Football: Will Friday shape 6-3A playoff picture? Don't count on it

With North Hall and Greater Atlanta Christian set to duke it out as unbeatens for first place in Region 6-3A Friday night at The Brickyard, it seems as if things are pretty cut-and-dried as we steam toward the playoffs.

Au contraire!

That is just one of three massive showdowns in the region in Week 9 that could see any number of combinations by the end of the night. Chestatee plays host to Pickens and White County travels to Dawson County as all three matchups will alter the playoff landscape -- no matter who wins any of the three contests.

North Hall (4-2, 3-0 Region 6-3A) has never beaten GAC (3-3, 3-0 Region 6-3A) in five all-time meetings. In fact, Hall County teams as a whole are just 1-16 lifetime against the Spartans.

Trojans’ head coach Sean Pender said they understand what’s at stake as they try to position themselves for their first region title since 2012.

“A region title is (our) goal,” Pender said. “Winning this (one) will give us a real opportunity and put us one step closer to achieving that. But after this game is over, we still have three region games left.”

Both teams have been heating up offensively. It could come down to which defense is able to make a stop.

"We need to execute (defensively),” Pender said. “(GAC has) several really good athletes who all have good skill sets. We have to make sure we are fundamentally sound and execute as a unit."

The only given is that the Trojans-Spartans winner will sit alone atop the standings, for now, with three weeks left in the regular season. Depending on the winner, and whether heavily-favored Lumpkin County (4-2, 2-1 Region 6-3A) can take care of business against winless Johnson (0-6, 0-3 Region 6-3A), the loser at worst could be tied for second.

However, a North Hall win would put the Trojans in a position next week against Lumpkin to put their magic number to clinch to 1 with a win over either Johnson or Dawson County.

It gets more complicated from there. Chestatee (2-4, 1-2 Region 6-3A), Dawson County (2-4, 1-2 Region 6-3A), Pickens (3-3, 1-2 Region 6-3A), and White County (2-4, 1-2 Region 6-3A) all are tied for fourth heading into Friday. Enough scenarios are possible to put any good engineering calculator to the test.

But the losers of the White-Dawson and Pickens-Chestatee matchups will be in dire straights the rest of the way, almost needing to win out and will need some serious help to get back into the playoff picture.

For the War Eagles, just playing meaningful games in October is something they have been building toward. They have not made the postseason since 2016.

Chestatee coach Stuart Cunnigham said they have talked to their group. And with the balance of the region, he knows anything is possible.

“I believe there is a lot of parity in the region,” Cunningham said. “We tell our team that every game is a must win but we feel most comfortable with our backs against the wall.”

Looming over everyone on Friday will be Lumpkin County. The Indians lost to GAC earlier in the season but can get right back in the title hunt if North Hall can take down the Spartans.

And the Trojans will be heading to The Burial Grounds in Dahlonega next week. However, coach Heath Webb is not ready to throw his support one way or another. 

“I don't know what's best for us,” Webb said. “There's still so much football to play, there's no telling how this thing will shake out. All we can do is control what we can control so we just need to go win.”

But he also agreed that anything is possible on any given Friday in Region 6-3A.

“This is a great region. It's very competitive with a lot of good coaching,” he said. “Every win is earned. The difference between the first-place team and the sixth-place team will be slim. It makes every game exciting for the fan bases.”

Maybe too exciting. The final month will not be for the faint of heart.

Just the way it should be this time of year.