Some teams opened their seasons with a bang, while still more learned more about themselves in "Week 1" of the high school football season on Friday night.
(NOTE: To read up on game stories and watch more in-depth highlights from across northeast Georgia, visit our Friday Game Night page.)
White County showed last week was no fluke, pulling off its second lopsided win in as many weeks, following up last week's 33-0 success with a 66-14 explosion over old foe Lumpkin County in Clevelannd. Meanwhile, Buford also moved to 2-0 with a 34-17 defeat of visiting Melbourne Catholic from Florida, while Jackson County also moved to 2-0 courtesy a hardfought defeat of Madison County, 12-6. Next door neighbors Jefferson also made it 2-0 after a blowout win of Riverwood, 50-13 in Atlanta -- running back Colby Wood rushing for 243 yards and three scores.
East Hall also showed it can play some defense too this week, picking off Chestatee multiple times in the first half to help kick start a 59-37 win over the War Eagles in the Sardis Community -- moving both teams to 1-1 on the season. And in the Battle of Oakwood, West Hall bounced back from last week's season-opening loss with an emphatic 59-7 defeat of Johnson, giving Spartans seniors their fourth straight win in the rivalry.
Winder-Barrow is also 2-0 after a convincing 47-22 defeat of Walnut Grove, while Mill Creek is 2-0 after a convincing, 31-13 win over Stephenson. And North Gwinnett bounced back from a tough opening loss to nip Milton 31-28 -- a similar scenario as North Forsyth's, as the Raiders moved to 1-1 after humbling Johns Creek 28-6.
Perhaps the most eye-opening results came from teams kicking off their campaigns, however.
Lakeview notched its first season-opening victory since 2012 in impressive fashion, storming past East Jackson 42-13 in Gainesville behind four touchdowns for quarterback Alec Bornhorst.
Flowery Branch also got off to a stellar start under new coach Ben Hall, blanking North Hall 38-0 as Malik Damons scored three touchdowns. Commerce also dominated Banks County for a 42-13 victory that saw the Tigers rush for 344 yards with a rebuilt backfield.
Speaking of domination, Rabun County picked right up where it left off, stomping Mt. Pisgah Christian 62-21 in Tiger, putting up 502 yards of offense.
For Dawson County it was more about defense, as the Tigers moved to 1-0 in a shutout defeat of Forsyth Central, utilizing three Payton Allen field goals for all the scoring they would need.
Elsewhere, Union County dominated Gilmer, 56-14, while Stephens County stonewalled Franklin County 28-0.
Area programs Gainesville, Lanier, Riverside Military and Apalachee also suffered defeats on Friday.
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL SCORES, WEEK 1, Aug. 25
Alpharetta 29, Gainesville 7
Buford 34, Melbourne Central Catholic (Fla.) 17
Commerce 42, Banks County 13
Dawson County 9, Forsyth Central 0
East Hall 59, Chestatee 37
Flowery Branch 38, North Hall 0
Jackson County 12, Madison County 6
Jefferson 50, Riverwood 13
Lakeview Academy 42, East Jackson 13
Mill Creek 31, Stephenson 13
North Forsyth 28, Johns Creek 6
North Gwinnett 31, Milton 28
Prince Avenue Christian 56, Riverside Military Academy 13
Rabun County 62, Mt. Pisgah Christian 21
River Ridge 54, Apalachee 13
South Gwinnett 17, Lanier 3
Stephens County 28, Franklin County 0
Union County 56, Gilmer 14
West Hall 59, Johnson 7
White County 66, Lumpkin County 14
Winder-Barrow 47, Walnut Grove 22
