Second-round preview: Class A Division I and Division II
Class A Division I
*Irwin County (6-5) at Bleckley County (9-2): Irwin County has won 10 consecutive second-round games but travels to Bleckley County as a nine-point underdog, according to the computer Maxwell Ratings. Irwin and Bleckley have one common opponent. Swainsboro beat Irwin 26-0 and lost to Bleckley 21-20. In the first round, Irwin County beat Temple 41-17. Luke Snyder was 5-of-6 passing for 138 yards and two touchdowns. Irwin forced four turnovers. All five Irwin County losses were to playoff teams, four that are still alive. Bleckley County beat Claxton 56-7 in the first round. Joshua Stanley rushed for 144 yards and four touchdowns on eight carries. A sophomore, Stanley has rushed for 1,029 yards this season. Irwin is 4-0 all-time against Bleckley, though they haven’t met since 1987.
*Mount Vernon (8-3) at Prince Avenue Christian (9-1): Mount Vernon is in the second round for the fourth time in seven seasons but has not advanced further. In 2022, Mount Vernon lost to Prince Avenue 47-14 in the first round. Mount Vernon defeated Pepperell 35-7 in the first round this year. Walker Warshaw rushed for 204 yards, giving him 1,610 on the season. Sam Nazarian passed for 208 yards, giving him 2,303 on the season. Nazarian rushed for 62. Prince Avenue, the No. 1-ranked team and defending champion, advanced past winless Athens Christian by forfeit in the first round. Aaron Philo (committed to Georgia Tech) has passed for 3,131 yards and 43 touchdowns this season. His leading receiver, Hudson Hill, is a freshman with 54 catches for 812 yards and 12 touchdowns. Mount Vernon has never beaten a top-10 team (0-31).
*Pelham (5-6) at Bryan County (10-1): Bryan County has achieved its first region title, 10-win season, home playoff game and playoff victory this season under fourth-year coach Cherard Freeman, who in 2020 inherited a team on a 16-game losing streak. Bryan beat East Laurens 55-14 for the historic playoff win. Bryan completed one pass, a 60-yard touchdown to Tanner Ennis. Jacari Carney rushed for 188 yards and four touchdowns on six carries, although Austin Clemons, with 1,406 yards, is Bryan’s leading rusher for the season. Pelham beat Heard County 41-22 on the road in the first round. Nathaniel Walker rushed for 269 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries, all career highs, although Ken Williams, with 1,287 yards, is Pelham’s leading rusher for the season. Pelham’s six losses are to playoff teams, four that are still playing.
*Dade County (6-5) at Commerce (10-1): Dade County beat Mount Pisgah Christian 49-7 last week for the Wolverines’ first playoff victory since 2010. Landon Williams rushed for 105 yards, giving him 1,341 on the season. Braylon Sullivan rushed for 98 yards, and Bryson Shrader passed for 81 yards and three touchdowns. Dade County, which opened in 1975, has never made the quarterfinals. Commerce, ranked No. 3, beat Jasper County 58-19 in the first round. Commerce rushed for 368 yards and six touchdowns and completed one pass, for 33 yards and a touchdown. Jaiden Daniels rushed for 146 yards, giving him 1,655 for the season. Tysean Wiggins rushed for 95 yards, giving him 1,313 for the season. Commerce most recently made the quarterfinals in 2020.
*Elbert County (9-2) at Trion (11-0): Both teams are regular playoff qualifiers trying to make the quarterfinals for the first time since 2015. Elbert County beat Oglethorpe County 34-27 in the first round with a fourth-quarter touchdown after trailing 27-26. Jacari Barnett rushed for 195 yards and three touchdowns. He has 1,343 yards rushing on the season. Elbert County has four receivers with more than 400 receiving yards. Trion, 11-0 for the first time since 1974 and ranked No. 2, beat St. Francis 49-0 in the first round. Toby Maddux rushed for 184 yards and three touchdowns. He leads Class A Division I in rushing with 1,830 yards. This is Trion’s third straight second-round game.
*Swainsboro (9-2) at Lamar County (9-2): Swainsboro, the 2022 Class A Division I runner-up and current No. 8 team, started 8-0, lost to Bleckley County and Dublin to finish the regular season, and beat Metter 20-0 in the first round. Jordon Williams (134 yards) and Qin Brown (131 yards) were the leading rushers. Those two, plus Georgia commit Demello Jones, each have more than 750 rushing yards on a team that averages just 39.6 passing yards. Lamar County, ranked No. 9, didn’t complete a pass in its 38-13 victory over Bacon County in the first round. Four backs had more than 50 rushing yards, led by ZyQuavius Hughley’s 80. Lamar County is trying to advance to the quarterfinals for the first time since its 2013 Class 2A runner-up team did it. These teams’ common opponent is Dublin, which beat Swainsboro 41-20 and beat Lamar County 33-28.
