Previewing every region in 6A: Region 3

Ahead of the 2025 season, Score Atlanta’s Wesley Powell will be previewing every single team in Georgia's 6A classification. Every team from down south in Valdosta to metro Atlanta that is in the highest class in the state. Each region will be its own article, this article will cover the eight teams in Region 6: Hillgrove, McEachern, Osborne, Pebblebrook, Campbell, Harrison, Paulding County, and South Cobb.

Campbell

2024 Season: 6-4 (3-4, 5th in region)

Key Losses: Jonathan Wiley, Emilo Cervantes, Sabien Thigpen

In two years under coach Jeff Phillips, Campbell made the playoffs for only the second time since 2007, and had its first season with a winning record since 2007. Coach Phillips enters year three at the helm with a chance to get the Spartans past the first round for the second time ever.

It will be a challenge because Campbell has lost a fair amount of transfers as well as its 2025 graduates.

In fairness, Campbell was a rather young team last season that is gaining another year’s experience.

Powell’s player to watch for Campell is junior quarterback Davin Lemire. Lemire took over half way through last season and provided some great performances including a 43-0 win over South Cobb.

Campbell begins its 2025 season versus Coach Phillips’ old school in Chapel Hill. The Spartans return home the following week against another 6A opponent when they take on South Forsyth. Etowah will be their last non-region opponent.

Campbell begins region play after a bye week with a trip to McEachern. Then the Spartans will face Harrison. They will have five games in October, starting at South Cobb, then vs. Hillgrove, at Paulding County, vs. Osborne, and vs. Pebblebrook.

Harrison

2024 Season: 9-2 (7-0, 1st in region)

Key Losses: Xavier Hill

Harrison won its first region title since 2019 and the Hoyas took home the state championship last season. Harrison fought hard and took down favorites Hillgrove 24-14 and McEachern 28-12 as they took home the school’s seventh ever region championship.

Quarterback Xaiver Hill was a big reason why Harrison accomplished what it did last season. He threw for over 2000 yards and rushed for another 1000 with a total of 38 touchdowns last season (20 through the air and 18 on the ground). Replacing him will be a tall-task this season for the Hoyas. Hill is now playing football at the Citadel.

Hillgrove

2024 Season: 11-2 (6-1, 2nd in region)

Key Losses: Daniel Okonkwo, Brody Bond, Nick Mathious

Hillgrove is coming off an impressive 2024 when the Hawks ended up going to the quarterfinals of 6A, losing to eventual runners up Carrollton. The legendary high school has produced a ton of NFL and college players.

Coach Justin DeShon enters his fifth season as head coach of the Hawks after joining from Chapel Hill. DeShon is just the third head coach in the program’s history.

Powell’s player to watch for Hillgrove is senior edge rusher Chris Carbin. He is listed at 6-foot-4 and weighs in at 230 pounds. Carbin is a 3-star prospect and had a multitude of schools to pick from, but ultimately decided on going to Georgia Tech. Carbin had 49 total tackles and six sacks last season.

The Hawks will begin the season at Mountain View. The game was a close 34-28 game last season which the Hawks ultimately got away with a win. They will return to action in two weeks against McIntosh in what will be a matchup between their loaded defense versus McIntosh’s loaded offense. They follow that up in a matchup between two legendary Cobb teams as they face Marietta on the road.

Hillgrove starts region play versus Osborne and follows it up with another home game versus Pebblebrook. The Hawks will follow up a two-game homestand with a two-game road trip against Paulding County and Cambell. Their final three games will be a gauntlet as they take on McEachern and Harrison at home, before ending the season at South Cobb.

McEachern

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

Key Losses: Brad Menhorn Jr., Paul Bowling, Noah Brown

McEachern is always a team to watch out for in Georgia. However, a state championship continues to avoid the Indians. 2025 might be their best chance to win a state championship.

Coach Kareem Reid is entering into year three with McEachern and the coach has experience in deep playoff runs when he went to the semifinals with Westlake. Reid went 7-5 and 6-5 in his first two seasons, respectfully, and is looking to take a leap this season.

POwell’s player to watch for McEachern is 2026 wide receiver Nalin Scott. Scott is a tall, muscly wide receiver that can also play tight end. Scott played with McEchern last season after transferring in and made an immediate impact. He was named first-team All Region last season as well as being the team’s top receiver. He was also used to block on runs more than a few times (due to his 6-foot-3, 200 pounds frame). He is currently committed to Nebraska.

