Defending champions Warner Robins and Fitzgerald won in overtime last week while Dutchtown, St. Francis and Schley County made the semifinals for the first time. Fellowship Christian was the only unranked team to advance in what’s been a relatively predictable postseason.

The football quarterfinals could be called the battle of champions. The third round represents the first time that region winners can play each other, and 17 of this week’s 32 games are champion-on-champion. Those include one No. 1-vs.-No. 2 game, Cedar Grove vs. Calvary Day, and one between two of the state’s 15 undefeated teams, Rabun County vs. Swainsboro.

The quarterfinal round of the GHSA playoffs will feature the two-time defending state champion going in as an underdog against the No. 2-ranked team in Class 5A, a team that was 0-9 in 2021 matched up against a team that is 12-0 this season in Class 4A, and a meeting of the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in Class 3A. In all, 64 teams from the eight classifications will face off this weekend for a spot in next week's semifinals.

The second round of the playoffs was expected to produce more upsets and top-10 carnage, but it didn't deliver much last week. Well, Walton did beat Buford 42-35. It ended Buford’s 22-game win streak overall, 22-game win streak in second-round games, 16-game win streak in playoff games and 28-game win streak in home games against Georgia opponents. Otherwise, the favorites generally had their way.