Top 3 in highest class each pass major tests

Five observations from the high class after the third week of Georgia high school football …

-Lowndes, ranked No. 3, made the biggest statement with a 64-38 victory over Parkview. Lowndes led 43-10 by halftime and 57-10 entering the fourth quarter, when Parkview scored four touchdowns. So it wasn’t close. Parkview might’ve been a little overrated, but not vastly. The Panthers are a good team. But Lowndes appears to have its best squad since about 2008, although very different in makeup, one that is truly modern in its passing game. Have the Vikings ever had a better quarterback? Michael Barrett had another big night -195 yards passing, 187 rushing. The running back, Travis Tisdale, also had a big night and is a potential all-state guy.

-Colquitt County, ranked No. 2, avenged a 2016 loss to Tucker and stands 3-0. Remember that the Packers were 0-3 a year ago. Tucker, along with Grayson and Buford, probably has more Division I prospects on its roster than just about every else in Georgia, so it’s definitely a good win for Colquitt, which prevailed 35-21 after trailing 14-7 at halftime. Steven Krajewski completed all 14 of his pass attempts in the second half. Colquitt’s defense is championship quality, and its offense is only going to improve under a first-year starting QB and a head with a good idea of how to score points.

-Grayson, ranked No. 1, passed another test, beating No. 9 McEachern 12-7. Grayson went up 12-0 with 9:05 left and held on. McEachern later got to the Grayson 26 but turned the ball over on downs. Grayson is a young but very talented team. If it grows into its body, so to speak, Grayson can be very powerful come November. We’ll see.

-North Cobb, ranked No. 6, beat Harrison 45-42. North Cobb rushed for 327 yards and out-gunned Harrison QB Justin Fields, who had over 200 yards rushing. North Cobb (3-0) has not proven enough to be in the company of those top three, but it’s been a great start for the Warriors.

-Five other teams had solid wins that put them in position to be ranked. Tift County is 3-0 after a 27-7 win over a pretty good Glynn Academy team. Region 1 went 4-0 this week, by the way, when all four games would not have been shocking had they gone the other way. (Camden County beat Fitzgerald 24-21) … Marietta is 2-0 after a 14-6 win over Blessed Trinity, a highly ranked Class AAAA team.. …Lassiter is 3-0 after a 38-35 win over Kell, a ranked team from Class AAAAA. … Roswell beat Central Gwinnett 27-21. That’s two straight overtime games for Roswell, which lost to South Forsyth 17-14 in the opener. Central had started 2-0. … South Forsyth beat Centennial 45-14. At 3-0 and with a win over Roswell, the War Eagles are knocking on the door of the Top 10.