FOOTBALL PREVIEWS: Three Houston County teams in first round of GHSA playoffs, Westfield hits the road for GIAA semifinals

The GHSA postseason will get underway this week with three Houston County teams in action, while Westfield will travel for the GIAA semifinals.

Here’s a quick look at the slate this week:

Houston County vs. Creekview

When: Friday, Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Freedom Field

Two honey eaters will face off on Friday at Freedom Field as the Houston County (black) Bears and Creekview Grizzlies play to advance to the second round of the GHSA playoffs.

Creekview hails from Region 6-5A as the three seed, falling short of 9-1 Sprayberry and Sequoyah.

The Grizzlies come in at 5-5 overall, but that’s only indicative of their 0-3 start against Calhoun, North Forsyth and Cambridge — who all have a combined 22-8 record. They were 5-2 in region play, and their loss to Sprayberry was 36-35 in overtime.

Luckily for the Bears, Creekview ran the ball on 75% of their plays this season. They have three rushers with over 300 yards, including quarterback Alex Penrod. He’s accounted for 1,208 yards and 13 touchdowns total, nearly half of the Grizzlies’ offense.

Penrod has a decent arm, but he’s rushed 27 more times (106 carries to 79 passes) than he’s thrown. Many of Lee County’s explosive plays in the season finale resulted in Marcus Snipes Jr being able to escape the pocket. Doing better on the scramble drill will be the key for HoCo on Friday.

Perry @ North Oconee

When: Friday, Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Titan Stadium

Perry is the lone traveler out of the (GHSA) Houston County teams in the playoffs this week, and they’ll march up to Bogart, Georgia to take on the undefeated North Oconee Titans.

The Titans, Region 8-4A’s champion, are averaging 37 points per game and allowing less than six on average.

They’ve scored 40 or more six times, and 30 or more in eight games. The defense has three shutouts to their name and only allowed double digit scores in two games: 14 to Flowery Branch and 13 to Eastside.

Titan quarterback and Georgia Southern commit Harrison Faulkner has some killer plays on tape to back up some eye-catching stats.

On the season he’s 186-of-272 (68%) through the air for 3,230 yards, 38 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He’s also capable on the ground with 733 yards and seven touchdowns.

His arm looks great and his placement of the ball matches that regardless of the range. Paired with a lightning quick release he’s a danger to get the ball out anywhere on the field even under immediate pressure.

There are certainly other threats on the field, but the Panthers’ defense will have their hands full and some trying to slow down Faulkner.

Warner Robins vs Eastside

When: Friday, Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: McConnell-Talbert Stadium

Warner Robins had a complete turnaround of their season late, winning their final three games to secure a home playoff spot in the same season they lost to Wayne County and suffered their worst defeat in program history at the hands of Benedictine.

Their reward for that? Hosting Eastside out of Covington, Georgia, the third place team in Region 8-4A.

The Eagles two region losses, to the top two teams, are by a combined five points. Their loss to North Oconee was 14-13, and that was because of a missed point after attempt following a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Running back Myles Mims is a name to watch out for as Eastside comes to the MAC. The senior doubles the next player on the list with 153 carries for 1,080 yards and 11 touchdowns. He’s had over 100 yards rushing in seven games this season.

One word of advice for the Demons — don’t let Mims find open field. The 5-foot-9 back has house call potential when he finds a hole, and he’s not afraid to shake off a tackle or two on the way.

Westfield @ Deerfield-Windsor

When: Friday, Nov. 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Where: Webb Stadium

The GIAA 3A semifinals has a familiar matchup this year as Westfield travels down to take on undefeated Deerfield-Windsor.

The Knights are 11-0 after a 21-3 first-round win over Pinewood Christian, further padding their 8.6 points allowed per game.

The last time these two teams played was Week 3 of the season, a decisive 33-7 victory for Deerfield-Windsor.

Quarterback Lane Sceals was 18-of-30 (60%) for 255 yards and four touchdowns. He’s up to 2,669 yards, 33 touchdowns and three interceptions on the year.

While he doesn’t boast impressive rushing numbers, he’s incredibly evasive on tape. He reacts quickly to changes in the pocket and can easily make throws on the run. His longest pass against Westfield this season was 47 yards to Gabe Daniel for a touchdown.

The defense has four members with 60 or more tackles and two with double-digit tackles for a loss: Grier Morey leads with 73 tackles (40 solo), Mangham Pippin follows with 63 tackles (35 solo) and 10 TFLs, Cross Mitchell has 61 tackles (33 solo) and Ben Everett brings up 61 tackles (43 solo), too. Turner Simmons has a team-high 11 TFLs to go with 57 tackles (39 solo).

Much like Friday’s game against Tiftarea Academy, judging Westfield based on the matchup almost two months ago won’t tell you what to expect this time around. This was one of three losses for the Hornets, and shortly after they got off five straight wins for a back-to-back district championship.