We have made it to the semifinals of the GHSA Football Playoffs. Our second preview this week features Class 6A and games between Buford – Valdosta and Lee County – Westlake
Last week in our picks, we went 3-1 in Class 6A. Valdosta got a big road win over Carrollton which was our only incorrect pick last week. Congratulations to the Cats!
Best of luck to all of the teams competing on Friday night. As always, thanks for reading. Please feel free to comment and share.
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The Skinny
The move to Class 6A has not derailed the Buford Wolves. Buford advanced to the semifinals for the thirteenth time in fourteen years and for the 24th time in school history. Victor Venn and Gabe Ervin continue to lead the way on the ground for the Wolves this season. Buford has won eleven straight games and in their three playoff games are averaging 44.6 points per game while allowing 7.3 points per game. The 15 points allowed last week were the most they’ve surrendered since week 1.
The Valdosta Wildcats are back in the semifinals for the first times since 2016. It is the thirty-third time the Wildcats have appeared in the semifinals. Last week marked the second road playoff win for Valdosta and their sixth win in their last seven games. In their three playoff games, Valdosta is averaging 44 points per game while allowing 11.6. There are 34 state titles between these two programs and both teams have won over 70% of their games in school history. Additionally, both teams have combined to win well over 1,500 games. Ironically, with all of the history, these two teams have never met previously. While Valdosta has gone on the road and won in the past two weeks, we aren’t quite sure if they can contain Ervin and Venn for Buford. It won’t be a runaway, but we like the Wolves this week. Buford by 6.
The Skinny
So much for Lee County not being able to score on the road. After only averaging a shade over 18 points in their previous three road games this season, the Trojans exploded for 49 last week on the road to advance to the semifinals for the third time in the last four years. Caleb McDowell scored five times in the win including two on special teams to help lead the Trojans to victory. It was the ninth straight victory for the Trojans. In their three playoff games, Lee County is averaging 48.6 points per game while the defense is allowing 23 points per game. The 31 points allowed last week were the most since the loss to Lowndes back in September.
The Westlake Lions will make the trip down to Leesburg on Friday as they advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2016. In only his second season, head Coach Bobby May has guided the Lions to 11 wins for only the second time in program history. Sophomore quarterback R.J. Johnson has thrown for over 3,000 yards while Leo Blackburn has topped 1,000 yards receiving to help lead the Lions this season. Westlake has also won nine consecutive games. In their three playoff games, Westlake is averaging 41.3 points per game while the defense is allowing 15.6. We believe Westlake is one of the hottest teams in the state right now, but it’s very tough to pick against the Trojans at home, where they have played extremely well this season. We like Lee County, by 5 over Westlake.