By Michael A. Lough
The Sports Report
centralgasports@gmail.com

Last week: 19-3, 86.4 percent
This season: 199-65, 75.4 percent
Within 7 points of margin: 18 ( perfect picks), 63 for the season
Maximum Sports Report spread is 39 points.

    

Games of the week

Class 6A

Northside, 4-3/1-1, at No. 2 Lee County, 6-1/2-0

          The Eagles’ losses have been by one possession to ranked teams in two classifications. Those three teams aren’t what we expected, detracting a bit from the quality of the losses. Northside has to have a passing game to stay in this one.

TSR pick: Lee County by 21

No. 10 Houston County, 6-1/1-1, at No. 8 Thomas County Central, 7-0/2-0

Central Georgia’s best high school football coverage

This week
* Scouting Reports: all GHSA and GIAA games
* Maxwell Ratings picks, Central Georgia state rankings
* Who’s going to win this week’s Central Georgia high school football games
* Monday Morning Quarterback: Surprises, upsets, Loughdmouthings (Bama-Tennessee, Fromm, area 1,000-yard rushers, passers, more), Central Georgia polls
* Macon Touchdown Club players of the week: Jones County, Northeast

Last week

* Roundup: Jones County pops Dutchtown, Westside dumped, John Milledge threatened, Kirkley & Bentley go off
* Scouting Reports on all GHSA and GIAA games
* Maxwell Ratings picks, Central Georgia state rankings
* Who's going to win this week's Central Georgia high school football games?
*  Monday Morning Quarterback: It’s early, but (topics galore); Surprises, upsets, Loughdmouthings (Falcons, stat clarifications, John Milledge challenge) Central Georgia's polls
* Macon Touchdown Club players of the week: Northeast, Tattnall

Two weeks ago
* Roundup: Dublin pops Bleckley County, Jones County surprised, Risper gets 100th, Tattnall wins thriller, FPD rolls
* Scouting reports on all GHSA and GIAA games
* Maxwell Ratings picks, Central Georgia state rankings
* Thursday’s roundup: Houston County-Northside, Rutland, Putnam County
* Who’s going to win this week’s games? (And Thursday scouting reports)
* Monday Morning Quarterback: So, you want to start planning for the HS playoffs? Go ahead/not so fast; Surprises, upsets, Loughdmouthings (Tech, colleges, stat leaders …), Central Georgia's polls
* HS notebook: ACE, Washington win appeal; Hardy still in active; Westside's Risper on cusp of 100th win/milestone watch; GHSA football finals back to the Benz?
* Macon Touchdown Club players of the week

 

          The meeting of the new head coach that got Jones County on its run, with a new offense, and the new head coach who sparked Warner Robins’ run as its offensive coordinator. It’s the offensive kind of game that will be won by the defense that makes the key plays.

TSR pick: Thomas County Central by 6

Class AAA

Upson-Lee, 4-4/2-0, at No. 7 Peach County, 3-3/1-0

          All of a sudden, we’re past the halfway point and Upson-Lee is in better position for a home playoff game than we expected, better than Mary Persons, for example. The Knights, though, will have to get a lot more from those not named Ja’Quan Bentley to have a shot, because the laser-red-light will be on him. Is it time to feel like Peach County is Peach County?

TSR pick: Peach County by 24 

Class A/II

Wilcox County, 4-3/2-0, at No. 7 Dooly County, 4-3/2-0

          Wilcox County’s chances dwindled with Dooly County’s loss to Dublin. And the Patriots haven’t played as tough a schedule.

TSR pick: Dooly County by 21 

GIAA

FPD, 2-5/1-0, at John Milledge, 5-3/1-0

          The defenses will get a nifty workout with QBs Jakhari Williams and Briggs Eady. And defense will be the key. JMA was held to below 30 points last week for only the second time since November of 2019. Is FPD’s defense healthy enough to come close to that? Conversely, Williams is the best athlete and QB the Trojans have faced in a good while.

