No. 3 Mary Persons riding an up cycle

A year ago, Mary Persons took the kind of beating (47-14) that Prince Avenue Christian administered to most of its opponents during a 14-0 season. But Mary Persons has done something that no other team has – atoned for it.

The Bulldogs defeated Prince Avenue 45-28 last week, ending the Wolverines’ 20-game winning streak. Mary Persons is 5-1 and No. 3 in Class 3A, the program’s best record and ranking since 2018.

“For small towns, the football teams and their success run in cycles,” Mary Persons coach Brian Nelson said. “We are in a cycle now where we have some really good players coming through and the depth of good players to go with it. Our players and community take pride in Mary Persons. It has been that way forever in Forsyth and Monroe County.”

Mary Persons is GHSF Daily’s Team of the Week. The award, sponsored by BSN Sports and Titan Electric, will be presented to the team at the school today.

Observations on reclassification

The Georgia High School Associated approved a reclassification framework for the 2024-25 and 2025-26 academic years on Monday.

The big change is that private schools in classes 3A to A will play for one state championship in all sports, separate from public schools. They will continue to play in regions with public schools during the regular season.

The GHSA will use a points-based power rating to seed state-playoff brackets in classes 3A, 2A and A and in the 3A-A private division.

As decided earlier this year, Class 7A will cease to exist. The highest classification will be Class 6A. Classes 6A to 4A can have public and private schools competing for the same championships.

In early November, the GHSA will divide its 457 member schools into six classifications (really seven when Class A is split into Division I and Division II).

Here are some opinions, observations and background on what happened Monday.

*Despite what cynics might say on social media, public schools are not afraid of competition. They have legitimate competitive-balance complaints that most private schools concede. And it’s not about “everybody gets a trophy.” There will be eight state football champions next year, just like this year.

*And private schools don’t recruit (any more than public schools do). Illegal recruiting is not the real issue.

*Public schools believe that private schools have an unfair advantage because private schools have no school district boundaries, can admit students regardless of where they live and can deny admission. By contrast, public schools are generally obliged to take all students in their school districts.

*Private schools are willing to play higher than their enrollment numbers would place them in concession to perceived advantages but want to compete for state championships against public schools. They feel bullied by the public majority.

*While it wasn’t the main news Monday, the GHSA also voted that all reclassification proposals in the future must be presented in writing to the GHSA office one week prior to when the proposals will be considered. That’s a moot point this year. But in short, the private schools are disturbed that the 3A-A private plan was presented without their prior knowledge on Tuesday and approved six days later, not enough time for them to argue an alternative or stir up opposition.

*The 3A-A division is divisive but not radical. All private schools currently in classes 3A to A were in Class A Private and playing for private-only championships as recently as 2022-23. Small private schools competed in that environment for 10 years without seriously challenging it.

*The catalyst for change was the failure of the 3.0 multiplier, put in place last year, to throttle the success of smaller private schools that were released from Class A Private last year to face public schools again. The 3.0 multiplier counted out-of-zone students three times when determining statistics the GHSA used for reclass. The nine largest private schools, all playing above Class 4A, won about 40% fewer titles (to 24 from 41), but the smaller private schools freed from Class A Private won more than twice as many state titles (37 instead of 17), prompting the public schools to cordon them off again for the next cycle.

*There are only 23 football-playing private schools in classes 3A to A currently. Several others, such as Lovett, Westminster, Greater Atlanta Christian, Pace Academy, Holy Innocents’ and Trinity Christian, could fall into Class 3A when the dust settles next month. Some smaller private schools may leave the GHSA rather than compete in a 3A-A private division. Some larger 3A-A privates almost certainly will petition to play in 4A, although the GHSA is not obliged to let them.

*Tennessee is the closest state to Georgia that segregates public and private schools entirely. The Volunteer State does it for all schools, not just those in the lower half, and the private schools also play in their own regions during the regular season. Tennessee has three private classes of 17, 21 and 11 football teams this year. Chattanooga’s Baylor School won a 12-team private classification in football last year.

*The GHSA is eliminating Class 7A starting in 2024-25 and will have seven classes (six if Class A’s divisions I and II are considered one). One reason for the contraction was to ease the GHSA’s administrative burden. However, the new 3A-A private will bring the number of championships back to the same eight as now. And going forward, the GHSA is charged with maintaining power ratings to seed the playoffs for five of those championships – 3A, 2A, A D-I, A D-II and 3A-A private – in every sport. Curiously, the Class A Division II is scheduled to use power ratings despite having only public schools.

