The Region 6-7A picture moved into focus Friday as Denmark grabbed sole possession of first place. Here’s what we learned from Week 9.
Region 6-7A runs through Denmark
Denmark’s win over South Forsyth last week means the Danes can clinch a region championship on Friday with a victory over Gainesville.
Denmark is 4-0 in Region 6-7A, and since every other team except for South has at least two region losses, that means the Danes need to win only one of their final two games. First up for Denmark is a trip to Gainesville, which is reeling after a 40-7 shellacking at the hands of West Forsyth. The Danes won this game last year 24-21.
If for any reason Denmark stumbles against the Red Elephants, the Danes would have to beat West in their regular-season finale.
South can lock up No. 2 seed with win
South Forsyth’s six-game winning streak came to an end last week, but if the War Eagles beat North Forsyth on Friday, that will guarantee South the No. 2 seed and at least one home playoff game.
A win over North would give South four region wins and the tiebreaker over the next four teams in the standings, with only a trip to Forsyth Central left on the regular-season schedule.
North hasn’t forgotten about last year’s 52-7 loss to South, and the Raiders got an extra week to scheme for the War Eagles. North has been difficult to gauge this season. One interesting statistic: The Raiders are the only team to score more than 14 points against Denmark.
Lambert/West a must-win for both teams
Three region wins might be enough to qualify for the playoffs, but the Longhorns would feel a lot better if they went into next week’s bye with four wins.
As it stands now, Lambert is 3-2 in region play and can finish as high as second if they win Friday and South drops its final two games [North Forsyth, Forsyth Central]. A loss to West would drop the Longhorns to fourth place at 3-3, and if they lose to West and North wins out [South Forsyth, Gainesville], Lambert would be out of the playoff picture.
The Wolverines are currently on the outside looking in at fifth place, though a win against Lambert and a South win over North would allow the Wolverines to jump to third place.
Stick with me here: If Lambert loses to West, and if North splits its last two games and Denmark beats West, that would put all three teams in a three-way tie for third place with a tiebreaker determining the outcome.
Needless to say, there is plenty on the line Friday night.
Region 8-7A looking top heavy
It’s the region Forsyth County teams will face in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs, and there appears to be a stark divide in terms of quality.
Collins Hill and Mill Creek are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the state, respectively.
After that, North Gwinnett is the only other team in Region 8-7A with a victory, and the Bulldogs have been outscored this season 224-193. Granted, North Gwinnett’s past three losses have come against the top three teams in the state – North Cobb, Mill Creek, Collins Hill – but the closest game out of that bunch was a 36-17 loss to Mill Creek.
The fourth seed will either be Peachtree Ridge or Mountain View – both teams have been outscored by 84 points through two region games.
Helmet Stickers
Mason Capers, TE, South Forsyth: 6 catches, 80 yards
Cole Williams, LB, South Forsyth: 14 tackles, forced fumble
Jonathan Haas, LB, South Forsyth: 11 tackles, 3 TFL
Ian O’Dowd, DL, South Forsyth: 6 tackles, 2 TFL, INT
Lake Thoman, WR, Denmark: 4 catches, 89 yards, 1 TD
Amon Williams, RB, Denmark: 32 carries, 98 yards; 3 catches, 15 yards
Charley Croiner, EDGE, Denmark: 2 sacks
William Hodges, DE, Denmark: 2 TFL
Treston Jordan, DB, Denmark: INT
Keegan Stover, QB, West Forsyth: 22-for-32, 265 yards, 5 INT, 1 INT; 10 carries, 61 yards.
Lincoln Nelson, WR, West Forsyth: 4 catches, 35 yards, 2 TD
William Orris, DB/RB, West Forsyth: 10 tackles, 2 TFL; fumble recovery; 5 carries, 36 yards; 1 catch, 16 yards
Raleigh Herbert, LB, West Forsyth: 9 tackles, 1 TFL, 3 QB hurry, 2 forced fumbles, 1 sack
Ryder Stewart, DB/RB, West Forsyth: 13 carries, 42 yards; 4 catches, 15 yards, 1 TD; 4 tackles, 1 TFL; 1 INT
James Tyre, QB, Lambert: 11-for-13, 227 yards, 4 TD; 3 carries, 17 yards
Brandon Jones, WR, Lambert: 5 catches, 159 yards, 3 TD
Carson Leak, LB, Forsyth Central: 12 tackles
Camden Leak, LB, Forsyth Central: 11 tackles
Marcus Brown, DB, Forsyth Central: 2 tackles, 2 TFL
Brock Barbee, RB/LB, Pinecrest Academy: 17 carries, 101 yards; 2 catches, 10 yards, 1 TD; 10 tackles, fumble recovery
Ryan Bartling, WR/LB, Pinecrest Academy: 4 catches, 49 yards, 1 TD; 4 tackles; INT returned for TD
Colin Brown, WR/DB/K, Pinecrest Academy: 3 catches, 60 yards; 4 tackles; INT; 3-for-3 on PAT; 43-yard punt average