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Rain shouldn't dampen good high school games tonight

By MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@TheCitizenNews.com

By all accounts, tonight’s games are going to be played in a driving rain. While it may keep some fans away from the stadiums, it will be the kind of night players love to play in. The ground is softer, the air should still be fairly warm and what all-American boy doesn’t like getting muddy? Coaches may not be completely sold on playing on rainy nights because it is easier for players to get injured and the rain becomes an X factor of sorts. It can cause fumbles, make balls a little harder to catch and cause defenders to have a harder time catching up with their opponents who know when they are cutting across the field.

Games will be played though and most teams practice in the rain every chance they get.

In Region 4-AAAAA, region play starts this week as Fayette County (0-4) will travel to Coweta County to take on Newnan (2-2) and Starr’s Mill (4-0) will travel to take on Union Grove (3-1).

The Fayette County Tigers played well against Carrollton allowing one only one touchdown in each half. Andy Petty had 12 tackles in the game and Tyler Betsill had a partially blocked punt as the defense kept the high-powered offense in check. Now, Fayette County will try to generate some offense against a Newnan team that has won two games in a row.

Players to watch: Andy Petty, Channing Welch

Starr’s Mill will have a tough test this week with their road game against the Wolverines, but after coming back from a 13 point deficit to Tri-Cities last week, the Panthers have to be feeling pretty good. Union Grove started the season with three straight wins where they averaged over 33 points per game. Last week, Union Grove fell to Grayson 11-7.

Players to watch: Robby Davis, Carter Scurry

In Region 4-AAAA, McIntosh (1-2) hosts Alexander (0-4) while Sandy Creek (3-0) travels to take on Chapel Hill (0-3) and Whitewater (2-1) will travel to take on North Oconee (0-3) on Saturday.

McIntosh faced a very talented Sandy Creek team last week and lost 33-3. The Chiefs took an early lead but were unable to slow down the Patriot offense. McIntosh’s quarterback Brendan Hall was injured on the Chiefs’ scoring drive and is listed as doubtful for this week. Coach Butch Prosser cited the good defensive play of Wes Kincaid who recorded seven tackles and four assists.

Players to watch: Charles Castleberry, Kevin Cline

Sandy Creek will likely improve to 4-0 after Friday’s match against Chapel Hill. The Patriots defense has been stifling, allowing only 20 points this year, while their offense has averaged over 29 points per game and has a number of weapons. Among Chapel hill’s losses were a 50-0 defeat at the hands of Douglas County and 27-9 loss to Villa Rica last week.

Players to watch: Jamal Rome, Rickey Nicholson

Whitewater High School was off last week. The Wildcats beat the McIntosh ‘JV’ team 51-7 the Thursday before their off week. Their match against North Oconee should be a good one, as both schools are playing a non-region varsity schedule.

Players to watch: Dustin Davis, Ryan Johnson

In Region 5-A, both Landmark Christian and Our Lady of Mercy have one more non-region game before beginning their region schedules next week. Landmark lost to Bowdon 34-7 last week, but coach Kenny Dallas was impressed with his team’s performance in their first half, especially after quarterback Matt Moody was injured early in the first quarter. Moody has been throwing a bit in practice this week but has not practiced in pads. Dallas cited good defensive play from middle linebacker Tim Creamer who had 10 tackles in last week’s game. This week, the War Eagles will take on a Bremen team that defeated Our Lady of Mercy 55-0 last week.

Players to watch: Tim Creamer, Hahns Petty

The Bobcats are in a similar boat as Landmark, having played some highly ranked teams from Class A in their non-region schedule. Things don’t get any easier this week as Our Lady of Mercy plays host to Aquinas, a team that is undefeated and is averaging 28 points per game.

Players to watch: Dominic Fabian, Bernard Michel

Games are scheduled to be played at 7:30 p.m, Friday, except for Whitewater High School’s game which is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Saturday.