Top 25 Georgia high school football state rankings (10/21/2024)

Lee County climbs up to No. 5; Collins Hill regains lost ground; Lowndes and Houston County enter the rankings

Richmond Hill's stock is pointing up after last week's 35-14 blowout of then-No. 14 Valdosta. The Wildcats are 7-1 and in this week's Top 25 Georgia High School Football Rankings at No. 18. / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK

Week 9 is in the books and it featured several big-time region matchups across the state of Georgia. 

No. 1 Milton traveled to face Gainesville in a big region matchup, Collins Hill earned a very impressive bounceback win after losing to Buford, and Lee County continued its dominance this season by knocking off a previously undefeated team.

Check out how the rest of the Power 25 fared in Week 8.

1. Milton (8-0)

Last Week: 1

The Eagles wrapped up their second and final bye week of the season after beating Gainesville 42-24 on the 11th. They’ll kick off at home this Friday against John’s Creek looking to move to a perfect 9-0 on the season. 

2. Carrollton (9-0)

Last Week: 2 

The Trojans moved to 9-0 on the season last Friday after beating East Coweta 63-10. They’re off this Friday and will be back to wrap up their regular season on the road at Douglas County, which will be for the Region 2-6A championship.

3. Buford (7-1)

Last Week: 3 

The Wolves have now rattled off seven wins in a row after losing to No. 1 Milton 13-10 in the opening week of the season. They blasted Central Gwinnett 50-0 last Friday to do so, and they’ll travel to Mountain View this Friday looking to make it eight in a row. 

4. North Gwinnett (8-0)

Last Week: 4 

The Bulldogs moved to 8-0 on the season last Friday after cruising past Meadowcreek 55-6. What stands in front of them now is a game against Norcross, which is for all intents and purposes, for the Region 7-6A championship. Both the Bulldogs and Blue Devils are undefeated in region play heading into the matchup, which will be a home game for North Gwinnett. 

5. Lee County (8-0)

Last Week: 5

The Trojans continued their dominant 2024 campaign last Friday night with a 67-10 shellacking of Veterans. They’re 8-0 on the season for the first time since winning the Class 6A state championship in 2018. 

6. Collins Hill (7-1)

Last Week: 6 

The Eagles received a well-deserved week off after earning an emotional 13-12 win at home against Mill Creek. Sitting at 7-1 on the season, they’re in position to earn the No. 2 seed out of Region 8-6A if they’re able to win their last two games against Dacula and Discovery.

7. Grayson (6-1)

Last Week: 7 

The Rams are playing a football game this week! They last played a game way back on Sept. 20 against Grovetown before Hurricane Helene and the Conyers chemical fire forced them to sit on the sidelines for an entire month. They’ll get a chance to knock the rust off this Friday at South Gwinnett. 

8. Mill Creek (7-2)

Last Week: 8

The Hawks took out their frustrations on Discovery last Friday night, shutting them out 50-0 to improve to 7-2 on the year. They’ll now get two weeks to prepare for No. 3 Buford on Nov. 1 in what will be their final regular season game.

9. Thomas County Central (7-1)

Last Week: 11 

The Yellow Jackets are inching their way back up the Power 25 after another dominant performance. Since losing to No. 5 Lee County by 12 points, the Yellow Jackets have steamrolled Veterans 61-10 and Northside-Warner Robins 62-0 to improve to 7-1 on the season.

10. Douglas County (7-1)

Last Week: 9

The Tigers are down just one spot to No. 10 after having last Friday night off. They’re sitting in a great spot with two games left in their regular season. They’ll get Chapel Hill this Friday, and will then get No. 2 Carrollton at home, which will determine who wins the Region 2-6A championship. 

11. Langston Hughes (7-1)

Last Week: 10 

The Panthers are very quietly sitting at 7-1 on the season after blowing out Northgate 46-0. Playing in Region 3-5A hasn’t done them any favors this season. They’re leaps and bounds better than the other seven teams in the region, making their strength of schedule fairly weak at this point in the season.

12. Marist (8-0)

Last Week: 13

The War Eagles are back up to No. 12 in this week’s Power 25 after earning yet another shutout. This time, they shut out Clarkston 56-0 to improve to 8-0 on the season. It’s their third shutout in a row, and fifth of the season. 

