TFR Week-3 Cherokee County Football Preview

Posted on August 29, 2018 by admin

Week-3 in Cherokee County will feature the start of region play for Region 6-6A. Allatoona will take on the Grizzly Ground Machine as Creekview will have a chance for a statement win early in the season. Sequoyah will travel to Osborne to take on the Cardinals this week..While River Ridge will face another top-10 opponent as they host the Harrison Hoyas.

In 7A, the Cherokee Warriors will travel to Gainesville to take on the North Hall Trojans. Pay no attention to the classification difference here. North Hall can put up some big numbers offensively. Etowah travels to Cumming to take on South Forsyth, as both teams are looking to get back on track after tough losses last week. Woodstock travels over to Cambridge as each team is looking for their first win of the season.

Please feel free to share and comment. Thanks for reading!

Key: 

TFR – Turd Ferguson Report

GSWA – Georgia Sports Writers Association

NR – Not Ranked

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

In the pre-season, we looked at this game as a potential match-up between the #1 and #2 team in the region. After watching both teams play, we give the Grizzlies the edge. Creekview has shown to be physical at the point of attack on both offense and defense. The Grizzlies have dominated both of their opponents thus far this season. The Grizzlies opponents have been fed a steady dose of Cade Radam. Against Woodstock last week, Radam rushed for 216 yards with 3 TDs and was named Cedarwood Tavern Player of the Week.

Allatoona will be the most athletic team that Creekview will have faced to date. If the Grizzlies can bottle up Daniel Parsons and get pressure on quarterback Dante Marshall, they should be in good shape late in the game. However, let’s not sell the Bucs short just yet. Gary Varner is a championship coach, and with a week off, we are sure that he has corrected some of the issues that plagued the Bucs in week one. We don’t expect this to be a runaway. But we like Creekview to keep it rolling. We are buying in to coach Carter and the Grizzlies. We like them by two touchdowns this week.

 

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The River Ridge Knights are getting a baptism by fire early this season. The grinder of the schedule for the young Knights continues as they face their second ranked opponents in as many weeks. The Knights host the defending region 6-6A champs, the Harrison Hoyas. Harrison comes into the game 2-0 and are led by junior quarterback Gavin Hall. Hall has passed for over 300 yards in two games with 3-TDs to his credit. Dave Roberts will lead the Hoyas ground attack. Last week he found pay-dirt 3 times. We believe the Knights are better than they were in week one, but Harrison is in a groove. We like the Hoyas by four scores.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Etowah Eagles will be looking to bounce back this week as they travel to Cumming to take on the South Forsyth Eagles. Etowah lost to North Cobb last week after a comeback attempt fell short, while South lost to 4A power, Blessed Trinity. Both teams will be looking to get back on the right track this week. Both teams will feature a solid running attack. South Forsyth will be led by Jordan Brunson who has rushed for 200 yards and 4-TDs on the season.

Etowah will counter with Nick Maddox and Klivert Many. Many led the way for the Eagles on the ground last week with 90 yards and 1-TD. This game should come down to which defense can slow down the opposition’s rushing attack. We think that the combination of Dalton Nicolai and Cole Milovanovic will be enough to provide the edge for Etowah in a tight game. We like the Eagles to get back on track and win by a field goal on the road.

 

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

Osborne jumps back into region play this week for the first time in 5 years, as they host the Sequoyah Chiefs. Its been 11 years since these two opponents have faced off. Osborne has been competitive in their opening two games, but the Cardinals will step up in competition when the Chiefs come calling. Malik Harris is the straw that stirs the drink for Osborne. In their opener, he rushed for over 200 yards and looked to be well on his way to a big game last week before leaving the game in the second half. The Cardinals will need a big performance for Harris and company if they are going to get in the win column this week.

The Chiefs offense will be led by senior quarterback Collier Pecht. Last week Pecht passed for 123 yards out of the Chief patented wing-T. Sequoyah racked up 184 yards on the ground with balanced rushing from Jackson Smith, Cole Jacobs, Colin Koprowski and DJ King. King led the scoring for the Chiefs with two touchdowns on the ground last week. Jacobs and Myles McGee will lead the Chiefs receiving corps. The Chiefs defense was pretty stingy last week, led by Grant Gibson, Adam La’Selva and Jordan Bowers. We believe they will have similar success against an athletic Osborne team. We like the Chiefs in this one on the road by three touchdowns.

