This week's Central Georgia high school football scouting reports
By Michael A. Lough
The Sports Report
centralgasports@gmail.com
Teams: Please email game information – stats (offense and defense), names, big plays, etc. – to centralgasports@gmail.com by midnight Friday or by 10:30 a.m. Saturday for inclusion in Central Georgia’s only comprehensive roundup Saturday morning.
Reminder: State statistics from MaxPreps are based only on information put into MaxPreps by individual schools. Less than half of Central Georgia teams put stats in to MaxPreps consistently.
Class 6A
Veterans (1-4/5A) at Houston County (3-3)
The Warhawks have a task, slowing down Simeon Askew, who has 1,166 yards on 160 carries with eight touchdowns. Veterans QB Matthew Bruce has completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 1,110 yards and rushed for another 397 yards, accounting for 10 TDs.
Class 5A
Warner Robins (5-0) at Camden County (4-2/7A)
The Demons keep cruising, with QB Christon Lane (59-94-3, 14 TDs, 1,043 yards) and ATH JaFredrick Perry (267 rushing yards, 4 TDs, and a few hundred all-purpose yards) and RB Malcolm Brown (110-720, 11 TDs). Camden County offers a stout run game that averages 298.7 yards a game and has five runners with 150 yards or more.
Jones County (3-2/2-0) at Locust Grove (0-5/0-2)
Locust Grove has scored all of 34 points in five games, while Jones County has scored at least 34 points in four straight games, and is averaging 36.8 points. Javious Bond and Drew Jones have teamed for nine rushing touchdowns and 552 yards on the ground.
Class 4A
Rutland (1-4/0-1) at Baldwin (2-2/1-0)
The Braves will be amped to finally, in the third month of the season, get a home game, and to celebrate their new turf, plus homecoming. Baldwin is off an attention-getting 45-0 win at Westside, and offer Rutland the Hurricanes’ second-toughest opponent this season, behind region favorite Perry.
West Laurens (2-3/0-1) at Howard (2-2), Ed DeFore
This won’t be fancy. Howard has thrown 30 passes this year, and averages 50 carries and 212.3 yards rushing, with eight touchdowns. Gerraud Pertillo averages 6.3 yards a carry. West Laurens (with stats reported through three games) tries about five times as many passes, more than twice the Raiders’ rushing attempts. The Raiders lead the series 11-2, winning the last two by a combined 74-7
Spalding (4-1/1-0) at Perry (4-0/1-0)
Spalding no doubt got some of Perry’s attention with last week’s 21-7 win over West Laurens. The Jags are balanced yardage-wise, with 990 on the ground and 865 through the air. Nazir Berry has 660 yards and eight touchdowns. Perry -which leads the series 6-2 and has won three straight by 29, 38, and 12 points – brings major firepower: QB Armor Gordon has 1,022 yards on a staggering 68.7 percent completion rate, DaeQuan Wright leads a deep receiving group with 263 yards and two scores on 14 catches while four of Curtis Head’s 13 catches have gone for scores. Camerin Marshall, Jarred Fuller, and Caleb Wilson lead a steady defense,
Westside (1-3) at Heritage-Conyers (0-4/6A)
Westside picked up this game early in the week, the public announcement coming Thursday. The Seminoles are trying to regroup with the break in region play after last week’s 45-0 loss to Baldwin, a program worst loss. Heritage has scored 16 points in four games, and given up 101 in its last two outings.
Class AAA
Central (0-4/0-1) at Jackson (2-3/1-1)
The Chargers are off a 47-16 home loss to Mary Persons, while Jackson routed Pike County 45-14. Central broke a 13-game losing streak to the Red Devils with last year’s 40-23 win.