*These power ratings will be problematic. Somebody must ensure that every score from every sporting event is reported accurately and in a timely way. And they’re overly simplistic and frankly not great at ranking teams. They were adequate for Class A alone from 2012-13 to 2019-20, but when applied to schools playing from classes 3A to A, they are not sophisticated enough to account well for strength of schedule.

*The GHSA also voted Monday to form a committee to study a competitive-balance model for future reclassification cycles. This is what private schools hope is the solution that allows them to compete with public schools in all classes again. It could allow, for example, Westminster’s tennis teams to play in the highest classification while the basketball and football teams played in lower classes. Or it could consider other factors such as geography, which Florida now does, or financial resources.

*The GHSA’s new highest classification, Class 6A, was ratified Monday as the largest 14% of the membership. That’s 457 member schools times 14%. It comes to 64 schools. There are 45 currently in 7A. The highest class is about to take in about 20 new ones. Houston County, Gainesville, Rome and Douglas County are those with good football teams but sub-2,000 enrollment that are tilted in that direction, but so are others that are less capable of competing against schools with 3,500-plus students. Even Woodward Academy and St. Pius, private schools with much smaller enrollments, fell into 7A in 2021 but appealed out of it.

*This process is far from over. The GHSA will have all the schools’ enrollment data later this month (or early next) to begin placing schools into classifications. Schools go into regions about a week later. During the most recent reclass, the GHSA had to start over and reclassify 3A to A after 15 small and largely fed-up private schools abruptly left for the GIAA. Reclassification won’t be ratified until January.

GHSF Daily each week will rank the top five teams and their head coaches in each classification based on their improvement in the computer Maxwell Ratings from previous seasons, but with some exclusions. Only teams with winning records will be listed. In the end, each team and coach must also make the playoffs and improve playoff seeding or state playoff finish from the previous year to qualify. The objective is to recognize not only improvement but also the challenge of making a struggling program relevant on the state level or taking a good program to the next level. After the season, GHSF Daily will present an award, sponsored by Hudl, to the nine coaches who lead their classifications. The recognition will take place at the GACA Falcons Luncheon on Feb. 6 in Macon.

Class 7A

+22.64 - Newton (Josh Skelton)

+12.70 - Peachtree Ridge (Matt Helmerich)

+5.36 - Walton (Daniel Brunner)

+5.30 - Osborne (Luqman Salam)

+5.21 - Wheeler (Bryan Love)

Class 6A

+26.11 - Douglas County (Johnny White)

+20.88 - Thomas County Central (Justin Rogers)

+10.70 - North Atlanta (Jamie Aull)

+10.13 - Jonesboro (Timothy Floyd)

+8.29 - Lanier (Tyler Maloof)

Class 5A

+18.73 - Hiram (Pete Fominaya)

+13.35 - Harris County (Tommy Watson)

+11.03 - Greater Atlanta Christian (Tim Hardy)

+9.14 - Northgate (Mike McDonald)

+9.01 - Ola (Tom Causey)

Class 4A

+21.36 - Spalding (Carl Kearney)

+15.62 - North Clayton (Cap Burnett)

+14.49 - North Hall (Sean Pender)

+12.29 - Cairo (David Coleman)

+10.47 – Central-Carrollton (Umbrah Brown)

Class 3A

+16.75 - Mary Persons (Brian Nelson)

+12.85 - Lumpkin County (Heath Webb)

+10.01 - White County (Chad Bennett)

+8.47 - Stephens County (Wesley Tankersley)

+7.29 - Calvary Day (Mark Stroud)

Class 2A

+17.70 - Providence Christian (John Russ)

+13.18 - Therrell (B.J. Jamison)

+13.16 - East Jackson (Cameron Pettus)

+7.77 - ACE Charter (Keith Hatcher)

+6.32 - Toombs County (Buddy Martin)

Class A Division I

+10.64 - Bryan County (Cherard Freeman)

+6.14 - Bacon County (Mark Wilson)

+2.64 - Commerce (Mark Hollars)

+1.59 - Mount Vernon (Wayne Dabbs)

+1.42 - Jasper County (Ashley Henderson)

Class A Division II

+23.49 - Greene County (Terrance Banks)

+7.19 - Randolph-Clay (Charles Pruitt)

+3.25 - Macon County (Dexter Copeland)

+3.05 - Jenkins County (Charley Waters)

+2.46 - Telfair County (Matt Burleson)

GIAA

+32.43 - Flint River Academy (Kirk Hoffman)

+4.50 - Robert Toombs Academy (Matt Meeks)

+4.41 - First Presbyterian (Brett Collier)

+3.76 - Valwood (Brad Wells)

+3.44 - Edmund Burke Academy (Andy Woodard)

Today’s featured inductee is Gilmer, Georgia Tech and NFL lineman John Davis. Davis will be inducted into the Georgia High School Football Hall of Fame on Oct. 21 at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta.

