We continue our previews of the first round of the GHSA Football playoffs. In this edition, our Class 6A previews feature Lee County-Greenbrier, Alpharetta-Creekside, Dacula-Dalton and Glynn Academy-Tucker. As always, thank you for reading. Please feel free to share and let us know if there are any errors. Best of luck to all teams competing in the playoffs.
The Skinny
The Lee County Trojans begin their quest for a third straight state title this Friday. While this year’s campaign won’t include an undefeated season, the Trojans did win their third consecutive region title. Lee County is averaging 37.9 points per game while the defense is allowing 15.2 points per game. The Trojans defense shut out three of their opponents this season.
Meanwhile, the Greenbrier Wolfpack made it back to this postseason this year for only the 6th time in school history. The Wolfpack made the playoffs despite only winning two games this year. Quarterback Jackson Fulmer has passed for 1,340 yards while Brayden Collett has caught 46 passes for 682 yards and 4-TDs. Greenbrier is overmatched this week. We like Lee County big at home. Trojans by 5 touchdowns.
The Skinny
The Alpharetta Raiders have won seven out of their last eight games this season to make it back to the post season for the 9th time in 10 seasons. Alpharetta is averaging 23.9 points per game on offense and 16.4 points per game on defense. The defense has three shutouts to their credit. Quarterback Will Gerdes has passed for over 1,500 yards this season. His leading receivers are C.J. Dobard and Kevin Howard. Kris Thomas has intercepted 5 passes for the Raiders defense.
The Creekside Seminoles are back in the playoffs for the second consecutive year. The Seminoles have only beaten two playoff teams this year, but were certainly competitive in all of their losses, with the exception of the game against Dutchtown. Creekside is averaging 26.3 points per game, while the defense is allowing 18 points per game. Most of the offense for Creekside will come from running back Tyler Malone, who has churned out 1,336 yards and 15-TDs this season. The defense has recorded 49 sacks on the season, led by Khatavian Franks with 16. Franks also leads the defense with 5 interceptions as well. We believe Creekside’s defense will be the difference this week in a mild upset…Seminoles by 6.
The Skinny
The Dacula Falcons have now made four consecutive trips to the postseason. Last year’s semifinal run matched the best finish in school history. The Falcons have also won four consecutive region titles. Dacula is averaging 38.5 points per game while the defense is allowing 12 points per game including four shutouts. In region play, the Falcons outscored their opponents 221-48.
The Dalton Catamounts will make the trek to Dacula, brining with them the states leading rusher, Jahmyr Gibbs. The Cats started out red hot, but lost two straight before closing out the season with a big win over Osborne. Dalton is averaging 41.5 points per game on offense while the defense is allowing 14.3 points per game. Gibbs has rushed for 2,358 yards with 39-TDs. Dalton did get quarterback Landon Allen back a few weeks ago, which may give the Cats more of a passing threat. But even with Allen back, the Cats offense revolves squarely around Gibbs. Look for Dacula to get a steady dose of Gibbs this week. He should help keep it close, but Dacula is just too strong. We like the Falcons by 14.
The Skinny
The Glynn Academy Terrors have won their last three games to help qualify for their 12th consecutive postseason appearance. The Terrors are averaging 28 points per game on offense and 25.2 points per game on defense. Glynn Academy has beaten three playoff teams this season. Their best win might have been against Wayne County, back in September.
The Tucker Tigers have now made 13 consecutive trips to the playoffs. The Tigers six wins are the lowest since 1999. However, Tucker still plays pretty good defense. The Tigers defense is allowing 16.5 points per game while the offense is averaging 21.5 points per game. The Tucker defense has two shutouts to their credit and held a high-powered Stephenson team to 13 points last week. Isaiah Dunson has over 560 yards receiving on the season and is also a ball-hawk in the secondary for Tucker. Running back Quarius Smith is averaging 7.7 yards per carry. It will always be tough to pick against Tucker, but we think the long road trip might do them in this week. Glynn Academy by 6.