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Three football games to watch, Week 13 schedule and first round playoffs

by November 7, 2024

It’s Week 13 of the regular season for football teams competing in the GHSA, and while all of the playoff spots have been set for teams from the greater Savannah area, there are a few games of note in the final stanza of the season.

Calvary Day plays at Long County in a Region 3-3A matchup, and New Hampstead looks to close out its season with a win in a Region 1-4A matchup at Ware County.

In the SCISA playoffs, Bethesda will experience a historic game as the Blazers host Orangeburg Prep in the first game on their new on-campus field.

Here are three games to watch in Week 13, along with the schedule for the final week of the season and a schedule for the first round of the GHSA playoffs the following week.

Savannah area football games to watch in Week 13

Calvary Day (8-1, 8-0) at Long County (7-2, 6-2), 7:30 p.m

This game appeared to be for a regional title, but Long County lost to SE Bulloch 15-12 on Oct. 25. Calvary clinched the regional title last week with a 42-7 win at Liberty County.

Georgia High School Football Daily published a first look at the GHSA playoff round, which will separate private school teams in Classes A-3A from public schools in the postseason. The private school playoff seedings will be determined by a power ranking system, and Calvary Day will have a first-round bye at No. 4. City rival Savannah Christian is in first place.

Calvary Day coach Mark Stroud said his approach is that the team needs to win this game to stay in No. 4.

“If we win this, we could stay in Savannah if the week continues to win and not have to travel to the state championship game,” Stroud said. “We’re on the left side of the bracket, on the same side as Savannah Christian, and there’s a chance we could meet and play in the state semifinals at Pooler Stadium (on Dec. 6).”

Sophomore quarterback James Mobley IV is having an outstanding season in his first year as a starter. He has thrown for 1,927 yards with 26 touchdowns and just two interceptions while completing 77% of his throws.

UGA’s Thomas Blackshear has 31 catches for 783 yards and 12 touchdowns and Doopah Coleman has 28 receptions for 613 yards and eight scores. Sophomore Ca’Den Jones leads the team with 412 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.

The Calvary defense is led by tackle Buddy Mathis Jr., the senior who has committed to LSU. Mathis Jr. has 34 tackles, 10 for loss, and 1.5 sacks. Senior linebacker Cutter Powell leads the team with 6.5 sacks and 73 tackles. Second-year defensive lineman Emerson Lewis has five interceptions and 35 tackles.

With the win over Liberty County, Mark Stroud improved to a 271-110 record in his 33-year career, including 16 seasons with the Cavs. He passed Rick Tomberlin and Buck Cravey and is now No. 20 on the list of all-time Georgia coaching wins. He is second among active GHSA coaches behind Marist Alan Chadwick, who is second all-time with 464 wins (former Lincoln County coach Larry Campbell tops the list with 477 career wins).

Long County averages 210 yards per game and only 20 yards per game through the air. The Blue Tide, ranked No. 20 in the Class 3A public school rankings, will face No. 13 Baldwin in the first round of the playoffs.

“Long County is a really good team – they had the ball at the one-foot line in the 18-17 loss to Jenkins, but couldn’t get the ball in the air fast enough to make another playoff,” Stroud said. “They are well trained and have an unorthodox style. They like to hit the ball and eat up as much time as possible on offense, so we have to be ready for that.”

Orangeburg Prep (5-5) at Bethesda (7-3) in SCISA Class 2A playoff opener, 7:30 p.m

It will be a big night on the Bethesda Academy campus as the Blazers get the chance to christen their new field in a SCISA Class 2A playoff opener with Orangeburg Prep.

“We’ve been talking about having a field on our campus since 2012, and now it’s finally become a reality – we’re really excited,” said Antwain Turner, in his 20th season leading the Blazers team to win its first state title last year. “It’s the perfect time to host in the first round of the playoffs and the kids want to do their best.”

Bethesda has a strong rushing tandem in speedster Assir Best, who has rushed for 745 yards and scored 17 total touchdowns, combined with the rugged style of junior Jordan Cheever, who has 656 yards and seven scores.

Freshman Jordan Turner, the son of the head coach, took over the quarterback position and threw for 999 yards and six touchdowns. His favorite target is junior Raleigh Wesley, who has 30 catches for 526 yards and three scores.

Antwain Turner said there will be bleachers around the field, but the second phase of construction of the facility will come after the season, as permanent bleachers, a press box and a field house will be in place by the start of next season.

“This is a primer on what would happen next season,” Turner said. “It’s a big day for everyone involved in our school.”

New Hampstead (3-6, 1-3) at Ware County (5-4, 3-1), 7:30 p.m

This is the final game of the season for New Hampstead as the Phoenix will not play in the postseason. It will be the final high school game for a senior class in Phoenix led by star quarterback Ra’Shawn Truell and standout receiver Kamari Maxwell, who announced his commitment to play at Austin Peay last week.

Truell has thrown for 2,532 yards with 26 touchdown passes and eight interceptions this season. Maxwell has 69 catches for 1,073 yards and 12 touchdowns. The duo would love nothing more than to head to Ware County and light up the scoreboard in their last hurrah as high school teammates.

Ware County is considered the No. 2 seed in Region 1-4A and the Gators will host Tucker in the first round.

November 8th

Brunswick near Bradwell *

South Effingham at Greenbrier*

New Hampstead in Ware County *

Beach at Islands (Islands Stadium) *

Calvary Day in Long County *

Groves at SE Bulloch *

Jenkins vs Windsor Forest * (Memorial Stadium)

Liberty County at Johnson* (Savannah High)

Savannah High in the portal *

Orangeburg Prep (5-5) at Bethesda (7-3) in SCISA Class 2A playoff opener, 7:30 p.m

GHSA playoffs

November 15th or 16th

Class 5A

#3 Effingham County at #2 East Paulding

Class 4A

No. 3 Benedictine at No. 2 Southwest Dekalb

Class 3A

No. 23 Northwest Whitfield at No. 10 Jenkins

Class 3A-A Private

#1 Savannah Christian – bye

#4 Calvary Day – bye

#17 Savannah Country Day at #16 Mount Vernon

Dennis Knight covers sports for the Savannah Morning News. Contact him at [email protected]. Twitter: @DennisKnightSMN

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