5 things: What we learned from Week 9 of high school football

Here's a look at five things we learned from Week 9 of the high school football season...<br /> <br /> <b>1. Only one team can claim a region title via victory this week</b><br /> <br /> First off that tells you just how close the region championship races are around northeast Georgia. This week represents the second to last Friday in the regular season -- and only one team can win a region championship by simply beating the team in front of it. Lanier can notch the Region 8-AAAAA crown (which would be the program's first ever title) by defeating Winder-Barrow -- which, as the Bulldoggs have shown this season, will be anything but easy. That's not to say that 8-AAAAA is the only crown that can be claimed this weekend -- but any other title can only be won via multiple results -- not by one team winning one game. For instance, West Hall could wrap the night as 7-AAA champion should it win and Dawson County knock off Lumpkin County. Rabun County could also clinch 8-AA, even though it is in a bye, if both Union County and Greene County fall. In other words, there could be a fair amount of scoreboard watching this weekend. That said, we expect the 2014 regular season to follow the pattern already set so far this season, meaning it will likely go down to the wire before most things are decided.<br /> <br /> <br /> <b>2. Rabun County is ready for prime time</b><br /> <br /> OK, you can say that we already figured this out last week when the Wildcats pushed past Union County in a thrilling finish in Blairsville. But as impressive as last week's victory was over a fierce rival, this past Friday's win over Washington-Wilkes was just as impressive, as it showed Rabun County could get up for two straight weeks. It would have been easy for the Wildcats to have experienced a drop off after having to play their best football for four quarters against Union County, but Rabun was not about to let things slip -- which could not have been easy against the defending 8-AA champion on the road. And with a bye week set for this week, the Wildcats will now get a chance to rest up and prepare for a season-ending showdown against Greene County in Tiger. The Wildcats last won a region title in 1998, as they have shown the past two weeks, that drought may be coming to an end very soon.<br /> <br /> <br /> <b>3. Player of the week choices just get harder and harder</b><br /> <br /> We wondered at the start of the season who would step in and fill the large gaps left by an outstanding senior class from 2013. The answers have been emphatic and numerous -- and have left our contributors fretting week-in and week-out about our Friday Game Night/National Bank of Georgia Player of the Week award. For example look no further than this week when players like Devin Watson (the East Hall QB accounted for 5 TDs and over 300 yards offense), Kwon Williams (the West Hall RB rushed for almost 200 yards and totaled 5 TDs), Cece Green (the Winder-Barrow running back rushed for 152 yards and 4 TDs) and Johnathan Hawkins (the Mill Creek runnning back rushed for 132 yards and 4 TDs). Those kind of numbers are being put up week-in, week-out by area standouts, and -- quite often -- it's a different set of names doing the damage each week. OK, so there are no Deshaun Watsons around this season, but that doesn't mean the overall talent has dropped in northeast Georgia -- far from it.<br /> <br /> <br /> <b>4. Region 7-AAAAAA is a mess -- and that's a great thing for fans</b><br /> <br /> The only real regret we have is that North Gwinnett has already played one each of Mill Creek, Norcross and Peachtree Ridge. If the Bulldogs still had one or two of the Hawks, Lions or Blue Devils left to play we might very well have the most incredible close to a regular season we can remember. As it is, it still has the chance to be pretty amazing. All four teams are tied at the top of the region standings with one loss each. North Gwinnett gets a chance to watch the possible chaos unfold from a distance, having already gone 2-1 against the other three. But Mill Creek will take the next two weeks to face off with, first, Norcross and then Peachtree Ridge. The contests could well be instant classics and will determine the region championship and the playoff seeding for the four teams in 7-AAAAAA. We can't wait to see how it plays out.<br /> <br /> <br /> <b>5. North Hall is starting to fire, but so is Chestatee -- with rivalry ahead</b><br /> <br /> The Trojans got a huge collective monkey off their backs with a tremendous late victory over Monroe Area. North Hall has shown that -- as it gets healthier -- it is starting to turn a corner. Yet its cross-Hwy. 60-rival, Chestatee, is not far behind. The War Eagles jumped all over White County to start last week's Region 8-AAAA showdown and displayed an explosiveness that they have been building toward. Chestatee did not have the staying power, as the Warriors fought back to pull away for a big victory, but the game showed that this week's rivalry between the Trojans and War Eagles should be interesting indeed. Any game in any sport between the two foes would be certain to carry intensity, and you can expect plenty of fight on Friday night at War Eagle Stadium.<br /> <br /> <br /> <b>AREA HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL FINALS FOR WEEK 9, OCT. 24</b><br /> Athens Christian 40, Lakeview Academy 0<br /> Banks County 27, Dawson County 21<br /> Buford 58, North Oconee 3<br /> Centennial 27, North Forsyth 3<br /> Commerce 58, Towns County 0<br /> East Hall 34, Franklin County 7<br /> Flowery Branch 29, Loganville 14<br /> Gainesville 61, Cedar Shoals 26<br /> Greene County 24, Riverside Military 7<br /> Heritage, Conyers 35, Apalachee 28<br /> Jackson County 35, East Jackson 15<br /> Johns Creek 42, Habersham Central 14<br /> Lanier 42, Salem 35<br /> Mill Creek 51, Collins Hill 7<br /> North Gwinnett 71, Duluth 24<br /> North Hall 38, Monroe Area 35<br /> Rabun County 22, Washington-Wilkes 7<br /> Stephens County 31, Madison County 10<br /> West Hall 49, Fannin County 0<br /> White County 50, Chestatee 28<br /> Winder-Barrow 35, Clarke Central 29<br /> <br /> <br /> <b>WEEK 10, HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL SCHEDULE, OCT. 31</b><br /> Cedar Shoals at Apalachee<br /> Commerce at George Walton<br /> Dawson County at Lumpkin County<br /> East Hall at Fannin County<br /> East Jackson at Elbert County<br /> Flowery Branch at Salem<br /> Franklin County at Johnson<br /> Loganville at Gainesville<br /> Madison County at Buford<br /> Meadowcreek at North Gwinnett<br /> Mill Creek at Norcross<br /> North Forsyth at Habersham Central<br /> North Hall at Chestatee<br /> North Oconee at Stephens County<br /> Oconee County at Jefferson<br /> Prince Avenue at Lakeview Academy<br /> Towns County at Providence Christian<br /> Union County at Riverside Military<br /> West Hall at Banks County<br /> Winder-Barrow at Lanier

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