 


The Skinny

 

Woodstock will travel to Cambridge as both teams will be in search for their first win of the season. Both teams have a common opponent, in Creekview. Last week, the Wolverines got pushed around a little and you can bet they will want to set the tempo this week against the Bears. Cambridge was off last week, but fell to Creekview in week one. The two big question marks for the Bears will be if they can cut down on week one miscues and if star receiver Ridge Polk will be back for this game. (He sat out the first game of the season.)

Woodstock is led by quarterback Dean Braxton. The Wolverines will also look for Drew Ramsey to lead the way on the ground. The Woodstock defense has surrendered 35 and 38 points respectively in their first two games. If they are going to break into the win column, they’ll need to slow down quarterback Stratton Tripp and the power rushing of Phillip-Michael Collins. We think this game will be competitive but, we think the Bears still have some more growing pains to go through. We like Woodstock by 10 on the road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Cherokee Warriors will travel to the Brickyard for the first time in program history to take on the North Hall Trojans. The Warriors fell short last week as the could not get anything going early against a stingy Sequoyah defense. Cherokee will face another stingy defense this week as the Trojans are coming off of an impressive shutout performance in last weeks win over Jackson County. North Hall had another big week on the ground as they rushed for over 350 yards last Friday. The Trojans ground game will be led by Daniel Jackson, Drew Faulkner and David Seavey.

Cherokee will be looking to get back on track this week. Landon Ergle is ever improving for the Warriors, but he will need some help in the ground game from Garrett Miles and Ty Swanson. The Warriors are certainly much improved this season, but we like North Hall to win this game by a touchdown.

 

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TFR Week-2 GHSA Football Poll

Posted on August 28, 2018 by admin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Eight Greats Around the State Week-2 Part I

Posted on August 23, 2018 by admin

In Part I of our Eight Greats Around the State we take a look at one of the titans in class A over the last few years, the ELCA Chargers. ELCA travels to Pace Academy and puts their 37 game win streak on the line Friday night…Stratford Academy will travel over to Savannah to take on the Savannah Country Day Hornets. The Hornets will be looking for their first win in that series. Ware County steps up in competition from last week and will visit the Burke County Bears, who lost a heartbreaker last week to Benedictine. Finally, we preview the Ridgeland-Troup County game. Ridgeland is looking to bounce back after a tough loss to Calhoun while the Troup Tigers look to get their season off to a fast start with their high-octane offense.

Please feel free to share and comment. Thanks for reading!

Key: 

TFR – Turd Ferguson Report

GSWA – Georgia Sports Writers Association

NR – Not Ranked

 


The Skinny

 

The Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy Chargers, (better known as ELCA) have not lost a football game in 37 times out. They have dominated Class A during that time. This week, they look to get a stiff test from Class AAA Pace Academy. Last week, ELCA was again led  by quarterback Brayden Rush and running back Keaton Mitchell. Both Mitchell and Rush accounted for all of the touchdowns for the Chargers and all of them were on the ground. Keaton accounted for 4 while Rush accounted for 2.

The ELCA defense will need to slow down running back Keashawn Perryman and wide receiver Jaylen Thomas. The Knights rushed for 224 yards last week. Both of these teams have the ability to put up some big numbers on the ground. We believe the ELCA survives a close game on the road and beats Pace by two field goals this week.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Ware County Gators got their season off to a great start by overpowering Pine Ridge out of Florida. The Gators were able to score on 2 special teams plays and got a huge performance from sophomore running back, Dream Gainer. Coach Stephens will return home to Burke County where he knows that Burke will be a step up in competition for his youthful Gators. Burke County lost a heart-breaker to Benedictine in the wee-hours of Sunday Morning in the final game of the Erk Russell Classic.

