Carrollton and Rome have met the past six years. The Trojans are 2-4 against the Wolves and lost 45-27 this season. While Rome may be their region rival and most hated opponent, Carrollton football has a bigger enemy to overcome: the quarterfinals.
The last time Carrollton lost in a round other than the quarterfinals was 2015, when they fell to Jonesboro in the second round of the 4A playoffs.
First-year head coach Sean Calhoun took over the following year and led the Trojans right back to the playoffs with a 9-1 record (and a loss to Rome). Ranked third in the classification, the Trojans cruised past Lithonia and Thomas County Central before losing to top-ranked Buford on the road 34-27.
Carrollton entered 2017 with hopes of reaching the finals, but lost twice in region to Rome and Hiram. As a No. 2 seed, they took care of their first two playoff opponents, but ran into the brick wall that was Warner Robins. Once again, the Trojans lost in the quarterfinals, this time 63-24.
If Carrollton football fans thought 2018 would be any different, their hopes were immediately dashed. For a third year, Carrollton lost to Rome by double digits. And instead of losing to Hiram, they lost to Kell.
The third-seeded Trojans took care of Riverwood in the first round and solidly defeated Loganville to match up against sixth-ranked Stockbridge. The game was a blowout, and Carrollton lost 48-3 in the quarterfinals again.
One of the Trojans’ best teams in recent memory took the field in 2019, led by sophomore QB MJ Morris. For the first time since 1993, Carrollton defeated region rival Rome 24-20 on a late Morris touchdown pass to Austin Waldrop.
They did not falter the rest of the regular season and entered the playoffs as the best team in 5A. However, the Trojans could not escape history. Fifth-ranked Buford defeated them on a last-second field goal, marking the fourth consecutive year of losing in the third round.
Despite having two losses in the 2020 regular season, Carrollton lost to Rush Propst and Valdosta in (you guessed it) the quarterfinals.
But 2021 brings different prospects. The Trojans are currently in a four-way tie at the top of Region 5-6A and would still be in a three-way tie if they win out along with Rome and South Paulding. The region tiebreaker could place them as any of the top three seeds.
Should they be first, they would have the best shot of snapping the semifinals drought. The Trojans would likely play Brunswick in the quarterfinals, which is a very winnable game. If they were the second seed, they would most likely run into Westlake, making their chances of winning much more difficult. As the third-seed, Carrollton would run into Buford, the worst-case scenario.
It is pretty clear that a lot of Carrollton’s future this year rides on the region ranking tiebreaker. But the question still stands: Will the Trojans finally defeat their biggest rival?
Written by: Dhruv Mohan
