Games2Watch: Buford-Roswell highlights Week 4 action around the area

Things are beginning to take shape for the 2025 season after the first three weeks of the season. The contenders are starting to show themselves, while the pretenders are also being exposed. It doesn’t mean it will stay that way, which is why we continue to tune in each week.

Region play begins for two regions involving northeast Georgia area teams, with Union County opening its Region 7-2A schedule against Murray County on the road. And Riverside Prep begins its GIAA District 4-4A/3A schedule on the road as well, taking on Bethlehem Christian.

For everyone else, the final touches for their non-region schedules are approaching. We found four intriguing contests that could give us even more insight as to what to expect when the real race for the playoffs begins over the next two weeks.

Chestatee and East Forsyth will close out their non-region slates on Friday at the Lynn Cottrell Complex. The undefeated Broncos (3-0) are one of the surprise teams in the area but will have to find a way to slow down the War Eagles and Ben Plemons, who piled up 62 points against West Hall last week.

Flowery Branch, despite a season-opening loss to Jackson County, has rebounded with two impressive wins since and takes on a Hart County team at home looking for their best start since 2021 under new coach Michael Perry and quarterback Brett Sturm, who arguably has been the best player in the area over the first three weeks of the season.

North Hall and East Hall renew their long rivalry in Valhalla with the Vikings looking to end a 15-game losing streak to the Trojans. But East Hall has dynamic quarterback Jamarcus Harrison, and the two teams are averaging over 80 points/game combined on the season. Calculators may be necessary on Friday.

And Buford heads back to its new Phillip Beard Stadium, trying to stay perfect against a Roswell squad it thumped 52-17 in 2024. The Hornets are sure to remember that and should be improved under former Lee County offensive coordinator Jonathan Thompson, especially on offense. That could be a matchup to watch for sure.

With that, here are the four GAMES TO WATCH on Friday that had us asking the most questions among ourselves this week. Three can be heard on Jacobs Media airwaves.

East Forsyth at Chestatee
Records: Broncos (3-0, Region 8-4A); War Eagles (1-1, Region 6-3A)
Last week: East Forsyth beat Winder-Barrow, 21-14; Chestatee beat West Hall, 62-28
Radio: WDUN 102.9 FM
Time: 7:30 p.m., Lynn Cottrell Complex, Gainesville
Key players: East Forsyth -- Sr. QB Chase Rhoads (45-of-76, 646 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT), Jr. RB Brooks Smallwood (49-217 yards, 4 TD rushing; 7 rec., 109 yards, 1 TD receiving), Sr. WR Jace Forrest (12-199 yards), Sr. WR Jackson Norman (10-126 yards), Sr. LB Kellen Moran (53 tkls, 3 TFL, 1 FF, 4 PBU), Sr. LB Knox Allen (53 tkls, 3 TFL, 1 sack), Sr. LB Jake Hudson (35 tkls, 2 TFL), Sr. DB Dominic Primato (25 tkls, 1 TFL, 2 INT); Chestatee -- All-Access 1st team Sr. RB/LB Ben Plemons (205 yards, 3 TD; 22 tkl), Sr. QB Gage Reese (120 yards, 2 TD passing), So. LB Yohann Reyna (22 tkl), Jr. LB Colton Steele (15 tkl, 2 INT)
Why watch it: The great unknown -- or something like that. The Broncos were expected to be in a full rebuild after graduating the bulk of their offense. However, they have shown a lot of grit in winning their first three games by a total of just 14 points, coming from behind in all three games. Rhoads has been one of the surprise players in the area to this point, while Smallwood is proving to be very versatile. The defense is ahead of last year’s pace, led by a stellar LB group of Moran, Allen, and Hudson, allowing just 15 points/game. The War Eagles rebounded from their opening-week loss in a big way last week, scoring their 2nd-most points in program history [70 vs. West Hall in 2019] behind nearly 300 yards on the ground. The defense forced 3 turnovers, with Colton Steele having a pair of interceptions, including a pick-6, which leads us back to the unknown. The War Eagles’ offense appears to be back at full throttle, but goes against a Broncos defense that stifled them last year in a 34-7 loss. The Chestatee defense is ahead of last year’s pace, giving up just 21 ppg so far. If they can find some traction against a solid East Forsyth front-7 and continue to get takeaways on defense, this could be one of the best games of the night.

