This week’s top Middle Georgia football games

Spencer at Southwest, 7 p.m., Thursday at Henderson Stadium: The first of back-to-back crucial games for the Patriots (along with their Oct. 9 meeting with Rutland) if they are to entertain postseason hopes.

Howard at Perry, Friday: Howard is the latest hump Perry is trying to get over, and it’s a test for the upstart Huskies, who must rebound from their first loss. The Panthers were outscored 35-7 in the second half last week, something that could very easily linger.

Westside at Jackson: Two of the three remaining unbeaten teams in Region 2-AAA meet at Red Devil Hill. Westside is 5-0, while Jackson’s only blemish came in double-overtime in its season opener at Mary Persons.

Peach County at Central, at Henderson Stadium: Central wants to sneak into the picture for a top-two finish in Region 2-AAA and a first-round home playoff game. The Chargers took last year’s second-place team to overtime a couple of weeks ago before losing by a field goal. How will they fare against last year’s region champion?

Wilkinson County at Tattnall Square: Region 7A-A play begins Friday, and the Warriors and the Trojans have the best overall records in the sub-region following non-region play.

FPD at Stratford: The longtime rivals wasted no time in picking things back up last year following Stratford’s return to the GHSA, with Stratford escaping with a 28-21 win after FPD came close to scoring on a long pass play at the horn.

Veterans at Baldwin, Friday: The Braves pulled off a three-point road win last year in the final 30 seconds, coming off a tough loss to Upson-Lee. Here they are again. The Warhawks have a win this year, and the survivor of this game gets a huge confidence boost, one needed more by Veterans.

Upson-Lee at West Laurens: The undefeated Knights now have a decent win on the resume, and the Raiders rebounded from their loss to Westside with a gutsy win over Howard. No reason this one won't go down to the final minutes, like last year’s four-point West Laurens win.

Dublin at Jefferson County: The nifty Region 3-AA showdown pits a team on a three-game winning streak hosting a team whose first loss of the season was a three-point heartbreaker at home. The Irish have lost four straight to the Warriors.

Greenville at Hawksinville: They’re tied in Region 4-A play, and Greenville battled the eventual Class A public champion to a 10-point game a year ago. This is a traffic-jam of a region, and both still have favorite Marion County left.

This story was originally published September 28, 2015 at 6:48 PM with the headline "This week’s top Middle Georgia football games ."