Our Week Seven Game of the Week takes us to Tiger for the first time this season. It’s yet another state-ranked battle, as #3 Rabun County plays host to #5 Fellowship Christian.

Take notice of the D-I talent on the field: SR Willie Goodwyn is a 3-star commit to Cincinnati. SO Ty Truelove is a Power 5 QB. For Fellowship, SO CJ Givers has a Georgia Tech offer, while SO WR Evan Haynes has offers from Georgia Tech and North Carolina. Leading receiver and senior Josh Milhollin is an Army commit.

RABUN COUNTY

The Wildcats took their lumps early. A good-not-great opening win over Haralson County was expected with replacing so many starters. The 35-0 loss at Stephens County rocked the football scene, but it’s a thing of the past. A rebound win over top-10 ranked Adairsville got the team back on track, and Rabun County has gone 3-0 while outscoring opposing teams 118-40 since the loss to Stephens. Ty Truelove and Willie Goodwyn have developed a great connection, and Reid Giles is getting better with each game. The line is solid, and the defense is improving. This will be the biggest test since the Stephens game, so it’s time to see where Rabun is at.

---

FELLOWSHIP CHRISTIAN

The Paladins are the defending region champs from 8-AA, and are rocking offensively at 38.3 points per game, while allowing only 16.3. This is a well-rounded group, dropping only their out-of-state game against Trinity Christian by 3 points. A 6-point win over Class 4A Lovett came last week, which has FC feeling a lot of momentum. Legendary coach Tim McFarlin was over this program, but John Thompson has taken over. CJ Givers (SO RB) has a Georgia Tech offer, and their receiver Josh Milhollin is an Army commit.

BY THE NUMBERS (2023)

RABUN COUNTY

• 4-1 (0-0 in 8-A DI)
• Region Standings: 1st
• 32.6 OFFENSE AVG (4th in Class 1A DI)
• 19.2 DEFENSE AVG (10th in Class 1A DI)
• #3 State Ranking

FELLOWSHIP CHRISTIAN

• 3-1 (0-0 in 8-AA)
• Region Standings: 1st
• 38.3 OFFENSE AVG (9th in Class 2A)
• 16.3 DEFENSE AVG
• #5 State Ranking

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

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

OUR PREDICTION

We typically make a case for both, with our official pick linked below. Rabun County, as explained above, is trending in the perfect direction. At the season’s halfway mark, new starters are now veterans. The offense is still high-flying and explosive, and the defense has improved over the past 3 weeks. Being at home gives an automatic edge to the Cats, who will find a way to get points in this game. Defensively, this will be a big test, and if Rabun limits chunk plays and sets the offense up for success, it will be a good night. For Fellowship Christian to emerge as winners, the Paladins will have to get the ground game going. That’s been their source for offense, but Rabun is typically good at controlling the run. If FC gets up early by more than one possession, it would make Rabun reel the rest of the game. OUR PICK: SEE HERE

DO WE BRING LUCK?

For Rabun County, we’ve been to a whopping 61 games for the Wildcats since 2013. In that span, Rabun is 48-13, including 0-1 this season.

DETAILS OF THE MATCHUP

TIME: 7:30 PM Kickoff
PLACE: Rabun County HS / Tiger, GA / Frank Snyder Memorial Stadium
LAST MEETING: 2022 (#3 Rabun County 21, Fellowship Christian 16)
ALL-TIME RECORD: Rabun leads 1-0 in the all-time series
RECORDS: #3 Rabun County Wildcats (4-1; 0-0 in 8-A DI); #5 Fellowship Christian Paladins (3-1; 0-0 in 8-AA)
HEAD COACHES: Michael Davis (16-2; 2 Seasons); John Thompson (3-1; 1 Season)

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

Just one year of history, a 21-16 Rabun County win last year between the eventual region champions of their respective regions. Both coaches are fairly new as well as head coaches, but successful nonetheless.

TEAM LEADERS (2023 Stats)

*Stats accumulated by team-published data on Ga MaxPreps from this season

RABUN COUNTY

PASSING
Ty Truelove – 1,004 yds, 12 TD, 3 INT; 59% completion

RUSHING
Reid Giles – 353 yds, 5 TD, 9.8 YPC
Noah English – 244 yds, 2 TD, 5.5 YPC
Ty Truelove – 210 yds, 2 TD, 6.4 YPC

RECEIVING
Willie Goodwyn – 557 yds, 8 TD, 21 rec
Paul Picciotti – 205 yds, 1 TD, 15 rec
Reid Giles – 127 yds, 1 TD, 6 rec
Cooper Welch – 89 yds, 1 TD, 7 rec
Jarret Giles – 32 yds, 1 TD, 2 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Noah English – 52 TKL, 3 TFL
Elvis Hunt – 48 TKL, 2 TFL, 1 FR, 1 FF
Riley Stewart – 31 TKL, 3 TFL, 1 FF
Reid Giles – 25 TKL, 7 TFL
Celton Littrell – 19 TKL, 1 FR
Paul Picciotti – 19 TKL, 1 TFL, 1 INT
Jarret Giles – 13 TKL, 2 TFL
Willie Goodwyn – 8 TKL, 1 INT

FELLOWSHIP CHRISTIAN (missing 2 games of stats on defense)

PASSING
Jonathan Granby – 532 yds, 5 TD, 0 INT; 49% completion

RUSHING
CJ Givers – 588 yds, 9 TD, 8.7 YPC
Jonathan Granby – 48 yds, 0 TD, 6.0 YPC

RECEIVING
Josh Milhollin – 258 yds, 2 TD, 13 rec
Evan Haynes – 203 yds, 3 TD, 7 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Charles Sharp – 17 TKL, 1 TFL, 1 INT
James Burrell – 13 TKL, 1 TFL
Joshua Petty – 9 TKL, 2 TFL, 2 Sacks