Class 6A Football - Previewing each of the eight regions

Ahead of the 2025 season, I will be previewing every single team in Class 6A. Every team from down south in Valdosta to those metro Atlanta and each program in between. Each region will be its own article, this article will cover each of the teams in Region 2 - Carrollton, Chapel Hill, Douglas County, East Coweta and Westlake.

Carrollton

2024 Results: 14-1 (4-0, 1st in region)

Key Losses: Juju Lewis, Zelus Hicks, Shamar Arnoux

Carrollton has been to the state championship two times in the past three years and are looking to make it three in four in 2025. The Trojans enter 2025 without star QB Juju Lewis for the first time in three years following his departure to Colorado.

Trying to fill a Lewis-sized hole will be difficult, but Carrollton has multiple faces ready to take on the challenge. One name looking to replace Lewis is CJ Cypher. Cypher follows a similar path to Lewis. He is a prodigy who has multiple offers before ever playing a high school snap, and even if he does not start immediately, he is most certainly the future of Carrollton football.

Mason Holtzclaw is the projected starter, a senior 3-star quarterback who recently transferred from North Carolina.

Dylan Bishop is the returning backup and has learned the system with Lewis, and 2025 could be his year to take the reins.

Carrollton will need to work together in order to overcome more than just the loss of Lewis, but also the loss of many stars in its 2025 graduating class.

“We’re trying to become more united and work better together. We’re learning how to trust each other, communicate more, and help one another out. Instead of just thinking about ourselves, we’re focusing on what’s best for the whole team. We want to be more like one strong unit,” sophomore defensive back Tyler Boyd told Score Atlanta’s Wesley Powell.

Score Atlanta’s Powell’s player to watch for Carrollton is Peyton Zachary. Zachary had 969 yards last season in 15 games and caught 10 touchdowns. He is a speedster that can take out DBs in an instant. He will be a senior in 2025 and is currently committed to UNLV, with schools like Georgia and Tennessee going after him. Under head coach Joey King, Zachary’s game has gone to the next level.

“He’s a great coach and he helps me grow in every aspect of the game mentally and physically. By making sure I pay attention to details. He’s a student of the game himself and has been on many different levels with coaching so he knows what it takes,” Zachary said.

Carrollton takes on Woodward Academy to open up its 2025 campaign. They follow that up versus Columbia, Rome, and Lithia Springs. Then the Trojans play Gainesville in what will likely be one of the biggest games in the state in 2025. If those first few games were not hard enough, they will take on Alabama powerhouse Parker at home.

Things will not get any easier in the region. They open region play following a bye week by hitting the road to Westlake, taking on Chapel Hill the next week. They will close out region play versus East Coweta and then the all-important potential region championship against Douglas County on Halloween.

Chapel Hill

2024 Results: 1-9 (0-4, 5th in region) Key losses

Key Losses: Chisom Emengu, Jackson Thompson, Sean Kendrick

Chapel Hill returns in 2025 with aspirations to get back to the 6A playoffs as it did in 2023 when the Panthers won eight games.

The Panthers will have their work cut out for them, but they are more than capable of making a run.

Powell’s player to watch for Chapel Hill is Nehemiah Ackey. Ackey is in the Class of 2026 and plays at both defensive back and running back. At safety, Ackey makes big plays and lays big hits, and he can use his speed on both sides of the ball to create mismatches.

The first three games of Chapel Hill’s season will be home games versus Campbell, Osborne, and Etowah. After those three, Chapel Hill travels away for three-straight games to close out non-region play against Central Gwinnett, Manchester, and Centennial.

The Panthers will get a bye before starting region games. The first region matchup will be at Carrollton. They will only host one region game this year versus Westlake and they will close out the 2025 regular season at Douglas County and East Coweta (Halloween).

Douglas County

2024 Results: 11-3 (3-1, 2nd in region)

Key Losses: James Johnson, Micheal Hastie, Jalen Ray

Douglas County has a reloaded roster heading into this season which is arguably the best in the state. With a new quarterback in Mike Johnson (from Dutchtown) and a few more transfers Douglas County has the tools to win 6A this season. The Tigers are coming off back-to-back semifinal appearances and will look to finally get over the hump in 2025.

Douglas County first will have to get through its own region which would be its second region title with head coach Johnny White. Coach White is one of the best coaches in the state and has already had three double-digit win seasons with the program.

With Douglas County, you could hold a lottery to find out what player you are going to watch for the day. However, if you want one guy you can not take your eyes off, it is Aaron Gregory. Gregory is one of the best wide receivers in the country and watching him lives up to the hype. Last season he totaled 914 yards and nine touchdowns despite being in a receiving core that has multiple power four and division one players. Gregory is committed to Texas A&M.