*Rabun County (8-3) at Whitefield Academy (6-5): This is a rematch of a game that Rabun County won 38-7 on Sept. 22. Ty Truelove passed for 272 yards, Reid Giles had 191 yards from scrimmage, and Willie Goodwyn had 104 receiving yards. Those are Rabun’s usual big-yardage suspects. Giles rushed for 180 yards last week in a 49-14 victory over Social Circle. Whitefield is 5-1 since the first Rabun game and won its first region title since 2008. In the first round, Whitefield beat Darlington 28-14 behind Callum Neese’s 171 passing yards. Whitefield is seeking its first quarterfinal in the program’s 22-season history. Rabun County, ranked No. 6, has made eight straight quarterfinals.
*Dublin (9-2) at Brooks County (6-5): These programs met for the 2019 Class 2A championship with Dublin winning 42-32. The series is tied 2-2 with all four games played between 2018-20. Dublin, ranked No. 7, beat Screven County 49-0 in the first round. Xavier Bostic rushed for 130 yards on six carries. Kameron Hampton rushed for 104. Those two, plus Micah O’Neal, who rushed for 148 yards in a victory over then-No. 6 Swainsboro the previous week, are common 100-yard rushers in a wing-T offense that passes fewer than five times per game. Dublin two-way lineman Nasir Johnson flipped his commitment to Georgia from Florida on Wednesday. Brooks County beat Crawford County 56-0 in the first round. Chris Cole rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on six carries. Brooks County rushed for 312 yards as a team. Cole has rushed for 1,240 yards this season. Brooks County started 1-5, all losses to bigger schools that include Thomas County Central and Bainbridge. The Trojans’ schedule has been the toughest in Class A Division I, according to the Maxwell Ratings, which rank Brooks at No. 9 in the class.
WRITTEN BY CHIP SAYEClass A Division II
*Seminole County (7-4) at Clinch County (10-1): Seminole County, the No. 2 seed from Region 1, got by Wilcox County 14-13 in overtime last week for their first playoff victory since its 2013 team reached the quarterfinals. Kamauri Johnson ran for a season-high 193 yards and a touchdown on 34 carries. Johnson is the leading rusher with 779 yards for a team that gets about 80% of its offense from the running game. Ellis Dunham threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Xavier Beard. Fourth-ranked Clinch County, the Region 2 champion, beat McIntosh County Academy 38-14 last week and is one win away from its eighth trip to the quarterfinals in nine years. Aaron Bryant ran for 73 yards and two touchdowns and threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to John Selph. Bryant has 1,375 yards rushing, 427 yards passing and 21 combined touchdowns for the season. Jeremy Bell ran for 100 yards and a touchdown against MCA and has 947 yards and 16 touchdowns for the season.
*Manchester (8-2) at Johnson County (8-3): Second-ranked Manchester, the Region 6 runner-up, is in the second round for the seventh time in nine seasons after beating Mount Zion of Carroll County 49-0. Darius Favors rushed for 120 yards and three touchdowns on six carries and was 3-of-5 passing for 89 yards. Favors (659 yards rushing for the season) and Qua Cooper (679) lead an offense that gets 84% of its yards from the running game. Cooper also leads the team in receiving yards with 148. Region 5 champion Johnson County, a semifinalist last season, reached the second round with a 36-22 victory over Washington-Wilkes. Josh Taylor rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns and had a team-leading 14 tackles while setting the school record for career tackles. Johnson County took a 22-6 lead early in the second quarter, and Washington-Wilkes never got closer than six points. The Trojans also get 84% of their offense from the running game. They have six players with at least 200 yards rushing, led by Benvonte Murray, who averages 57 yards per game.
*Telfair County (8-2) at Portal (8-3): Telfair County, the No. 2 seed from Region 4, beat Randolph-Clay 28-8 last week to reach the second round for the second consecutive season, a program first. Telfair County took a 14-0 lead on Bradyn Cook's 64-yard run and Trel Clay's 44-yard interception return, one of Clay's two interceptions, and never trailed. The Trojans' 17 wins since the start of the 2022 season mark their best two-year run since 1992-93. Eighth-ranked Portal, which replaced Telfair County in the top 10 after the final week of the regular season, is a region champion for the first time in school history. The Panthers’ 35-12 victory over Turner County last week was their first playoff win since 2004. Elijah Coleman passed for 132 yards and a touchdown and ran for 61 yards and three TDs. Coleman has 1,286 yards passing, 941 yards rushing and 32 combined touchdowns for the season. Amir Jackson, committed to Florida as a tight end, is the No. 13 senior in Georgia in the 247Sports Composite rankings.