Crisp County (2-3/1-1) at Mary Persons (3-2/1-1)
The winner has a little edge for second place in the region. The Cougars pulled away for a 38-7 win last year as the final loss in Mary Persons’ four-game losing streak. Duke Watson is 158 yards from 1,000 for the Bulldogs, to go with 15 touchdowns. Balanced Crisp County is led by QB Jack Carter, who has 534 yards on 52.7 percent completions. The Bulldogs will have to block Julian Fox, who gets 10 tackles a game.
Pike County (1-3/1-1) at Peach County (2-2/2-0)
Pike County is off a 45-14 loss to Jackson, and Peach County beat Sumter County 59-0, which was the halftime score.
Sumter County (0-3/0-1) at Upson-Lee (2-3/0-2)
The Knights are pretty much in must-win mode, and get an opponent smashed last week by Peach County. Upson-Lee battled Crisp County before losing 30-8. The Knights need a win Friday, and next week against Central before taking on Mary Persons and Peach County back to back.
Class AA
Swainsboro (3-2) at East Laurens (4-1)
The Falcons are going for what would be their biggest win since stunning Dublin in 2012. East Laurens hasn’t had a five-win season since then, and the Raiders have lost six straight to Swainsboro, with the only really competitive game a 23-20 loss in 2011. Swainsboro won 48-13 last year. East Laurens’ Eli Downing is more than halfway to 1,000 yards, with 578, and seven touchdowns.
Jasper County (0-5/0-1) at Bleckley County (5-0/1-0)
The Royals won 59-20 last year, and will be amped after holding off Dodge County 21-19 last week. Jahvon Butler has 595 rushing yards and seven scores, and Eli Mullis has completed 59.6 percent for 427 yards.
Northeast (3-1) at Washington County (4-0/1-0)
The second showdown of the year in 3-AA pits the balanced Raiders and run-happy Golden Hawks. Northeast QB Travion Solomon has completed 57.6 percent for 549 yards, but only two touchdowns with two picks. Tyler Terry and Kalik Evans have teamed for 750 yards and nine scores, seven from Evans. The Golden Hawks counter with Djay Braswell, Tylik Gilmore, and AJ Hagans, who combined for 298 rushing yards and five touchdowns last week. Washington County also returned a fumble for a score in the romp over Lamar County. The Raiders have won two straight in the series, including 26-13 two years ago at the House of Pain. This is the first time both teams are ranked at kickoff.
Lamar County (3-2/0-1) at Southwest (1-2/1-0), Henderson
The visiting Trojans were thumped at home by Washington County while the Patriots went on the road and topped Jasper County.
Putnam County (5-0/2-0) at Oglethorpe County (1-3/1-0)
Odds are against the War Eagles getting much of a challenge from the team they beat 48-0 last year. Putnam County gutted out a 13-6 win over Laney last week, making a QB change in the game and surviving mistakes. Gerald Kilgore has passed for 523 yards, and versatile Cedrion Brundage has 500 yards and seven rushing touchdowns.
Class A Public
Dublin (1-3/1-1) at Hawkinsville (1-4/0-3)
The teams have only played nine times, with a forfeit back in 1927. This is but the third meeting since 1970. Dublin won 56-0 last year when the Irish were ranked fifth. This year, Dublin is battling for its playoff life in a nine-team region that currently has five teams with winning overall records.
Taylor County (1-3/0-3) at Macon County (4-0/2-0)
There was a recent stretch where these two were pretty decent rivals, both ranked last year and in 2017. Macon County won both, 52-33 last year and 27-22 in 2017. The Bulldogs have won five straight in the series, and the Vikings are trying to avoid their first 1-4 start since 2015, head coach Mark Wilson’s first season in Butler.
ACE (1-2/1-0) at Crawford County (0-4/0-1)
The Gryphons rolled Wilkinson County last week, behind 164 yards passing from Kaleb Scarbary and 101 rushing yards from Aaron Davis on 17 tries, with two scores. The defense held the Warriors to minus-5 yards rushing, with eight tackles each from Justin Verdier, Tate Turner, and Gavin West.