One of the keys for Ware County will be their ability to slow down the Burke County ground game led by running back Leon McGee and quarterback Juanya Dove. The two combined for 315 yards and 3 TDs. This game has the makings of being a classic that goes down to the wire. We like Burke to defend home turf and win this one by less than a field goal.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Ridgleand Panthers will host the Troup Tigers on Friday as they hope to bounce back from a disappointing loss to Calhoun. Ridgeland showed signs of explosiveness last week, but they game got away from them in the second half. Jordan Blackwell showed was impressive at running back for the Panthers, rushing for 142 yards on 14 carries. This week they will host a Troup County Tigers team that is looking for a replacement at quarterback Montez Crowe. Whoever coach Glisson plugs in at quarterback will have several weapons around him including wide receivers, Jamari Thrash and Kobe Hudson and running back Mark Anthony Dixon.

The Troup County defense will be led by linebackers King Mwikuta (an Alabama signee) and Joko Willis. Troup will look to pass the ball all over the field, we think they will be about to create matchup problems for the Ridgeland DBs. This one could be a shootout, but we like Troup by 10 points on the road.

 

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Savannah Country Day Hornets will try to beat the Stratford Academy Eagles for the first time in five tries. The Hornets will be looking to replace All-State running back Adam Byck and four starters along the offensive line. Savannah Country Day does return three of their top receivers from last season, led by Win Johns. We won’t be surprised if quarterback Cole Gambino looks for Johns early and often.

Stratford Academy will begin the 2018 looking to continue their tradition of deep playoff runs. Last season the Eagles advanced to the quarterfinals. We expect for Stratford to rely on the legs of Deondre Duehart and the arm of Christian Palmer to shoulder a lot of the production on offense. This game should be closer than last season’s matchup, but we like Stratford to win on the road by 10.

 

 

 

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Eight Greats Around the State Week-2 Part II

Posted on August 23, 2018 by admin

Part-II of our Eight Greats Around the State is highlighted by the Grayson-Tucker matchup. This will be a nationally televised game. Tucker took one on the chin last week and will be looking to bounce back…Mercer University will host an interesting match-up between two middle Georgia traditional powers when Peach County and Northside, Warner Robins meet at Five Star stadium. Our other two previews will feature matchups between some of Metro-Atlanta’s best private school football as Westminster visits GAC and Lovett visits Marist. As always, please feel free to comment and share. We love to hear your thoughts.

 

Key: 

TFR – Turd Ferguson Report

GSWA – Georgia Sports Writers Association

NR – Not Ranked

 

The Skinny

 

The Westminster Wildcats bring their high scoring attack to Norcross as they take on the Greater Atlanta Christian Spartans in a match-up of two class 3A powers. The Greater Atlanta Christian Spartans are highlighted by brothers Chris and Myles Hinton. These two are certainly a matchup problem for any defensive line. Last week the Spartans were led on offense by quarterback Josh Rose who used his legs and rushed for 2 TDs including the game winner from 5 yards out in the closing minutes of the game.

 

Westminster showed that they can put points on the board as they outscored a highly rated Woodward Academy team 31-0 after the first quarter. Parks Harber led the way with 196 yards through the air and 5-TDs. All 5 TDs went to different receivers. Last year, GAC ran away with this game. We believe that Westminster has closed the gap a lot. However, we like the Spartans by a field-goal at home.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Tucker Tigers face another of the state’s top programs as they visit the Grayson Rams on Saturday night. Tucker is coming off of a tough game last week against Buford and things don’t get any easier as they face a Grayson team that is full of players who will be playing football at the next level. The Tigers did have some bright spots on offense as they were led by quarterback Travon Ford, running back Tyler Hughey and receiver Isaiah Dunson.

The Grayson Rams were off last week, but the big story coming out of Grayson was some player discontentment with head coach Christian Hunnicutt. Perhaps the best thing for Grayson is that they will be on the football field this Friday. While we expect the Tucker Tigers to be competitive, we think even with the unrest in the Grayson locker room, the Rams will be able to overcome the distractions and beat the Tucker Tigers. We like Grayson by three scores in this one.

