Our Semifinals Game of the Week takes us to Jefferson for the sixth time this season in a Semifinals with a State Championship game on the line.

JEFFERSON

Even with a tied game with just over 7 minutes to go, nobody really ever doubted this team. Jefferson reeled off two Gavin Markey TDs from that point on, including a 68-yd score to seal the win. The Dragons have now won 8 straight home games, with all of them scoring at least 35 points and giving up more than 14 just twice. The trio on defense of Rett Hemphill, Max Brown, and Kelan Butler have been unrivaled. And Markey is playing a style of ball in which he is running for nearly 10 yards per tote, turning a 5-yd gain into 25 by keeping his lower body moving. He then puts the ball in the baskets of his receivers when he needs to. Right now, this is the top team in the state until someone proves otherwise.

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LAGRANGE

The Grangers have played all their playoff games on the road, and have beaten Lumpkin County, Sandy Creek, and North Hall by a combined 135-45. LaGrange might be a #20-seed, but this is the #3-ranked team overall in 3A. And their bell-cow back, Malachi Render-Fannin, is an underrated player, committed to Liberty. He’s only 5’8, but packs a punch and has well over 2,000 yards and 30 TDs this season.

BY THE NUMBERS (2024)

JEFFERSON

• 10-3 (8-AAA Champions)
• Region Standings: 1st
• 35.54 OFFENSE AVG
• 16.15 DEFENSE AVG
• #1 State Ranking

LAGRANGE

• 10-3 (2-AAA Runner-Up)
• Region Standings: 3rd
• 36.08 OFFENSE AVG
• 15.62 DEFENSE AVG
• #3 State Ranking

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Be looking for highlights post-game later tonight as well as a story recapping the Semifinals. BLITZ partners with Fox 5’s 11 PM “High 5 Sports” show throughout the season. We make sure to get Jefferson 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 begin with the Dragons. First off, as usual, they’re at home. We said this the last couple of weeks too, but going 8-0 at home is all you need to know about playing at Memorial Stadium. Last week, Jefferson played clean ball and limited mistakes like turnovers and penalties. They rode the OLine to victory, as Gavin Markey had his running lanes and maximized them. If that recipe holds for this week, it’s a Dragons win. For LaGrange, Malachi Render-Fannin can bleed the clock. If he runs 3 yards and a cloud of dust, and keeps the Dragons defense on the field, it could be a win for the Grangers, especially if they convert most of those drives into points. OUR PICK: SEE HERE

DO WE BRING LUCK?

We’ve been witness to 26 Jefferson games dating back to 2013. In that span, the Dragons have rewarded that by going 23-3, including 11 straight wins going back to the 2022 season.

DETAILS OF THE MATCHUP

TIME: 7:30 PM Kickoff
PLACE: Jefferson HS / Jefferson, GA / Memorial Stadium
LAST MEETING: N/A
ALL-TIME RECORD: This is the first-ever meeting
RECORDS: #1 Jefferson Dragons (10-3) vs #3 LaGrange Grangers (10-3)
HEAD COACHES: Travis Noland (220-96; 27 Seasons); Matt Napier (44-16; 5 Seasons)

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

These sides have never squared off against each other. Tonight makes history.

TEAM LEADERS (2024 Stats)

*Stats accumulated by team-published data on Ga MaxPreps

JEFFERSON

PASSING
Gavin Markey – 1,287 pass yds, 16 TD, 6 INT

RUSHING
Gavin Markey – 1,445 yds, 21 TD
Dallas Russell – 808 yds, 10 TD
Rett Hemphill – 373 yds, 7 TD
Mickell Pittman – 402 yds, 4 TD

RECEIVING
Talan Childress – 494 yds, 6 TD, 23 rec
Dalton Dye – 419 yds, 5 TD, 25 rec
RJ Hinton – 143 yds, 3 TD, 10 rec
Rett Hemphill – 84 yds, 1 TD
Dallas Russell – 75 yds, 1 TD
Joshua Causey – 20 yds, 1 TD, 3 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS (missing Quarterfinals stats)
Max Brown – 115 TKL, 10 TFL, 2 Sacks, 3 FR, 1 FF
Rett Hemphill – 110 TKL, 10 TFL, 3 Sacks, 5 INT, 1 FR, 2 BLK
Kelan Butler – 74 TKL, 10 TFL, 5 Sacks, 1 FF, 1 BLK
Jayden Yang – 73 TKL, 4 TFL, 1 Sack, 1 FR, 1 BLK
Dashaun Keith – 54 TKL, 3 INT
Darren Pinkard – 50 TKL, 10 TFL, 5 Sacks, 1 FR

LAGRANGE

PASSING
Dylan Barber – 900-plus yds, 10-plus TD

RUSHING
Malachi Render-Fannin – 2,135 yds, 29 TD
Dylan Barber – 900-plus yds, 10-plus TD

RECEIVING
Denorayon Reid – 300-plus yds, 5 TD

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Spencer Stroud – 1st Team All-Region
Harris Grace – 1st Team All-Region
Denorayon Reid – 2nd Team All-Region
Clanton Reisinger – 2nd Team All-Region
Nehemiah McLaughlin – 2nd Team All-Region
Braylon Smith – 2nd Team All-Region
Corn Brown – 2nd Team All-Region
Kayden Sutton – 2nd Team All-Region