The past two champions of Class 5A will face off in the second round of the playoffs when Ware County travels to Warner Robins. The teams have played each other each of the past four seasons, with each team winning twice. Two-time defending state champion Benedictine will host LaGrange in a Class 4A game.

Football teams placed higher on the playoff bracket will play at home when same-seeded opponents meet in the quarterfinals next week, the Georgia High School Association determined Monday with a universal coin toss.

Unranked Collins Hill, Camden County, Cass, Dalton and Monroe Area defeated top-10 teams, reigning champion Sandy Creek lost, and Bryan County and Lumpkin County won their first playoff games in history in the first round of the GHSA playoffs. Cass, Jenkins, Gilmer and Lovejoy beat No. 1 seeds, and Savannah Christian won in four overtimes, the last one with controversy.

The Georgia High School Association placed its 457 member schools into regions for the 2024-26 academic years Thursday, pushing reclassification one big step closer to completion. The GHSA approved the appeals of six schools to move out of Class 6A, which will be the highest classification, and into Class 5A. Winning those appeals were Arabia Mountain, Houston County, Kennesaw Mountain, New Manchester, Newnan and Shiloh.

Prince Avenue Christian’s Aaron Philo retook the lead in GHSA passing yards with a 388-yard game last week against Oglethorpe County. Philo has thrown for 2,568 yards in eight games. Wayne County’s Matthew Fuller and Loganville’s Ahmed Souare continue to lead the GHSA in rushing and receiving, respectively. Each has only one regular-season game remaining.

Parkview visits Colquitt County for a Class 7A game Friday night in what is perhaps the marquee matchup of the first round, a north-south Georgia battle between an undefeated blue blood and a Gwinnett County team that played for a region title last week. The question is whether Parkview has fuel in the tank after losing to Grayson 41-14.