Georgia high school football playoffs deliver big upsets, historic victories

It’s hard to beat a good team twice, so the cliche goes, but Walton wasn’t a good team, at least not in the regular season. The Raiders lost their first game by 33 points and finished 5-5, putting them on the brink of their first losing football season in nine years.

Facing that first-game opponent again Friday night, Walton salvaged its season and carried out the upset of first round of the playoffs, slaying undefeated McEachern 28-24.

The Raiders came from 24-13 down late in the third quarter against the undefeated opponent that crushed them 50-17 in August. Walton quarterback Christion Peacock threw a touchdown pass to get Walton closer and scored the game-winner on a run in the final two minutes.

ExploreDeKalb County team opens football playoffs with historic victory

Berrien and Washington-Wilkes also beat heavily favored top-10 opponents Friday, and Centennial won as a 36-point underdog, but Walton’s victory resonated loudest around the state, as McEachern, ranked No. 4 in Class 6A, had won nine of its 10 games by 21 points or more, and Walton entered as a 28-point underdog.

Only four top-10 teams lost in the first round, which is not uncommon, and some of the top teams were ruthless. No. 1 Creekside of Class 4A beat Dalton 70-7, and No. 1 Worth County of Class A Division I beat McNair 69-0. No. 2 Thomas County Central of 5A beat Woodstock 73-14.

Lee County, the No. 8 team in Class 5A, beat No. 10 Sprayberry 34-21 in the only matchup between ranked teams. It was Lee County’s 10th straight first-round victory.

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The other top-10 teams that lost had to be shocked.

In Class A Division I, Berrien beat No. 6 Lamar County 7-0 as a 32-point underdog. Berrien entered the game with a 3-7 record and sixth-place finish in its own region, albeit the toughest in class with top-10 teams Worth County, Fitzgerald and Thomasville.

The victory was Berrien’s first over a top-10 opponent from the same classification since 1993, against Waycross.

Lamar County entered 10-0 and was the classification’s No. 2 overall seed from the GHSA’s Post Season Rankings math model, which governs classes 3A, 2A, A and 3A-A Private.

In Class A Division II, unranked Washington-Wilkes (5-6) beat No. 9 Seminole County 32-23. Seminole County (8-3) was a 22-point favorite.

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The night’s biggest upset, per the Maxwell Ratings, was Centennial’s 28-21 victory over Locust Grove, a 36-point favorite, in a game between unranked teams. Centennial (7-4) was the fourth-place finisher in Region 6-4A while Locust Grove (9-2) had just won its first region title in history.

A few teams got historic victories.

Lithonia won its first playoff game since 1994 with a 27-8 victory over Griffin, a six-point favorite. Another DeKalb County school, Miller Grove, got its first playoff victory in history Thursday with a 20-9 victory over Spencer.

Jackson County won its first playoff game in its 46 seasons with a 50-7 victory over Glynn Academy. Jackson County won Region 8-5A and was heavily favored.

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