TSR pick: John Milledge by 13 (upset watch)

 

Games of note

Class 4A

Westside, 5-2/1-2, at Spalding, 5-3/3-1, Thursday, 7 p.m.

          One team is playing to stay alive to play for, it hopes, a region title in the penultimate week of the regular season, and one is playing to stay alive in the playoff hunt.

TSR pick: Spalding by 17

Class AA

ACE, 6-1/3-1, at Rutland, 4-3/2-2, Ed DeFore

          Rutland caught ACE early in the coaching transition last year. The returning Gryphons remember that 41-14 thumping, and would like to return the favor. Can Rutland pull of the upset and get a legitimately quality win?

TSR pick: ACE by 22

No. 8 Northeast, 6-2/4-0, at Spencer, 5-2/4-0

          The records are similar, and the teams are tied for first in the region. But Spencer doesn’t have a quality win or a quality loss.

TSR pick: Northeast by 27

GIAA

Brookstone, 4-3/0-1, at Westfield, 5-3/2-0

          Can Brookstone slow down dual threat QB Hunter Kirkley? It’d be a first this season against the senior who is 12 yards from 4,000 passing for his career.

TSR pick: Westfield by 10

 

The Schedule

Class AA

Southwest, 2-5/2-2, at Kendrick, 0-7/0-4, Thursday, 7 p.m.
TSR pick: Southwest by 21

Friday

Class 6A

Veterans, 4-3/0-2, at Tift County, 1-6/0-2
TSR pick: Veterans by 19

Class 5A

Eagle’s Landing, 2-6/1-3, at No. 9 Warner Robins, 3-4/2-1
TSR pick: Warner Robins by 30

Class 4A

Baldwin, 2-5/1-2, at West Laurens, 1-6/0-3
TSR pick: Baldwin by 21

Howard, 5-2/1-2, at Griffin, 2-6/2-2
TSR pick: Howard by 3

Class AA

Dodge County, 3-5/2-2, at No. 3 Cook, 6-1/3-0
TSR pick: Cook by 18

Jordan, 0-7/0-4, at Central, 1-6/1-3, Henderson
TSR pick: Central by 21

No. 10 Putnam County, 6-1/4-0, at No. 6 Thomson, 6-1/4-0
TSR pick: Thomson by 4

Washington County, 2-5/2-2, at Butler 3-4/1-3
TSR pick: Washington County by 32

Class A/I

East Laurens, 1-6/0-1, at Bleckley County, 7-1/1-1
TSR pick: Bleckley County by 33

Jefferson County, 1-7/0-2, at No. 10 Dublin, 4-2/1-0
TSR pick: Dublin by 32

Social Circle, 5-2, at Jasper County, 3-4
TSR pick: Social Circle by 20

II

Chattahoochee County, 3-4/2-2, at Macon County, 2-5/2-2
TSR pick: Macon County by 29

Glascock County, 2-6/1-2, at GMC, 2-6/1-2
TSR pick: GMC by 11

No. 4 Johnson County, 7-0/2-0, at Wilkinson County, 4-3/1-1
TSR pick: Johnson County by 29

Taylor County, 2-5/1-3, at Marion County, 1-6/1-3
TSR pick: Taylor County by 8

Treutlen, 0-7/0-2, at Hawkinsville, 2-5/0-2
TSR pick: Hawkinsville by 21

Twiggs County, 2-5/0-2, at Hancock Central, 3-4/2-0
TSR pick: Hancock Central by 23

GIAA

Class AAA

Mount de Sales, 2-5/0-2, at Stratford, 5-3/0-2
TSR pick: Stratford by 27

AA/A

Edmund Burke, 4-3, at Gatewood, 3-4
TSR pick: Gatewood by 4

Brentwood, 4-3, at Piedmont, 1-6
TSR pick: Brentwood by 28

3A Terrell, 5-2, at Central Fellowship, 7-0
TSR pick: Central Fellowship by 22

Flint River, 2-5/1-0, at Fullington, 4-3/1-0
TSR pick: Fullington by 14