 

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Northside Eagles got 2018 off to a great start as they travelled up to Roswell and had an impressive showing against Centennial. Running Back Eric Smith had a big night for the Eagles as he rushed for 185 yards and 2 TDs. Quarterback Jadin Daniels also had a good game in his first start under center for the Eagles, rushing for 51 yards and 1 TD.

The Peach County Trojans were was off last week, but as they come into this season they will be looking to find production from the WR and RB positions as they graduated Kearis Jackson, Trevon Woolfolk and Chris Gibson. Receivers Millard Thomas and Terkel Jefferson appear ready to step in and fill some of the void left by Jackson. This game should certainly prepare the Trojans for Region play, which starts on September 21st. But Northside is a tough matchup for anyone in the state, especially this early in the season. We like Northside by two touchdowns.

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Marist War Eagles will take the field for the first time since falling to Blessed Trinity in the 2017 state title game in 4-A. The Ware Eagles won’t ease into the season as the Lovett Lions visit Hughes-Spalding Stadium on Friday night. Lovett battled a very talented Greater Atlanta Christian team till the end last week, falling 24-21, so it’s safe to say they will bring that same fight with them on Friday. Much of Lovett’s success will depend on how well quarterback Blaine McAllister controls the offense.

The strength for Marist will be upfront on the defensive line as they return three starters from last season. WR/DB Kyle Hamilton is also an electric player for the War Eagles. The Notre Dame commit should be a playmaker for a team that lost a lot of production on offense. Marist has been a model of consistency over Coach Alan Chadwick’s career. That’s probably the reason that we like Marist by less than a field goal this week.

 

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Cherokee County Week-2 Previews

Posted on August 22, 2018 by admin

Week two cranks up as 4 county teams go head to head; while the other two teams face very formidable opponents. The River Ridge Knights might have the toughest draw as they take on Class AA defending state champion Hapeville Charter. Etowah will tangle with North Cobb as they try to tame running back Christian Singleton.  The county’s second oldest rivalry game features the Sequoyah Chiefs visiting the Cherokee Warriors. Creekview and Woodstock will face off for the first time ever. Can Coach Carter and the Grizzlies match last weeks red-hot start? The TFR staff will be at Woodstock to check out the Wolverines and the new-look Grizzlies and to see if it’s Woodstock or Creekview that have the best student section in Cherokee County. Check out our game previews below. As always, we appreciate any and all feedback.

 

 

Key: 

TFR – Turd Ferguson Report

GSWA – Georgia Sports Writers Association

NR – Not Ranked

 

 

 

The Skinny

The River Ridge Knights dominated time of possession last week against county foe Etowah, but were unable to convert the ball control offense into points. The Knights attempted 38 running plays from scrimmage. We can probably expect more of the ground game from the Knights as the again face one Georgia’s football titans over the last few years, the Hapeville Hornets. Pay no attention that the Hornets are a Class AA team. They won the state title last year, and anyone who has spent any time in the state of Georgia knows that there is a high level of high school football played in every classification. And yes, the Hapeville Hornets are a prime example.

The Hornets will be breaking in a new quarterback in Jordan Slocum, who transferred in from Southwest Macon last season. Slocum will be flanked in the backfield by running back Marcus Carroll. Defensively, the Hornets will be paced by pre-season all state selections, Malik Fleming in the secondary and Mel Johnson on the defensive line. There is no doubt that Hapeville graduated a lot of talent from last year’s state title team, but we believe there is still enough talent to get a win in the 7thAnnual Inner-City classic. We like Hapeville to win this one by two touchdowns.

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

Both North Cobb and Etowah got their season’s started off with a victory last week. North Cobb was led by Christian Singleton, who rushed for 174 yards on 30 carries. Singleton was truly a work horse. We can only imagine that the Etowah defense will be getting a steady dose of him all night. The Eagles do return a couple of talented defensive linemen that should make repeating last week’s performance by Singleton a little more challenging.

However, North Cobb is not a one-trick pony. Quarterback Trevor Lovett can also get it done through the air for the Warriors. The Eagles will try to establish their own ground game with Nick Maddox, who will run behind Dominick D’Antonio, Will Robertson and Porfirio Acosta. Eagles quarterback Dalton Miller led an efficient effort for the Eagles, as he was 12 of 15 passing with 185 yards and 2-TDs. We expect this to be a physical game that becomes a back and forth, see-saw battle. We like North Cobb to edge the Eagles by less than a field-goal.

