The 2025 GHSA regular season is over, and all of the speculation of who could be playing whom in which round of the state playoffs is over. Earlier this week, we gave you a look at some of the most interesting playoff matchups in Class 5A and Class 6A. Now, we take a look at the Class 3A and Class 4A Georgia high school football playoffs and the games that bear watching in Round 1.
Four Must-See Matchups in Round 1: Class 4A
Ware County (8-2) at Flowery Branch (7-3)
At first glance, this looks like a Ware County victory all the way, but not so fast.
Flowery Branch is actually the higher-seeded team as the No. 2 seed from Region 8-4A. Ware County is the No. 3 seed from Region 1-4A, finishing behind Benedictine and Warner Robins, the two teams the Gators lost to this season.
Ware County may be considered by most observers as the favorite, but travelling from South Georgia to the northeastern part of the state can be an equalizer of sorts.
Host Flowery Branch is 7-3 overall and 4-2 in region play. The Falcons finished second behind region champ and defending state champion North Oconee, whom they lost to in a close one 21-14.
Eastside (6-4) at Warner Robins (6-4)
The Warner Robins Demons of head coach Shane Sams rebounded from a bit of a shaky first half of the season and are playing their best football at just the right time as they prepare to host a Round 1 playoff game against the Eastside Eagles.
Warner Robins finished 6-4 overall, but finished strong with impressive wins over Ware County and Perry in the final two weeks of the regular season to rise to the No. 2 seed in Region 1-4A, so the Demons enter the playoffs with a surge of momentum and confidence.
Will that be enough to defeat the Eagles of Eastside, who are 6-4 overall but finished 4-2 in Region 8-4A behind North Oconee and Flowery Branch? The Eagles gave the defending state champion North Oconee Titans their closest game in two years in a 14-13 loss.
This is going to be a solid Round 1 matchup.
Ola (8-2) at Cambridge (8-2)
The Ola Mustangs finished the regular season 8-2 overall, including a 7-2 region record. Their two losses were to 9-1 Locust Grove and 8-2 Stockbridge, the teams that finished just ahead of Ola.
Those two losses place Ola third in Region 2-4A, which means travelling to face the Cambridge Bears, who also finished 8-2 but had a 3-1 region record that was good enough for the No. 2 seed and a home game in Round 1 of the playoffs. Cambridge finished one game behind region winner Kell. Despite losing to Kell 45-18 in their ninth game of the regular season, Cambridge rebounded nicely with a 31-28 win over Blessed Trinity in the final game of the regular season.
Cambridge has two of the most dangerous receivers in the state in seniors Craig Dandridge and Hudson Cocchiara, along with quarterback Connor Langford, who has passed for 27 touchdowns and 2,350 yards so far in the regular season.
Cambridge could make some noise in these playoffs. Beware of the Bears.
Perry (4-6) at North Oconee (10-0)
This could be the most attractive No. 1 versus No. 4 seed opening-round playoff game in the state. You have the two teams that have claimed the state championship in Class 4A over the past two years. The defending state champion North Oconee Titans bring their 25-game win streak into a Round 1 playoff game against the Perry Panthers, who won the Class 4A state title in 2023.
North Oconee is making a strong bid to repeat as the Class 4A state champion in 2025, but their Round 1 playoff opponent is not your average No. 4 seed.
At first glance, you may think differently. Perry is 4-6 overall and finished in fourth place in Region 1-4A with a 2-3 record, but three straight region losses to end the season have placed Perry in a pickle entering the playoffs. That included 7-point losses to Ware County and Warner Robins, along with a lopsided 41-17 loss to Benedictine.
Still, the Panthers have the weapons to make this interesting. The question is, will they?
Four Must-See Matchups in Round 1: Class 3A
Although Class 3A uses the points-based format to decide playoff seeding, there’s still the scenario of higher-seeded teams facing lower-seeded teams, so there will be some obvious favorites among the Round 1 matchups. Here are the four games I think are well worth watching.
Westover (6-3) at Troup (9-1)
The 6-3 Westover Patriots finished as the No. 3 team out of Region 1-3A and are the No. 24 seed headed into Round 1 of the Class 3A Georgia high school football state playoffs.
They’ll travel to No. 9 seed Troup County, which at 9-1 overall is enjoying one of its best seasons in recent years with Tigers head coach Tanner Glisson. Troup County finished 7-1 in Region 2-3A as the No. 2 team, finishing one game behind region champ Sandy Creek.
I predicted in the preseason that the Tigers would be one of the teams in Class 3A that could make some noise, and they have certainly done that.
However, Westover is a solid team, and to overlook them would be a big mistake.
Cherokee Bluff (6-4) at Peach County (9-1)
A fantastic Round 1 matchup pits the Cherokee Bluff Bears against the Peach County Trojans in Fort Valley, Georgia.
Cherokee Bluff is 6-4 overall and is the No. 21 team in Class 3A. The Bears were the fourth-place team from Region 8-3A with a 2-3 region record.
Peach County is the No. 12-seeded team at 9-1 overall and 4-1 in Region 1-3A. The Trojans suffered an upset loss to the Cairo Syrupmakers, the ultimate Region 1-3A champion, their only loss of the regular season. They fought off a Monroe team last week in their final regular season game by a 42-34 final, so Peach County is looking a bit vulnerable heading into this opening-round home matchup with Cherokee Bluff.
Keep an eye on this one.
Liberty County (7-3) at Cairo (8-2)
At first, you may not think a No. 25 team like Liberty taking on No. 8 Cairo would be a very attractive game, but I think there is more than meets the eye with this matchup.
Liberty County is 7-3 overall and finished with a 6-3 record in Region 3-3A. Cairo finished the regular season 8-2, including a perfect 5-0 region mark in Region 1-3A.
Cairo head coach David Coleman’s Syrupkaker squad is one of the hottest teams in the state after starting the season with consecutive losses. They have elevated their play over the last couple of months of the season, including a 38-31 win over No. 1 ranked Peach County.
Cairo has a difference-maker in running back and free safety Bryian Duncan, who can affect the game in all three phases.
I think Cairo is the better team, but Liberty County could keep it close.
North Clayton (8-2) at LaGrange (8-2)
This is a battle of two 8-2 teams with the No. 18 seed North Clayton Eagles taking on No. 15 seed LaGrange Grangers.
North Clayton is 8-2 overall and finished the regular season with a 5-1 record in Region 5-3A. Douglass and Stephenson also finished the regular season with 5-1 region records, but the tiebreaker gave the Astros and Jaguars the higher seeds.
Still, North Clayton can score points in bunches with an explosive offense led by four-star quarterback Justin Murphy, a junior. He has led North Clayton to its first playoff berth since 2016 and best regular season finish since 2010.
The dual-threat QB will try to lead his Eagles to an upset win against the Grangers from Region 2-3A, who have a pretty good QB of their own in senior Dylan Barber.
LaGrange’s two losses in the regular season came against Sandy Creek and rival Troup County.
Big-time players tend to rise up in big games. Will Murphy step it up and lead North Clayton to the upset win at Callaway Stadium?
