Upsets reshape Class AA rankings

Posted 5:22AM on Wednesday, October 1, 2003

ATLANTA - Upsets and consistent play by unranked teams in Class AA provided significant changes in The Associated Press high school football poll this week, as four new teams entered the ranks.

With only 22 seconds remaining, Wesleyan (3-1) scored on Chase Howe's 1-yard dive to pull off a 24-21 upset of last week's No. 3 Greater Atlanta Christian. The win helped Wesleyan enter this week's poll in a three-way tie at No. 10. The loss resulted in GAC (3-1) falling to No. 8.

Randolph-Clay (4-0) defeated Terrell County 40-12 and Brooks County (3-0-1) edged Bacon County 17-14 to garner enough voter support to complete the three-team tie at No. 10. Decatur (4-0) entered the poll at No. 9 with a win over Clarkston 27-18. Morgan County and Chattooga both lost, eliminating them from the ranks.

Early County (4-0) moved up one spot to No. 3 while Buford and Americus continue at Nos. 1 and 2.

The only change in Class AAAAA was the exit of Westside-Macon, tied at No. 10 last week with Douglass. All ten slots remain the same with Brookwood still the unanimous choice for No. 1.

Class AAAA saw little change with Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe out and Dalton (3-0) in at No. 10. Douglas County (4-0) climbed two slots to No. 8 while the top seven positions remain unchanged. Thomas County Central (3-0) received eight first-place votes and Marist collected five to hold down the top two slots for another week.

With the top three unchanged, Class AAA experienced a few position shifts with Fitzgerald out and Mary Persons (4-0) in at No. 9. The most significant move occurred with Hart County (3-1) falling from No. 4 to No. 10 after losing to Laney 13-8. No. 1 Screven County (4-0) received all but one of the first-place votes while No. 2 Gainesville collected the one.

Class A continued the trend with minor position jockeying. Pacelli Catholic (4-0) and Emanuel County Institute (4-0) both advanced one position to Nos. 8 and 9. Commerce left the Top 10 after losing to No. 1 Lincoln making way for Temple (5-0) to make their debut at No. 10. The top seven teams repeat this week with no position changes. No. 2 Hawkinsville (4-0) received three first-place votes and Metter (4-0) continues at No. 3.

The Associated Press high school football poll, with first-place votes in parentheses and total points:

CLASS AAAAA

1. Brookwood (14) (4-0) 140

2. Camden County (4-0) 117

3. Parkview (3-1) 111

4. Lowndes (4-0) 91

5. Northside (3-0) 86

6. Lovejoy (4-0) 62

7. Walton (4-0) 55

8. South Gwinnett (4-0) 50

9. Stephenson (4-1) 20

10. Douglass (3-0) 15

Others receiving votes: Riverdale 8, Newnan 5, Harrison 4, Westside-Macon 3, Southwest DeKalb 2, East Coweta 1.

CLASS AAAA

1. Thomas County Central (8) (3-0) 134

2. Marist (5) (5-0) 129

3. Shaw (5-0) 110

4. Tucker (4-1) 67

5. Ware County (1) (3-1) 64

6. McNair (5-0) 61

7. Pebblebrook (3-0) 46

8. Douglas County (4-0) 44

9. Thomson (3-1) 28

10. Dalton (3-0) 23

Others receiving votes: Sandy Creek 16, Rome 9, Westlake 9, Mays 7, Cedar Shoals 6, Troup 6, Paulding County 4, Woodward 4, Lakeview-Ft. Oglethorpe 2, Clarke Central 1.

CLASS AAA

1. Screven County (13) (4-0) 139

2. Gainesville (1) (3-0) 126

3. Cedartown (5-0) 114

4. LaGrange (3-1) 89

5. Peach County (3-1) 75

6. Cartersville (4-0) 63

7. Washington County (3-1) 52

8. Swainsboro (2-0-2) 32

9. Mary Persons (4-0) 29

10. Hart County (3-1) 11

Others receiving votes: North Hall 8, Johnson-Gainsville 7, Fitzgerald 6, Northeast-Macon 5, Dublin 4, Monroe Area 4, Stephens County 3, Carrollton 2, Laney 1.

CLASS AA

1. Buford (13) (3-0) 139

2. Americus (5-0) 125

3. Early County (4-0) 109

4. Calhoun (4-0) 89

5. Charlton County (1) (2-1) 63

6. Vidalia (2-0-1) 57

7. Cook (3-0) 53

8. Greater Atlanta Christian (3-1) 46

9. Decatur (4-0) 32

10. (tie) Brooks County (3-0-1) 9

(tie) Randolph-Clay (4-0) 9

(tie) Wesleyan (3-1) 9

Others receiving votes: Lumpkin County 8, Darlington 6, Adairsville 4, Mitchell-Baker 4, Irwin County 3, Greene County 2, Chattooga 1, Macon County 1, Washington-Wilkes 1.

CLASS A

1. Lincoln County (9) (5-0) 133

2. Hawkinsville (3) (4-0) 120

3. Metter (4-0) 112

4. Clinch County (2) (3-1-1) 97

5. Twiggs County (5-0) 88

6. Landmark Christian (3-1) 57

7. Trion (3-1) 49

8. Pacelli Catholic (4-0) 40

9. Emanuel County Institute (4-0) 33

10. Temple (5-0) 16

Others receiving votes: Commerce 12, Bowdon 3, Miller County 3, Calvery Baptist 2, Taylor County 2, Lanier County 1, McIntosh County Academy 1, Whitefield Academy 1.