Maybe it just seems like the best games in Class AAAAAA each week are in Region 1.
After all, the five-team region does have four teams ranked in the top 10, and the fifth was ranked No. 1 two weeks ago. In fact, the past three No. 1 teams (Houston County, Lee County and Valdosta) all hail from Region 1. And there are two more great games this week.
But there are important games elsewhere this weekend, too. Perhaps none is bigger than the Region 6 matchup between unbeaten and top-five teams Harrison and Dalton.
Here are five games from the Class AAAAAA schedule in Week 10 that will factor significantly in playoff and region-championship races (all games listed are Friday):
*Harrison at Dalton: The winner of this 6-AAAAAA showdown will be the only remaining unbeaten team in the region and heavily favored to win the title, although both have games left against the region's one-loss teams (Harrison vs. Sequoyah on Oct. 28 and Dalton vs. Allatoona on Nov. 4). Harrison is 7-0 for the first time since 2008 and seeking its first region championship since 2005.
*Valdosta at Lee County: This game matches the current No. 1 (Valdosta) against the team that held that spot last week. Lee County was No. 1 for the first time in school history until it lost to Northside-Warner Robins 26-7. Valdosta, which beat Northside 14-6 in its region opener, climbed to No. 1 for the first time since 1999 after Lee County's loss. Valdosta is tied for first place with Coffee.
*Coffee at Northside-Warner Robins: Coffee won 42-35 last week against a Houston County team that is giving up 31 points per game. The Trojans' task will be far different this week – Northside has the top-ranked defense in AAAAAA, allowing an average of just 7.3 points. Both teams are in good shape for playoff berths, but a victory (particularly for Coffee) keeps region-title hopes alive.
*Glynn Academy at Richmond Hill: Only two games have been played in Region 2 because of Hurricane Matthew, but Glynn Academy and Richmond Hill got the wins in those. That means the winner of their game on Friday will be in sole possession of first place with two weeks to go. Glynn Academy (6-1) escaped with a 35-28 win over rival Brunswick last week. Richmond Hill is 6-0.
*Cambridge at Alpharetta: Cambridge is tied with Centennial and Johns Creek for first place in Region 7. All three teams are 5-1 in the region and 1-1 against each other. A victory by Alpharetta (in fourth place in the region at 3-2) would be a big help to Johns Creek because it would give the Gladiators the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage over Centennial because of their 24-21 win on Sept. 16.
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