MOULTRIE – It’s more than just a Region 1-7A championship game. It’s more than No. 1 and No. 2 in the state.

It’s, by maxpreps.com, No. 4 vs. No. 15 nationwide.

When it comes to Colquitt County vs. Lowndes in football, the stakes seem to keep getting higher and higher year after year.

And so the collision is set for this Friday at the Concrete Palace, visible from I-75, in Valdosta. It’s Lowndes sitting on top of all the polls and standings, undefeated at 9-0 and No. 4 in the nation. Colquitt County didn’t like the last trip over the county line, for it resulted in the only blemish so far in the new regime led by head coach Justin Rogers. But that was a non-region loss, 50-49, to Valdosta High at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium, and since then the Packers mowed down everyone in front of them, including a No. 1 Class 7A team at the time, Grayson High.

Both teams rolled past Tift County and Camden County in their other 1-7A contests, so something must give on Friday.

“It’s two really good football teams in South Georgia playing each other,” said Rogers, breaking the hype down to its simplest form. “That’s what you get in South Georgia. That’s why you come here, to get to play in these opportunities and in these type of venues.”

Last weekend, Rogers knew he was facing a run-heavy offense out of Tift County, and the Blue Devils had one shining moment with a near 10-minute drive to score its only touchdown of a 49-7 loss (that coming one week after a shutout loss to Lowndes). Looking at the Viking numbers, it’s another week of preparing for an offense whose strength is keeping the football on the ground.

Lowndes, however, seems to take it to a higher level. The leading rusher in Region 1-7A is Viking quarterback Jacurri Brown with 901 yards. That goes with 11 touchdowns. Put four Lowndes players together and you have a total of 35 running touchdowns in nine games.

“They have a dynamic running quarterback,” said Rogers. “When you have a quarterback who can run like that, it balances you out. It’s 11 on 11 because he is a true threat. It puts a lot of stress on you.”

After a whole season of building up those ground statistics, Brown goes and puts up season-high passing yardage last weekend in the 45-13 win over Camden County. Brown completed 15 of 20 passes for 214 yards and one touchdown (but also one interception).

“When they do that, it makes them a dynamic offense,” said Rogers.

Lowndes’ leader in touchdowns is only a part-time offensive player. Gary Osby has 14 scores with just 377 rushing yards, but he also lines up at middle linebacker and sacks the quarterback three times to go with 11 tackles for a loss.

Out of Justin Lee’s 411 yards for the season, 111 came on nine totes at Camden with one of his five touchdowns. Second on the team in rushing is Israel Mitchell (577 yards, 5 TDs).

“They have some eye candy,” said Rogers about their sets. “You have to stay on your keys and read things out. They are going to try to get you to chase things that aren’t real so they can create gaps. They are simple in the schemes they do as far as the O-line, but they are complex and do a good job of giving you things that if you are not disciplined with your eyes you will get lost.”

In the passing game, Brown is 54-for-93 for 715 yards and five touchdowns. Their top receiver, Ghetti Brown, has 27 catches but actually threw his second touchdown pass of the season at Camden (He threw it to Jacurri, who is only a sophomore).

“They are going to try to put you in conflict,” said Rogers. “When you try to add hats to the box, they are going to play-action you and try to get a cheap one. It goes back to eye discipline. As soon as you take your eyes out of the backfield and start reading flow, you’re in trouble.

“The biggest thing about Lowndes, and this is offense and defense, is they are well-coached and play hard. When you do that, you have a chance to be really good. And they have talented players. They probably play harder than any other team we’ve played all year. It jumps off on the film.”

Aside from Osby, two other Vikings make frequent plays in the backfield defensively. Thomas Davis, a lean 215-pound tackle, has seven sacks and 12.5 TFL. Leon Williams, also at 215 pounds lining up at the end, has 10.5 TFL and 4.5 sacks.

Rogers said they usually line up 3-4 and try to make you earn a long drive by eliminating explosive plays.

“We are going to have to be patient, be willing to take what they give us, and not force things,” he said. “They are extremely well coached, are where they’re supposed to be, so it will be a good test.”

Where Colquitt County really burned Tift County last weekend and turned a 7-7 halftime score into a six-touchdown rout was in the Jaycee Harden-Lemeke Brockington connections. Brockington was 1-on-1 in a near empty secondary and scored on throws that covered 82 and 75 yards. He scored three times in all, and for Harden it was his third game with five touchdowns in 2019.

“We like our guys, but they have some athletic guys back there,” said Rogers about the Viking secondary. “They have some length back there, and that’s going to help them. Anytime you are playing with DBs above 6-foot, you have a bigger wingspan and can disrupt passes.

“They will get us on some stuff. We will get them on some stuff. I think a lot of it is going to be special teams. It’s going to be one of those hidden yardage field position deals.”

Since Sept. 13 at Valdosta, it’s now 51 points total scored against the Packers. Lowndes’ total allowed for the season is 71 points, the most being 21 by a Miami school (Northwestern) at home Sept. 20. This city not only saw the 50-49 battle between Colquitt and Valdosta, but Valdosta’s stunning 53-50 loss last weekend to Lee County.

Are there going to be those types of numbers at Martin Stadium, or are the defenses too good to allow that?

“I don’t think it will be a 100-point game,” said Rogers. “I think both offenses will find ways to score, but I don’t think it will be a shoot-out.”

Harden, in addition to his climb up the list for touchdown passes, surpassed 5,000 career passing yards last Friday. He stands at 5,091 (third-best all time) with his 2,504 so far as a senior. That number is fifth-best for one season, the record being 3,501 set by Chase Parrish in 2015.