There are countless great rivalries across our 22 county coverage map. Dalton-Calhoun, Bremen-Bowdon, and Trion-Gordon Lee are a few classic, longstanding ones that come to mind. Perhaps you’re a fan of some of the newer age rivalries, like the passion you find with the inter-county Heritage-Ringgold game, or the tangling of 2 powerhouses, like we’ve gotten every year since 2016 with Carrollton-Rome.
There is a rivalry we haven’t seen in quite some time though, that is coming back onto the schedule this year for the first time since 2013. The 2023 2A State Runner-Up Rockmart Yellow Jackets will travel to Cartersville to take on an always powerful Purple Hurricanes team in a week 2 non-region game. These 2 schools have met 70 times, dating back to their first matchup in 1925, with Cartersville leading the all-time series 37-29-4. This will be only the 7th meeting between the Canes and Jackets since 2000, but the teams met every single year from 1944-1997.
With this vintage rivalry renewing, it got me thinking about some other great rival opponents we haven’t seen play in quite a while.
Here are 10 NWGA rivalries we haven’t seen in a long time:
Dalton-Murray County
- Have met 53 times
- Dalton leads series 44-9
- Haven’t met since 2011
The one-sided record may not indicate it, but there was a time when this was one of the most heated rivalries in all of Northwest Georgia.
These 2 teams met every year from 1976-2011, with the prime years of this rivalry being between the late 1980s-early 2000s. Hall of Fame Coach Bill Chappell always had the Dalton Catamount program contending for region titles and deep playoff runs, but when another coaching legend (Bill Napier) took over in Chatsworth, these 2 teams went on a 13 year run of epic battles.
From 1989-2001, the series was nearly a deadlock, with Dalton getting a slight 7-6 edge. The most memorable contest was undoubtedly in 1999, when the Indians came from behind in the 4th quarter, erasing a 19-0 Catamount lead, and come away victorious 23-19.
Carrollton-Central
- Have met 45 times
- Carrollton leads series 37-7-1
- Haven’t met since 2011
Located just 1.6 miles from each other, few high schools in the state of Georgia are closer in proximity than Carrollton and Central.
When a pair of campuses are that close, you would assume they play often, and they did for a very long time. The Trojans and Lions met nearly every year from 1966-2011. Carrollton has historically dominated the rivalry, winning the last 10 games in the series (Central’s last victory was a 12-0 shutout in 2001). 5 of the Lions 7 wins in this series came during the golden era of Central-Carroll football. Under the legendary Ronnie Burchfield, the Lions won 5 straight games vs. the Trojans from 1983-1987, in route to winning back-to-back state titles the last 2 seasons of that stretch (1986-87).
One of the most high stakes game in this series was the 1998 edition, as it was one of the only matchups where both teams were ranked. Central came into the game ranked 7th in the state polls, while Carrollton was 1st. The Trojans utilized a 2nd half scoop-n-score to preserve a 24-14 win over the Lions, and would go on to win a state title at the end of the season.
Calhoun-Model
- Have met 48 times
- Series tied 24-24
- Haven’t met since 2013
With histories rooted as small, lower classification programs, the Calhoun Yellow Jackets and Model Blue Devils were once heated region foes that met almost every season. In fact they did meet every year from 1945-1971, and 1994-2007.
Before the arrival of Hal Lamb at Calhoun, the Yellow Jackets struggled overall in this series. The Jackets lost to Model in Lamb’s very first season (1999), but won the final 10 meetings leading up to the last matchup coming in 2013. Even with those 10 straight victories, the series sits at a 24-24 tie.
Both programs were powerhouses in the early 1950s – Calhoun winning a state title in 1952, and Model winning back-to-back state titles in 1953-54. The 1953 matchup featured a #1 ranked, 9-0 Calhoun team on the road at #4 ranked, 8-1 Model. The defending state champion Yellow Jackets fell 26-6 to the eventual state champion Blue Devils.
Trion-Adairsville
- Have met 25 times
- Trion leads 15-10
- Haven’t met since 2007
These programs have been 2 of the most consistent programs in all of NWGA over the past 3 seasons, winning 3 combined region titles. While they have met in recent years in preseason scrimmages, they haven’t played a game that counts in some time.
