This is the week of the Semi-Finals in the GHSA Football Championship.  And all seven classifications have terrific matchups with a lot of great story lines.

In Class 6A,  the four teams remaining,  are all, undefeated, 13-0, highly ranked, and highly motivated. Defending 6A Champion Colquitt County lost the coin flip and travels, again, up north, this time to take on coach Shannon Jarvis and his Mill Creek Hawks.   This will be a great matchup.  Colquitt County has a great defense and an explosive offense, while Mill Creek is very solid moving the football, and out of this world tough, in stopping opponents.  You can catch this one on GPB.  Our coverage kicks off at 7pm with the All Access Pass Pregame Show.   In the other semi, Roswell collides with Grayson and this game too is loaded with talent on both sides of the ball.  Both teams have outstanding coaches, and both teams  want to continue on the Road to the Dome and next week’s GHSA state championships.

In 5A, 12-1 Northgate plays 12-1 Allatoona.  Northgate is in its first ever semi-final, while Allatoona has now made back to back semi-final appearances.  On the  other side of the bracket,  Coach Franklin Stephens who won two state titles while coaching Tucker High School, will lead Ware County against Coach Rocky Hidalgo and his Glynn Academy Terrors.  You have to love that nickname.  The Terrors.  They have been terrific this season.

The 4A Semi-finals are LOADED with talented teams.  How about Woodward Academy, 13-0 led by running back Elijah  Holyfield, taking on Coach Jess Simpson and the defending 4A  champion Buford Wolves whose only loss this year was to 6A powerhouse McEachern early in the year.  The other game matches up two unbeaten teams in 13-0 Bainbridge making its first semi-final trip since 1993,  and 13-0 Cartersville with their outstanding sophomore quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

In 3A defending champion Calhoun will put their 28 game winning streak on the line against a 12-0-1 Blessed Trinity team while Westminster with a 9-4 record takes on the lone Dekalb County school remaining, the 11-1-1 Saints of Cedar Grove.

In 2A, Fitzgerald takes on Jefferson County.  The Purple Hurricane won a state title in 1948 and are now in their 10th semi-final since.  This is Jefferson County’s first trip to the state semi’s.  The other game matches up 11-2  Pace  Academy with the 12-1 Spartans of Greater Atlanta Christian.

In 1A Public, a couple of recent state champs collide at Commerce, champs in 2000, takes on Clinch County who won in 2010. In the other semi, 2014 runner up Irwin County takes on 2012 state champ, Emanuel County Institute.

And in 1A Private 2012 champ Eagles Landing Christian Academy takes on 12-0 Prince Avenue Christian a team coached by Jeff Herron who with two more wins would become the ONLY coach in Georgia to win state championships at 3 different schools.  In the other semi, 2013 champ, Aquinas takes on Stratford Academy, a school that won 8 GISA titles.

So all in all, at the start of the year over 400 schools strapped on the gear with dreams of making it to the Georgia Dome to play for a state title.  Right now 28 of those schools remain in 7 classifications and after this week, it’s the final 14 teams standing tall, remaining on the Road to the Dome with 7 destined to become state champions!