Fourteen top-10 teams lost football games last week, and six fell out of the rankings.
Most conspicuously absent is Calhoun, the previous No. 10 team in Class 5A. The Yellow Jackets lost to unranked Cass 52-29.
Calhoun is out of the rankings for the first time since early 2020 and won’t be in the playoffs for the first time since 1999. They finished 6-4 overall and 2-3 in Region 7-5A, which includes top-10 teams Cartersville and Hiram.
Also out of the rankings are Thomasville, Athens Academy, Burke County, Telfair County, Early County and Mount Vernon. All are in good shape for the playoffs.
Newton, the No. 7 team in Class 7A, fell to No. 10 after an upset loss to South Gwinnett. Newton was 7-0 and ranked an all-time high of No. 5 two weeks ago but now must beat Archer on Friday to make the playoffs from Region 4.
Five of the top-10 losers lost to other ranked teams. Lee County, No. 5 in Class 6A, dropped only one position after losing to No. 2 Thomas County Central 31-24 in a game that effectively ended when Lee County was stopped inside the 1-yard line on fourth down with a minute left.
Swainsboro, the previous No. 2 team in Class A Division I and the 2022 runner-up, fell to No. 6 after losing to Bleckley County, which moved up two spots to No. 5.
Cook re-entered the Class 2A rankings at No. 9 after beating previous No. 7 Fitzgerald 14-7. Cook was 1-7 overall until getting a court injunction to pause the GHSA’s decision to issue five forfeits. Cook currently is 7-2.
Class 7A
1. (1) Mill Creek (9-0)
2. (2) Walton (9-0)
3. (3) Colquitt County (9-0)
4. (4) Buford (8-1)
5. (5) Carrollton (9-1)
6. (6) Norcross (8-1)
7. (9) Parkview (7-2)
8. (10) Grayson (7-2)
9. (8) Westlake (7-2)
10. (7) Newton (7-2)
Class 6A
1. (1) Gainesville (9-0)
2. (2) Thomas County Central (9-0)
3. (3) Douglas County (9-0)
4. (5) Hughes (7-2)
5. (4) Lee County (7-2)
6. (6) Rome (8-1)
7. (7) Marist (8-1)
8. (8) Roswell (8-1)
9. (9) Houston County (7-2)
10. (10) Woodward Academy (7-2)
Class 5A
1. (1) Coffee (9-0)
2. (2) Creekside (8-1)
3. (3) Jefferson (9-0)
4. (4) Cartersville (10-0)
5. (5) Ware County (7-2)
6. (6) Kell (8-1)
7. (7) Hiram (8-2)
8. (8) Greater Atlanta Christian (8-1)
9. (9) Warner Robins (6-3)
10. (NR) Harris County (8-1)
Out: No. 10 Calhoun (6-4)
Class 4A
1. (1) Benedictine (10-0)
2. (2) North Oconee (9-0)
3. (3) Bainbridge (7-2)
4. (5) Spalding (10-0)
5. (6) Central-Carrollton (9-0)
6. (8) Stockbridge (7-2)
7. (4) Perry (7-2)
8. (9) Cairo (8-1)
9. (10) Troup (8-1)
10. (NR) Starr’s Mill (6-3)
Out: No. 10 Burke County (7-2)
Class 3A
1. (1) Calvary Day (9-0)
2. (2) Stephens County (9-0)
3. (3) Cedar Grove (4-5)
4. (4) Mary Persons (8-1)
5. (5) Savannah Christian (7-2)
6. (6) Lumpkin County (9-0)
7. (7) Morgan County (8-1)
8. (8) Sandy Creek (6-3)
9. (9) Carver-Columbus (7-3)
10. (NR) Crisp County (6-4)
Out: No. 10 Thomasville (5-5)
Class 2A
1. (1) Thomson (8-1)
2. (2) Appling County (7-2)
3. (3) Pierce County (8-1)
4. (4) Toombs County (8-1)
5. (5) Callaway (6-2)
6. (8) Rockmart (7-2)
7. (6) Northeast (7-2)
8. (9) Fellowship Christian (7-2)
9. (NR) Cook (7-2)
10. (7) Fitzgerald (6-3)
Out: No. 10 Athens Academy (5-4)
Class A Division I
1. (1) Prince Avenue Christian (8-1)
2. (3) Trion (9-0)
3. (4) Commerce (9-1)
4. (5) Elbert County (8-2)
5. (7) Bleckley County (8-2)
6. (2) Swainsboro (8-1)
7. (6) Rabun County (7-3)
8. (8) Lamar County (7-2)
9. (10) Bryan County (8-1)
10. (NR) Brooks County (4-5)
Out: No. 9 Mount Vernon (6-3)
Class A Division II
1. (1) Schley County (9-0)
2. (3) Manchester (6-2)
3. (4) Macon County (7-2)
4. (5) Clinch County (9-1)
5. (6) Bowdon (7-2)
6. (7) Jenkins County (9-0)
7. (2) Greene County (8-1)
8. (10) Aquinas (7-2)
9. (NR) Dooly County (5-4)
10. (8) Telfair County (7-1)
Out: No. 9 Early County (6-3)
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