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Adam Carter era got off to a great start as the Creekview Grizzlies got a big win against Cambridge last week. This game will feature a few of the county’s top offensive linemen highlighted by Trevor Stephens from Woodstock and Nick Pendley and John Williams from Creekview. The Grizzlies offensive line paved the way for leading rusher Cade Radam last week, as he racked up over 160 yards on the ground. Woodstock had its hands full last week with a talented North Cobb running back, so they should be no stranger to keying in on a feature running back.

Dean Braxton held his own in his first start under center as he and the Wolverines got some much-needed game experience. Woodstock will present a little better challenge for the Grizzlies, as the two teams play in the regular season for the first time ever. However, we think Creekview might be ready to make a statement that they are one of the top teams in the county in 2018. We like the Grizzlies by a touchdown.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Cherokee Warriors got 2018 off to a good start as they held off a late charge from North Forsyth last week. QB Landon Ergle used his arms and feet to help guide the Warriors to victory. This week, the test gets a little tougher as the Sequoyah Chiefs come calling. The Chiefs have plenty of talent at the skill positions and look to be one of the top teams in the county this season. Sequoyah is led by senior quarterback Collier Pecht. He runs the Chiefs Wing-T offense with great precision. In order to slow down the Chiefs, Kerwin Majano and the Warriors defensive line will need to find a way to disrupt Sequoyah’s timing. Pecht proved last season he can pick teams apart if given enough time.

The Chiefs defense will need to contain Ergle and running back Garrett Miles. Sequoyah shut out Cherokee last season. Will Sequoyah show signs of rust after being off last week? Does the close win last week give the Warriors momentum and  the edge coming in to this week? We think the 23rd edition of this rivalry game is much closer than last season, but we still like the Chiefs by 10.

 

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TFR Week-1 GHSA Football Poll

Posted on August 19, 2018 by admin

Each Sunday, we will release our Top-10 poll in each classification. Polls are fun and can provide spirited and healthy conversation. We welcome all poll feedback each week.

There were no changes for the top teams in each classification from our pre-season poll: Grayson (7A); Lee County (6A); Rome (5A); Blessed Trinity (4A); Greater Atlanta Christian (3A); Hapeville Charter (2A); Irwin County (A-Public); and Eagle’s Landing Christian Academy (A-Private).

There were some surprises this week. Perhaps none more than Bremen’s upset of Rabun County in class AA. As always, comments are welcomed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Eight Greats Around The State – Part III

Posted on August 17, 2018 by admin

Today we continue with our weekly segment of Eight Greats Around the State. Each week, we will take 8 of the more intriguing match-ups and preview the games. Because there are so many great games across the state in week 1, we are breaking this up into 4 parts and previewing 16 games. This is Part 3 of 4. As always, please feel free to share and comment.

 

 

 

The Skinny

The North Gwinnett Bulldogs claimed the 7A state title last season. This season, they will begin their title defense against a very talented but inexperienced Brookwood Bronco team. North Gwinnett returns Tyler Goodson in the backfield. Goodson rushed for 1,315 and 20 TDs last season for the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs will be breaking in a new starting quarterback, but do return two of their top receivers in Josh Downs and Javonni Cunningham. Brookwood will have their work cut out for them on defense. Players like Tony Ward, Anthony Gorney and Ennio Zambino will be key in slowing down Goodson and the Bulldogs. It will be interesting to see how Michael Killebrew and the Broncos secondary match up with the North Gwinnett receivers. This game is too close to call for us, but we know we have to make a pick. We’ll take the Broncos in a mild upset by a field goal.


