Local football teams hit the road
Sep. 22—VALDOSTA — It will be a little quieter in Valdosta tonight. That's strange during high school football season, especially when there are four teams in the county. But the schedule worked out this week that all four teams are on the road and, thus, the restaurants in town will be a little emptier at 6 p.m.
Valwood takes its undefeated record across the state line to face North Florida Christian. Lowndes and Valdosta both head for Metro Atlanta, the Wildcats at McEachern and the Vikings at Grayson. Georgia Christian journeys to Lyons to face Robert Toombs Christian Academy.
The Valiants of Valwood improved to 3-0 a week ago with a 55-14 victory over Robert Toombs.
Marquis Fennell had a big game for Valwood in the latest win and is yet another weapon for first-year head coach Brad Wells. They'll look to extend that in Tallahassee against a 2-2 North Florida Christian.
NFC started the year 0-2, but have evened their record by outscoring opponents 77-18. The Eagles lean more to passing than running, per their stats on MaxPreps, but both rely heavily on their quarterback.
The teams have played seven times through years. Valwood has won once, that being back in 2014.
Lowndes saw its undefeated start end last week in a 42-30 loss to East Coweta. The Vikings started strong, but unfortunately met one of the top quarterback-to-receiver connections in the state. Even more unfortunately, it won't get easier this week.
Grayson is 3-1, with an 83-0 win over Eagle's Landing this year. That ranks among the most lopsided games in modern Georgia High School Association history. Quarterback Jeff Davis has nearly 1,000 passing yards already, which the Rams balance with two capable running backs and a defense that averages nearly 10 tackles for losses per game.
Lowndes upset Grayson last year at Martin Stadium when the Rams were No. 2 in the state. Marvis Parrish and his slew of receivers can easily be Grayson's equals and the Lowndes' runners have been difficult to stop.
Valdosta moved into the Atlanta Journal-Constitution rankings last week and remain No. 9 going into their game at McEachern.
The Indians have not had the most memorable start to 2023, but picked up their first win last week with a 49-7 shellacking of Tucker. Before then, McEachern scored 36 points in three games, 20 of those in a loss to Brookwood. Valdosta has never lost to McEachern, 6-0 over the years, with a 24-14 win last season.
The Wildcats seem to find another playmaker each week. Prince Jean and Todd Robinson have both been excellent under center. Jean and Shakevious Wright were two big options running the ball and now they have not just another excellent back, but one who is a freshmen: Deron Foster. Foster is averaging nine yards per carry and is tied with Jean for team lead in rushing touchdowns at five.
Georgia Christian tries to get back on track tonight at Robert Toombs. The Generals are hoping for their first win of the year and their first points since their season debut at Flint River.
Robert Toombs, of course, is the team who faced Valwood last week. The Crusaders are 2-2 for the year.
