Our State Championship Game of the Week takes us to the Mercedes Benz in Atlanta! This is a rematch of the 2012 State Championship between the Jefferson Dragons and Calhoun Yellow Jackets.

JEFFERSON

Jefferson (11-3) had to buckle down at the end of the Semifinals win over LaGrange, as a very intense catch/no-catch in the end zone was ruled incomplete, and the Dragons survived. It marked a perfect record at home in 2024, going 9-0. The #1-ranked and top-seeded Dragons have leaned heavily on Gavin Markey, who has now more rushing yards (1,568) than passing (1,428), and 39 total TDs (16 passing, 23 rushing). The defense allowed some big chunk plays, but also limited the run game significantly. The result was allowing 13 points – marking a 9th time this season in allowing 14 or fewer points. For the first time since 2020, Jefferson is playing for a state title. They average 15.9 defensively, and have 2 players (Rett Hemphill and Max Brown) with 130+ tackles.

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CALHOUN

Calhoun (11-3) started the season 1-3, playing against all larger classification schools. Since they started region play though, the Region Champion Yellow Jackets reeled off 10 consecutive wins, including the 4 playoff victories to get here. In that span against its own classification, Calhoun is 10-0 with a 35.8 offensive average and 11.9 defense. That’s extremely impressive. Freshman QB Trace Hawkins had a monster 4-TD passing game. This program is used to big games, playing in the title game for the 10th time (first since 2021). They last won in 2017. Hawkins’ favorite target has been SR Emaree Winston. He’s a 4-star TE Texas signee. Limited that duo will be a tough assignment

BY THE NUMBERS (2024)

JEFFERSON

• 11-3 (8-AAA Champions)
• Region Standings: 1st
• 34.5 OFFENSE AVG
• 15.93 DEFENSE AVG
• #1 State Ranking

CALHOUN

• 11-3 (7-AAA Champions)
• Region Standings: 1st
• 30.57 OFFENSE AVG
• 15.86 DEFENSE AVG
• #5 State Ranking

GAME HIGHLIGHTS

Be looking for highlights post-game later tonight as well as a story recapping the Championship. 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. If they can do more of what they did in the first 3 games of the playoffs, they’ll win. Last game, several penalties and a few huge passing plays allowed for LaGrange to nearly come back and steal that one. If Jefferson plays clean football, they will win. Calhoun is dangerous. They’ve won 10 straight for a reason. If freshman QB Trace Hawkins stays within the game plan, and 4-star Emaree Winston gets multiple looks in the red zone, it could favor the Yellow Jackets. OUR PICK: SEE HERE

DO WE BRING LUCK?

We’ve been witness to 27 Jefferson games dating back to 2013. In that span, the Dragons have rewarded that by going 24-3, including 12 straight wins going back to the 2022 season.

DETAILS OF THE MATCHUP

TIME: 4 PM Kickoff
PLACE: Mercedes Benz Stadium / Atlanta, GA
LAST MEETING: 2012: #7 Jefferson 31, #1 Calhoun 14 (State Championship)
ALL-TIME RECORD: Series is even 1-1
RECORDS: #1 Jefferson Dragons (11-3) vs #5 Calhoun Yellow Jackets (11-3)
HEAD COACHES: Travis Noland (221-96; 27 Seasons); Clay Stephenson (57-20; 6 Seasons)

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

This is so fitting. The last time Jefferson and Calhoun met was in the Georgia Dome back in 2012 on December 15 that year. In that, #7 Jefferson shocked #1 Calhoun with a 31-14 win to claim the GHSA State Championship. The teams squared off the year before as well, as Calhoun won 39-6 in the opening round of the playoffs that year.

TEAM LEADERS (2024 Stats)

*Stats accumulated by team-published data on Ga MaxPreps

JEFFERSON

PASSING
Gavin Markey – 1,428 pass yds, 16 TD, 6 INT

RUSHING
Gavin Markey – 1,568 yds, 23 TD
Dallas Russell – 877 yds, 11 TD
Mickell Pittman – 415 yds, 4 TD
Rett Hemphill – 369 yds, 7 TD

RECEIVING
Talan Childress – 521 yds, 6 TD, 25 rec
Dalton Dye – 433 yds, 5 TD, 26 rec
Rett Hemphill – 158 yds, 1 TD
RJ Hinton – 157 yds, 3 TD, 11 rec
Dallas Russell – 87 yds, 1 TD
Joshua Causey – 20 yds, 1 TD, 3 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Max Brown – 140 TKL, 13 TFL, 2 Sacks, 3 FR, 1 FF
Rett Hemphill – 131 TKL, 11 TFL, 4 Sacks, 7 INT, 1 FR, 2 BLK
Jayden Yang – 88 TKL, 4 TFL, 1 Sack, 1 FR, 1 FF, 1 BLK
Kelan Butler – 85 TKL, 12 TFL, 5 Sacks, 1 FF, 1 BLK
Dashaun Keith – 60 TKL, 3 INT
Darren Pinkard – 59 TKL, 12 TFL, 5 Sacks, 1 FR

CALHOUN

PASSING
Trace Hawkins – 1,893 yds, 23 TD, 1 INT

RUSHING
Isiah Nails – 916 yds, 5 TD
Hudson Chadwick – 516 yds, 4 TD
Trace Hawkins – 307 yds, 4 TD

RECEIVING
Justin Beasley – 985 yds, 18 TD, 69 rec
Emaree Winston – 505 yds, 4 TD, 34 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Alec Upshaw – 81 TKL, 5 TFL, 4 Sacks
Blake Hammett – 56 TKL, 2 TFL, 3 Sacks