*Macon County (9-2) at Aquinas (9-2): Macon County, the No. 3 seed from Region 6 but the third-ranked team in Class A Division II, reached the second round with a 30-7 victory over Christian Heritage. Tyler Felder ran for 127 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. Brian Harris ran for 65 yards and a touchdown and passed for 40 yards. Both are among four Bulldogs with at least 350 yards rushing for the year. A win this week would put Macon County in the quarterfinals for the second time in three years. Aquinas ended a four-year streak of first-round losses with a 49-28 win over Glascock County, which was making its first playoff appearance. Jim Franklin was 13-of-19 passing for 352 yards and six touchdowns. Jack Rhodes had six catches for 205 yards and five touchdowns. Franklin has passed for 2,422 yards and 29 touchdowns, accounting for 67% of the team’s total yardage.
*Greene County (10-1) at Bowdon (9-2): Greene County, ranked No. 6, beat Hancock Central 42-0 last week for its first playoff victory since 2018. The Tigers ran for 321 yards, led by Travez Gibson’s 165 yards on 23 carries. Gibson has a team-leading 905 yards rushing for the season. The Tigers are 16-6 under second-year coach Terrance Banks after going 7-22 the previous three seasons. Steve Miller has passed for 982 yards and run for 424. Fifth-ranked Bowdon, the defending state champion, advanced with a 56-0 first-round victory over Taylor County. Kyler McGrinn was 6-of-8 passing for 100 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 95 yards and two TDs. Jordan Beasley ran for 113 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries. For the season, McGrinn has 1,607 passing yards, 1,325 rushing yards and 42 combined touchdowns. Beasley has rushed for 947 yards, and Kaiden Prothro has 681 receiving yards.
*Jenkins County (10-1) at Dooly County (7-4): Ninth-ranked Jenkins County, the Region 3 runner-up, won a state playoff game for the first time since 2017 and third time in school history when it beat Charlton County 20-6 last week. It was the Warriors’ school-record 10th victory. Z.Z. Wilson ran for 155 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries and had two interceptions. Jenkins County limited Charlton County to 107 total yards (minus-14 rushing) and had three interceptions, six pass deflections and four sacks. Dooly County, a quarterfinalist last year, started the 2023 season 0-3 but went on to win the Region 4 championship, its first region title since 1999. The Bobcats advanced to the second round with a 42-12 victory over Miller County last week. The Bobcats led 35-6 at halftime. Antwan Clayton was 17-of-23 passing for 387 yards and six touchdowns, three to Jalen “Bull” Hall, who had six receptions for 121 yards.
*Lincoln County (7-4) at Schley County (10-0): Lincoln County, the No. 3 seed from Region 8, advanced to the second round with a 41-0 victory over Wilkinson County. Semaj Jenkins scored on a punt return, an interception return and a run. Mekhi Wade was 2-for-2 passing for 64 yards and had a TD pass to Christian Crite, who had both receptions. Wade also ran for a team-high 74 yards on two carries. The Red Devils used 10 ball carriers to compile 288 rushing yards. No. 1 Schley County, the Region 6 champion, had a first-round bye. Schley was the state runner-up last season and has 10 playoff victories in Darren Alford’s eight seasons as head coach. The Wildcats won just two playoff games in the 16 years before his arrival. Jay Kanazawa is 139-of-211 passing for 2,100 yards and 26 touchdowns. Jeremiah Rogers is the leading rusher with 613 yards and seven touchdowns, and Jalewis Solomon (committed to South Carolina as a defensive back) has 814 yards receiving and five interceptions.
*Emanuel County Institute (6-5) at Early County (7-4): Emanuel County Institute, the No. 3 seed from Region 3, is in the second round for the seventh time in nine seasons after a 41-35 overtime victory against Lanier County. The Bulldogs won despite allowing 605 total yards (348 passing, 257 rushing) and giving up an 88-yard touchdown pass on the final play of regulation. Hudson Henry rushed for 159 yards on 14 carries, and Chase Johnson had 92 yards on 12 carries. Early County, a quarterfinalist last season, advanced to the second round with a 42-20 victory over Hawkinsville. Ty Stovall ran for 239 yards and four touchdowns on 25 carries. The Bobcats, with a schedule that was front-loaded with region games, ended the regular season with three consecutive non-region losses after wrapping up the Region 1 title on Oct. 10.