Houston County at Allatoona
When, where: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Buccaneer Stadium, Acworth
Records, rankings: Houston County is 11-1, the No. 1 seed from Region 2-AAAAA and No. 4; Allatoona is 11-1, the No. 1 seed from 5-AAAAA and No. 10.
Last meeting: This is the teams’ first meeting.
Three things to know: 1. Houston County and Allatoona are two of the three regions champions remaining in the Class AAAAA field (Stockbridge is the other). Houston County is in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year and fifth time in school history. Allatoona, a semifinalist for the first time last season, is making its fourth quarterfinal appearance in five years. 2. Houston County QB Jake Fromm was 29-of-45 passing for 367 yards in a 42-40 victory over Mays in the second round. Fromm, who has committed to Alabama, has thrown for 3,728 yards this season. Houston County took a 42-33 lead on a safety with 6:48 to play. Mays cut the lead to 42-40 with 3:08 remaining, but the Bears were able to run out the clock. 3. Allatoona rushed for 239 yards last week in a 30-14 victory over Starr’s Mill despite the absence of RB Russell Halimon, a 1,500-yard rusher in the regular season who missed the game with a knee injury. Halimon is expected to be evaluated today, and his status for this week’s game in unknown. Charles Anderson had a game-high 101 yards against Starr’s Mill, which suffered the first loss by a Region 4 team in the postseason.
Maxwell Ratings’ projection: Allatoona by 1
Winner plays: Kell/Northgate winner
Kell at Northgate
When, where: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Henry Seldon Field, Newnan
Records, rankings: Kell is 9-3, the No. 2 seed from Region 7-AAAAA and unranked; Northgate is 11-1, the No. 2 seed from 4-AAAAA and No. 9.
Last meeting: This is the teams’ first meeting.
Three things to know: 1. Kell, which had a three-year streak of Region 7 titles broken this season by Dalton, is making its third appearance in the quarterfinals and looking to reach the semifinals for the second time. Northgate is in the quarterfinals for the first time since 2000, when it was in its third season of football and playing in Class AA. 2. Kell DB Shamaar Bennett recovered two fumbles inside the Kell 15-yard line and returned one 97 yards for a touchdown in the Longhorns’ 14-7 victory over Region 3 champion Coffee in the second round. The game was tied 7-7 at halftime despite Coffee having a 230-68 advantage in total offense, according to the Marietta Daily Journal. Bryson Armstrong scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard run with 11:36 to play. 3. Northgate’s defense, among the best in Class AAAAA all season, turned in another strong performance in a 41-21 victory over Lanier last week, despite giving up more than seven points for just the third time this season. The Vikings held Lanier to 151 total yards and forced two fumbles that Northgate turned into touchdowns in building a 21-0 lead in the first eight minutes. RB Ton Evans rushed for 194 yards on 23 carries and scored on runs of 80, 3 and 4 yards. Evans has nearly 1,600 yards rushing on the season.
Maxwell Ratings’ projection: Northgate by 18
Winner plays: Houston County/Allatoona winner
Drew at Ware County
When, where: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Memorial Stadium, Waycross
Records, rankings: Drew is 9-3, the No. 4 seed from Region 4-AAAAA and unranked; Ware County is 10-2, the No. 3 seed from 3-AAAAA and unranked.
Last meeting: This is the teams’ first meeting.
Three things to know: 1. Drew and Ware County are the only teams remaining in the Class AAAAA field that are not seeded No. 1 or No. 2. Drew opened in 2009 and had not won a playoff game until this season. Ware County is in the quarterfinals for the fifth time in six seasons but advanced to the semifinals just once during that stretch. 2. Drew QB Joseph Newman passed for three touchdowns and rushed for three more as the Titans rallied from an early 17-0 deficit to defeat South Paulding 54-23 in the second round. Quarderman Sloan had touchdown runs of 25 and 12 yards and went over 2,000 yards for the season. Sloan has rushed for 26 touchdowns. Cedric Davenport also scored two touchdowns, on runs of 20 and 3 yards. Drew scored 41.5 points per game during the regular season but is averaging 62 in the playoffs. 3. This will be the second consecutive game against a No. 4 seed for Ware County, which defeated Region 7 No. 4 Rome in the second round. Ware County trailed 24-14 going to the fourth quarter before rallying for a 35-24 victory. Dedrick Mills ran for 125 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. He is the leading rusher (890 yards for the season) for a team that gets about 77 percent of its yardage from the running game.
Maxwell Ratings’ projection: Ware County by 5
Winner plays: Glynn Academy/Stockbridge winner
Glynn Academy at Stockbridge
When, where: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Tiger Stadium, Stockbridge
Records, rankings: Glynn Academy is 10-2, the No. 2 seed from Region 3-AAAAA and unranked; Stockbridge is 12-0, the No. 1 seed from 4-AAAAA and No. 1.
Last meeting: This is the teams’ first meeting.
Three things to know: 1. Second-year Glynn Academy coach Rocky Hidalgo has the Red Terrors in the quarterfinals for the second consecutive year. Before his arrival, Glynn had not played in a quarterfinal since 1972. Stockbridge never reached the quarterfinals in the first 48 years of the program’s history but will now be making its fourth consecutive appearance. The Tigers advanced to the semifinals for the first time last season. 2. Glynn Academy’s Garrison Hurd had 189 of the team’s 275 yards rushing and scored a touchdown on a sloppy field in the Red Terrors’ 20-13 victory over Dalton in the second round. Glynn’s defense held Dalton to minus-44 yards rushing and recovered two fumbles, according to the Chattanooga Times-Free Press. QB Deejay Dallas gave Glynn a 20-10 lead with a 16-yard touchdown run with 5:04 to play. 3. Stockbridge rushed for 529 yards and six touchdowns on 56 carries in its 40-34 overtime victory against Gainesville last week. Jalen Holston led the way with 292 yards and four TDs on 31 carries. QB Malachi Brown was 3-of-7 passing for 64 yards and ran for 147 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winner on a 1-yard run in overtime. Stockbridge led 28-6 at halftime, but Gainesville rallied and tied the game after recovering a fumble at midfield with 5:03 to play.
Maxwell Ratings’ projection: Stockbridge by 8
Winner plays: Drew/Ware County winner
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