The championship games will be played in all eight GHSA classifications Thursday through Saturday at Georgia State’s Center Parc Stadium. Here’s a recap of last week’s 16 semifinals and the significance of the results for both the winning and losing teams.

It’s all big-boy football from now to the end of the playoffs, which resume today with 16 semifinals games in eight classifications. Cinderella didn’t get an invitation. Thirty-one of the 32 semifinals teams are ranked. Fellowship Christian of Class 2A is the top-10 exception, but the Paladins were a 2021 semifinals team that started No. 5 in preseason and now carry an eight-game win streak to Fitzgerald to challenge the defending champion.

Three teams from Region 5 - Cedar Grove, Sandy Creek and Carver of Atlanta - will be joined by Region 8 No. 3 seed Oconee County in the Class 3A football semifinals Friday night. In Class 2A, top-ranked Fitzgerald will face unranked Fellowship Christian in one semifinal, while Appling County will take on Thomson in a rematch of a 2021 quarterfinal game.

The semifinals of the GHSA playoffs this week will feature a rematch of a 2021 quarterfinal game between Cartersville at Warner Robins in Class 5A and a matchup of No. 1 and No. 2 in Class 4A beteween Cedartown and North Oconee. Top-ranked Ware County will host Dutchtown in the other 5A game, while defending champion Benedictine will take on Troup in the other 4A game.

Chad Campbell, who led Peach County to a state championship, three runner-up finishes and 10 region titles in 16 seasons as its football coach, told his players Wednesday that he is retiring after 30 seasons at the middle Georgia school.

Defending champions Warner Robins and Fitzgerald won in overtime last week while Dutchtown, St. Francis and Schley County made the semifinals for the first time. Fellowship Christian was the only unranked team to advance in what’s been a relatively predictable postseason.