 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

Mitchell County and Brooks County will square off for the 46th time, but for the first time since 2013. Mitchell County advanced to the second round of the playoffs in 2017. This team looks poised for another strong showing in 2018. They return most of their skill players including dual threat QB James Thomas (1,026 passing, 887 rushing, 26 total TDs) and running back De’Shaun Sherman who rushed for 608 yards and 7 TDs last season. The Eagles also return their top 2 receivers from last season. Linebacker Malik Barnes will lead the Mitchell County defense. The senior led the team in total tackles last year with 132. Brooks County is coming off of a deep playoff run in 2017. They advanced all the way to the semi-final before falling to Rabun County. The Trojans will have to find a replacement for graduated quarterback Mac Perry. Jacolby Brown at quarterback and receiver Deon Fountain look poised to lead the Brooks County offense. The strength of this Brooks County team could be their defense, especially early in the season. Brooks County will be leaning on players such as Darryl Gallon, Tavarres Bivins, Mike Edmonds and Tae’Aviion Gray to keep the Mitchell County offense at bay. This game should be a shootout. We’ll take the Eagles by a touchdown in an upset.


 

 

The Skinny

The McEachern Indians and Colquitt County Packers will face off in the matinée game of the Corky Kelly Classic on Saturday. Both teams advanced deep into the playoffs last season with McEachern advancing to the semi finals and Colquitt falling to North Gwinnett in the Finals. Colquitt will be looking for a new quarterback to run their offense. They have several skilled players along the offensive line anchored by Will Rykard and Kammar Bell. At the skill position, Ty Leggett and Daijuan Edwards will lead the Packers ground attack. McEachern’s Jamil Burroughs and the rest of the Indians defense will certainly have their work cut out for them. While Colquitt is looking for a replacement at quarterback, the Indians may have found their future in super sophomore Carlos Del Rio. Paris Brown returned to form last season for McEachern, rushing for 1,012 yards and 12 TDs. While the Indians are talented this season, we like the combination of Leggett, Edwards in the backfield for the Packers. Colquitt takes this one by 10.


The Skinny

The Benedictine Cadets and Burke County Bears will close out the Erk Russell classic down in Statesboro on Saturday night. Benedictine was reclassified to 3-A in the off-season. Yet, perhaps their biggest challenge will be replacing the production of quarterback Nick Iannone and running back Travis Blackshear. Rico Powers appears set to be the feature back for the Cadets. Last season, Powers rushed for 842 yards and 11 TDs. The Cadets defensive front of Coleman Marini and Eric Hicks should create problems for opposing offenses. Jakeen Harris led the defense last season in total tackles with 103. The Burke County Bears made a deep run into the playoffs last season, but will be seeking a new quarterback, like the Cadets. Demian Williams and Ashlon Williams Jr. are two running backs that the Bears will turn to in the ground game. Even with that said, we think Benedictine will find a way to pull this one out. We like the Cadets by a field goal.

 

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Eight Greats Around The State Part IV

Posted on August 16, 2018 by admin

Today we continue with our weekly segment of Eight Greats Around the State. Each week, we will take 8 of the more intriguing match-ups and preview the games. Because there are so many great games across the state in week 1, we are breaking this up into 4 parts and previewing 16 games. This is Part 4 of 4. As always, please feel free to share and comment.

 

 

 

The Skinny

The Manchester Blue Devils open up the season on the road against a Taylor County Vikings team that graduated several skill players last season. The Vikings will rely heavily on their defensive line combination of Todric Cain, Rashad Wonnum and Jamal Howell. Wayne Wimbush and Travis Gooch are a couple of backs that may be called upon to fill the void left by graduation. The Manchester Blue Devils also lose talent to graduation, but do return a trio of running backs led by Deenizeo Gamble. Last season Gamble racked up 1,100 yards on the ground and 14 TDs. Even though the Blue Devils will be breaking in a new starter at QB, we think they return enough talent in the backfield to win on Friday. We like the Blue Devils by two touchdowns.

