Westminster is 7-5, but has played a brutal schedule, and now gets Peach County in a Class AAA quarterfinal

          Peach County knows about attention-getting scores, like when the Trojans hammered Kendrick 82-0 earlier this season and, on the flip side, there was a surprising first-round playoff loss in 2014 to Appling County.

          But scores like Westminster’s 59-57 win last week over East Hall in the second round of the Class AAA playoff will make one take notice.

          Decent offenses having a good day and some bad defense?

          Peach County head coach Chad Campbell just chuckled.

          “59-57, you take it for what it’s worth,” he said. “Explosive offenses.”

          The Trojans get a look at whatever offense Westminster has this week when they host the Wildcats Friday at 8 p.m. It’ll be the final home game for Peach County after the GHSA’s “universal coin flip” determined the top half of the bracket will host the semifinals when seeds are the same.

          There’s some familiarity involved.

          Peach County beat Westminster 27-17 last year on the road in the quarterfinals, putting the Trojans into the semifinals against Greater Atlanta Christian, which had beaten Westminster 19-16 in overtime in late August of last season.

          “Offensively, they’re more multiple in what they do,” Campbell said. “They’re a little more balanced this year than what they’ve been.”

          The Wildcats are 7-5, but four of the teams that beat them are still alive in the playoffs, including Blessed Trinity and Woodward in Class 4A, GAC, and top-ranked Cedar Grove in Class AAA.

          “It’s not like they ain’t played no competition,” Campbell said. “They’re not gonna come down to Fort Valley like they ain’t played nobody.”

          Peach County is 11-1, ranked second in the final regular season poll by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and tied for second – with Greater Atlanta Christian – in the Georgia Sports Writers Association poll. Westminster, 7-5, is 10th in the AJC poll.

          The 59 points Westminster scored last week was a school record. Before that game, Westminster’s average win was 35-5.5, and the Wildcats have three shutouts.

          It was 38-28 at halftime last week, and Joe Egan scored Westminster’s three second-half touchdowns. Egan was voted Region 5’s top athlete, while wideout Nance Hill and offensive lineman Peter Rooney were first-team on offense, defensive lineman Truman Jones and defensive back Malcolm Strickland on defense.

          Hill is a 6-3, 200-pound junior who is a favorite target of quarterback Chance Loeffler.

          “They’re letting the quarterback throw it around a little bit more,” Campbell said. “He can really sling the ball, and he’s got some cats that can go get it. The running back, the Egan kid, the quarterback, they’re good players, home-run hitters. They’ve got a tall 6-3 wideout that can go get the ball.

          “The 6-3 wideout can run and go get the ball and you’ve got 5-foot-9 corners, so that’s a size disadvantage right there. You have to put yourself in good positions.”

          Peach County pulled away late from an underrated Pierce County team last week, winning 34-14 with 17 straight second-half points. Quarterback Antonio Gilbert threw his first interception of the season.

          “Ball that shouldn’t have been thrown,” Campbell said. “Offense, they didn’t play very well. We didn’t play well. Offensive line didn’t play well at all.”

          Peach County got 126 yards rushing and three touchdowns from Trevon Woolfolk, who has taken over as the No. 1 back with the season-ending ACL injury to Chris Gibson a few weeks ago. Gilbert was 18 0f 28 for 274 yards with a touchdown run.

          Kearis Jackson suffered a wrist injury Friday night and caught three passes for 28 yards.

          The Trojans’ defense has a nice night, allowing 36 rushing yards and 62 passing yards.

          “They got 40 on a wheel route, safety went to sleep,” Campbell said. “And they gt 20 on another play, so two plays, 60 yards.”

          Georgia Tech commit Jaquez Jackson leads the Trojans with 9.2 tackles a game and 22 tackles for loss. Sophomore linebacker Sergio Allen, who got an offer from Alabama last weekend, has 15 tackles for loss, and teams with Shemarcus Redding for 15.1 tackles a game. T.J. Adams has six sacks and Jackson four.

          Campbell said the Trojans will need the offensive line to return to the form of October on, a month in which Peach County’s average win was by a 60-7. But maybe even more than that, the simple stuff is most key.

          “You’ve just got to do fundamental football,” said Campbell, 118-22 in his 11th season. “You’ve got to play good football, play fundamental football. You gotta block, throw, catch, tackle. This time of year, you’ve got to play mistake-free football.”