BY WAYNE GRANDY

MOULTRIE — The Travis Roland era got off to a promising start this season as the new head coach’s first Camden County team won five straight games to open the season.
But it has been a different story once the Region 1-6A portion of the schedule kicked in.
The Wildcats of Kingsland have dropped two of their three region games and could be on the brink of not qualifying for the postseason if they fail to rein in Colquitt County on Friday at Chris Gilman Stadium.
Four teams are tied atop the region standings with 2-1 records, including the Packers who are coming off a 35-17 win at Tift County.
The Blue Devils are 0-3.
Camden is the only team at 1-2.
With a playoff berth at stake in front of the home fans, the Columbia blue-and-navy Wildcats could be extremely dangerous.
“It’s a must-win for them and a must-win for us,” said coach Sean Calhoun, whose Packers are 5-3 overall.
“And we know we are always going to get everyone’s best.”
These are not the wing-T Wildcats led by Georgia Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame coach Jeff Herron.
After Herron retired after last season, Camden hired Roland, who led Mainland High of Daytona Beach, Fla., to a state title last season.
Roland, who went 30-10 in three seasons at Mainland and has an overall coaching record of 58-22, has his offense, led by junior quarterback Parks Riendeau, throwing the ball around.
Before being throttled by Lowndes in a 33-7 loss to the Vikings last week, Camden County was second in the region in team passing.
The focus of the Camden offense is 6-foot-8, 250-pound Elyiss Williams, the top-ranked tight end in the country who has committed to play at the University of Georgia.
“Camden always has threats,” Calhoun said. “But it’s different this year. (Williams) is one of the best receivers in the country.
“We’ve got to communicate and know where he is.”
Although he has 42 catches for 584 yards and nine touchdowns, he did not have a reception against Lowndes last week.
Williams had four catches for 81 yards and one touchdown in the Packers 34-16 win over Camden last season.
Sophomore Sean Green 33 catches, including four for touchdowns.
Jordan Harvey is the leading rusher with 589 yards on 86 carries. He has scored 15 touchdowns.
Antwan Williams has 49 carries for 430 yards and four scores.
Riendeau has completed 96-of-145 passes for 1,335 yards and 17 touchdowns, but was held to just eight completions for 103 yards against Lowndes.
Colquitt has had plenty of success against Camden County over the years, winning 15 of their 20 meetings, including the last 10 in a row.
The last time Camden defeated the Packers was in 2013 in Kingsland.
And while opponents generally find Chris Gilman Stadium a difficult venue to get a win in, the Packers have taken the last five games in Kingsland.
The Packers are coming off a game in which they were never threatened by the Blue Devils, despite surrendering 342 yards through the air.
“The game seemed closer than it really was,” Calhoun said. “Our defense was on the field for a long time.
“We had some busts in the secondary that we need to get fixed.”
Calhoun added that the Packers defense did have a “huge”goal-line stand with 10:41 left in the game and an interception return for 95 yards for a touchdown by safety Alfonso McNeil.
After starting quarterback Cohen Lawson suffered a lower body injury earlier in the week, junior A’Zhiyen Alridge got his first career start and led the Packers to the win.
He completed 5-of-8 passes for 76 yards and also scored the Packers second touchdown on a 52-yard run.
“I’m really proud of the things he did,” Calhoun said of Alridge, who had been starting at wide receiver.
“He found out Tuesday he was going to start and he didn’t bat an eye. The moment is never going to be too big for him.”
Calhoun said Lawson’s status is “day-to-day.”
The Packers got 130 yards on 17 carries from Jae Lamar and 80 yards and two touchdowns from Day’Shawn Brown.
Lamar has rushed for 750 yards and nine touchdowns and Brown has 746 yards and eight scores.
Colquitt will try to duplicate that offensive effort against a Camden team that surrendered 338 yards to Lowndes.
The Vikings rushed for 171 yards and got three touchdowns from Marvis Parrish.
Lowndes also threw for 167 yards, with Parrish grabbing five passes for 108 yards and another score.
Also on Friday, Tift County will look for its first region win at Valdosta, which is smarting from a 35-14 loss at Richmond Hill last week. Richmond Hill will go to Martin Stadium to meet Lowndes in a battle of teams that are both 2-1 in the region and 7-1 overall.