 

 

The Skinny

The Macon County Bulldogs and Pelham Hornets locked horns last season in the playoffs, with the Bulldogs advancing to the quarterfinals before being ousted by Irwin County. Macon County is another team that lost a lot of production to graduation. Newcomer DeShawn Cumby is poised to take over at quarterback, but most of all the other skill positions will feature new faces. Pelham looks to be poised to shift momentum in the series this season. They return Kendrick Patterson at quarterback. Patterson passed for 1,890 yards as a sophomore. He will have his top receiver, Jordan Bennet and top rusher, Javoris Williams back with him on offense. The Pelham defense posted three shutouts last season and they’ll certainly be looking to start out strong in 2018. We think Pelham is poised for a deep playoff run this season. We also believe that Pelham wins this one by two touchdowns.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

Much of the success for Mt. Vernon will depend on the ability of Austin and Justin Douglas getting cranked up on offense. Austin Douglas finished 2017 with 965 yards rushing and 8 TDs. Meanwhile, Justin Douglas led the Mustangs receiving corp with 876 yards and 8 TDs of his own. Mt. Vernon features a new quarterback this season. Much like Mt. Vernon, Prince Avenue Christian will be breaking in a new quarterback as well. Brock Vandagriff is set to be the signal caller for the Wolverines this season. Vandagriff will have a couple of reliable receivers in Christian Parrish and Mac Simmons to help ease the learning curve. Parrish led the team with 15 receiving TDs. This will be a great test for Mt. Vernon to see where they stand against a team that reached the semi-finals last season. We think the Wolverines have a little too much talent for the Mustangs this week. We like Prince Avenue by 10.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Baker Woodward era begins at Savannah Christian tonight. The former Benedictine offensive coordinator will look to continue the success that the Raiders have generally enjoyed in the past. The Raiders feature a big time lineman in Dylan McMahon. He and Colby Quinney will be tasked with making holes for running back Marquell Brown, who is poised to be one of the impact players on offense. Athens Academy played in the state title game in 2017 and sport a pair of talented backs themselves in Payton Bowles and Len’Neth Whitehead. Whitehead is a big back, that stands in at 6’2″ 228lbs who rushed for over 1,200 yards last season for the Spartans. We believe that coach Woodward will get things rolling at Savannah Christian. However, this week, it will be the Athens Academy Spartans that will prevail by two scores.

 

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Eight Greats Around the State Part II

Posted on August 16, 2018 by admin

Today we will start our weekly segment of Eight Greats Around the State. Each week, we will take 8 of the more intriguing match-ups and preview the games. Because there are so many great games across the state in week 1, we are breaking this up into 4 parts and previewing 16 games. This is Part 2 of 4. As always, please feel free to share and comment. Stay tuned for part III and IV on Friday morning.

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Coffee Trojans will host the Brunswick Pirates on Friday night. Brunswick suffered several losses to graduation across the board, so lack of experience and quality depth might be a concern for the Pirates early in the season. Coffee certainly isn’t a team that you’d normally want to face to “ease into the season”. The Trojans are the Class 6A runner-up from 2017. Coffee will be replacing key starters at the skill positions as well. Antonio Dawson looks to be the heir apparent for the Coffee ground game, while Milton Jackson could give the Brunswick secondary fits on Friday night. We think that Coffee is the favorite here and we like for them to win this one by two scores.

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

Blessed Trinity begins their title defense on the road against a very challenging opponent in the St. Pius Golden Lions. The Titans return a talented corp of starters at the skill positions on offense, including Steele Chambers and Elijah Green at running backs, Jake Smith under center and Ryan Davis at receiver. But the Golden Lions won’t be intimidated by BT. Connor Egan led St. Pius to the semi-finals last season. Michael Benefield is a talented back that will help take some pressure off of Egan. We think this game will be close for the first half. But we expect Blessed Trinity to flex it’s muscle late and win by 10 on the road.

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The Tee Webb era begins at Cartersville on Friday night. He will be matched up against another talented quarterback in Dante Marshall for Allatoona. Cartersville seemed to pick up where they left off, (even without Trevor Lawrence), last week in their scrimmage. But we won’t get carried away with scrimmage results. Tight-end Jackson Lowe is as good as advertised and should be poised to help lead the Purple Hurricanes air attack. We don’t think that the Bucs can win in a shootout with Cartersville. Can the Allatoona defense be physical enough to keep Cartersville in check? The Bucs offense might be their best defense this week. If they can keep Webb on the sidelines with long sustained drives, perhaps they can sway the momentum in their favor. We think this game will be closer than the 21 points last season, but we still like Cartersville by two scores.

