We press on with the GHSA Football season and despite a few setbacks, we’ve been fortunate to have a season this year. With region play under way, we should begin to get a better idea of the playoff picture. This is part two of our weekly Georgia High School Football Previews.
First up we take a look at a battle of Fulton County Schools as the upstart Langston Hughes Panthers host the Westlake Lions. Hughes has a lot of young players playing big minutes, but are they ready for the big time as Top-10 Westlake past them a visit. Down in Bagley, the Appling County Pirates host Benedictine. Can the Cadets bounce back this week, or will Appling stay unblemished in their final pre-region contest?
Up in Chatsworth, North Murray will look to defend their region title against the Rockmart Yellow Jackets. Will Rockmart be a party crasher or will North Murray get a stranglehold on the top spot in the region? Finally, Wesleyan continues their difficult gauntlet as they host Athens Academy. Can the Wolves outdoes the Spartans?
As always we wish all of the teams competing this week the best of luck!
All helmet images are courtesy of the Georgia High School Helmet Project. To see all of their work, please visit: http://www.gahelmetproject.com
The Skinny
Last season when we talked to coach Daniel Williams, he was excited about the youth movement at Langston Hughes. They took some lumps a year ago, but it looks like it is paying off this season. The Panthers are off to their first 4-0 start in school history. Xavier Smith has thrown for 401 yards and rushed for 443 yards and has accounted for 8 total touchdowns. CJ Lockhart leads the team in receiving, while Antonio Martin Jr. is the team’s leading rusher with 443 yards and 6-TDs. Sophomore safety Gannon Weathersby leads the team in total tackles with 47. As a team the Panthers have recorded 21.5 sacks and 6 interceptions.
The Westlake Lions bounced back from their first loss of the season and look primed for the challenging region schedule that lies ahead. Quarterback R.J. Johnson has passed for 1021 yards and 7-TDs, while Zinah Mulbah continues to lead the way on the ground with 513 yards and 6-TDs. Corzavious Smart has also chipped in 238 rushing yards. As a team the Lions are averaging over 480 yards a game and scoring 29.7 points per game. The loser of this game has little margin for error going forward, but we still expect to see both teams qualify for the playoffs. However, this week, we like the Lions over the upstart Panthers. Westlake by10.
The Skinny
The Appling County Pirates are 4-0 for the second consecutive year. The Pirates are averaging 36 points per game. Perhaps the most impressive thing about that stat is that their doing that against competition from higher classifications. Defensively, Appling is allowing 10.2 points per game. They defensive is active and swarms to the ball. The Pirates even scored a defensive touchdown last week on their way to a big win over Wayne County.
The Benedictine Cadets will look to regroup this week after falling to Ware County down in the Swamp last Friday. The Cadets are averaging 39.8 points per game behind the arm of Holden Geriner and on the legs of LeShon Brooks and Justin Thomas. Geriner has already surpassed the 1,000-yard mark in passing with 12-TDs. Last week it was Brooks and Thomas who provided the scoring for the Cadets, with Brooks scoring two rushing touchdowns and Thomas scoring on special teams. The Pirates should be another big test for Benedictine, but we think the Cadets bounce back this week against a stingy Appling County defense; Cadets by 8.
The Skinny
The North Murray Mountaineers will get their toughest test of the season this Friday as teams continue to jockey for position in Region 6-3A. North Murray has won back to back games after dropping their season opener. Their offense in those games has been on fire, and on the season, they are averaging 37.3 points per game. But there are some question marks on defense as they are allowing 29.6 points per game. Dante Tidwell-Edwards has been electric in the run game, as a receiver and as a returner for the Mountaineers. Meanwhile, quarterback Seth Griffin has put up some big numbers in the first three games as well.
The Rockmart Yellow Jackets come into town looking to knock off the defending region champs. The Jackets have won three consecutive games and are now averaging 38 points per game on offense. Dual threat quarterback Javin Whatley has thrown for 395 yards and 4-TDs and also rushed for 376 yards and 3-TDs. Lanear McCrary, Jai Penson and JoJo Haynes have combined to rush for 329 yards and 8-TDs. Rockmart’s defense is allowing 12.7 points per game. Their secondary already has six interceptions on the season and has forced a total of 10 turnovers. We like the odds of this game being a high scoring affair, despite Rockmart’s defense the past few weeks. But we think Whatley will be too tough to contain. Jackets by 12.
The Skinny
The Wesleyan Wolves will look to bounce back from their first setback of the season. Quarterback Ryan Rose has already thrown for over 1,00 yards and 8-TDs. Wyatt Hodges and Cooper Blauser continue to lead the Wolves in receiving while Griffin Caldwell has rushed for 614 yards and 7-TDs. The Wolves are averaging 28.4 points per game. Senior J.D. Chipman continues to lead Wesleyan in total tackles. The Wolves defense has forced seven turnovers this season.
Since their opening week 7-point win, no team has been with seventeen points of Athens Academy. The Spartans are averaging 39.8 points per game this season. While much of the talk for the Spartans revolves around Deion Colzie and Palmer Bush, other Spartans have contributed on offense including Jack Nasworthy, Charlie Chisolm and Ethan Connelly. The Spartans have been just as impressive on defense, allowing 10 points per game. Johnerio Holt exploded for 3.5 sacks in last week’s victory. Earlier this season, we thought Wesleyan was one of two teams who could knock off Athens Academy…But we don’t think that holds true today. We like the Spartans by 13.