By Michael A. Lough

The Sports Report

centralgasports@gmail.com

CENTRAL GEORGIA’S BEST HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL COVERAGE
This Week

* Roundup: FPD lone Macon GIAA survivor, road heartbreakers for Tattnall, Stratford; Milestone win for Gatewood’s Ratliff; Southwest stays in playoff hunt; Jasper County, Brentwood roll
* Scouting Reports: This week’s GHSA and GIAA games, coming Friday
* Maxwell Predictions
* Who’s going to win this week’s games
* Central Georgia state composite rankings
* Tuesday’s Roundup
* Central Georgia rankings
* First spin of Central Georgia’s coaching carousel: Northside’s Bailey
* Monday Morning Quarterback Safe to hop on Falcons bandwagon; CFP sermon; Westside's Iverson & Northeast's Woodford; Northside news; Loughdmouthings-Cowboys/TV tiff, GHSA playoffs ...
* GIAA playoffs are set, GHSA picture much clearer but still has some fuzzy going on
* The schedule

The suspense finally came to an end more than an hour after coaches and players started checking out the GHSA website and hitting “refresh” ever few minutes.

The pairings under the latest reclassification/playoff plan were completely posted by almost 10 p.m. Saturday night, bringing some good news to a few Central Georgia teams hoping for home games.

Like Westside, which is third in Region 2-AA but will be at home. And Jasper County, fourth in Region 4-A/Division I and hosting ACE Charter.

Another matchup of Central Georgia teams is a matchup of Region 4-AAA foes, West Laurens at Baldwin. The Raiders won 28-14 on Tuesday over the Braves.

The GHSA posted expectations that the brackets would be updated around 8, but the first one, Class AAA, didn’t arrive until after 9 p.m., although Oconee County had an inside track and posted its game against Westside-Augusta a few minutes after 8 p.m.

The Class A/Division I pairings were last, posting about 15 more minutes after Class AA, with everything up by about 9:45 p.m.

Classes 6A, 5A, 4A, and A/Division II were pretty much set before this weekend’s action, the GHSA posting those brackets on Friday. Those classes retained the longstanding top-four-in-each-region format. That was pretty much settled last weekend.

The others are part of a new playoff power ratings system, because of changes regarding private schools leaving the equation for their own playoff with Class 3A, 2A, and A/Division I.

Class A/Division I loses 18 teams to the private-school playoff, giving many more teams a shot at an at-large.

There were about a half-dozen games Saturday afternoon, including involving Howard and Baldwin in region 4-AAA, and the GHSA had to wait until all are done, because the computer program includes opponents’ winning percentage and the opponents’ opponents winning percentage.

So all games had to be completed.

Apparently, Class A/Division II will open the playoffs on Saturday with all others on Friday, but it doesn’t appear to have made that public just yet. The GHSA has split the first-rounddays a little for several years for years for officiating.

That means Hawkinsville, Wilkinson County, Hancock Central, Macon County, and Taylor County get an extra day of work. Macon County and Wilkinson County will be at home.

Peach County, Upson-Lee, Westside, Dublin, Northeast, Dodge County, Lamar County, Washington County, Putnam County, and Jasper County all earned automatic bids in their respective classifications by finishing in the top four.

Baldwin, West Laurens, and ACE Charter had unofficially been clearly in whether they finished in the top four or not.

Bleckley County, East Laurens, and Southwest were sweating out the final rankings in Class A/Division I.

The Georgia High School Football Daily projected before Friday’s games that East Laurens and Bleckley County would make the field at No. 26 and No. 28.

Southwest was on the outside looking in, but beat East Laurens 20-7 on Friday and swapped spots with the Falcons, not a surprise.

Overall, Central Georgia has many hosts: Perry, Jones County, Peach County, Baldwin, Upson-Lee, Westside, Dublin, Northeast, Dodge County, Lamar County, Jasper County, Wilkinson County, and Macon County.

GHSA pairings
Links to brackets for each classed are posted
Class 5A
2/4 Houston County, 6-4, at 8/1 Clarke Central, 8-2
Class 4A
5/4 St. Pius X, 7-3, at 1/1 Perry, 7-3
1/4 Warner Robins, 7-3, at 5/1 Marist, 10-0
8/3 East Forsyth, 8-2, at 2/2 Jones County, 8-2
Class AAA
No. 30. 6/3 Chestatee, 5-5, at No. 3 3/1 Peach County, 9-1
No. 19. 4/3 West Laurens, 8-2 at No.14.4/2 Baldwin,6-4
No. 21 4/3 Long County, 7-3,at No.12. 2/2 Upson-Lee 7-3
Class AA
No. 17 1/3 Spencer, 7-3, at No. 16 2/4 Westside, 5-5
Class A/Division I
No. 31 7/6 Gordon Central, 4-6, at No. 2 2/1 Dublin, 10-0
No. 25 3/3 Swainsboro, 3-7, at No. 8 2/2 Northeast, 8-2
No. 20 7/3 Chattooga, 6-4 at No. 13 2/3 Dodge County, 8-2
No. 24 Dade County at At No. 9 4/2 Lamar County, 8-2
No. 17 2/4 Washington County, 6-4, at No. 16 1/4 Jeff Davis, 7-3
No. 18 2/5 ACE Charter, 6-4, at No. 15 4/4 Jasper County, 7-3
No. 27 2/6 Southwest, 4-6, at No. 6 3/2 Toombs County, 8-1
No. 28 2/7 Bleckley County, 4-6, at No. 5 4/1 Social Circle, 7-3
No. 23 4/3 Putnam County, 5-5 at No. 10 6/2 Temple, 8-2

Class A/Division II, Saturday
4/4 Hawkinsville, 7-3, at 3/1 Metter, 8-1, 4:30 p.m.
1/3 Miller County, 7-3, at 5/2 Wilkinson County, 6-4, 3 p.m.
5/3 Hancock Central, 5-5, at 1/2 Mitchell County, 8-2, 3 p.m.
7/4 Greenville, 3-6, at 6/1 Macon County, 6-4, 3 p.m.
6/3 Taylor County at 7/2 Bowdon, 8-2, 6 p.m.