John Davis

Gilmer High School Graduate

John Davis was a four-year football letterman at Gilmer High and the 1982 AJC Class AA Lineman of the Year. In 1987, the AJC named Davis to its 20-year all-state football team (1966-86), and Georgia High School Football Daily in 2017 named Davis the best player in Gilmer history. Davis also was an outstanding basketball player at Gilmer who scored more than 1,000 points in his high school hardwood career. Davis played college football at Georgia Tech, where he was a four-year starter and first-team All-American in 1985 by The Sporting News. Davis’ most memorable game came in 1984 in a 28-21 victory over Clemson. Davis, playing center that game, was named Sports Illustrated’s offensive player of the week and earned the nickname “The Refrigerator Mover” for his ability to negate Clemson star noseguard William “The Refrigerator” Perry. The Houston Oilers drafted Davis in the 11th round of the 1987 NFL Draft. Davis was best known for his time with the Buffalo Bills from 1989 to 1994. He was a member of four straight Super Bowl teams, starting on two. In 1993, Davis was given the Ed Block Courage Award, voted on by teammates and awarded to the player on each NFL team who “exemplified a commitment to sportsmanship and courage.”

GHSF Daily will select 10 games each week for the Predict the Winner contest, presented by Shuma Sports. Predictions must be submitted by 5 p.m. each Friday. Limit one entry per email address. Contest winners will be announced on Mondays at the start of each new contest and will receive an apparel prize from Shuma Sports. Click here to play.

100 Greatest

GHSA Finals

No. 48: Lanier (Macon) 7, Richmond Academy 6 (1947 Class 2A)

Points scored

Here are the top 10 teams in points scored per game, by classification:

Class 7A

55.0 - Walton

46.3 - Colquitt County

43.7 - Carrollton

43.2 - Westlake

42.4 - Wheeler

41.8 - Mill Creek

40.8 - Peachtree Ridge

40.0 - Parkview

39.8 - Grayson

39.2 - Osborne

Class 6A

47.5 - Houston County

46.5 - Thomas County Central

45.3 - Rome

43.7 - Roswell

43.3 - North Atlanta

40.8 - Lee County

39.3 - Hughes

37.8 - Gainesville

36.0 - East Paulding

35.7 - Jonesboro

Class 5A

45.8 - Hiram

39.3 - Jones County

39.0 - McIntosh

39.0 - Kell

38.6 - Ola

38.0 - Dalton

36.8 - Tucker

36.2 - Arabia Mountain

36.0 - Jefferson

35.0 - Greater Atlanta Christian

Class 4A

46.0 - Perry

43.8 - Stockbridge

42.0 - North Oconee

39.7 - Troup

38.2 - East Forsyth

37.7 - Spalding

37.0 - Central (Carrollton)

36.0 - Benedictine

36.0 - Westside (Macon)

