The 2022 regular season has come to an end, but high school football is far from over as the postseason begins this weekend with some interesting first-round playoff matchups throughout Georgia. The Lowndes at Carrolton game, for example, is far from your predictable first-round yawner type of game, as the Vikings have shown they are capable of playing with and beating any team, so this is a very winnable playoff game for the Zach Grage-coached Vikings. Now, that’s not to say Joey King’s Trojans aren’t deserving of the respect afforded by their No. 1 seed, because they are.
And that’s just one of the Georgia first-round playoff games to keep an eye on. Other notable first-round contests include Houston County at Brunswick, another No. 4 versus No. 1 seed, this one pitting the solid defense of the Pirates against the explosive offense of Jeremy Edwards’ HoCo Bears, who scored 70 against Veterans last week.
Crisp County at Peach County and Lee County at Effingham County are going to be good ones, also. Finally, Sprayberry visits the undefeated Red Elephants of Gainesville for what promises to be another competitive No. 4 versus No. 1 game. It’s been an exciting regular season, so we shouldn’t be surprised to see the same thing in Round 1 of the playoffs.
Class 7A
Lowndes at Carrollton
One of the most interesting Georgia first-round playoff matchups features two teams who know a little bit about winning postseason games. The Lowndes High Vikings travel to Carrollton as the No. 4 seed after dropping their regular-season finale to Camden County in Kingsland.
The Vikings are led by quarterback Marvis Parrish, who has continued to emerge into his role as leader of the Lowndes offense, eclipsing the 1,000-yard mark in passing for the season with seven TDs. Parrish also has over 600 yards rushing with 13 TDs.
His counterpart for the Trojans is freshman phenom signal caller Julian “JuJu” Lewis, who has thrown for 2,600 yards with 34 passing TDs.
Can Lowndes play like they did against Grayson? If so, they have a chance.
Phil’s Pick: Lowndes 38, Carrollton 34
East Coweta at Camden County
This is one of the most attractive first-round matchups in the Georgia high school playoffs, with the red hot Camden County Wildcats hosting East Coweta, the No. 3 seed from Region 2-7A. The Indians are one of the more interesting teams in the state, with an offense that can score with the best of them (30 PPG this season), and they have notched impressive wins over Newnan, Lowndes, and Hillgrove to name a few.
Camden also has a few big wins that has helped them overcome an 0-2 start to the season. Following losses to Columbia and Brunswick, Camden has come roaring back, starting with likely the biggest win of coach Jeff Herron’s second stint at Camden, a takedown of then-undefeated Valdosta.
Camden followed that up with wins over Richmond Hill, Veterans, and last week over Lowndes. Despite their success, the 48-21 win over the Vikings was a surprise to many who are familiar with Camden and Herron’s offense, which isn’t known to be an explosive unit that puts up those kind of points. But seeing is believing, and Herron has Wildcat fans believing.
Phil’s Pick: Camden County 28, East Coweta 16
Class 6A
Houston County at Brunswick
This first-round matchup should be a dandy. Brunswick, under first-year head coach Garrett Grady, finished the season a perfect 10-0, their second consecutive unbeaten regular season. Last year Brunswick won their playoff opener handedly against Tucker, and Brunswick fans are hoping they see a repeat of that performance this weekend.
But, don’t simply look at this as a No. 4 seed versus a No. 1. Houston County has one of the best offenses in the state, led by phenom sophomore QB AJ Hill, and enters this game with an 8-2 overall record and 3-2 in what has been one of the most competitive regions in Class 6A. The Bears’ wins have included victories over Perry, Northside Warner Robins (who defeated North Cobb and Lee County), and defending state champion Warner Robins.
Their powerful offense will be tested against Brunswick’s defense, which is allowing just under 11 points per game. But, first-year head coach Jeremy Edwards is one of the top play callers in the state, and I think he works his magic in this one.
Phil’s Pick: Houston County 28, Brunswick 24
Lee County at Effingham
The Trojans of Dean Fabrizio find themselves in a rare situation when it comes to the postseason: traveling in the first round. In fact, it’s rare for Lee County to be traveling at any point of the postseason. Since 2015, the Trojans have played 14 of 15 playoff games at home, with their lone road playoff game coming in the third round of the 2016 playoffs at River Ridge.
But now they find themselves traveling as the No. 3 seed after stunning losses in their last two home games, against Northside Warner Robins and Thomas County Central. Effingham is led by former Buford and Roswell head coach John Ford, who guided the Rebels to a 7-3 overall record and the No. 2 seed in Region 2-6A after ending the season with a tough three-point loss against Brunswick last week. This first-round playoff matchup could be a close one, too.
Phil’s Pick: Lee County 35, Effingham 28
Sprayberry at Gainesville
At first glance, you see this Georgia Class 6A first-round playoff matchup of the No. 1-seeded Red Elephants from Region 8 hosting the No. 4-seeded Sprayberry Yellow Jackets, and you think, it’s time for Josh Niblett’s herd to stampede all over their visitors from Marietta. But this game is like that message we see in our side and rear view mirrors, “Objects may be closer than they appear,” or something akin to that.
Sprayberry is 4-6 overall and 3-3 in region play. But look closer and you see a team that lost by one point to a 6-4 Paulding County team, lost by 3 to a solid River Ridge squad, and by 5 to Kell. Those were three of five straight that Sprayberry dropped in the middle of the season, but they enter the playoffs with a 53-point win over Lassiter and a 56-point win last week over Pope.
Gainesville is undefeated and coming off its first region title in 10 years. Niblett was brought in from Hoover to do just what he had done at the Alabama powerhouse, which was win games and win championships, and so far he has accomplished both. Now, as the opposition gets a little tougher, can the fiery head coach keep it going? You’d be crazy to bet against the guy. You can bet the Sprayberry fans are crazy …
Phil’s Pick: Gainesville 39, Sprayberry 14
Class 3A
Crisp County at Peach County
This game will pit the No. 1-seeded team from Region 2, Peach County, as host to the No. 4 seed from Region 1, the Crisp County Cougars. This is a game I’ll call “The Battle of the Unknown,” simply because each team has suffered head-scratching losses this year. For the Panthers of Chad Campbell, their three losses were 35-7 to a solid Northside Warner Robins team, another 35-7 loss against Perry, and an 8-6 loss to Carver Atlanta. Yes, those are all good teams, but I personally didn’t think they were better than Peach. I still don’t. That’s why I call them head-scratching losses.
Despite those losses, Peach County found a way to win the region, and that’s a testament to the veteran Campbell, who is one of the longest-tenured coaches at any school in Georgia. The Cougars have some amazing talent, but just haven’t been able to put it all together so far this year. Crisp will likely lean on Trae Walker, who can play – and score – from anywhere. He has returned two punts for TDs and has a rushing TD to go along with six receiving TDs. Peach will be led by junior QB Colter Ginn, who has thrown for over 1,000 yards with 17 TDs this season. This Georgia first-round playoff game could be a chance at redemption for either team. The question is: Who will get it?
Phil’s Pick: Peach County 35, Crisp 21
