Week 1 is full of national showdowns and nonregion rivalries. Follow below for highlights, scores and upsets from games across Georgia high school football this weekend.
Live scores can be found on the AJC Varsity scoreboard.
If you would like to submit something for the live updates, email jack.leo@ajc.com, tag @TheLeoReport on X or tag @AJCVarsity on Instagram.
The smaller private division's No. 1 team was on the ropes at halftime. Calvary Day trailed Glynn Academy 22-13, according to Dennis Knight of the Savannah Morning News.
Then the Cavaliers rediscovered their championship gear, outscoring the Terrors 36-0 in the second half for a dominant 49-22 victory.
Centennial kicker Carlos Marquez made it look easy.
Marquez knocked a 39-yard field goal through the uprights with just under a minute and a half left, giving the Knights the last three points they needed to beat Dunwoody 23-21.
"I knew I was going to make that game-winning field goal," Marquez said on Atlanta News First after the game. "I was warming up over there (the sideline) the whole second half, and when I came in, I was ready for it."
The Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic continues with Blessed Trinity-Dacula, which will feature AJC Super 11 selection DJ Jacobs, an Ohio State linebacker commitment.
Georgia high school football teams are well represented in national top 100 and top 25 polls entering the first full week of football.
Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic winners Brookwood, Roswell and North Gwinnett all greatly improved their positions with wins last week at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Grayson fell out of the top 25 of many polls.
Below are three top 100 national polls. You can find a comprehensive look at Georgia teams' rankings in many national polls at the link below.
Corky Kell games having big impact on GHSA teams’ national rankings
MaxPreps
- 7. Buford
- 19. Carrollton
- 21. Creekside
- 33. Thomas County Central
- 37. Gainesville
- 38. North Gwinnett
- 46. Milton
- 51. McEachern
- 56. Douglas County
- 59. Grayson
- 82. Lowndes
- 85. Newton
- 91. Valdosta
- 93. Lee County
High School Football America
- 5. Buford
- 8. Carrollton
- 14. Grayson
- 24. Creekside
- 44. Thomas County Central
- 56. Gainesville
- 62. Hughes
- 73. Douglas County
- 75. Milton
- 79. Roswell
- 82. North Gwinnett
- 87. Lowndes
- 94. Colquitt County
- 96. Valdosta
Massey Ratings
- 7. Buford
- 12. Carrollton
- 15. North Gwinnett
- 16. Thomas County Central
- 40. Creekside
- 47. Grayson
- 55. Roswell
- 56. Hughes
- 65. Rome
- 67. Gainesville
- 76. Lowndes
- 84. Valdosta
- 89. Benedictine
- 90. Brookwood
- 97. Milton
Six programs can reach a huge benchmark in the win column on Friday.
There are 65 Georgia high school football programs that can hit a new century of total wins this season. Several of them can do it in Week 1.
Six programs are one win away from either hitting 300 wins, 200 wins or 100 wins. Here are their Week 1 matchups.
All 65 GHSA programs that can hit a century mark of wins this year can be seen here.
299 total wins
- South Forsyth at Duluth (7 p.m.)
- Aquinas at Glascock County (7:30 p.m.)
- North Springs at Riverwood (7:30 p.m.)
- Lamar County at Upson-Lee (7:30 p.m.)
199 total wins
- Heritage-Conyers at Cedar Shoals (7:30 p.m.)
99 total wins
- Sumter County at Dutchtown (7:30 p.m.)
Marietta scored its first TD of the year in Loughborough, England, against the NFL Academy, which develops international athletes into American college football players.
Marietta quarterback Jayden Whiteside found receiver Isaac Copeland over the middle of the field to cut the Blue Devils' deficit to 17-7.
Marietta trails 17-10 early in the third quarter.
There are 31 Georgia coaches who can hit 100, 150, 200 or 250 career wins this year. Blessed Trinity's Ed Dudley is nine wins away from becoming Georgia's 32nd coach to hit 250.
Five Georgia coaches can hit milestones this weekend. Here's a quick look at their Week 1 games.
A look at the 31 GHSA football coaches nearing win milestones
Coaching for 150 career wins
Bradley Warren, McIntosh County Academy
Warren can make history on a memorable stage Friday night. The Buccaneers will face Long County at Georgia Southern University's Paulson Stadium.
McIntosh County Academy hasn't lost a season opener under Warren since 2020, the second season of his second stint with the program.
John Hunt, Woodward Academy
Hunt isn't just chasing 150 career wins. He's chasing the rare feat of 150 wins with one program.
Woodward Academy's 16th-year coach will face Georgia's longest-tenured coach, Marist's Alan Chadwick, on Friday night.
Coaching for 100 career wins
Johnny White, Douglas County
Eyes across the state will be on White and Douglas County when the Tigers kick off their season Saturday night. White's uber-talented roster will test itself against Newton, which features several Power 4 recruits of its own.
If White can't get his 100th win Saturday, he'll face Sandy Creek, Douglass-Atlanta, Carver-Columbus, Rome and Carrollton in his next five games.
Dondrial Pinkins, Jasper County
Pinkins could win his 100th game in his first game as Jasper County's coach. The Hurricanes host Dublin on Friday night.
The former South Carolina quarterback will face Dublin coach Roger Holmes, who has coached the same program since 2002.
Preston Poag, North Murray
Poag won his 75th game as North Murray's coach last season and can win his 100th in the season opener against Heritage-Ringgold.
The Mountaineers are 0-4 against Heritage all time.
Here is Thursday night's Georgia high school football schedule.
Most notable is Blessed Trinity's matchup with Decatur, which will televise Georgia's No. 1 senior prospect, DJ Jacobs, and his younger brother, 4-star junior Dawson Jacobs.
Marietta will also kick off its season in Loughborough, England, against the NFL's talent development school, the NFL Academy. Read more about that matchup below.
Ex-UGA WR now head of UK-based NFL Academy, which opens season vs. Marietta
Georgia's top-ranked small private school, Calvary Day, opens its season at Glynn Academy. Check out the full list.
- Decatur at Blessed Trinity
- Marietta at NFL Academy
- Calvary Day at Glynn Academy
- Dunwoody vs. Centennial (at Blessed Trinity)
- Gordon Central at Southeast Whitfield
- Ringgold at Lakeview-Fort Olgethorpe
- Lakeside-Evans at Aiken (S.C.)
- Baker County at Westwood
- Burke County at Greenbrier
- Landmark Christian at KIPP Atlanta Collegiate
- Therrell at Stone Mountain
- Clarkston at Druid Hills
- Drew at Riverdale
- B.E.S.T. Academy at Utopian Academy
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