35.8 - Madison County

Class 3A

51.5 - Calvary Day

39.2 - Lumpkin County

38.5 - Cedar Grove

37.8 - Stephens County

37.7 - Harlem

36.7 - Long County

35.0 - Savannah Christian

34.5 - Morgan County

34.0 - White County

33.2 - Savannah Country Day

Class 2A

48.6 - Providence Christian

47.5 - ACE Charter

43.6 - Union County

42.5 - Pierce County

39.3 - Toombs County

39.3 - Thomson

39.0 - East Jackson

38.7 - North Murray

38.4 - Athens Academy

37.2 - Northeast

Class A Division I

46.1 - Prince Avenue Christian

41.4 - Trion

34.6 - Dublin

34.2 - Rabun County

34.2 - Bleckley County

33.3 - Elbert County

32.8 - Darlington

32.7 - Temple

32.2 - Mount Vernon

30.2 - Swainsboro

Class A Division II

45.2 - Schley County

40.8 - Jenkins County

39.2 - Washington-Wilkes

37.4 - Bowdon

34.3 - Greene County

33.7 - Wilcox County

33.2 - Telfair County

31.7 - Clinch County

31.3 - Manchester

31.2 - Hawkinsville

GIAA

48.5 - Bulloch Academy

44.2 - Valwood

43.8 - John Milledge Academy

42.9 - Bethlehem Christian

37.6 - Edmund Burke Academy

36.8 - SW Georgia Academy

35.7 - Flint River Academy

35.5 - St. Andrew's

34.8 - Strong Rock Christian

34.8 - Robert Toombs Academy

No. 3 Walton is at No. 10 North Cobb this week in a game between the only ranked teams in Region 5-7A. Each also ranks in the top three all-time in victories among Cobb County Schools teams. Which Cobb Schools program ranks No. 1 in victories? (Answer Thursday)

Answer to Tuesday’s question: Smael Mondon, the SEC defensive player of the week, played at Paulding County.

GHSA 

Thursday's games 

Bainbridge at Westover (M) 

Clarke Central at Loganville 

Cook at Brooks Co.

Hampton at Mt. Zion, Jones. 

Jordan at Rutland (ED) 

Midtown at Druid Hills (A) 

North Forsyth at Lanier 

Northeast at Kendrick (K)

Northwest Whitfield at SE Whitfield 

Ringgold at Coahulla Creek 

Riverdale at Troup (C) 

Sav. Country Day at Liberty Co. 

Southwest at Spencer (OS) 

Stone Mountain at Clarkston (HS) 

Tattnall Co. at Vidalia 

Towers at McNair (GO)

Wilcox Co. at Telfair Co.

Friday's games 

ACE Charter at Central, Macon (TH) 

Alcovy at Lovejoy (TO) 

Allatoona at Woodstock 

Aquinas at Towns Co. 

Arabia Mountain at Decatur 

Athens Academy at Providence Christian 

Bacon Co. at Johnson Co. 

Banks Co. at Union Co. 

Benedictine at Burke Co. 

Bleckley Co. at Dublin 

Blessed Trinity at Pope 

Bradwell Institute at Coffee 

Bremen at LaFayette 

Brunswick at Lakeside, Evans 

Bryan Co. at Metter 

Butler at Thomson 

Calhoun at Hiram 

Cambridge at Centennial 

Carrollton at East Coweta 

Carver, Atlanta at Mundy's Mill (T) 

Cass at Cartersville 

Cedar Shoals at North Oconee 

Central, Carrollton at Sonoraville 

Chamblee at Tucker (A) 

Charlton Co. at Turner Co. 

Chattooga at Darlington 

Christian Heritage at Mt. Pisgah Christian

Clinch Co. at Lanier Co. 

Columbia at Landmark Christian 

Columbus at Dougherty (M) 

Coosa at Trion 

Cross Creek at Richmond Academy 

Cross Keys at St. Mary's 

Dalton at Woodland, Cartersville 

Dawson Co. at Pickens 

Denmark at West Forsyth 

Douglas Co. at Paulding Co. 

East Forsyth at Cherokee Bluff 

East Jackson at Fellowship Christian 

East Laurens at Jasper Co. 

Eastside at Heritage, Conyers 

Effingham Co. at Grovetown 

Forest Park at Bowdon 

Forsyth Central at Lambert 

Franklin Co. at Stephens Co. 

Georgia Christian at Lake Oconee Acad.

Gilmer at Lumpkin Co. 

Glenn Hills at Putnam Co. 

GMC Prep at Wilkinson Co. 

Greenbrier at Statesboro 

Greene Co. at Warren Co. 

Griffin at Perry 

Groves at Calvary Day 

Hapeville Charter at SW DeKalb (GO) 

Hardaway at Cairo 

Harris Co. at Northside, Columbus (K) 

Harrison at McEachern 

Heard Co. at Crawford Co. 

Hebron Christian at Monroe Area 

Hephzibah at Harlem 

Heritage, Ringgold at Cedartown 

Holy Innocents' at Miller Grove (ND) 

Houston Co. at Northside, W.R. (MT) 

Hughes at East Paulding 

Jackson at Mary Persons 

Jackson, Atlanta at Mays (L) 

Jeff Davis at Dodge Co. 

