The high school football season in Georgia is ready to kick off Week 8 and there are some important games involving Savannah area teams on the slate for Friday, Oct. 9.
Benedictine is set to renew its rivalry with Jenkinsas the teams are both playing in Region 1-5A this year.
Richmond Hill is looking to bounce back from its first loss of the season as the Wildcats
open Region 1-7A play with Colquitt County coming to town.Here's a look at the Week 8 schedule of games and four games to watch involving teams from the Greater Savannah area.
Jenkins (3-3, 3-0) at Benedictine (5-1, 3-0), Friday, Oct. 9, at Memorial Stadium, 7:30 p.m.
Jenkins has won three straight after losing to Lowndes, Calvary Day and Richmond Hill in their first three games.
The Warriors have some playmakers on both sides of the ball.
Torean Wilson has taken over as the starting
quarterback and has thrown for 311 yards and two scores and run for 307 yards and four scores. Jaylon Elliott is another versatile weapon as the senior has rushed for 344 yards and six touchdowns, while adding 68 yards receiving.
Junior Tasean Rhodes leads the team with eight total touchdowns. He has three rushing, two receiving and three on kickoff returns and has a team-high 749 all-purpose yards.
Jayden Hooper, another speedster, leads the squad with eight catches for 224 yards and two scores.
Senior Branden Brown leads the team with 53 tackles at linebacker and Ronnie Taylor, the senior safety committed to the University of Delaware, has 31 stops. Rhodes is also a factor defensively with a team-high three interceptions and four passes defended with 13 tackles.
Benedictine has been clicking in all three phases of the game. The offense has been on fire behind Omari Burse at quarterback as the senior has thrown for 1,044 yards with 13 touchdowns and one interception, while completing 60% of this throws, he has also run for 251 yards and six scores ― averaging 7.4 yards per carry.
Senior Stanley Smart Jr. lead the ground game as the Virginia Tech commit has rushed for 775 yards and seven scores with his combination of speed and power.
Purdue-bound senior Eron Mallard has 29 receptions for 615 yards and eight touchdowns and has run for 299 yards and three scores. The Cadets hope he's back in action after he missed the win over Evans last week with an injury.
Don'Trey Ford got significant playing time in Mallard's absence and had a breakout game with 154 yards rushing on seven carries, including a 90-yard scoring run, and a 40-yard touchdown reception.
Senior Cole Henderson is another versatile offensive weapon with 11 catches for 194 yards and four scores to go along with 235 yards rushing and a touchdown.
The Cadet defense is led by senior linebacker Rasheen Jackson who has 58 tackles and William Brown IV, the sophomore linebacker who has 42 stops. Junior linebacker Caden Thomas has 26 tackles, with four for losses and a pair of sacks. Peyton Bean leads the team with a pair of interceptions and four pass break ups to go along with 35 tackles.
BC coach Danny Britt, who picked up his 200th career win last week against Evans, said Jenkins is a tough, well-coached team.
"Jenkins has some great athletes who have the ability to make those big plays," Britt said. "Coach (Tony) Welch does a good job with his team and they always play hard. We've been playing at a high pace offensively and running the ball really well."
Britt said the offensive line featuring junior center Finn Kelly, senior tackle Noah Brainard, junior tackle Reef Leonard, guards Turner Walker and Everett Nelson and Erin Brown have led the way.
Colquitt County (4-2, 0-0) at Richmond Hill (5-1, 0-0), Friday, Oct. 9, 7 p.m.
Richmond Hill is looking to bounce back from its first loss of the season, a 24-23 setback at East Coweta where a last second Wildcat field goal attempt was blocked.
Now the Wildcats are looking to get their first win over Colquitt County in their fifth all-time matchup with the Packers.
Packer quarterback Khi Mitchell has thrown for 986 yards with nine touchdowns and six interceptions and run for a team-high 356 yards and three scores. Jason Stephenson Jr. and Denim Lewis have combined for 455 yards rushing and nine touchdowns.