13. Gainesville (7-2)

Last Week: 12 

We’ve given the Red Elephants the benefit of the doubt in recent weeks due to their strength of schedule. Their two losses have come against The Top 2 teams in the state, and with 11 spots separating them, that’s a pretty fair gap. But with them set to travel to No. 20 Roswell this Friday, we’re about to find out if their ranking is legitimate, or if they belong in Roswell’s spot come this time next week.

14. Colquitt County (5-3)

Last Week: 15 

As we head into Week 11 of the season, the Packers have taken over the top spot in Region 1-6A, a region that has turned into an absolute mess with two games left to play for each team. Yes, the Packers lost to Valdosta. It was on the road and by four points. And with Valdosta without their star quarterback in Todd Robinson last week, they’re not better than the Packers without him. That plays a major factor into how these teams are ranked this week.

15. Lowndes (7-1)

Last Week: 24 

It’s extremely hard to make a major jump up the rankings this late into the season, but that’s exactly what the Vikings are doing this week. Have we been underestimating them up until this point? Probably so. They lost on the road to Colquitt County by three points on Oct. 4, and have since won games against Tift County 26-7, and most recently, Camden County 33-7 for what is easily their most impressive win of the season.

16. North Cobb (8-0)

Last Week: 17 

The Warriors have yet to play a good football team yet, but they’re doing what they need to do to win games. They’re coming off of a 56-10 win over Cherokee, and that’s good enough to move them up one spot to No. 16 in this week’s Power 25. 

17. Norcross (7-1)

Last Week: 16 

The Blue Devils are down one spot to No. 17 in this week’s rankings after beating Berkmar 30-14 last Friday. We’re about to find out exactly what the Blue Devils are made of this Friday when they travel to face No. 4 North Gwinnett for the Region 7-6A championship. They’re not going to win the game, but how close they can keep it will determine a lot moving forward.

18. Richmond Hill (7-1)

Last Week: Not ranked  

The Wildcats are ranked for the first time this season and it comes after they blasted Valdosta 35-14. Valdosta was without star quarterback Todd Robinson, which just adds another layer of chaos to Region 1-6A. Who is the best team? Who is the second or third best team? We won’t know until everyone plays each other.

19. Valdosta (7-1)

Last Week: 14 

The Wildcats are the big losers this week, falling five spots after losing to Richmond Hill 35-14. As we’ve already stated in both the Lownes and Richmond Hill’s bios, the Wildcats were without star quarterback Todd Robinson for the game, which without a doubt played a major role. Will he be back next week? It’s hard to believe much in the Wildcats if Robinson isn’t the starting quarterback.

20. Cartersville (9-0)

Last Week: 19 

The Purple Hurricanes have dropped one spot in this week’s Power 25 despite earning a hard-fought win at Cedartown 19-14. It was easily their toughest game and opponent to date, and they were able to come away victorious on the road, which is a great sign for their state championship aspirations.

21. Roswell (7-1)

Last Week: 20

The Hornets slipped one spot this week after beating Lanier in a very high-scoring game, 59-42. Scoring 59 points against Lanier is fantastic. Giving up 42 isn’t. So it's a weird game to try and break down. And with Gainesville on the schedule for this Friday, that’s going to answer a lot of questions about both Roswell, and Gainesville.

22. Blessed Trinity (6-1)

Last Week: 21

The Titans improved to 6-1 on the season last Friday after shutting out Westminster 26-0.Their strength of schedule looks pretty good up until this point, and they’re likely going to win Region 6-4A.

23. Coffee (7-1)

Last Week: Not ranked

The Trojans fell out of the rankings last week after getting blown out on the road against No. 5 Lee County. They’re back up to No. 23 in this week’s ranking after rebounding nicely with a 14-0 home win against Houston County. They’ll get a cakewalk in Veterans this week before ending their season with a massive game against No. 9 Thomas County Central. 

24. North Oconee (8-0)

Last Week: 22 

The Titans coming in at No. 24 in this week’s Power 25 after having last week off. They’ll return to action this Friday night at home against Flowery Branch, a game they should win quite comfortably.

25. Eastside (8-1)

Last Week: 23

After losing a heartbreaker on the road at then-No. 23 North Oconee two weeks ago, the Eagles took out their frustrations on East Forsyth, blowing them out 42-7. In comparison, North Oconee handed East Forsyth their only other loss of the season 24-7.