Game of the Week – White County vs Gilmer

This week’s Game of the Week takes us to Cleveland for a Region 6-AAAA contest that has a chance to be sneaky-good.

WHITE COUNTY
The Warriors are coming off a BYE week after going 4-1 to complete a dream first half. White County has six skill position players who are fantastic, and have been solid defensively (several of those same guys play both ways). This already marks the fourth home game in the sixth game overall for White County. The ‘Cardiac Warriors’ have had three come-from-behind wins on the season, so they constantly leave you on the edge of your seat biting your fingernails.
Advertisement

GILMER
The Bobcats are 3-2 overall, and might be better than the record indicates. Gilmer beat Stephens County and Fannin County by sizeable margins, and beat Rabun County in overtime by a 53-52 final. The losses were respectable – an OT loss to Flowery Branch, and a less respectable showing against a tough Wesleyan team. This is a run-heavy team that loves to put the game into the hands of the running backs.

BY THE NUMBERS

WHITE COUNTY
4-1 (0-0 IN 6-AAAA)
Region Standings: N/A
23.8 OFFENSE AVG
20.0 DEFENSE AVG
N/A State Ranking

GILMER
3-2 (0-0 IN 6-AAAA)
Region Standings: N/A
34.6 OFFENSE AVG (#7 in 4A)
33.4 DEFENSE AVG
N/A State Ranking

PREDICTION

Let’s begin with the Warriors. If White County can play ahead instead of from behind, this one would lean in their favor. That said, the Warriors must also keep the pedal down, as Gilmer has proven to be able to charge back. White County needs to score better than its average of 23.8, so something around 30 points would put them in a good spot. The Bobcats have struggled defensively as of late, allowing 33.4 per contest. One of their two big running backs is out as well and could possibly be out for the year. So the pressure will be on to get going early and often.

STATS

For White County, the Warriors have gone 20-23 overall in our 43 games covering them. That includes 2-0 this season and three wins in a row dating back to last year in regular season action.

MATCHUP DETAILS

TIME: 7:30 PM
PLACE: White County HS / Cleveland, GA
LAST MEETING: 2023: White County 35, Gilmer 28
ALL-TIME RECORD: White County leads 26-13 all-time in the series
RECORDS: White County Warriors (4-1) vs Gilmer Bobcats (3-2)
HEAD COACHES: Chad Bennett (19-27; 5 Seasons); Paul Standard (203-102; 26 Seasons)

HISTORICALLY SPEAKING

There have been 39 prior meetings between the schools, so this makes the big #40. White County has the edge at 26-13 in a series that goes back to 1968. Gilmer won the first two before White County reeled off six in a row from 1970-1977. The Bobcats would occasionally interrupt the streaks for White County, but Gilmer only had the initial 2-game win streak until 1996. At that point, the Bobcats won four in a row from 1996-99. They last won in 2003. Since then, White County has won nine straight (2004-2023). The last two meetings were intense (35-28 in ’23; 38-35 in ’22). The head coaches have actually squared off three times, with Chad Bennett winning all three meetings over an incredible coach in Paul Standard (200+ wins, 2x State RU, 8x Region Titles).
Advertisement

TEAM LEADERS (2026 Stats)

*Stats accumulated by team-published data on Ga MaxPreps

WHITE COUNTY WARRIORS

PASSING
Brinn Robinson – 967 yds, 9 TD, 3 INT, 69% passing

RUSHING
Jack Clark – 358 yds, 3 TD
Savion Anderson – 136 yds, 3 TD

RECEIVING
Gaines Clark – 299 yds, 2 TD, 27 rec
John Jarrard – 285 yds, 4 TD, 20 rec
Zach Godfrey – 260 yds, 2 TD, 21 rec
Savion Anderson – 31 yds, 1 TD, 2 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
Casey Crane – 46 TKL, 2 TFL
Lucian London – 37 TKL, 1 Sack
Savion Anderson – 30 TKL, 1 INT
Samuele Harkins – 29 TKL, 2 TFL, 4 Sacks, 1 FR
Zach Godfrey – 27 TKL, 2 INT
Josiah Williams – 25 TKL, 7 TFL
Zay Cheek – 20 TKL, 4 Sacks

GILMER BOBCATS (only 1 game’s stats published)

PASSING
AJ Callihan – 83 yds, 0 TD, 2 INT, 57% passing

RUSHING
Peyton Chancey – 103 yds, 1 TD
Jeremiah Few – 87 yds, 1 TD

RECEIVING
Gauge Crump – 71 yds, 0 TD, 3 rec
Braxtyn Newberry – 12 yds, 0 TD, 4 rec

DEFENSIVE LEADERS
N/A – no published stats