Johnson, Savannah at Sav. Christian (P) 

Jones Co. at Ola 

Jonesboro at Morrow 

KIPP Atlanta at North Cobb Christian 

Lakeside, Atlanta at Drew (SC) 

Lakeview-Ft. Ogle. at Gordon Lee 

Laney at Josey 

Lassiter at Roswell 

Locust Grove at Eagle's Landing 

Long Co. at Beach (SV) 

Lovett at Stockbridge 

Lowndes at Valdosta 

M.L. King at Lithonia (AV) 

Marietta at Hillgrove 

McIntosh Co. Acad. at Jenkins Co. 

Mitchell Co. at Seminole Co. 

Model at Fannin Co. 

Morgan Co. at Salem 

Mount Vernon at Mt. Zion, Carroll 

Mt. Paran Christian at South Atlanta (L) 

New Hampstead at Southeast Bulloch 

Newnan at Alexander 

North Atlanta at Riverwood 

North Clayton at LaGrange (C) 

North Hall at Madison Co. 

North Murray at Gordon Central 

North Springs at Chattahoochee 

Northgate at McIntosh 

Northview at Kell 

Oconee Co. at Hart Co. 

Oglethorpe Co. at Athens Christian 

Osborne at Kennesaw Mountain 

Pace Academy at McDonough 

Pebblebrook at Westlake 

Pepperell at Armuchee 

Pike Co. at Upson-Lee 

Portal at Montgomery Co. 

Randolph-Clay at Early Co. 

Redan at Eagle's Landing Christian 

Richmond Hill at Camden Co. 

Ridgeland at Adairsville 

River Ridge at Creekview 

Rockmart at Haralson Co. 

Rome at Sequoyah 

Savannah at Claxton 

Seckinger at Heritage, Newnan 

Shiloh at Jackson Co. 

Social Circle at Commerce 

South Effingham at Glynn Academy (GL) 

South Forsyth at Milton 

South Paulding at New Manchester 

Spalding at Howard (ED) 

Sprayberry at Johns Creek 

St. Francis at Rabun Co. 

Starr's Mill at Fayette Co. 

Stephenson at Westminster 

Sumter Co. at Berrien 

Swainsboro at Jefferson Co. 

Terrell Co. at Miller Co. 

Thomasville at Carver, Columbus (OS) 

Tift Co. at Thomas Co. Central 

Toombs Co. at Appling Co. 

Treutlen at Dooly Co. 

Tri-Cities at Lithia Springs 

Twiggs Co. at Glascock Co. 

Utopian Academy at Walker

Veterans at Lee Co. 

Walnut Grove at East Hall 

Walton at North Cobb 

Ware Co. at Jenkins (SM) 

Warner Robins at Union Grove 

Washington Co. at Westside, Augusta 

Washington-Wilkes at Lincoln Co. 

Wayne Co. at Islands 

Westside, Macon at West Laurens 

Wheeler at Cherokee 

Wheeler Co. at Hawkinsville 

White Co. at Wesleyan 

Whitefield Academy at Elbert Co. 

Whitewater at Trinity Christian 

Winder-Barrow at Flowery Branch 

Windsor Forest at Brantley Co. 

Woodland, Stock. at Luella 

Worth Co. at Fitzgerald 

Saturday's game 

Crisp Co. at Monroe (M) 

GIAA/GAPPS 

Friday’s games 

Brentwood at Edmund Burke 

Brookstone at St. Anne-Pacelli 

Brookwood School at Deerfield-Windsor 

Bulloch Academy at Briarwood Academy 

Creekside Christian at Calvary Christian 

George Walton at Riverside Military 

Georgia Christian at Lake Oconee Acad.

Harvester Christ. at Fullington Academy 

King’s Academy at Lanier Christian 

Memorial Day at Pinewood Christian 

Mount de Sales at First Presbyterian 

Notre Dame Academy at Walker 

Piedmont Academy at Southwest Georgia 

Pinecrest Acad. at Community Christian 

Robert Toombs at Frederica Academy 

Seckinger at Heritage, Newnan 

Skipstone Academy at Rock Springs 

St. Andrew’s at Trinity Christian, Dublin 

Strong Rock Christian at Westfield 

Tattnall Square at Stratford Academy 

Stadium abbreviations: (A) Adams; (AV) Avondale; (C) Callaway; (ED) Ed Defore; (GL) Glynn County; (GO) Godfrey; (HS) Hallford; (K) Kinnett; (L) Lakewood; (M) Mills; (MT) McConnell-Talbert; (ND) North DeKalb; (OS) Odis Spencer; (P) Pooler; (SC) Southern Crescent; (SM) Savannah Memorial; (SV) Savannah High School; (T) Tara; (TH) Thompson; (TO) Twelve Oaks