Lee County, Colquitt County football teams to battle for regional supremacy

LEESBURG — Calling it the “Super Bowl of Southwest Georgia” might be a tad hyperbolic, but there is no getting around that there is a big game in Leesburg Friday night.

It might be the biggest game in the state Friday night when two of South Georgia’s premier football programs finally go head to head in a regular season matchup. Ranked No. 2 in Class AAAAAA, the Lee County Trojans (3-0) will host Colquitt County (3-0), which is ranked No. 3 in Class AAAAAAA (3-0). Both teams also come in ranked among the top 100 in the nation. In the MaxPreps poll, Lee County is rated 61st and Colquitt County is 74th. Other polls have Colquitt County ranked slightly higher.

The two teams played last year in a scrimmage, with Lee County winning, but this will be the first time the two schools have played a regular season game since 2015. A game scheduled between the two in 2020 was canceled because of the pandemic, so the Trojans have not played Colquitt County since 2015 when the Packers won 54-17 en route to a perfect 15-0 season and the AAAAAAA state championship under head coach Rush Propst. At that time, Colquitt County’s present head coach, Sean Calhoun, was the offensive coordinator for the Packers.

“This is a huge game for us,” said Lee County head coach Dean Fabrizio. “Colquitt County has a really good team, they are well-coached, have plenty of playmakers and speed all over the field.This will be the toughest team we’ve played so far. Our non-region schedule is really tough, but Colquitt is really, really tough.”

Colquitt’s Sean Calhoun had similar remarks.

“Lee County will be the best team we have faced this year, by far,” Calhoun said. “You can’t just dismiss them because they are Class 6A. That doesn’t matter. This is one of the very best programs in the state. Their quarterback is a good one. He does a lot of things for them and of course they have that incredible running back. Their line doesn’t get the attention it deserves because their line is excellent. And they have some players on the outside that are quick and can make some plays. On defense, their line is their biggest strength, but our team hasn’t seen a linebacker group as good as these guys are. And in the secondary they are quick and deep. They have a lot of depth and can change players without missing a beat.”

While Calhoun said his team is at full strength heading into the game, that is the big question mark for the Trojans. Neither preseason All-State wide receiver J.D. Fugerson nor preseason All-State running back Ousmane Kromah played last week because of injuries. Fabrizio said Tuesday night that it would be a game-time decision as to whether or not the two key Lee County playmakers would be available.

“We’ve kept them really light this week,” said Fabrizio. “Hopefully, they will be able to play, but it will be a game-time decision.”

A huge crowd is expected at the Lee County stadium Friday night and that is exactly what Fabrizio and the Trojans want.

“It is going to be a great atmosphere.” the coach said. “Our kids love to play in games like this. It helps us get better. It gives you that feel of a playoff game and helps us get better when we do get to the playoffs.”

Tickets will be available at the gate for $10 each, but fans can avoid the lines by purchasing tickets online and save $2. Tickets can be ordered for $8 by clicking HERE.

Special photo: Joe Whitfield