Ranking the most surprising and notable games of the weekend:
1. Richmond Hill 35, Valdosta 14: Richmond Hill, pegged as a 23-point underdog by the computer Maxwell Ratings, handed Valdosta its first loss of the season and ended a 12-game losing streak against top-10 opponents. The Wildcats’ victory created a four-way tie for first place in six-team Region 1-6A involving these two teams as well as Lowndes and Colquitt County. Valdosta was without injured quarterback Todd Robinson, a four-star prospect committed to Georgia.
2. Perry 31, Ware County 21: Perry, a deceptively high 31-point underdog due in large part to an unfortunate set of circumstances involving indirect comparative scores, emerged from this game as the only unbeaten team in Region 1-4A play. Perry, the Class 4A champion last season, is seeking its fourth region title in five years but likely will need to beat Benedictine and Warner Robins the next two weeks to get it.
3. Clinch County 34, Irwin County 28: Clinch County, a 13-point underdog, kept alive its hopes for at least a share of the Region 2-A Division II title and handed then-No. 1 Irwin County its first loss of the season. It was Clinch County’s first victory against a No. 1-ranked team since beating Irwin in the 2018 Class A Public final, the last game in Jim Dickerson’s first tenure as the team’s coach. He resigned after that season but came out of retirement this year.
4. Marion County 27, Macon County 18: Marion County handed 14-point favorite Macon County its first Region 6-A Division II loss and created a logjam of four one-loss teams at the top of the region that includes these two teams plus Schley County and Taylor County. Marion County, 4-4 overall, will win its first region title if it wins its remaining two games (Schley County, Central of Talbotton) and Taylor County loses one of its last two (Crawford County, Macon County).
5. Parkview 27, Duluth 14: Parkview, which came in with a 1-6 record that was the program’s worst after seven games since 1986, gave its playoff hopes a big boost with a victory over six-point favorite Duluth. The Panthers (2-3 in the region) are tied with Duluth and Peachtree Ridge for fourth place in 7-6A and are likely to make the playoffs for the 10th straight year if they beat Peachtree Ridge this week.
Worth noting: Banks County defeated Providence Christian 34-20, in a game projected as a toss-up by Maxwell, to end a 13-game losing that was one short of tying the longest in school history. Banks County lost six straight last year after starting 4-0 and then opened this season 0-7. … Dacula (3-5 overall, 2-2 in Region 8-6A) moved into fourth place in its seven-team region with a 23-14 victory over five-point favorite Mountain View. The Falcons will secure a playoff berth if they beat Central Gwinnett in the regular-season finale, regardless of what happens against what will be a heavily favored Collins Hill team this week. Dacula went 1-9 last season and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2015. … Hapeville Charter, a four-point underdog, justified its lofty position in the computer polls despite a 3-3 record with a 25-15 victory over previously unbeaten Lovett. Hapeville was not in the top 10 in any of the four human polls in the GHSF Daily Composite rankings but was No. 5 by MaxPreps and No. 6 by the Maxwell Ratings. Hapeville’s losses have come against Lee County, Cartersville and Westlake.
Produced by Georgia High School Football Daily, a free e-mail newsletter. To join the mailing list, click here.
