Football: It WILL be a wild finish for Region 6-3A

Less than a month ago, Region 6-3A looked as confusing as Spaghetti Junction during construction time.

Some more possible twists and turns could send things in any direction that could almost be explored. In early October, all but one of the eight teams were within two games of each other as the playoff race began to get as hot as the Georgia asphalt in summertime.

So, have things improved with the regular season finales set to kick off on Friday for all of northeast Georgia and in 6-3A? Somewhat.

Class 3A will use the Postseason Rankings System (PRS) to seed the playoffs. The eight region title winners will take the top eight seeds unless a private school wins a region, in which case they will then look at the second-place finishers with the highest PRS ranking. The top four teams in each region are guaranteed playoff spots.

THIS we know about 6-3A: North Hall has won the region title, clinching with a 56-7 win over Johnson last week. White County and Johnson cannot finish in the top four in the region standings and are probably out of the running to grab one of the three statewide at-large bids.

After that, we only think we know something. It still appears that anything is possible.

And there are three gigantic matchups this week that could decide not just seeding but the playoff fates for six of the teams.

Dawson County travels to North Hall (you can hear that game on 94.5 FM  The Lake); Chestatee plays host to GAC (you can hear that one on WDUN 102.9 FM); and Lumpkin County heads to Pickens.

As you can see, with only a 32-team field for the playoffs, several teams are at or just below the cutoff line. But upsets can happen (as we have seen aplenty this football season).

And it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that five -- yes, FIVE -- teams could finish the night tied for second place in the region, throwing more than a huge monkey wrench into the equation. Don’t think it can happen? Okay, here goes:

Lumpkin County (6-3, 4-2 Region 6-3A) and GAC (4-5, 4-2 Region 6-3A) are currently tied for second. Pickens (5-4, 3-3 Region 6-3A), Chestatee (4-5, 3-3 Region 6-3A), and Dawson County (4-5, 3-3 Region 6-3A) are all tied for fourth, just one game back.

If Pickens beats Lumpkin County, Chestatee knocks off GAC, and Dawson County upsets North Hall, the Dragons, Indians, War Eagles, Tigers, and Spartans all will finish with 4-3 records. That's FIVE teams tied for second.

During the regular season, Pickens beat GAC, which beat Lumpkin County. Chestatee beat Pickens, who beat GAC. No one has knocked off the Trojans (7-2, 6-0 Region 6-3A), but the all-time series between North Hall and Dawson County is tied at five wins apiece.

They will use the +12/-12 tiebreaker system among those five teams to determine the No. 2 seed. Then, they will eventually have to look at head-to-head matchups among the other four to find the third and fourth-place finishers. The top four are guaranteed a spot in the playoffs.

However, those outcomes could also radically alter the seeding placements in the final rankings, making every team vulnerable to being on the outside looking in as well.

For the Trojans, the temptation to begin resting key starters for the playoffs could seem a possibly wise move. But sitting just 12th overall in the public rankings would put them at the bottom of the top 8.

Lumpkin County coach Heath Webb said no one can rest on their laurels this week.

“The first priority, of course, is just to win,” Webb said. “That will take care of a lot of issues. But even North Hall -- and I could see where that would be tempting in most seasons, having already clinched -- can’t really do that. Climbing that (PRS) ranking could be the difference when you look at possible matchups down the road.”

The Indians can finish second outright but need a win over the Dragons while rooting for Chestatee to knock off GAC. Lumpkin lost to the Spartans, so if the two finish tied in the standings, they would finish as the No. 3 team.

“We’re going to do everything we can to make sure there isn’t a five-way tie. I don’t even want to think about that,” Webb said. “But we knew this was going to be a very competitive region right from the start. It’s been that way all year, and I’m sure it’s exciting for the fans. Not so much for the coaches.

“But I don’t think you could ask for a better finish to the season than having practically every team still with a chance (to make the playoffs). That’s all you can ask for every year.”