Several Albany-area high school teams contend for state playoff berths

ALBANY — As the final week of the Georgia High School Association regular season approaches, several state football playoff berths are up for grabs.

The first round of the GHSA state playoffs begins on Nov. 11.

In Region 1-AAAAAA, Lee County controls its own destiny. The Trojans will travel to Douglas on Friday to meet Coffee County at 7:30 p.m. at Jardine Stadium. A victory will send Lee back to the playoffs. However, the Trojans won’t necessarily be eliminated with a loss, but they will need some help.

If Valdosta, which clinched the region title last week in a victory over Coffee, defeats Houston County, the Bears would be eliminated. Northside-Warner Robins would then be the second seed and the winner of the Coffee/Lee game would be the third seed, the loser the fourth.

But if Houston County beats Valdosta, the loser of the Coffee/Lee game is out. That would leave Northside, Houston County and the Coffee/Lee winner in a three-way tie.

The tie-breaker for the potential three-way tie would be points given up in region play. After the tie is broken, the next tie-breaker would be head-to-head.

“We can’t worry about the things we can’t control,” Lee coach Dean Fabrizio said. “We knew going in this region was going to be a dog fight. This is kind of the last hurdle. We feel like if we can get in, we have a pretty good shot to make a run. But we’ve got to get in first.”

In Region 1-AAAA, Cairo has captured the region title and a handful of teams is vying for the final three seeds. Westover, which plays Shaw Thursday night in its regular-season finale, has a small chance according to Westover coach Octavia Jones.

In Region 1-AAA, the playoff picture at the top of the region is more clear. Unbeaten Crisp County will travel to Sylvester to play Worth County Friday night for the region title. The winner is the top seed, the loser earns the second seed.

“We’ve come a long way; the kids have worked hard, and they deserve the opportunity,” Worth coach Jason Tone said. “Crisp-Worth is a rivalry anyway, so to play them for the region title will be big. This will get us ready for the playoffs.”

The final two seeds aren’t as clear. Monroe plays host to Cook Friday night at Hugh Mills Stadium. The only way for Monroe to get into the postseason picture is to beat Cook, which would then create a three-way tie for the final two playoff spots.

If Cook wins, the Hornets would be the third seed and Dougherty would be the No. 4 seed by virtue of its 21-14 head-to-head victory over Monroe on Oct. 8.

The tie-breaker will be the amount of points allowed vs. the teams tied in playoff position.

Dougherty, which is idle, has allowed 43 points. Monroe has allowed 14, while Cook has allowed 20. If Monroe scores less than 24 points, then Monroe would be the third seed and Cook the fourth.

If Monroe scores 24 or more points in a potential victory over Cook, then Dougherty would grab the No. 3 seed, while Monroe would be No. 4.

In Class A, the classification uses the GHSA’s power rankings system. In Region 1-A, Pelham will play host to rival Mitchell County Friday night for the region crown and an automatic berth in the state playoffs.

But the loser, as well as several other region teams, are expected to have power rankings high enough to earn playoff spots.

“In general, I’m very proud of Region 1-A,” Mitchell coach Larry Cornelius said after beating Baconton Charter last Friday. “Right now, it looks like we may get five teams from our region into the playoffs. I think that is tremendous. And we’re about to get some exposure going into the postseason.”

The second round of the Georgia Independent Schools Association playoffs are Friday night.

Region 3-AA champion Terrell Academy, which drew a first-round bye last week, will play host to Windsor Academy, while Region 3-AA runner-up Westwood will travel to play Flint River Academy for the second time this season.

In Class AAA, Deerfield-Windsor is on the road again. The Knights will travel to Saint Simons Island to tackle Region 2 champion Frederica.