The last two spots in the GHSA championship games, to be played Monday through Wednesday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, will be filled Thursday when Gainesville travels to Rome and Roswell visits Thomas County Central in the Class 5A semifinals. The games were originally scheduled to be played last Friday but were delayed in the aftermath of Gainesville’s second-round skirmish against Brunswick.

Carver (Columbus) and Bowdon will aim to extend their championship reigns for another year when they play in the state finals next week at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Carver, seeking its second consecutive title, will meet Worth County at 2 p.m. Tuesday in Class A Division I. Bowdon, shooting for its fourth straight championship, will take on Lincoln County at 3:30 p.m. Monday in A Division II.

Defending state champions Bowdon and Hebron Christian will be back in action Friday night in the GHSA football semifinals. Bowdon, seeking its fourth consecutive state title, will travel to Clinch County in a Class A Division II game. Hebron Christian of Class 3A-A Private will face Greater Atlanta Christian in the first meeting between the Gwinnett County private schools.

Burke County and Carver of Columbus will meet Friday in the Class 2A semifinals in a rematch of last year’s state championship game, won by Carver 52-14. Carver advanced to the semifinals for the third consecutive season with a 38-10 victory last week against Thomson, the regular-season champion in Burke County’s region.  

Washington-Wilkes, Jenkins County and Charlton County were the only No. 3 seeds to survive the first round of the playoffs in Class A Division II. Of those, Washington-Wilkes will have the toughest task this week when it travels to three-time defending champion Bowdon, projected as a 34-point favorite by the computer Maxwell Ratings. Jenkins County will visit Schley County this week, and Charlton County will play at Screven County.

No. 1 seed Carver-Atlanta, No. 3 Carver-Columbus and No. 4 Morgan County are heavy favorites this week, but the computer Maxwell Ratings are expecting some particularly close second-round matchups in Class 2A. Hapeville Charter is a one-point favorite at Appling County, Burke County is favored by one point over Columbia, and the Thomson-Callaway game is projected as a tossup.

Defending Class 4A champion North Oconee will continue its quest to win back-to-back titles when it meets M.L King in a second-round game Friday night. M.L. King is making its first appearance in the second round since 2012. Marist, the runner-up in 2024, will face Blessed Trinity in a battle of metro Atlanta private schools. The winners of those two games will meet in the quarterfinals next week.