Last week’s good surprises

          Perry throwing a big ol’ shutout in the first round? Perry?

          Yessir, the Panthers turned in one of the area’s more impressive first-round showings. For one, they shared the highest scoring total with Baldwin, 38 points. And for another, they joined Peach County as the only Central Georgia teams to throw first-round shutouts. …

          The magic of a losing non-region record continued for Baldwin, which had a long road trip in bad weather and then outbattled Cairo, a double-digit favorite. Note that Baldwin gave Cartersville a quality effort before losing 42-12 in last year’s second round. …

          FPD was basically a four-touchdown underdog, and was within a tipped interception of taking Wesleyan – a top-5 team – into a second overtime on the road. It was huge for obviously reasons, but also as a quality building block for a team that returns a fair number of regulars to go with some good up-and-comers.

 

Last week’s not-so-good surprises

          Few saw Brooks County doing what it did to Washington County.

          The teams were even in many ways, and Washington County was off a huge performance against one of the top AA offenses in the state.

          Fitzgerald’s win over Bleckley County wasn’t a shocker.

          The weather was Fitzgerald’s 12th man, helping the defense against an offense built on speed.

          Mud is an equalizer, and that was very much the case in the first round, in Cochran and all over the state. But it hurt Bleckley County more than most.

 

And about normal

          Houston County’s win over Evans was nothing new. The Augusta area isn’t the strongest, and the Bears and Northside ran roughshod over those teams when they were all region mates a few years ago.

          Even a dropoff in talent wasn’t going to be enough to slow down Houston County. None of the current Bears were on those teams, but a little history lesson – and, well, just being better – can add some confidence.

          Which can easily carry over a week. …

          Mary Persons winning on the road was no surprise, either. That the Bulldogs had to keep coming helps, and bless anybody that executes an onside kick. ...

          Peach County’s game, bad snaps or not, was much closer than anybody expected. But the timing was perfect for the Trojans, in need of a close game and some adverse conditions, in general and with Calhoun coming to town this week. …

          Westside and Central were good-sized underdogs going into the playoffs. Westside gave Appling County some trouble before the hosts pulled away. …

          The winner – or, well, the alternative – of close calls for the season goes to Dodge County, which, as expected, gave Thomasville fits in a five-point loss.

          The Indians lost six regular-season games, three by 14 (to a still-playing, top-10 4A team), by three (to a still-playing AA team), and by seven to a region team that made the playoffs. A big loss was to a 3A top-10 team still playing, by 21 to a ranked region playoff team, and to Dublin in a game closer for a long time than the 29-point margin.

          As odd a season in Eastman in awhile. …

          Jones County took care of business, but the Greyhounds haven’t been particularly sharp in awhile. This doesn’t bode well for Cedar Shoals visiting the Barking Lot on a dry field.

 

Loughdmouthings

          There’s a faction that’s happy the latest reclassification – and the farcical splitting of Class A regions to public and private – will do away with power ratings.

          More on the rant another time, but we need power ratings. Why we had it for 7A and 3A and not for everybody for the same reasons is beyond me.

          Do it for everybody.

          In a part of the land that screams loudest about participation trophies and snowflakes, do two-win teams really deserve to be in the playoffs over six- and seven-win teams that suffer from how regions are put together?

          This year, granted, about a half-dozen two- and three-win teams made the playoffs in 6A, 5A, 4A, and AA, and only one sub-.500 team in Class A (gee, power ratings keep out weak teams?), but talk to those teams that did well and sit home because of the logistics.

          The absurdity of four-team regions – are you kidding? –means you show up, you make the playoffs.

          Weekly attendance is rewarded with a playoff spot? Five-team regions aren’t much better.

          Tis absurd, and maybe one day, an agenda-free vision will win out. Right after we move state championship games to championship-caliber facilities and away from the big place just for TV. …

          Funny thing.

          Mary Persons has to kind of sweat things out on the final week of the playoffs, and things set up for the Bulldogs to go farther as a third seed than in three of the past six seasons, four as a region top seed.

          There is no Marist or Blessed Trinity or Cartersville or Buford or Marist – private or open-enrollment zone-free programs – until the semifinals. The Bulldogs will be favored this week, and perhaps again in two weeks against region No. 2 Sandy Creek or region No. 4 Americus-Sumter.

          That would put Mary Persons in a semifinal against probably the Oconee County-Marist winner.

          And on that old playoff road is West Laurens, which likely gets Region 7 champ Blessed Trinity (unless the prayers of Raider Nation for Baldwin this week are answered). The next prayers from Dexter are to win the quarterfinal coin flip.

          Yes, getting a metro Atlanta team out of metro Atlanta and to places nowhere near a mall, organic beauty salon, plastic surgeon complex, and squeaky-private golf club is a very, very good thing. …

          Houston County’s Max Rigby has thrown 335 passes this year. South Paulding’s Austin Seymour has put it up 350 times. A likely dry field.

          Over-under is closer to three and half hours than three hours. …

          Carrollton is used to being in this position, and Veterans isn’t.

          But don’t be overly surprised if the Warhawks give the Trojans something to deal with, especially if they can get a little bit going in the passing game.

          Veterans won its playoff opener in that crappy weather by 21, which, ironically, matched the margin in its first-round win over Locust Grove in 2013. That year, Veterans lost by only three at No. 7/9 Wayne County.

          There’s something about this Warhawk team and finding an identity that makes them interesting. Carrollton better not look ahead to a date with Buford. …

          Sure, the game was over early, but many Woodward games have been over early. Upson-Lee scoring 14 is still of note, considering Woodward had given up only 10 to then-No. 1 Blessed Trinity in early September and 20 to a weak Salem team (2-8) four weeks earlier.

 

Dear Friday night gamecasters

          Time and score, both school names. Instead of dead air or saying you don’t know what happened – Google – or didn’t see it – binoculars – try the time and score.

          And please, stop using the colleague’s name – or ‘Coach’ – ever literally every other sentence. He’s right there, and the only other person talking, so, he needn’t be identified quite so much.