Schools

Lions-Cats tonight; former Whitefield QB starts for Navy

While the 2011 high school football regular season is winding down, a former Whitefield Academy signal caller's college career is ramping up with Saturday start at Notre Dame.

Will Muschamp serves as head coach for the first time in a Georgia-Florida game on Saturday, but brother Mike has his own important rivalry showdown to coach in this weekend.

That game comes tonight as Lovett travels the short two miles down West Paces Ferry Road to face rival Westminster. The winner of the 7:30 p.m. game will likely have a far easier time getting past next week’s play-in game opponent to reach the Class AA state playoffs.

Lovett, 6-2 overall and 3-1 6-AA Division B, has made the state playoffs in each of Muschamp’s six seasons at the school. Westminster, 4-4 and 3-1, routed the Lions 37-14 last year to stake claim to the division’s automatic state berth. The Lions, who are on a 14-2 run off a loss following last week’s 32-0 blanking of South Atlanta, then won four straight last year in what was another deep playoff run.

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Blessed Trinity has already won the division this year. So the loser tonight will most likely next week have to take on a very tough Division A runner-up team in Greater Atlanta Christian that has lost just once this year. The Lovett-Westminster winner will draw a far less formidable foe in either Decatur or Clarkston.

Westminster has won three straight overall and two consecutive in the series. Muschamp is 3-3 versus the Wildcats during his career at Lovett.

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With more than 3,000 people expected on campus, both schools are encouraging their fans to carpool.

Westminster announced that all three gates to Thompson Stadium will be open  to allow a quick entry for all fans. The main gate by the concession stand will be used mainly for those who must purchase a ticket.

The game will be broadcast live on Westminster's WCAT,  www.westminster.net/wcat, and with Lovett's radio crew at www.gaprep.com/.

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Like the Muschamp family, Whitefield Academy fans will be keeping an eye on the college ranks Saturday as former Wolfpack standout Trey Miller, class of 2009, is expected to start at quarterback for Navy.

The Midshipman travel to face Notre Dame in a game that will be televised on NBC Sports live at 3:30 p.m. It will be the 85th straight year that the teams have played, making the competition the longest continuous intersectional rivalry in the country.

Miller subbed for the injured Navy starter last game against visiting East Carolina and after a slow start, finished by throwing for 126 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for another 36 yards. It was his first extensive playing time at the school, and on Saturday he'll be starting in front of 85,000 fans at Notre Dame Stadium.

While he reportedly had a few missed reads, according to The Washington Post writer Gene Wang, "he eventually performed as if he had been the starter all along, delivering deep throws with accuracy and most often making the correct decision when Navy ran it."

The Washington Times has a nice piece on Miller here.

The Wolfpack’s current quarterback, Max Kemether, will try tonight to help Whitefield do something it hasn’t done in 22 contests and that’s win back-to-back games. Whitefield is 3-4 overall and 2-3 in region play after last week’s 27-10 win at Strong Rock Christian.

Tonight the Pack welcomes in Our Lady of Mercy, which had won four of six before last week’s 45-point loss at Eagle’s Landing Christian. OLM, 4-4 and 2-3, scored a 33-27 OT win over Whitefield in 2010.

The Pack will look for another big game from running back Richard Sherrell, who ran for 116 yards and touchdown in last week’s victory.

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snapped a 13-game losing skid to begin the month with a 33-7 win at Kennesaw Mountain, but the Spartans have been whipped at home the past two games by Harrison and South Cobb (79-14 combined score).

The Spartans, who have been held to seven points or less in four of their seven losses, will try to reclaim that road magic at Region 4-AAAAA rival Pebblebrook tonight. Campbell, 1-7 overall and 1-4 in region play, faces the Falcons, 3-5 and 3-2, in a 7:30 p.m. game.

Pebblebrook, which blanked Campbell 28-0 last year in Smyrna, is off a pair of blowout losses to Hillgrove and McEachern. First-year Campbell coach Harris Rainbow and the Spartans wrap up the 2011 season next Friday at Hillgrove.

Check back later tonight at Smyrna-Vinings Patch for our Friday night scoreboard.


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