Our Week Eight Game of the Week takes us to Dahlonega for the first time this season, where everything is golden, especially with its football team. The #7-ranked Lumpkin County Indians take on a gritty Gilmer Bobcats team.

LUMPKIN COUNTY

The Indians are carrying an offense that ranks inside the top-5 in the state, as Mason Sullens and his 1,119 rushing yards and 18 TDs have this group averaging 39.17 points per game. Sullens is officially the state leader in rushing yards! Every game has been 30-plus points, including 3 40-point performances. The defense meanwhile is also a top-10 unit (6th), holding opposing teams to 13.17 per game. Only 2 times this season has Lumpkin allowed more than 14 points. With a 2-0 start to region play, the undefeated, #7-ranked Indians are as good as the hype that surrounds them.

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GILMER

The Bobcats are a solid 4-2, and have an offense that regularly scores in the 30s (4 out of 6 games). In fact, if Gilmer hits 30, they have won each of those games. The defense is pretty good also, despite what the average shows at 20.33. The Bobcats gave up 50 to Wesleyan and 38 to Fannin County. Those were the 2 losses. In the 4 wins, they have given up a combined 34 points (8.5/game).

BY THE NUMBERS (2023)

LUMPKIN COUNTY

• 6-0 (2-0 in 7-AAA)
• Region Standings: 1st
• 39.17 OFFENSE AVG (2nd in Class 3A)
• 13.17 DEFENSE AVG (6th in Class 3A)
• #7 State Ranking

GILMER

• 4-2 (1-1 in 7-AAA)
• Region Standings: T-3rd
• 30.83 OFFENSE AVG
• 20.33 DEFENSE AVG
• N/A State Ranking

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Be looking for highlights post-game late tonight as well as a story recapping Week Eight. BLITZ partners with Fox 5’s 11 PM “High 5 Sports” show throughout the season. We make sure to get Lumpkin 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. Let’s start with the home team. The Indians have an incredible mix of a top-5 ranked offense and top-10 defense. They win if they stick to what’s working for them. They will win this game whether they have to spread the field out and pass more, or if they just have to run Mason Sullens and limit Cal Faulkner to 3 throws (like last week over Wesleyan). If they do what they do, and take care of the football, they should win comfortably. For the visiting Bobcats of Gilmer to pull of a massive upset, it would mean the Bobcats’ stable of running backs has several chunk plays, eats up the clock, and moves the chain gang. The defense will have to play extremely well and do what no one has yet – stop Sullens. OUR PICK: SEE HERE

DO WE BRING LUCK?

For Lumpkin County, we’ve been to 18 games for the Indians since 2009. In that span, Lumpkin is 5-13.

DETAILS OF THE MATCHUP

TIME: 7:30 PM Kickoff
PLACE: Lumpkin County HS / Dahlonega, GA / The Burial Grounds / Cottrell Field
LAST MEETING: 2022 (Lumpkin County 31, Gilmer 28)
ALL-TIME RECORD: Gilmer leads 25-11-3 in the all-time series
RECORDS: #7 Lumpkin County Indians (6-0; 2-0 in 7-AAA); Gilmer Bobcats (4-2; 1-1 in 7-AAA)
HEAD COACHES: Heath Webb (75-70; 14 Seasons); Paul Standard (186-86; 23 Seasons)

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

This rivalry goes back a bit to 1974. Lumpkin won that first meeting 8-7, they tied the 1975 version 0-0 (not a typo), and the Indians also won 27-0 in 1976. Gilmer then won or tied the next 17 games until Lumpkin County won in 1994. Gilmer still won the next 5 in a row and 8 of the next 10. In 2018 and 2019, the Indians won the battle. Gilmer interrupted the streak with a win in 2020, but Lumpkin won 32-30 in 2021 and 31-28 in 2022.

These two coaches have a lot of years between them, 37 years to be exact. They’ve only crossed paths last year though, with Webb’s Indians prevailing over Standard’s Bobcats. Standard has 186 wins and 8 region titles, and Webb has 75 wins and seeking his first region crown.

TEAM LEADERS (2023 Stats)

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

LUMPKIN COUNTY

PASSING
Cal Faulkner – 573 yds, 5 TD, 0 INT; 65% completion

RUSHING
Mason Sullens – 1,119 yds, 18 TD, 7.1 YPC
Cal Faulkner – 442 yds, 7 TD, 6.0 YPC
Jackson Bell – 54 yds, 2 TD, 4.9 YPC
Gerald Walker, Jr. – 43 yds, 1 TD, 10.8 YPC

RECEIVING
Luke Evans – 321 yds, 3 TD, 25 rec
Nolan Matthews – 91 yds, 1 TD, 9 rec
Harper Davenport – 62 yds, 0 TD, 7 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Will Wood – 45 TKL, 1 FF
Nate Gilleland – 35 TKL, 1 TFL
Gerald Walker, Jr. – 30 TKL, 2 TFL, 4 Sacks, 1 INT
Connor Greilich – 26 TKL, 3 TFL
Preston Cox – 25 TKL, 1 TFL, 2 Sacks, 1 FR
Connor Bagley – 25 TKL, 2 TFL, 1 Sack
Harper Davenport – 18 TKL, 2 INT
Trenton Brooksher – 14 TKL, 4 TFL, 1 Sack
Dakota Bennett – 12 TKL, 1 Sack

GILMER

PASSING
Issac Rellinger – 291 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT, 42% completion

RUSHING
Wyatt Stokes – 564 yds, 3 TD, 6.0 YPC
Hunter Britain – 339 yds, 4 TD, 10.0 YPC
Issac Rellinger – 314 yds, 4 TD, 9.0 YPC
Kyle Cowart – 198 yds, 4 TD, 11.0 YPC
Douglas Callihan – 162 yds, 3 TD, 10.1 YPC
Peyton Chancey – 142 yds, 2 TD, 10.1 YPC
Grant Ballew – 65 yds, 3 TD, 5.9 YPC

RECEIVING
Grant Ballew – 80 yds, 2 TD, 4 rec
Ryder Wofford – 60 yds, 0 TD, 1 rec
Douglas Callihan – 8 yds, 1 TD, 1 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
*No defensive stats published*