Senior receiver Antwan Lockett, who has committed to Georgia Tech, has 25 catches for 437 yards and four scores.
Safety Josh Alford leads the team with 44 tackles and has a plethora of offers including Georgia Southern, App State and Eastern Carolina. Linebacker McKenzie Graham (29 tackles and a sack) holds offers including Louisville and Mississippi State.
Richmond Hill is a balanced, talented squad.
Quarterback Gunner Mobley has thrown for 694 yards with eight touchdowns and three interceptions. Running back CJ Menzie has 561 yards rushing and three touchdowns.
Liberty University commit Eli Grant is a two-way star who leads the team with 20 catches for 332 yards and five scores, while leading the team with two interceptions. Nick Cameron has 16 receptions for 183 yards and four touchdowns.
Layton Steigelman (34 tackles) and Jaylon Deal (31 tackles) are top-notch linebackers playing behind star defensive tackle Tre Brown, who has committed to play at Gardner-Webb.
Greenbrier (2-4, 1-2) at Bradwell Institute (4-2, 2-1), Friday, Oct. 9, 7:30 p.m.
Greenbrier is going to have its hands full trying to slow down the explosive Bradwell offense that is averaging 45 points per game behind senior quarterback Jah'Barri Felix, who was named the Georgia High School Football Daily's Player of the Week after his performance in a win over Brunswick last week.
Felix threw for 355 yards and four scores in the win and ran for 123 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries in the win over Brunswick. On the season, he has 1,334 yards passing with 20 touchdowns and just one interception with 191 yards rushing and five more scores.
Senior Cameron Keeve leads the team with 718 yards rushing and 10 touchdowns ― averaging 11.2 yards per carry and has 10 catches for 295 yards and four scores.
West Virginia commit Jacobi Pasley leads the team with 24 receptions for 542 yards and six scores and his classmate, Carlito Savea, is also a big threat with 20 catches for 387 and five scores.
Offensive lineman Cameron Perry, the 6-foot-5, 310-pounder who has committed to Gardner-Webb, is having an excellent season under first-year coach John Adams, who won a pair of state crowns in his time at Cedar Grove.
SE Bulloch (2-4, 0-2) at Windsor Forest (3-2, 0-1), Friday, Oct. 9, at Islands Stadium, 7:30 p.m.
Windsor Forest is coming off a last-second loss to Liberty County in a 24-19 setback where the Panthers scored to win in the final seconds.
The Knights are greatly improved under first-year coach Mac Martin, whose son Jayden Martin is putting up big numbers and picking up big-time offers with his play behind center.
Martin has completed 61% of his passes for 935 yards with six touchdowns and four interceptions and has rushed for a team-high 525 yards and seven touchdowns. He has picked up recent offers from Purdue and Wake Forest.
Jaimeer Duncan has rushed for 310 yards on 63 carries and three scores and junior Dwane Franklin is the leading receiver with 19 receptions for 359 yards and three scores.
Linebacker Malachi Daniels is have a stellar senior season for the Knights with a team-high 53 tackles. He recently picked up his first college offer from Savannah State.
Thursday, Oct. 8
Bryan County at Calvary Day, 7 p.m. *
Friday, Oct. 9
Colquitt County at Richmond Hill, 7 p.m. *
Greenbrier at Bradwell *
Jenkins at Benedictine (Memorial Stadium) *
Groves at Wayne County *
Long County at Liberty County *
SE Bulloch at Windsor Forest * (Islands Stadium)
Appling County at Beach * (Groves Stadium)
Brantley County at Johnson * (Savannah High Stadium)
Savannah High at Screven County *
Metter at Savannah Christian (Pooler Stadium) *
Hilton Head Christian at Bethesda *
Savannah Country Day at Bulloch Academy *
Dennis Knight covers sports for the Savannah Morning News. Contact him at Dknight@savannahnow.com. Twitter: @DennisKnightSMN
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Four Savannah area high school football games to watch in Week 8