Hart County at Flowery Branch
Records: Bulldogs (1-2, Region 8-2A); Falcons (2-1, Region 8-4A)
Last week: Hart County lost 19-14 to Lumpkin County; Flowery Branch beat Forsyth Central, 38-7
Time: 7:30 p.m., Falcon Field, Flowery Branch
Key players: Hart County -- Jr. QB Kurston Curry, So. RB/LB Zabreylin Harper, Jr. RB Faustino Rangel, Sr. WR/FS Zaylen Shealer, Sr. WR/FS Ramarcus Simpson, PJ Johnson Jr. WR/DB PJ Johnson, Sr. DL/OL Bryce Durrett, Sr. LB Ormani Rucker; Flowery Branch -- Sr. QB Brett Sturm (46-of-56 458 yards, 5 TD, 0 INT passing; 35-186 yards rushing), Sr. RB/LB Griffin Harper (49-317 yards, 6 TD, 2 100-yd games rushing; 6 rec., 48 yards, 2 TD receiving), Sr. WR Tre Shields (8-172 yards, 2 TD), Sr. TE Brooks Recinella (5-93 yards), Jr. TE Jake Bursinger (10-78 yards, 1 TD), Jr. WR Tyler Robinson (7-36 yards), So. LB Ryland Garrison (26 tkl, 2 TFL, 1 sack), Jr. DE Dre Sadler (19 tkl, 3 TFL, 2 sacks), So. LB Nick Hall (20 tkl), Jr. DE Eli Poole (25 tkl, 1 TFL, 1 sack)
Why watch it: The Falcons are looking for their best start since 2021, the last time they made the 2nd round of the playoffs. They also would love to avenge a 35-14 loss to the Bulldogs last season. They continue to be one of the surprise teams in the area behind Sturm and an offense that seems to get better each week. The defense has also improved each week, yielding its fewest points after three games since 2021 as well. This will be their final tune-up before they open their Region 8-4A slate in two weeks. The Bulldogs are struggling on offense, scoring just 28 total points during a two-game losing streak after putting up 51 in their opener against Elbert County. The fun matchup will be the Hart County defense, which held the Indians to 19 points last week, against the Branch offense. But the Bulldogs' offense has explosive potential with Rangel and the youngster Harper in the backfield. Curry can also break a long run on any play. The Falcons had trouble against a big OL against Jackson County and will need to control the Bulldogs' ground game to get their first 3-game win streak since 2021.

North Hall at East Hall
Records: Trojans (2-0, Region 6-3A); Vikings (2-1, Region 8-3A)
Last week: North Hall beat Cherokee Bluff, 43-31; East Hall beat Johnson, 55-12
Radio: 94.5 FM The Lake
Time: 7:30 p.m., East Hall Stadium, Rabbittown
Key players: North Hall -- Jr. OL Mason McGill, Sr. QB Alex Schlieman (30-of-48 505 yards, 6 TD, 3 INT passing; 9-33 yards,1 TD rushing), All-Access 1st team Sr. QB Smith McGarvey (4-of-5 46 yards passing; 8-68 yards, 2 TD rushing; 6 rec., 59 yards receiving), Sr. RB Wyatt Tumlin (12-236 yards, 1 TD), Sr. RB/LB Parker Carlton (13-73 yards, 1 TD rushing; 4 rec., 72 yards 1 TD receiving; 13 tkl, 1 TFL, 4 QB hurries), All-Access 1st team Sr. DB Walker Davis (13 tkl, 1 FF), Sr. DE Jacob Wright (7 tkl, 2.5 TFL, 2 sacks, 1 FF),Sr. WR Ty Kemp (12-264 yards, 4 TD), All-Access 1st team Jr. WR Cole Cable (6 rec., 63 yards), Sr. LB Buddy Clark (19 tkl, 1 FF, 1 FR); East Hall -- All-Access 1st team Sr. QB Jamarcus Harrison (26-of-44 475 yards, 7 TD, 2 INT passing; 31-336 yards, 5 TD rushing), All-Access 1st team Sr. WR Chasen Jones (6-157 yards, 1 TD), Sr. RB Lukas Pruitt (39-303 yards, 2 TD), Sr. WR Kani Williams (8-163 yards, 4 TD), All-Access 1st team Jr. LB Elijah Buffington (36 tkl, 1 TFL, 2 FF), Sr. LB Walt Jarrett (39 tkl, 2 TFL), Sr. DE Jamyus Demory (19 tkl, 4 TFL), Jr. DT Darius Ellison (16 tkl, 4 TFL)
Why watch it: Harrison, Schlieman, Jones, McGarvey, Pruitt, Carlton, Buffington, Davis...need we go on? If you love offense, this could be the place to be on Friday. Between the two teams, they’re averaging just under 85 ppg combined in 2025. But the defenses are yielding just 20 ppg each. With all that, this has the potential to be an instant classic. Harrison could be the X-factor with his dual-threat ability like few others in the area. He already has over 800 total yards with 12 combined TDs in three games. If he is able to keep the Trojans' defense off-balance, the Vikings could turn this into a shootout. However, it has not been a good matchup for the Vikings this century. The Trojans have won 15 straight and have scored 31 or more 14 times in that span, including a 35-16 win last season at The Brickyard. The last East Hall victory in the series came in 2001, 10-7, in Bob Christmas’s first season at North Hall.

