Football: Rabun County at Jefferson headlines big opening week on radio

The long-awaited start to the 2021 high school football season will kick off on Friday as 19 area games are on the Week 1 slate. 

Three big showdowns on the Jacobs Media airwaves and streaming live on AccessWDUN.com should provide fans with plenty of excitement. 

Last season's battle was one for the books if you were a Jefferson fan. The Dragons held the country's No. 1 quarterback, Gunner Stockton (Georgia commit) to just 127 yards passing and 19 yards rushing, while then-five-star recruit Malaki Starks -- now a Georgia commit -- churned out 157 yards in a 28-14 win over Rabun County in Tiger. This year, one of the state's Week 1 marquee matchups returns to Jefferson for the first time since 2014, a place the Wildcats have only won twice -- 39-0 in 1951 and 13-5 in 1955. The Dragons lead the series 21-3. Both teams are ranked No. 1 -- Rabun in Class 2A, Jefferson in Class 4A. -- and both Stockton and Starks are back making this year's contest yet another epic battle for the ages. You can listen to the game on WDUN FM 102.9 (Click to listen live).

Flowery Branch and St. Pius X exchanged punches in the first-ever meeting last season at Falcon Field. The Falcons pulled within a field goal twice, but couldn't get past the Golden Lions in a 38-28 loss in 2020. This season could be different for the Class 4A No. 8-ranked Falcons, who returned Class 4A passing leader David Renard and a veteran defense, and the eighth-ranked Golden Lions -- in Class 5A -- are under the direction of a new coach, Chad Garrison, for the first time in two decades. You can hear that game on WDUN AM 550 (Click to listen live).

And Gainesville will host Johns Creek in the Corky Kell Classic at Bobby Gruhn Field for the earliest game of the night, a 5:30 p.m. kickoff. The matchup was set for last season but COVID-19 canceled the game. They'll get to play this season in the first-ever meeting between the two teams. The Red Elephants have several key players back on offense, including All-Region 6-7A running back Naim Cheeks and new offensive coordinator Chad Bennett making the calls. Johns Creek, who finished 4-5 last season, replaced its entire backfield, including quarterback Quin Teeples, but Division I quarterback recruit Kyle Durham transferred from South Forsyth to Johns Creek in the offense and immediately gave the Gladiators a boost on the offensive side. The game can be heard live on FM 94.5 The Lake (Click to listen live).

Friday Game Night will keep you in tune with all of these contests and more. Be sure to check in with us throughout the night and keep up with live scoring on Twitter: @FridayGameNight.