Pierce County put the ball and its semifinal fate in the hands of Caden McGatha last week. Running or passing on 51 of Pierce’s 53 plays, the junior quarterback produced 388 total yards and scored his team’s five touchdowns in a 35-7 victory over Fitzgerald.

Douglas County coach Johnny White was having fun on his Facebook page this weekend talking about star junior wide receiver/defensive back James Johnson. “I’m tired of saying it. Men lie. Women lie. Numbers don’t,” White posted. The coach was referring to Johnson's season statistics, but the player's most recent game also made the point.

Wesleyan coach Franklin Pridgen called Ben Brown a superstar this week. The junior quarterback played like one in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs Friday as he passed for 356 yards and four touchdowns and rushed for a career-high 109 yards and one touchdown in a 33-26 victory over sixth-ranked Stephens County.

Not even Tom Brady has led a fourth-quarter comeback like that. Upson-Lee trailed by 23 points with 11:42 left against Savannah Country Day in the Class 3A playoffs, needing three touchdowns and three two-point conversions to win.

Trion’s Toby Maddux has been playing like an all-state player this season. On Friday night, he was something a little better than that. The senior running back/linebacker rushed for 261 yards, had 54 yards receiving, scored five touchdowns, made 15 tackles and recovered a fumble. He even threw a 33-yard pass.

They have to know what’s coming. It rarely matters. Jordan Triplett, a senior running back at GIAA school Frederica Academy of St. Simons Island, rushed for 404 yards and seven touchdowns on 40 carries last week in a 54-49 victory over Pinewood Christian. Triplett’s big night put him over 2,000 yards rushing on the season (2,199) and over 8,000 in his career (8,055).

In a game that decided first place in Region 6-7A last week, Milton junior quarterback Luke Nickel passed for school records of 457 yards and five touchdowns as the Eagles went on the road and defeated West Forsyth 45-14.

Mill Creek’s Josh Lovelady paid Trajen Greco a great compliment in preseason when the coach said his wide receiver/cornerback was “probably our most athletic kid” and “has tremendous ball skills, similar to Downs.” Downs would be Caleb Downs, the 2022 all-classification state player of the year who now starts in Alabama’s secondary.

In a game of 115 points and 1,303 yards, quarterback Rodge Waldrop stood tall Friday night. The 6-foot-5 left-hander from Brookwood School in Thomasville passed for a state-record 698 yards and a record-tying nine touchdowns in a 59-56 victory over Deerfield-Windsor.

Ousmane Kromah, the consensus No. 4 running back prospect nationally, rushed for a career-high 332 yards and scored on runs of 63, 56, 10 and 8 yards in the 44-35 victory over Houston County, the third-ranked team in Class 6A.

North Cobb began the season 0-2 with respectable losses to top-10 teams Westlake and Buford. Since then, the Warriors and David Eziomume have turned it on. With Eziomume rushing for 205, 268 and 326 yards and scoring 10 touchdowns, North Cobb has won three straight, its latest victory against No. 8 Milton 42-27 last week.

Zion Johnson is a consensus top-250 national prospect among juniors, and his star should only rise after Friday night, when the Newton running back scored all four of his team’s touchdowns in a 27-12 victory over seventh-ranked Westlake, a team with seven Division I-committed players on its defense.

Not yet 100% healthy, Trelain Maddox was limited to seven carries in his first two games for Parkview, his new team. It’s safe to say he’s fully fit now. Maddox, a transfer from Buford who is committed to Georgia Tech, rushed for 220 yards and three touchdowns, the last one a 3-yard run with 1:10 left, in a 35-32 victory over North Gwinnett.

Gainesville expected Gavin Hall to be a difference-maker when the all-state running back transferred from Hebron Christian, and he’s been that. Hall has rushed for 203, 170 and 180 yards. His touchdowns have been the difference in all three Gainesville victories.

There’s a new state record for most receiving yards in a game, and it belongs to Judson Petty, a North Murray wide receiver who would’ve had an outstanding game even without his 16 receptions for 360 yards and four touchdowns. Petty also rushed for 42 yards and had 11 solo tackles.

Jaybo Shaw has been given much credit for Wayne County’s turnaround from an 0-9 finish in 2021 to the 10-3 record in the coach’s first season last year. If there’s a single player that has made the most difference, it’s probably Matt Fuller, a running back and linebacker committed to South Carolina.