Douglas County is not hiding away from how good its own talent is. The Tigers know how talented they are and scheduled one of the most difficult schedules in the state. Starting the Tigers off will be a primetime game in Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the Corky Kell & Dave Hunter Classic versus North Gwinnett. This game will be broadcast live on Atlanta News First and the Peachtree Sports Network, and will stream digitally on the Atlanta News First app and the National Federation High School (NFHS) Network. Things will not get any easier over the coming weeks when the Tigers travel to Jonesboro, or the following week versus Newton. They will close out their non-region schedule at 5A power Langston Hughes, 6A power Buford, and Columbia following a week’s rest.

Region play officially begins as the Tigers take on East Coweta on October 3. Douglas County will make the trip to Atlanta to face off against Westlake on October 10. After the final bye of the season for Douglas County, the team will return to Douglasville to play Chapel Hill. Lastly, of course, there is the all-important regular season finale at Grisham Stadium to take on Carrollton.

Safety KJ Green views Douglas County’s biggest obstacle as themselves.

“If we play and do what we are supposed to, every goal we want should be achievable.”

East Coweta

2024 Results: 4-7 (1-3, 4th in region)

Key losses: James Stroud, Lucas Naquin, Derrion Horsley

East Coweta comes into 2025 with one of its most talented squads in a long time. The Indians return potentially the most talent out of anyone in the region. With a strong coaching staff and roster it seems like East Coweta could make a dark horse run at the region championship.

East Coweta had a solid season last year. With major wins over talented Newnan (30-28) and Lovejoy (30-6), the Indians did what they could with one of the more difficult schedules in 6A. Coach John Small will look to get East Coweta to the playoffs for the eighth-straight year.

Powell’s player to watch for East Coweta is 2027 safety Chance Gilbert. Gilbert is ranked as high as a top-15 player in the country in the Class of 2027 (ESPN) and they are not wrong to rank him so high. Gilbert has the ideal size for a safety and uses that length to his advantage. He pulled down two interceptions last season and was one of the best players in the state. Gilbert will be arguably the best defensive player in the state this season.

Gilbert and the Indians will begin 2025 by taking on 4A favorites Sandy Creek. Then, the Indians travel to Newnan in what is sure to be a great rematch after last season’s thriller. East Coweta keeps the difficult games coming versus North Cobb, Lovejoy, and Perry in the weeks after. East Coweta will wrap up non-region games versus another 4A powerhouse in Cambridge.

The Indians will have to come out swinging if they want to survive this region. They start out with the short journey to Douglas County followed by a trip to Carrollton within three weeks. East Coweta hosts its last two games of the 2025 regular season versus Westlake and then Chapel Hill.

(If we are to make it out of the region) We have to play better and execute in all 3 phases, they are all very talented teams,” head coach John Small said.

Westlake

2024 Results: 5-6 (2-2, 3rd in region)

Key Losses: Travis Smith, Sean Smith, Naeem Odeniyi

Westlake is most known as the home of Cam Newton over a decade ago. Westlake has continued to produce top-end talent and produce high-end results.

Westlake will have some new faces on the offensive sides of the ball. The Lions lost their starting quarterback (Sean Smith), running back (Naeem Odeniyi), and 1,000-yard receiver (Travis Smith). Head coach Morris Mitchell spoke on Smith’s impact amongst Westlake’s younger receivers.

“Travis was a very special talent,” said Mitchell. “He had a big impact on our younger receivers with his work ethic and how he went about his preparation. We are starting to see our guys do those things now.”

Westlake will look to new starting quarterback Cannon Robinson in 2025 and according to coach Mitchell, he is progressing well.

Powell’s player to watch for Westlake is Deion Thomas. The 2026 wide receiver is listed as a 3-star according to most recruiting sites. He had over 500 yards receiving last year (second to Smith) and caught five touchdowns. He recently committed to UConn and coach Mitchell can not wait to see what he will do in his senior year.

“We look forward to seeing him grow into his own this season and really show people what he does well and how special of a player he is.”

Westlake will have to go to battle almost immediately as the Lions face off with Langtson Hughes in the battle of South Fulton. This is followed by another home contest against Douglass. The Lions take on Gainesville in their first road game of the season. They return home for two of their three non-region games against Therell and Roswell. Westlake ends its non-region schedule at Hapeville Charter.

Westlake will have to take on two semifinalists in its first two region games as the Lions begin region games versus Carrollton and Douglas County. Westlake will end the 2025 regular season with back-to-back away games at Chapel Hill and East Coweta.

Region 2 Seeding Predictions

1. Douglas County

2. Carrollton

3. Westlake

4. East Coweta

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