Carver of Columbus is the new No. 1 football team in Class 2A, marking the first time the Tigers are atop the AJC rankings since current Georgia State head coach Dell McGee was the Tigers’ coach in 2010. Carver didn’t play last weekend but got the promotion when previous No. 1 Appling County lost to Fitzgerald 21-16.

Carrollton, Milton, Marist and Savannah Christian completed undefeated regular seasons last week and stand No. 1 in the football rankings with a limited final week ahead. It’s more complicated in Class 2A, where two-loss Appling County moved to No. 1 from No. 9 after a 13-6 victory over previous No. 1 Pierce County, ending Pierce’s 19-game winning streak.

Marquis Westbrook’s first season coaching Peach County resulted in the Trojans’ first losing season in 37 years. In Westbrook’s second season, Peach is No. 1 again, its only loss to defending Class 4A champion Perry in August. Peach County moved ahead of previous No. 1 Sandy Creek, which lost to unranked Mary Persons 37-29 on Friday night.

Manchester is the new No. 1 team in the Class A Division II rankings after previous No. 1 Irwin County was taken down Friday by Clinch County. Manchester was the 2023 runner-up in this class and avenged its championship-game loss to Bowdon earlier this month. The Blue Devils’ only loss came in the opener to Harris County, a bigger school.

Ware County, a perennial state contender that has gone unranked since consecutive losses to Florida opponents last month, is the biggest upward mover in this week’s high school football rankings after a 38-14 victory over previous No. 2 Benedictine of Class 4A on Friday night. Ware is now No. 6 in Class 4A despite its 3-3 record.

Rankings have not been updated this week because of the more than 30 games that were postponed until Monday night. These rankings contain game summaries for the top-10 teams that did play last week. New rankings will be published Tuesday.

Cambridge and Ola, both 5-0, entered the Class 4A football rankings for the first time this season after a week light on upsets overall. Cambridge and Ola were off last week but benefited from losses from No. 8 Perry (to East Coweta) and No. 9 Ware County (to Lincoln of Tallahassee, Fla.).

Carrollton needed an impressive victory to hold its No. 1 ranking in Class 6A this week. The Trojans got it. Their 45-15 win against Gainesville, then the second-ranked team in Class 5A, was enough to shield it from surging Buford, which dominated previous-No. 3 Douglas County of Class 6A 31-14.

Buford and Douglas County didn’t move up in the football rankings this week, but each had a big win that could set up either for a promotion if successful in their next game – which is against each other. Buford, the No. 2 team in Class 6A and the preseason No. 1, defeated No. 7 Roswell of Class 5A 52-17. Douglas County, ranked No. 3, beat No. 6 Hughes of 5A 21-14.

North Gwinnett’s victory at Colquitt County has the Bulldogs ranked No. 4 in Class 6A this week ahead of a showdown with No. 5 Mill Creek. North Gwinnett defeated the Packers 14-3 while nearly ending two remarkable Colquitt County streaks. Colquitt hasn’t been shut out since 2008 nor been ranked outside the top 10 since 2016. Colquitt is ranked No. 10 this week.

Carrollton and Savannah Christian are new No. 1 teams in the high school football rankings, replacing Buford and Prince Avenue. Buford, the previous No. 1 in Class 6A, fell a notch despite beating Benedictine 29-28 with last-minute heroics. Benedictine is the No. 4 team in Class 4A. Buford lost its opener to Class 5A’s No. 1 team, Milton, 13-10.

Four No. 1-ranked teams lost in Week 1 of the 2024 season, but two of the team - Class 6A Buford and Class A Division II Bowdon - held on to the top spots. New at No. 1 are Marist, which replaced Benedictine at the top of 4A, and Sandy Creek, which moved to the top of 3A after a loss by Jefferson.