MOULTRIE — Lowndes will try to win the league championship and Tift County will try to capture a playoff berth in tonight’s key Region 1-AAAAA games.

The Vikings, ranked No. 1 in Class AAAAA, No. 1 in Georgia Football Magazine’s all-classification poll and No. 3 nationally, will put their 8-0 overall record and 5-0 region mark on the line when they travel to Coffee tonight.

A victory would give Lowndes its second straight region title and its second back-to-back championships in five years.

A win over Coffee also would give Vikings coach Randy McPherson his fifth region championship since taking over at Lowndes in 2002.

The Vikings have not lost to Coffee since 2001, but tonight’s game no gimme.

The Trojans are 4-1 in the region and 7-1 overall and are ranked No. 6 in Class AAAAA.

Their only loss came by a 17-14 score to Northside-Warner Robins three weeks ago.

Coffee was beset by turnovers that night at Jardine Stadium, but has been solid both before and after that game.

The Trojans, now ranked No. 6 in the state, knocked off Valdosta 35-18 last Friday.

Lowndes, which has now won 22 straight games, pounded Houston County 52-14 last week.

The Vikings feature perhaps the top senior player in the state in running back-defensive back Greg Reid, who is second in the region in rushing with 696 yards on just 58 carries with 10 touchdowns.

Tift County, currently tied with Warner Robins at 3-2 in the region, will clinch a playoff berth with a victory at home over Valdosta and a Demons loss to Northside.

If Warner Robins and Tift County tie in the standings, the Blue Devils have a head-to-head advantage after beating the Demons 25-13 on Sept. 19.

Warner Robins is coming off a 39-14 victory over Colquitt County at home last Friday.

Tift County fell to Northside 30-14 on Thursday, Oct. 23, but its playoff hopes remained alive.

Tift has the No. 2 passer in the region in quarterback Malcolm Dixon, who has completed 83-of-159 passes for 1,167 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Receivers Jared Davis and Nick Prostko are fourth and ninth respectively in receiving in the region.

Stevan Toomer is ranked sixth in the league in rushing with 565 yards.

Valdosta, 1-4 in the region and 4-4 overall, will bring a wounded team to Brodie Field, with as many as six starters questionable to play against the Blue Devils.

Wildcats running back Vashon Johnson is third in the region in rushing with 688 yards on 112 carries and six touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Kyle Rowe has completed 66-of-135 passes fro 803 yards and 11 touchdowns. He has nine interceptions.

At McConnell-Talbert Stadium in Warner Robins tonight, Warner Robins will try to end a three-game losing streak to cross-town rival Northside.

The Demons hold a 32-18 edge in the series dating back to 1964, but have won just three of the last 12.

The Eagles, who have won back-to-back Class AAAA championships, have won the last two games in the series by 34-7 and 28-7 scores.

Warner Robins has won two in a row in the region, defeating Houston County and Colquitt County, but cannot make the playoffs if it loses its last two games.

After playing Northside (7-1 overall and 4-1 in the region), the Demons close out the regular season next Friday at home against Lowndes.

Northside again will rely on a defense that boasts three potential All-State players in lineman Abry Jones, linebacker Eric Fields and defensive back K.J. Morton.

The Eagles, who play at Colquitt County in their regular-season finale, still have an outside shot at the league championship in their first year in Region 1-AAAAA.

Northside would have to defeat Warner Robins and Colquitt County and Lowndes would have to fall to Coffee tonight and to Warner Robins next Friday.

The Eagles feature Region 1-AAAAA’s leading rusher in Xavier Bacon, who transferred to Northside this year from a school in Alaska.

Bacon will try to go over 1,000 yards for the season tonight. He has 974 yards on 180 carries and has scored 13 touchdowns.

Northside quarterback Joe Scott has completed 49-of-104 passes for 630 yards and two touchdowns.

The weekend’s final Region 1-AAAAA game will pit Houston County against Colquitt County at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at McConnell-Talbert Stadium.

The teams have identical records of 3-5 overall and 0-5 in the region. The loser could finish the regular season in the region basement without a region win. The winner will snap a five-game losing streak.

Houston County features the No. 4 rusher in the region in Garrick Davis, who has 635 yards.