Warren County (3-2/1-0) at Hancock Central (0-4/0-1)
Things have gotten off to a pretty bad start for the defending 7-A public champs, with an equipment-related forfeit to open the season, and being shut out the last two games, by region foe GMC and Washington-Wilkes, by a 71-0 count. And now rival Warren County comes to Sparta, three weeks after losing 36-13 to W-W and remembering last year’s 28-14 home loss and that the Bulldogs have won seven of the last nine games.
GMC (5-0/2-0) at Wilkinson County (2-3/1-1)
The Bulldogs started off slow before popping Twiggs County 42-0 last week, with Jessie Washington going for 195 yards and two scores on 20 carries and Tyler Saunders completing 6 of 18 for 94 yards and two touchdowns.
Class A Private
Savannah Christian (3-2) at FPD (2-2)
Savannah Christian is 1-1 against Central Georgia, getting thumped 40-7 by GISA power John Milledge and eking out a 14-7 win at Mount de Sales last week. Four different Raiders led the way to 187 rushing yards against MdS. The Vikings had last week off after losing a heartbreaker to Savannah Christian, and are trying to avoid repeating a three-game losing streak last year to Aquinas, Calvary Day, and Savannah Christian.
Mount de Sales (2-2) at Aquinas (4-1)
Aquinas will be amped to take on a Macon school after being humbled 46-14 last week. The Cavs are trying to avoid their first three-game losing streak since 2016. Aquinas won 35-21 last year. MdS standout A’Khori Jones is seven rushing yards from 1,000 for the season, putting him among the state’s top 10.
Stratford (4-0) at Calvary Day (6-0)
Two of Calvary Day’s wins have been over GISA schools with a combined 1-8 record, and the Cavs needed a score in the final 20 seconds to get past FPD. The Eagles’ defense will have to corral QB Jake Merklinger (1,167 yards and eight TDs passing, 7 TDs rushing).
Tattnall (4-0) at Brookwood (0-4/GISA AAA)
This may not be quite the empty-the-bench game one would think. Brookwood has two losses to Florida schools, and the Warriors are averaging 26.8 points, an impressive number for a winless team. And the Trojans can’t look past Brookwood toward FPD.
GISA
Trinity Christian (1-4) at Tiftarea (2-3)
The Crusaders have struggled after opening the season with a 21-4 win and are on a four-game losing streak. Tiftarea is battling a two-game slide, including a loss to Class A Charlton County.
John Milledge (5-0) at Valwood (1-4)
Valdwood is struggling for the second straight season after losing 62-19 to JMA in the 2019 championship. The Valiants followed that with a 3-7 year, including a 56-0 loss to John Milledge. QB Briggs Eady has completed 73.2 percent of his passes for 771 yards and 10 TDs with no picks, and he leads the Trojans with 306 rushing yards and four TDs.
Creekside Christian (0-4) at Piedmont (4-1)
The Cougars have won four straight, by 19, 31, 26, and 36. Creekside has lost four, three on the field and a forfeit to Wilkinson County. The Cougars have been outscored 123-6.
Terrell (5-0) at Westfield (2-1)
The Hornets have had some early-season scheduling gaps and are still figuring some things out. They’re getting 174.3 rushing yards and 105.3 passing yards a game. Westfield won 41-23 a year ago.
Augusta Prep (3-1) at Brentwood (4-1)
Brentwood is 4-1 for the second straight year, but only the third time since 2013 (4-1-1). The War Eagles have scored at last 35 points in the four wins since the opening 38-12 loss to John Milledge. Augusta Prep has a pair of GHSA wins.
Briarwood (5-1) at Gatewood (2-2)
The defending AA champs are celebrating their 50th season on game day, and will then try to avoid their first three-game losing streak since 2014. The Gators won 21-12 last year.
Central Christian (1-3/GAPPS) at Fullington (1-4)
The Trojans are working toward their second win, the first coming over independent Notre Dame, which is 0-4 and is Central Christian’s lone win.