Ranking the most surprising and notable games of the weekend:
1. Mount Zion (Jonesboro) 20, Stephenson 14: Mount Zion recorded the biggest upset of the week, according to the computer Maxwell Ratings, when it beat 34-point favorite Stephenson in a Region 5-3A game. At 2-0 in league play, the Bulldogs likely need to win just one of their four remaining region games to earn their first playoff berth since 2020 and second since 2009.
2. Lakeside (Atlanta) 51, Arabia Mountain 50: The preseason Maxwell Ratings projected Lakeside to finish eighth in eight-team Region 4-5A and gave the Vikings a 1% chance of making the playoffs. Lakeside’s odds went up considerably with a victory over 14-point favorite Arabia Mountain, a 2023 region champion, in the teams’ region opener. Lakeside, which played a non-region schedule the past four seasons, made the playoffs just once (2015) in the past 26 years.
3. Sprayberry 31, Sequoyah 17: A week after suffering an upset loss to Pope that cost Sprayberry a share of the early lead in 6-5A, the Yellow Jackets got back in the race by knocking off region favorite Sequoyah, which was favored by 14 in this game. It was Sprayberry’s first victory against a top-10 team since 2019. Sprayberry’s region title hopes will hinge on back-to-back games against co-leaders Creekview and River Ridge in early October.
4. Chattahoochee 29, Centennial 26: Chattahoochee defeated 11-point favorite Centennial to reach 4-0 for the first time since its 2010 championship team went 15-0. The Cougars’ four victories are their most in a season since going 7-4 in 2017. Chattahoochee now heads into play in Region 7-5A, which includes No. 1 Milton (this week’s opponent), No. 6 Gainesville and No. 7 Roswell.
5. Hiram 41, Cass 27: Hiram ended a three-game losing streak with a victory over 19-point favorite Cass in the teams’ Region 7-4A opener. This is the ninth consecutive year in which the teams met as region rivals, with Hiram holding a 6-3 advantage in those games. It was the second consecutive loss for Cass after a 3-0 start had lifted the Colonels to the No. 8 spot in the Class 4A rankings.
Worth noting: Groves ended a 27-game losing streak in region games with a 25-22 victory over 15-point favorite Islands. Groves’ last win in a region game had been on Oct. 12, 2019, a forfeit victory in a game that Beach won 43-0. Its last on-field region win came on Sept. 28, 2018. … Landmark Christian, an 0-10 team last season, improved to 3-1 with a 35-28 victory over 23-point favorite South Atlanta. Landmark is inching toward its first winning season since 2016, when it finished 10-2 and reached the state quarterfinals. … Tri-Cities is 3-0 for the first time since 2015 after a 21-20 victory over 18-point favorite Dunwoody in the teams’ Region 4-5A opener. Tri-Cities, under second-year coach Rodney Hackney, was 4-25 the past three seasons and hasn’t had a winning record since the 2015 team finished 6-4. … Woodland of Stockbridge picked up its first victory of the season and ended an 11-game losing streak in region play with a 21-18 victory over 15-point favorite Eagle’s Landing Christian in a 2-4A game. ELCA is 0-5 for the first time since its 2014 team started 0-6 but eventually reached the Class A Private championship game.
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