Lawrenceville
Lawrenceville, GA · Events
watchtheyard.com
Gwinnett Daily Post
Like 2019, Buford's state football playoff path likely to feature run of road trips
There was no surprise about what was coming. Given the current state of the Georgia High School Association’s new PSR Power Rankings, the Buford football team was likely headed for worse seed than it deserved. A 10-0 record, 25 straight wins and last year’s state and national championships and top-three national rankings don’t help much with the PSR system, which dinged the Wolves for out-of-state wins over top programs Mallard Creek (N.C.) and Miami Central (Fla.) and for a region that sent only one other team to the playoffs (Collins Hill as the No. 31 seed out of 32 teams). That led to a No. 9 seed for Buford for the Class AAAAAAA state playoffs, which begin Friday with a home game against Marietta. Barring considerable upsets, that seed likely will put the Wolves on the road for the rest of the postseason. The second-round will be at No. 8 North Cobb unless No. 25 Archer can pull a first-round shocker, then a quarterfinal could await at No. 1 Valdosta. It isn’t the ideal scenario, but Buford has been there before — and won it all. Its 2019 team was upset by Clarke Central in Game 10, but still finished
chambleeblueandgold.com
arabiaalliance.org
Gwinnett Daily Post
fox5atlanta.com
Gwinnett Daily Post
Marietta Daily Journal
New PSR produces unlikely matchup between Marietta and Buford in Round 1
Marietta has a tall task ahead this Friday night, as the Blue Devils will travel to Buford to take on the Wolves in the first round of the Class AAAAAAA playoffs. Blue Devils coach Cameron Duke spoke highly of Buford’s talent and coaching, acknowledging the tough task ahead of the Blue Devils this week. The Wolves (10-0) are the No. 3 team in the nation according to MaxPreps. The new PSR system for playoff seeding implemented by the Georgia High School Association this season impacted both teams. Marietta (6-4) and Buford were both negatively impacted by playing two out-of-state games, which don’t carry the same weight in the formula as in-state games do. Marietta is the 24th-seeded team in Class AAAAAAA, while Buford is No. 9. Duke said the way the Blue Devils’ two out-of-state games affected their seed may impact how they approach scheduling moving forward if changes aren’t made. “We’re grateful for the opportunities that we had to go play the NFL Academy and play St. Cloud, who’s a playoff team down in Florida, and I believe Buford would say the same thing about playing Mallard Creek out of North Carolina and Miami Central out of Florida,” Duke
fox5atlanta.com
thechampionnewspaper.com
Marietta Daily Journal
Hillgrove hits road but peaking at right time
Hillgrove and Peachtree Ridge enter the first round of the state playoffs with 7-3 records, but the final stretch of their regular seasons couldn’t have been much more different. The Hawks have won four in a row and six of their last seven, while Peachtree Ridge has lost three of its last four and is coming off a 51-3 loss to Brookwood. Missing in that game were quarterback Zain Belfield and running back August Hall, which Hillgrove coach Justin Deshon said was a big component in Peachtree Ridge’s late-season struggles. “I think it’s the start of a new season, especially with us going there,” Deshon said. “Part of the reason they’ve struggled as of late is they’ve had just a litany of injuries, so we expect some of those guys to get back on the field from some of the injuries they’ve had. "We expect the best version of them. They were a really, really dynamic football team early in the season when they were all the way healthy.” For the Hawks, October went smoothly. They defeated Harrison, another Cobb County frontrunner 35-26, and nearly beat McEachern in a close 27-24 contest for their only loss in region play. Before
Gwinnett Daily Post
Grey Richardson excels as Buford wrestling state champ, football defensive lineman
Anytime, anywhere. That’s the motto for Grey Richardson, a state champion wrestler in his weight class and a key member of Buford’s state championship football team last season. It’s not a combination of sports that usually goes together with the calendars overlapping and the physical demands both require, but none of it bothers Richardson. Not even when the two schedules completely back into each other. “I love his attitude,” Buford wrestling head coach Tom Beuglas said. “For example, we’re going out to Kansas City two days after the football state championship. And if we make it, he’s going to have to stay and play football. And I go, ‘I guess you’re not going to be going to Kansas City.’ And he goes, ‘Oh, I’m going!’” Richardson plays on the defensive line in football, a body type that creates both advantages and disadvantages for wrestling. On one hand, a lot of the techniques are the same. Getting leverage, using his hands, beating the guy in front of him. But in the same vein he wrestles in the 285-pound division, a spot many schools either can’t fill or maybe only have one wrestler. It meant at times he had to wrestle a
northatlantastar.com
Gwinnett Daily Post
Gwinnett Daily Post
Hebron Christian puts two-year unbeaten postseason run on the line at ELCA
An emotional, up-and-down regular season ended on a high note for the Hebron Christian football team. After the Lions won their debut with new head coach Quentin Davie in the Corky Kell + Dave Hunter Classic, they lost four straight and eventually fell to 2-5 after a 22-19 loss to Duluth. The school parted ways with Davie after that defeat and turned to assistant Daniel Mejia as interim head coach. Mejia topped Lumpkin County in his debut and lost his second game at Stephens County before a bye week on Oct. 30. The Lions returned with their best performance in Game 10, routing Elbert County 69-7 in the regular-season finale. Hebron rushed for 371 yards last week with a trio of 100-yard rushers — Dylan Hudson (four rushes, 127 yards), Jordan Greene (seven rushes, 105 yards, touchdown) and Beau Bennett (11 rushes, 104 yards, two TDs). Greene also completed 3 of 5 passes for 167 yards and a TD to Dylan Hudson, who had two catches for 101 yards. The Lions’ top defensive performers included Albert Wilham (10 tackles), Bennett (eight tackles), Fred Moses (six tackles for losses, sack, two QB hurries) and Cam Brown (five tackles, two for losses,