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

The fourth game of the Corky Kelly Classic features the Archer Tigers, who have really come on to the scene over the last several years as a force to be reckoned with in class 7A. Defensive backs Andrew Booth and Jalyn Phillips will certainly make passing the ball challenging for Milton QB Jordan Yates. Yates is a dual threat quarterback that has committed to Georgia Tech. Syaire Waters should be one of the receivers that Milton will look to help fill the void left by graduation. Archer QB Carter Peevy is no slouch himself. Last season he passed for over 2,000 yards. The Tigers have a little more experience returning at the skill positions, and that’s why we like them to win this game by two scores.



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Eight Greats Around the State – Part I

Posted on August 16, 2018 by admin

Today we will start our weekly segment of Eight Greats Around the State. Each week, we will take 8 of the more intriguing match-ups and preview the games. Because there are so many great games across the state in week 1, we are breaking this up into 4 parts and previewing 16 games. This is Part 1 of 4. As always, please feel free to share and comment.

 

The Skinny

Two of the state’s top powers will lock horns in the early Friday Corky Kell matchup down at Georgia State. These teams have not met in 63 years. We generally associate both of these schools with talented players on both sides of the ball. This matchup shouldn’t be any different. Travon Ford returns at QB for the Tucker Tigers . He passed for over 1,600 yards last season with 18 TDs. David Daniels Jr. returns and looks to be poised to take over as Ford’s top receiver.  Buford’s offensive front will look to keep Derrick McLendon and the Tiger defense at bay. Aaron McLaughlin looks to be poised to take the reins under center for the Wolves. If the Tucker defense can rattle the sophomore signal caller, we like them to take the victory. Either way, we expect this one to be close. We like the Wolves by a field goal.

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

Barron Stadium should be electrifying on Thursday night as the Marietta Blue Devils roll into town to take on the two-time Class 5-A defending champion, Rome Wolves. If you haven’t heard of Harrison Bailey, Ramel Keyton and Arik Gilbert, you may have been living under a rock over the past year. Bailey has plenty of weapons at his disposal. While Bailey might be one of the most notable names at quarterback in the state of Georgia this season, Knox Kadum is no slouch himself. Kadum enters his senior season looking to lead Rome to a third straight state title. Jamious Griffin returns to the backfield and Xavier Roberts should be a go to target for Kadum. In a game with countless offensive stars, we think this game will come down to defense. This is probably an unpopular take, but we like the home team, Rome, to win this one by less than one score in a tight game.

 

 

The Skinny

 

The very first game to kick off the high school season will feature Northwest Georgia perennial powers Ridgeland and Calhoun. Calhoun is the defending state champion in Class 3A. The return several key skill position players from last seasons team including QB Gavin Gray, RB Zach Fuller and receivers Luke Moseley, Bralin Barton and Brannon Spector. The Ridgeland defense backs will have their hands full trying to contain the Yellow Jackets through the air. The Panthers return a pretty good quarterback themselves with Tanner Hill. Ridgeland will be replacing their two-top rushers from last season. Look for Cyron Burse and Jordan Blackwell to carry the load for Ridgeland. Stephon Walker, Ridgeland’s leading receiver from last year could give the Jackets secondary some issues. But we think there is just too much experience coming back for Calhoun at the skill position. We like the Jackets by a touchdown.

 

 

 

 

 

The Skinny

 

Cedartown and Rockmart meet for the 73rd time on Friday night. This game will feature four of the top running backs in northwest Georgia. Cedartown will feature the combination of Tony Mathis and Kobe Pryor while Rockmart will counter with Markus Smith and Z.J. Whatley. Dylan Bailey returns as the starter for Rockmart, while Cedartown might give the Jackets a couple of different looks under center, (well, out of the shotgun) with Jadin Johnson and Taji Hudson. No surprise here, but the winner of this game will probably be the team that’s able to control the clock. We think this will be a game that’s decided by less than one score. We give the nod to the visiting Cedartown Bulldogs.

 

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