Our Round Two Game of the Week takes us to The Reservation in a game that in all fairness should be a semifinals or quarterfinals matchup. These are two powerhouse teams going at it in the second round.

STEPHENS COUNTY

What a win for the Indians. After the letdown against Hebron Christian on senior night, Stephens County stormed back as Javin Gordon made his return in the lineup. What transpired against Wesleyan was a fireworks show. From the opening kick, a TD by Cam Lacy, the Indians made no doubt about it. Ben Stowe threw TD passes to Lacy and Corey Richie, Gordon rolled up over 200 yards and 2 TD on the ground, and TJ Everett scored as well. Everything was fantastic, and exactly what the expectation is for Stephens County (sky high)! This team is looking for a historic quarterfinals berth.

SANDY CREEK

Somehow not winning their region, the Fighting Patriots enter at 9-2 overall and with an offense that scores 39 per game. Their defense is impressive as well, allowing 18.1. The lone slip-ups came against Class 7A’s East Coweta (23-20) and #1-ranked Cedar Grove (49-34) within region. Looking at the numbers, Geimere Latimer (SR QB) has passed for 1,943 yards and 27 TD to 6 INT. He also has 483 rushing yards and 8 TD. He’s the one the Indians are looking to limit. Brother and freshman Amari Latimer has 607 rushing yards to lead the team, and 7 TD. Those two account for well over 3,000 yards of offense, which is nearly 90-percent of the output for this team. And don’t forget the team’s best athlete, 4-star DB Kaleb Cost. He’s headed to North Carolina and every bit as good as advertised.

BY THE NUMBERS (2022)

STEPHENS COUNTY

• 9-2 (4-1 in 8-AAA)
• Region Standings: Region Champions
• 32.1 OFFENSE AVG (10th in Class 3A)
• 13.6 DEFENSE AVG (4th in Class 3A)
• #3 State Ranking

SANDY CREEK

• 9-2 (2-1 in 5-AAA)
• Region Standings: Region Runner-Up
• 39.0 OFFENSE AVG (4th in Class 3A)
• 18.1 DEFENSE AVG (10th in Class 3A)
• #2 State Ranking

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Be looking for highlights post-game late tonight as well as a story recapping Round Two. BLITZ partners with Fox 5’s 11 PM “High 5 Sports” show throughout the season. We make sure to get Stephens County coverage on the big market show! You can also follow us on Twitter (@BlitzSportsGa) for live score updates (5G pending).

OUR PREDICTION

As per usual, we give you the case for both to win. For the Indians, they are at home. Playing at The Reservation means you have to earn every yard and every win. This is a top-10 offense and defense, and in games like this, where the opponent is also top-10 on both sides, defense usually plays. For that, Stephens County has the better defense, and have been more than battle-tested this season in the toughest region in Georgia in 8-AAA. If the Indians defense stays true to average of 13.6, or even below 20, we think Stephens County wins this game. Sandy Creek’s region does contain #1-ranked Cedar Grove, and #4-ranked Carver as well, so that’s worth considering. Sandy Creek has the Latimer brothers that are doing all the damage, and they score almost at will. If they score early and often, it would deflate Stephens County’s elite defense and likely cruise to a win. That’s the case for both, but we have a clear prediction… OUR PICK: SEE HERE

DO WE BRING LUCK?

We have seen 23 Stephens County games over the years, and the Indians have gone 13-10 in such contests. That includes going 2-1 this season. This will actually be the first playoff game we’ve seen for Stephens County.

DETAILS OF THE MATCHUP

TIME: 7:30 PM Kickoff
PLACE: Stephens County HS / Toccoa, GA / The Reservation
LAST MEETING: N/A
ALL-TIME RECORD: N/A
RECORDS: #3 Stephens County Indians (9-2; Region Champions 8-AAA); #2 Sandy Creek Patriots (9-2; Region Runner-Up in 5-AAA)
HEAD COACHES: Wesley Tankersley (95-68; 15 Seasons); Brett Garvin (44-19; 6 Seasons)

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

These two programs have never linked up.

TEAM LEADERS (2022 Stats)

*Stats accumulated by team-published data on Ga Maxpreps

STEPHENS COUNTY

PASSING
Ben Stowe – 1,757 yds, 17 TD, 3 INT, 55% completion

RUSHING
Javin Gordon – 969 yds, 13 TD, 5.6 YPC
TJ Everett – 396 yds, 6 TD, 5.0 YPC
Brock Tankersley – 175 yds, 3 TD, 4.4 YPC
Ben Stowe – 109 yds, 2 TD, 2.3 YPC

RECEIVING
Cam Lacy – 778 yds, 10 TD, 40 rec
Corey Richie – 465 yds, 3 TD, 30 rec
Jasec Smth – 352 yds, 3 TD, 27 rec
Javin Gordon – 87 yds, 1 TD, 6 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Ritt Tankersley – 97 TKL, 8 TFL, 4 Sacks, 1 FF
Corey Richie – 96 TKL, 2 TFL, 4 INT, 2 FF
Nathan Walker – 88 TKL, 20 TFL, 8 Sacks, 1 FR
Raven Wilson – 84 TKL, 15 TFL, 5 Sacks
Jasec Smith – 76 TKL, 2 TFL, 3 INT, 2 FR, 2 FF, 1 BLK
Dawson Childs – 75 TKL, 14 TFL, 1 Sack
Aidan Butts – 69 TKL, 23 TFL, 16 Sacks, 4 FF
Aaron Maxwell – 62 TKL, 16 TFL, 7 Sacks, 3 FR
Isaac Defoor – 32 TKL, 3 INT, 1 FR
Cam Lacy 15 TKL, 2 INT

SANDY CREEK

PASSING
Geimere Latimer – 1,943 yds, 27 TD, 6 INT, 58% completion

RUSHING
Amari Latimer – 607 yds, 9 TD, 5.9 YPC
Geimere Latimer – 483 yds, 8 TD, 5.4 YPC
Dorian Graham – 217 yds, 5 TD, 11.7 YPC
Travis Franklin – 108 yds, 2 TD, 9.0 YPC

RECEIVING
Cameron Watts – 562 yds, 10 TD, 27 rec
Kaleb Cost – 506 yds, 5 TD, 29 rec
Keyshon Kenny – 269 yds, 4 TD, 15 rec
Dalen Penson – 220 yds, 3 TD, 13 rec
Rich Vanzant – 186 yds, 2 TD, 10 rec
Amari Latimer – 154 yds, 2 TD, 20 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Travis Franklin – 42 TKL, 1 INT
Travius Franklin – 34 TKL, 8 TFL, 3 Sacks
Joel Reid – 34 TKL, 3 TFL, 3 Sacks
Mathis Haygood – 29 TKL, 9 TFL, 4 Sacks
Marcellius Pulliam – 27 TKL, 2 TFL, 2 Sacks, 1 INT
William Lyles – 26 TKL, 6 TFL, 8 Sacks
Cameron Watts – 10 TKL, 3 INT