Columbia vs Decatur (5A) - Columbia won its first region championship since 1981 under head coach Greg Barnett, who always has the Eagles competitive and playing at a high level. The Eagles went 4-0 in region play this past season to capture the region championship. Columbia will have to replace senior QB Cameron Graves, who was one of their most productive players from a season ago. A bright spot for the Eagles is that a lot of their playmakers are returning, including Rashaad Silver, Jeremiah Combs, Malek Gates, and Jaleel Baugh. The defense will be led by Charles Harris, who was the leading tackler from a year ago.
Decatur went 9-2 in 2024 and had its most wins since 2003, winning a region championship and finishing 13-1. The Bulldogs will lose some talented defensive players including AJC first-team all-state Marquavious Hood, Ethan Johnson, and Duke signee Kaleb Lanier. On offense the Bulldogs return talented running back Darius White, who finished with 1,012 yards and 17 touchdowns. On defense, they return Nickolas Nathaniel, with finished with 60 tackles and 11 tackles for loss. It will be interesting to see who emerges as quarterback and wide receiver for Decatur, and the spring game will prove a good early look to see who can establish themselves as cornerstone pieces for Decatur.
Cass vs East Paulding (5A) - Despite dealing with a good bit of injuries last season, Cass churned out a productive year, making the playoffs before losing to Blessed Trinity. Head coach Steve Gates does a great job of maximizing his talent and did so once again a season ago.
Mississippi State QB Brodie McWhorter returns from injury after having a great 2023 season, defeating then No. 1 seed Kell on the road and winning Player of the Game. The talented signal caller will be one to watch in 2025. Michigan OL Commit Bear McWhorter will be protecting Brodie this upcoming season and has continued to improve his craft. A playmaker to watch will be WR Izak Koep. Koep is a talented playmaker who has a lot of college coaches offering.
East Paulding is coming off a 10-2 season under first-year head coach Van Spence. The expectations will be high once again. Their young quarterback, Bode Spence, is continuing to rise in favor of college programs, landing offers this offseason from Western Kentucky, Florida Atlantic, UNLV, and Cincinnati. Even in limited reps last season, he threw for 578 yards and seven touchdowns. East Paulding will replace a good bit of its talent from last year, including Javen Parker, Brian Allen, Camron Jones, and Damari Witherspoon. Who will be next in line to step up?
Milton (5A) vs Peachtree Ridge - Milton will embark on a new mission after graduating a good number of their seniors and winning its first back-to-back state championships in program history. Head coach Ben Reaves has more talent at his disposal in 2026 LB Tristan Lester, 2027 WR Jordan Carrasquilo, 2027 TE Grant Haviland, 2027 DL Christian “Pancake” Hunter, 2027 EDGE Quentavious Price, 2028 OL Joshua Evans, 2028 DB Keelan Wonsley, and 2029 OL Landon Ghea. A lot of the talent is young, but like Coach Reaves said, they are hungry.
“Yeah, it’s a good group. It’s a hungry group. It’s a group that, you know, every year at Milton. You never want to let the last group down, right? So the bar gets higher every single year. Now we have a new team that doesn’t want to let the previous teams down. And that’s just kind of how we’re built at Milton. So, there is always something to work for, always something to be hungry for. And these guys are hungry, A, just to hold the line, but also they’re hungry to play,” said Reaves.
QB Derek Baker, whom I didn’t mention above, will be one to watch for Milton. The three-star quarterback is talented and has one of the best deep balls in the state. He just makes it look effortless. Baker has a great touch on the ball and mechanics as a passer. The talented signal caller will be crucial to the success of Milton with so many playmakers on the offensive side of the ball. Baker has the talent to get the Eagles back in contention for a title and will need his veteran leadership and performance to get Milton back in familiar territory.
