North Georgia high school football Player of the Week (9/2/2024)

Cast your vote to decide who had the best performance from the opening weekend of high school football in North Georgia

Makhi Williams-Lee of Lakeside High in Atlanta, Class of 2025, participates in a defensive line drill during the 2024 Dabo Swinney Football Camp in Clemson in Clemson, S.C. Tuesday, June 4, 2024. / Ken Ruinard - staff / USA TODAY NETWORK

The 2024 Georgia high school football is off to a great start and we're tracking all of the great performance from across the state each week. Here is this week's list of top performers from North Georgia and we invite you to help determine which performance was best by voting in the Player of the Week poll.

Who had the best performance? You get to decide by casting your vote in the poll below.

Congratulations to last week's winner: Ezekiel Theodoris of Norcross.

SBLive voting polls are intended to be a fun way to create fan engagement and express support for your favorite high school athletes and teams. Unless expressly noted, there are no awards for winning the voting. Our primary focus is to highlight the abilities and accomplishments of all the athletes and teams included in our poll. You can vote as often as you wish and are encouraged to share our polls with others. The use of voting bots and other forms of automated voting are not allowed. Individuals will be removed from the poll if any form of automated voting can be verified. - SBLive Sports

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Voting closes at 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 8. The winner will be announced in the following week's poll. Here are this week's nominees:

Elijah Green, Marietta

Despite it being in a losing effort, Marietta’s Elijah Green was far from the reason. The junior hauled in five passes for 181 yards and scored a touchdown. His longest was a 77-yard reception. 

Daylan Maxwell, Jackson County

Panthers sophomore running back Daylan Maxwell turned in a huge performance in a 35-28 win over Dacula last Friday night. He carried the ball 27 times for 208 yards and scored three touchdowns in the win. 

Makhi Williams-Lee, Lakeside

Senior defensive tackle Makhi Williams-Lee was instrumental in their 26-21 win over Macon County last Friday night. He led the team in tackles with 16 and recorded three sacks. 

Andrew Overton, Mount Paran Christian

Eagles senior running back Andrew Overton was a force in their 27-3 win over St. Francis. He carried the ball 16 times for 180 yards and scored two touchdowns in the win. 

Braydon Strickland, Habersham Central

Raiders senior defensive back Braydon Strickland had himself a game in a 31-28 win over White County last Friday night. He intercepted a pass, forced a fumble and recorded six tackles in the win. 

James Skelly, North Paulding

The Wolfpack gutted out a hard-fought 26-23 win over Harrison last Friday night and junior running back James Skelly was the reason why. He rushed 20 times for 179 yards and scored three touchdowns in the win. 

Zion McGruder, Stockbridge

Tigers senior running back Zion McGruder was dominant in a 49-42 win over Locust Grove. He rushed for 131 yards on 14 carries and scored three touchdowns in the win. 

Jaylan Aquino, Drew: Senior running back Jaylan Aquino was dominant in their 47-7 win over South Cobb last Friday night. He rushed the ball 20 times for 134 yards and scored three touchdowns in the win. 

Davis Strickland, Morgan County

Bulldogs junior quarterback Davis Strickland was money in their 24-13 win over Oconee County last Friday night. He was efficient, completing 15 of 21 for 223 yards and three touchdowns. 

Elijah Hayes, West Hall

Spartans senior running back Elijah Hayes was a tough man to stop in their 31-19 win over Chestatee. He carried the ball 17 times for 201 yards and scored three touchdowns in the win. 

Jake Godfree, North Gwinnett

The son of head coach Eric Godfree was dominant in the Bulldogs’ 14-3 win on the road at Colquitt County. He led the way with a team-high 17 tackles, including 11 solo in the win. 

Skylar Spence, Ola

In what will go down as one of the best defensive games of the season, Ola eked out a 7-3 win against ELCA, and it was due in large part to the play of senior Skylar Spence, who recorded 26 tackles and a sack in the win. 

Anthony Kruah, Marietta

Senior defensive lineman did everything he could in last Friday’s loss to McEachern. He recorded nine tackles, including five for a loss. Of his five tackles for a loss, three were sacks. 

Nolan Matthews, Lumpkin County

Hart County didn’t have an answer for Indians running back Nolan Matthews. The junior rushed the ball 22 times for 116 yards and scored two touchdowns in a 28-25 win.