will be joined by linemen C.J. Donaldson, Jayceon Lanier and linebacker Ethan Oglesby as they look to continue their dominance of the past two seasons.
The Metter Tigers have not lost a regular season game since October 4, 2019. Their opponent that night…the Swainsboro Tigers. Both teams should put up a lot of points this season and we believe the scoreboard operator will be busy. We believe Adams and Swainsboro will be just elusive enough to outfox Metter. Swainsboro by 2.
The Skinny
The Fitzgerald Purple Hurricanes won their first state title since 1948, as they defeated then region rival Thomasville for the crown. The Purple Hurricanes are a run oriented team, but do return their starting quarterback, Sultan Cooper. Joining Cooper in the backfield will be running backs Sylon Davis and Diondre Paschal. Notably missing from this years team are E.J. Lightsey, DeNorris Goodwin and Jakorrian Paulk as graduation has taken its toll on the Fitzgerald roster. Even with these losses, we expect Fitzgerald to be competitive and compete for a region crown.
The Irwin County Indians have been one of the most consistent teams in Georgia over the past 10 years, reaching the finals in seven of those seasons. The Indians return senior quarterback Cody Soliday who threw for 1,742 yards and 26-TDs last season. He will be rejoined in the backfield by fellow senior running back Demarkus Lundy (1,668 yards 21-TDs in 2021) and one of the best sophomore running backs in the state, Shane Marshall (764 yards, 7-TDs in 2021). Irwin returns all but one of their top six receivers from a year ago.
This game was close last season and we expect another great contest down in Fitzgerald this week. We give the edge this year to Irwin County, as they seem to be the more experienced team in this matchup. Indians over the Canes by 4.
The Skinny
After a one year hiatus, the battle of Polk County will resume as Rockmart hosts Cedartown The Rockmart Yellow Jackets reeled off nine consecutive victories last season before being upset in the first round of the state tournament. The good news for the Yellow Jackets is that they return just about all of their skill position players from last year’s offense that averaged 37 points per game. Quarterback J.D. Davis will be joined in the backfield by leading rushesr JoJo Haynes, Cam Ferguson and Brent Washington who is a load at 220 lbs. This is a Rockmart team that might average 45 plus points once region play comes around.
The Cedartown Bulldogs are looking to make another deep run as they also return several key pieces for the 2022 season. The Bulldogs are a run first team as well, and they return two of their top three backs form a year ago in Harlem Diamond (1,075 yards, 20-TDs) and Patrick Gardner (843 yards, 9- TDs). The Bulldogs also return their quarterback, Reece Tanner who threw for 824 yards and 9-TDs. Cedartown will need to find replacements at receiver as their top four were lost to graduation. On defense, linebacker Eli Barrow returns with his team high 127 tackles from a year ago. However, they will need to find replacements fast for their their top tacklers as graduation has taken its toll on that side of the ball as well.
Pay no attention to the classifications in this match up. We believe this will be one of the best games in the state, regardless of classification. Expect a physical contest between both schools, but we are going to go with Harlem Diamond and Cedartown to win a close game on the road. Bulldogs by 4.