It’s that time of year again where marching bands are prepared for their halftime shows, cheerleaders are ready to pump up the crowd and football teams and coaches are leaving it all on the field.
Here are where area teams are meeting up:
HABERSHAM CENTRAL VS STEPHENS COUNTY
The Raiders look to bounce back from consecutive 3-7 seasons when they host the Indians for the 47th edition of the Battle of Currahee Mountain.
Stephens County has advantage in the rivalry, winning 33 of the previous 46 matchups.
The Indians hope to begin another campaign toward a second-consecutive Region 8-AAA championship.
For full preview, click here.
WHITE COUNTY AT NORTH HALL
The Warriors are on the road for a non-region matchup with the Trojans, but there’s much more on the line than that when these two get together.
“White is a rival of North Hall, I learned that pretty fast,” said second-year North Hall Head Coach Sean Pender.
White County Head Coach Chad Bennett, also in his second year at the helm, said of the game, “It’s a rich tradition, a rich rivalry. The schools have played each other 50 times and it’s tied 25-25.”
The Warriors picked up a win in last year’s clash 35-14 in Cleveland.
Just 13-and-a-half miles as the crow flies, but a 19-mile bus ride separates these two schools. When they get together Friday night, one of these teams will gain some control in the rivalry…for now.
RABUN COUNTY VS HARALSON COUNTY
Second-year head coach Michael Davis is coming off a banner-raising year, earning a region championship in his first season with Rabun County. Outside of the scoreboard, Davis is hoping his Wildcats simply come out of the opening game healthy.
Haralson County fell to Rabun County last season 49-3 in this game, but Davis said discipline is going to be key on both sides of the ball for the Wildcats to be successful on the scoreboard.
BANKS COUNTY AT JOHNSON (GAINESVILLE)
As the Leopards head to Gainesville Friday night to take on the Johnson Knights, they’ll look to continue building on the foundations laid the last few years.
Banks County won the matchup 41-20 against the Knights last season on its way to a 5-5 finish.
“Our kids are excited, the school’s excited,” Leopard’s coach Jay Reid said. “You always want to be 1-0 on game day.”
EAST HALL VS WEST HALL
The Vikings will welcome West Hall to Valhalla on Friday night in the 25th matchup between the two programs on the gridiron. East Hall holds a slight 13-11 lead in this cross-county rivalry.
When they strap up for gametime, the Spartans are looking to turn things around from a year ago when they were a 1-9 squad.
Head coach Krofton Montgomery hopes his West Hall group can stay healthy this year, something it struggled with a year ago. That forced his hand at playing some young guys that now have valuable experience.
“We knew, physically, they weren’t ready,” he said. “They got some valuable experience and they’ve had a good offseason. They definitely got a lot stronger, a lot bigger, a lot faster. It showed throughout summer and we feel like we’re going to have a better chance at being a lot more competitive this year.”
East Hall will be looking to turn things around from a 2-8 season a year ago, beating Johnson in addition to West Hall.
HART COUNTY VS ELBERT COUNTY
The Bulldogs will host their neighbors to the south for the 65th meeting between the two schools.
Last season, Elbert County emerged victorious in a 31-28 game at the Granite Bowl in Elberton. This year, the Blue Devils look to build on last season’s 10-2 record. Their only regular season loss was to Rabun County, which boosted the Wildcats on to win the region.
Hart County was 5-5 in last year’s campaign, going 3-2 in Region 8-AAA play.
Elbert County holds a 34-30 edge in the back-and-forth with the Bulldogs.
FRANKLIN COUNTY AT MADISON COUNTY
The Lions will go on the road to hopefully turn things around from a winless season in 2022 as they open their first season under Chuck Holland in Danielsville.
The Red Raiders, under 12-year man Chris Smith, are looking to return to the postseason after last year’s first-round defeat to Central High School out of Carrollton.
CHESTATEE AT HEBRON CHRISTIAN
The War Eagles will start their first season under Stuart Cunningham on the road at Hebron Christian in Dacula.
Cunningham takes over the program from Shaun Conley who wore the headset for seven seasons prior and will look to get the program back to winning ways.
On the other side, the Lions will be looking to start another run at the postseason after being bounced in the second round by No. 1 seed Cedar Grove last year.
GAINESVILLE VS MARIST
Region 8-AAAAAA defense for the Red Elephants begins Friday night with the War Eagles. This year things will be settled at City Park in Gainesville.
Last season, Gainesville topped Marist 34-23 en route to a 14-1 record, losing in the state championship against Hughes.
Marist was also able to make a run last season, coming up short against Rome in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs after winning Region 4-AAAAAA with a perfect record in region play.
FLOWERY BRANCH VS DECATUR
Coach Jason Tester got off to a quick 2-0 start last season before finishing his first year with the Falcons 3-7.
Finishing on a high note – a 46-0 win over Heritage (Conyers) – Flowery Branch will look to get back to winning ways when it hosts Decatur Friday night.
Last season’s affair finished 39-38 in the Falcons’ favor.
LAKEVIEW ACADEMY AT KINGS RIDGE
The Lions will open their 2023 campaign on the road against the Tigers.
A year ago, Lakeview, under Lee Shaw, defeated Kings Ridge 35-28 at home. This year, the Lions will be under the leadership of Lee Coleman, who comes to the program after four years at Georgia Military Prep, where he won a region championship in 2021.
*NOTE: Lumpkin County at Riverside Military Academy was canceled.