The Indians have typically scheduled one of the tougher schedules in the state. That is no different in 2025 as McEachern will play Walton in the Corky Kell & Dave Hunter Classic at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on August 16th live on Atlanta News First at 4 p.m. Staying in that same region, McEachern takes on North Cobb and Marietta in the following weeks.

Region play starts off versus Campbell and is followed by another home game against Paulding County. After a bye McEachern will travel to Harrison before returning back home to take on Pebblebrook. Then, they travel to Hillgrove in what could be the region title game. McEchern’s last two regular season games will be at home against South Cobb and on the road at Osborne.

Osborne

2024 Season: 1-9 (1-6, 7th in region)

Key Losses: Treyvion Martin, Elijah Johnson, Drayden Miller

The Osborne Cardinals fly into 2025 with a lot of returning talent. Osborne looks to repeat the success that it had in 2023 when the Cardinals went 7-4 (their best record since the 90s). They will have to get through a tough schedule again if they are to do so.

Osborne enters year two with head coach Derek Cook, The four-time region champion with Kell was a head coach for the first time in Georgia in eight years last season. He produced a lot to build with his team as they look to go to new heights.

“We are working on continuing to implement our culture and build the skills, strength and knowledge of our players. We were competitive last year in most of our games so our returning players feel like we can turn the corner and win some of those close games that we didn't last year,” Cook said.  

Osborne begins its 67th year as a football program against Banneker on August 15th. Its first home game will be on August 22nd at another 6A team in Chapel Hill. Due to the large number of teams in the region, non region games end for the Cardinals at 2A power Fellowship Christian.

Osborne will have to come out swinging as region play starts at Hillgrove on September 12th, and then the Cardinals return home against South Cobb, before heading on a bye. Following said bye, Osborne packs the buses again to play at Pebblebrook. They play versus Paulding County the next week. Osborne’s final three games of the season are at Harrison, at Campbell, and at home against McEachern.

Paulding County

2024 Season: 2-8 (2-5, 6th in region)

Key Losses: Mason Bryant, Anthony Bell, Jeremiah Sanders

The Patriots will look to turn the tables in this upcoming season and get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2022. Paulding County looks to improve after two-straight 2-8 seasons. However, this Paulding County team most certainly has a chance to do just that this season.

Like most teams in this region, Paulding County is led by a relatively new head coach. Justin Pressley took over last season and managed two impressive region wins in year one. Pressley’s men look to dominate in 2025 under his guidance.

Powell’s player to watch for Paulding County is Daniel Odugbemi. The senior linebacker was an All-Region honorable mention last season. He totaled 57 tackles (top three on the team), and forced two fumbles. The linebacker is hard to miss under the lights.

Paulding County will open 2025 at Hiram. Its only other two non-region games will be home games, and both will be tough contests against North Atlanta and East Paulding.

Region play begins after a bye week again at home versus South Cobb. There is no time to rest as the Patriots travel to McEachern and return home against Hillgrove in their next two games (bye in between). Things will stay all-gas, no-brakes for Paulding County in the following weeks at Osborne, vs. Campbell, at Pebblebrook, and on a short week at Harrison (Thursday, October 30th).

South Cobb

2024 Season: 0-10 (0-7, 8th in region)

South Cobb is looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2011, and returns head coach Marcus Washington Jr. Washington will look to help the Eagles take the next step in his second season.

Although they did not win a game last season, the Eagles come into 2025 with their heads high after defeating Lithia Springs 28-20 in their spring game.

Powell’s player to watch for South Cobb is Kenjuan Alexander. Alexander was one of two players that was All-Region honorable mention last year. The defensive back is heading into his senior season with the Eagles. He also played a bit of offense and reached the end zone once. If the Eagles are going to turn things around this season, Alexander will have to play a big part in it.

South Cobb begins the 2025 season by taking on South Forsyth (home). This is followed by four straight away games (only two out of region) at Bannekar and then Drew.

Following a bye, the final two games of that four game away stand are at Paulding County and then Osborne (bye in between). Region play continues with three home games in a row versus Campbell, Harrison, and Pebblebrook. The final two games of the season for the Eagles will be at McEachern and at home to face Hillgrove.

Powell’s Final Region Predictions

1. McEachern

2. Hillgrove

3. Harrison

4. Campbell