When the best of the best does what they are supposed to in the first two rounds, the state is greeted with four championship-caliber contests in the third round of the playoffs.
That is how things have played out in the Class A Division II football playoffs, where the path to the semifinals and state championship is as unclear as any classification in the state.
Each team remaining is ranked, including the top seven, with No. 10 Jenkins County as the only “outlier.” No. 8 Greene County and No. 9 Metter lost in earlier rounds.
The traveling teams for the quarterfinals are No. 3 Irwin (to No. 7 Trion), No. 5 Clinch (to No. 2 Bowdon), No. 10 Jenkins County (to No. 4 Brooks County) and No. 1 Manchester (to No. 6 Lincoln County).
State championship prowess – Lincoln County leads the pack with 11 state championships – not including the titles won by Lincolnton in 1960, 1962 and 1963. The team won in 1976, 1977, 1985-87, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995, 2005 and 2006. Bowdon has four titles — 1971, 1992 and the past two seasons. Irwin County has won three titles – 1975 and back-to-back in 2019 and 2020. Trion has two championships – 1957 and 1974. Clinch County has eight championships – 1988, 1991, 2002, 2004 (tie with Hawkinsville), 2010, 2015, 2017 and 2018. Brooks County has two titles – 1994 and 2021. Manchester has one title, which it won in 1997.
First-time champions emerging? – Jenkins County has never won a title and has played the game since 1952. The Eagles’ best finish was a finals loss in 1960, and the team is enjoying its deepest playoff run since that season.
Class A Division II quarterfinals schedule
No. 3 Irwin County at No. 7 Trion
No. 5 Clinch County at No. 2 Bowdon
No. 10 Jenkins County at No. 4 Brooks County
No. 1 Manchester at No. 6 Lincoln County
Semifinals prediction
Bowdon vs. Irwin County
Brooks County vs. Manchester
Championship prediction
Bowdon vs. Manchester
Champion
Manchester
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