Roswell at Buford
Records: Hornets (2-0, Region 7-5A); Wolves (2-0, Region 8-6A)
Last week: Roswell beat Walton, 30-28; Buford was off
Radio: WDUN AM 550
Time: 7:30 p.m., Phillip Beard Stadium, Buford
Key players: Roswell -- Sr. QB Trey Smith (Furman commit), Sr. RB Nick Peal, Sr. WR/TE Wills Campbell, Sr. LB Brody Duffy, Sr. DT Alex Lucas, So. LB Jake Smith, Sr. K Balint Vorosmarty (Georgia State commit); Buford -- Sr. QB Dayton Raiola (20-of-31 302 yards, 3 TD, 2 INT), All-Access 1st team Sr. RB/CB Ty Green (Georgia commit, 14-53, 3 TD; 9 tkl, 1 FF), Sr. LB Deion Miller (21 tkl, 4 TFL, 2 QB hurries), All-Access 1st team Sr. DL Bryce Perry-Wright (Texas A&M commit, 19 tkl, 3 TFL, 4 QB hurries), Jr. LB Joshua Echols (15 tkl, 1 INT), Jr. FS Silas Nuckles (6 tkl, 1 INT, TD), Sr. DL Dre Quinn (Clemson commit, 16 tkl, 3 TFL, 1 sack, 5 QB hurries), Sr. RB Dylan McCoy (21-101 yards rushing; 2 rec., 24 yards, 1 TD receiving), Sr. OL Ben Mubenga (Arkansas commit), All-Access 1st team Sr. OL Graham Houston (Georgia commit), Sr. DB Nassir McCoy (Ole Miss commit, 7 tkl), Sr. WR/DB Dream Rashad (Purdue commit), Jr. LB Brady Wagner (17 tkl, 2 TFL)
Why watch it: The chess match between Buford’s Bryant Appling, a defensive master, and Roswell’s Jonathan Thompson, who came over from Lee County as the OC. In 2024, Lee County piled up 543 points during the regular season, the 4th-most in GHSA history, and 717 overall after the playoffs, the 7th-most in GHSA history. The Hornets are averaging 37.5 ppg in wins over Peachtree Ridge and Walton. The Wolves have surrendered just 27 total points so far in wins over then-No. 1 Milton (Class 5A) and No. 6 Benedictine (Class 4A). Buford held Roswell to a season-low 17 points last year in a 52-17 romp. The Hornets have Smith, who passed for 2,493 yards and rushed for 875 yards with 41 total touchdowns last season. The Buford defense has forced 4 turnovers in two games, and the secondary already has 3 INTs and knocked down half a dozen passes. The Buford offense has been balanced and opportunistic. The Wolves are averaging 173 yards on the ground and 151 through the air as they have fed off the defense, setting them up with short fields. The Hornets are giving up 22.5 ppg, but will need to give their offense a chance to make some plays by slowing down the Buford ground game to have any chance. The Wolves roughed them up for a season-high 52 points in 2024, but the Hornets should be more talented and better prepared in 2025.