A look at this week’s top Middle Georgia high school games
Veterans vs. Houston County, Thursday at McConnell-Talbert Stadium: Linebackers and defensive backs on both sides get to face one of the nation’s best high school quarterbacks. Veterans takes on junior Jake Fromm, and Houston County battles North Carolina commitment Logan Byrd, for the final time. It’s a showcase game in the state and quite a way to kick off the first full week of the season.
FPD vs. Howard, Thursday at Five Star Stadium: The 28-19 win over a strong GHSA Class AA Lamar County squad demonstrated Howard has taken another step forward under head coach Barney Hester. The Huskies put together a strong second half in muddy conditions at the Ed DeFore Sports Complex, and their relative depth should be a big advantage against an FPD squad that is young in a lot of positions and playing its opener.
Wilkinson County at Central, Thursday at Henderson Stadium: The Chargers are looking to return to the playoffs after making it for the first time in head coach Jesse Hicks’ tenure last fall.
Warner Robins at Peach County, Friday: Scrimmages didn’t necessarily tell much for either team. Warner Robins routed overmatched Rutland, and Peach County struggled against Northside. A season and offseason have passed, but the Demons still have a 19-0 home loss to the Trojans a year ago to think about. And Peach County leads the series 4-3.
Rutland vs. Westside, Friday at Ed DeFore Sports Complex: Rutland is rebuilding in a lot of areas, while Westside has some talented veteran receivers among its six returning starters on offense.
Northeast vs. Southwest, Friday at Henderson Stadium: A big bragging rights game, Southwest won 20-16 a year ago and has a couple of more returning starters than Northeast, which holds a 23-22 edge in the series.
Vidalia at West Laurens: Another game with some state implications pits No. 6 in Class AA against No. 10 in Class AAAA. Vidalia owns the series and hasn’t lost since 1985, but the Indians are without standout linebacker/running back Nate McBride, and the Raiders are coming off to a confidence-building start.
Baldwin at Hancock Central, Friday: Hancock Central scored more points -- twice as many, actually -- in last year’s 42-24 loss than it had in the first six meetings, dating back to 1976. If Baldwin is to live up to expectations, it can’t let the home crowd keep the home team in the game.
Hawkinsville at Bleckley County, Friday: The Red Devils open defense of their Class A public title without many of the players key to that championship, and the Royals are coming off a blowout loss to rival Dodge County. Hawkinsville broke a three-game losing streak in the series with last year’s 41-7 win.
East Laurens at Taylor County, Friday: It’s the debut sequel at East Laurens for head coach Buddy Sorrow, who might be a game-time decision because of a bacterial infection that has sidelined him for the preseason. And it’s the debut for Mark Wilson at Taylor County, which is on a four-game losing streak and hasn’t won an opener since 2011.
Dooly County at Wilcox County, Friday: Wilcox County has had consecutive 3-7 seasons, thanks in large part to problems scoring. And Dooly County has one of the top high school defenders in the nation in Antonneous Clayton. Both teams are young on offense.
Fitzgerald vs. Heard County, Saturday at Mercer: Worth County was tied for 13th in the Class AAAA preseason poll, and Fitzgerald rolled 48-27. Heard County started off last season 1-4 and finished 7-6, losing 35-34 to Brooks County in a Class AA quarterfinal. The Braves rolled over Class A Greenville (5-6 last year) in a scrimmage last week.
This story was originally published August 24, 2015 at 9:14 PM with the headline "A look at this week’s top Middle Georgia high school games ."