Peachtree Ridge will have a new quarterback at the helm after Darnell Kelly transferred to Langston Hughes. The Lions have plenty of talent on the roster on both ends, including Kobe Adeleke-Holmes, Sedric Addison, Tristen Hill, Brayden Paramore, Tyson Sanford, Langston Abernathy, and so many more. Head coach Matt Helmerich is known for producing formidable teams that you don’t want to face in the playoffs because they can do multiple things well.
Creekside vs Thomas County Central (5A) - Creekside will once again be in the running to win a state championship in Class 4A. The Fairburn powerhouse is once again loaded with talent in QB Cayden Benson, WR Damien Henderson, RB Anthony Hill, and LB Major Levell. Benson was an all-state selection by AJC and GPB and was named Region 4-4A offensive player of the year after throwing for 2,395 yards and 30 touchdowns a season ago. Henderson will be a playmaker to watch and recently committed to Sacramento State. Hill brings back much-needed experience at tailback and rushed for nearly 700 yards. Level led the team with 117 tackles a season ago. Going up against a formidable in 5A will be a great early test for the Seminoles to gauge if they can get to the mountaintop in the fall.
Thomas County Central is another supremely talented team with playmakers all over the field in Christian Lawrence, Jaydon Dunbar, and Jabari Watkins. QB Jaylen Johnson is another player to watch for the Yellow Jackets after producing another productive year, throwing for 2,440 yards and 25 touchdowns in 2024. The Yellow Jackets also have heavily recruited edge rusher Cam Brooks, who dealt with injury and missed a good bit of time a season ago. He will come back more motivated than ever to make an impact. An overall synopsis for Thomas County Central is that they have a very senior-laden team with championship experience after winning a state title in 2023. When the Yellow Jackets won, the 2026 class were sophomores so they know what it takes to win at a high level. With a great coaching staff led by head coach Justin Rogers, Thomas County Central will give us a good look to see if they can make some noise in 5A in the fall.
Sandy Creek vs Dutchtown (5A) - Sandy Creek will be in contention once again for a state title this upcoming season. They have talented playmakers all over the field and a quarterback in Caleb Hill who has continued to improve. On offense, they will be led by talented running back Amari Latimer, who has grown to 220 pounds and is a great mix of power, speed, and elusiveness. Latimer is one of the best in the country. A name to watch will be wide receiver Avohn Florence who is 6’6 and 200 pounds. Florence is a guy who can win 1 on 1 matchup, especially when teams try to stack the box to slow down Latimer. This is also one of the deepest teams the Patriots have had, with depth at nearly every position. The secondary will be another position of strength for Sandy Creek led by four-star DB Corey Hadley Jr, Dana Greenhow, and Chase Usher.
How will Dutchtown recover after losing so much from a talented team a year ago? The Bulldogs lost their head coach Niketa Battle, DL Ayden Cain (Gainesville), and QB Mike Johnson (Douglas County). Dutchtown has made the playoffs for eight consecutive seasons and has been a staple team in Henry County. During that span, they have had three 10-win seasons, including two 12-win seasons. A bright spot for the Bulldogs is talented DL Chase Foster who has created a lot of buzz with his 6’4 and nearly 270 frame, already garnering significant college interest. He also recently made the On3 2028 watchlist. Head coach Kevon Glenn will be the new coach at the helm, ready to take over for the Bulldogs.
A notable game I didn’t mention was Langston Hughes vs Tift County. The Panthers will once again be loaded with talent but how formidable of an opponent Tift County will be remains the question. Hughes is loaded again with star quarterback Darnell Kelly, four-star RB Carsyn Baker, four-star OL Kelsey Adams, four-star Xavier Tiller, and a talented defense once again.
Rest of 5A Spring Games
Lassiter vs Kennesaw Mountain-
Langston Hughes vs Tift County-
River Ridge (vs Wheeler-
Villa Rica vs Temple-
Morrow vs Drew-
Sequoyah vs Etowah-
Woodstock vs Cherokee-
Allatoona vs Pope-
McIntosh vs Arabia Mountain
Chamblee vs Druid Hills
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