From a historical perspective, Adairsville and Trion have been really solid programs not just recently but all-time too, so when they have met on the field in the past the series has been really competitive. 23 of the 25 all-time matchups have region matchups, when Adairsville was a single-A school. The Tigers and Bulldogs met every year from 1972-83, and 1992-2001. The last 2 meetings came in the only pair of non-region games they’ve every played in 2006-07.
In 1980, a region championship was on the line when the Bulldogs and Tigers met. Adairsville entered the game ranked 2nd in the state, and touting a 7-0 record, while Trion was 7-0-1, and ranked 6th. The Bulldogs came away with the victory, defeating Adairsville 14-6, and winning what would be the 2nd of 3 straight region titles for Trion.
Cartersville-Pepperell
- Have met 38 times
- Pepperell leads series 20-17-1
- Haven’t met since 2011
Like the previous 2 rivalries on this list, this matchup has become a causality of one school staying small, and the other school’s enrollment increase forcing them to move up classifications.
The Dragons and Purple Hurricanes were region foes for much of the 1980s-90s in 7-AA, and were the dominant forces in that region at the time. Pepperell (led by Coach Lynn Hunnicutt) and Cartersville (led by Coach Mike Earwood) captured state titles in 1990 and 1991, respectively, and both programs won every region title between 1989-1995.
They met 6 times as top 10 ranked opponents between 1990-2000, with Pepperell having a 4-2 edge in those games. The 1991 edition of the rivalry saw the top ranked, defending state champion Dragons, touting their 22-game win streak, taking on the 6-1, 9th ranked Canes. Cartersville forced a fumble near the goal line in the game’s final moments, icing a 22-15 win over the Dragons, and snapping that win streak.
Rockmart-Darlington
- Have met 26 times
- Darlington leads series 15-9-1
- Haven’t met since 2007
In the time since they last met, Rockmart and Darlington have won a combined 14 region titles, and have had 8 combined 10+ win seasons, establishing themselves as 2 of the best programs in the NWGA area.
Beginning in 1982, the Yellow Jackets and Tigers played nearly every season until that last meeting in 2007, primarily as region opponents in 7-AA and 6-AA. Darlington has won 14 of the last 15 meetings, but struggled early in this series, with Rockmart dominating the 1980s, with a 6-1-1 record.
Coach Jerry Sharp saw his Darlington Tigers avoid an upset on the road to start the 1998 season, winning 21-6 vs. the Yellow Jackets – the first win of a 15-0 state championship season. In 2006 both teams met in the regular season finale with a playoff spot on the line. Rockmart scored a go-ahead TD with 4:16 remaining in the game to clinch that playoff spot, and knock the Tigers out.
Union County-White County
- Have met 42 times
- White County leads series 23-17-2
- Haven’t met since 2001
When you get over into the Blue Ridge mountains of northeast Georgia, there are not an abundance of high schools, therefore the schools in this area wind up traveling greater distances for many of there games.
Case in point: Union County. The Panthers only have 3 schools within a 45 minute drive from their campus, one of which is White County, but somehow the 2 teams haven’t met since 2001.
Nonetheless, the series has been extremely competitive when the teams have played. Half of the games have decided by a touchdown or less. That last matchup in 2001 wound up being a region game that was between 2 eventual playoff teams. Union County took their 5-0 record on the road, hoping to stay perfect, and did so with a 13-7 win over White County.
Bremen-Villa Rica
- Have met 28 times
- Series tied 14-14
- Haven’t met since 1985
Speaking of another set of schools that are closely located, Bremen and Villa Rica’s campuses sit only about 20 minutes from each other, and the Blue Devils and Wildcats regularly met from 1950-1985.
This is a rivalry that truly neither team has had advantage in, splitting the 28 meetings right down the middle, 14-14. From 1965-1985, neither team won more than 3 straight. Bremen was frequently ranked in these games throughout the late 1970s-early 1980s, and that’s when some of the best games between the Blue Devils and Wildcats occurred.
Villa Rica took home the last 2 meetings in 1984-85, upsetting 3rd ranked and 7th ranked Bremen teams. But perhaps they stopped playing just a year too soon, as Villa Rica would take off the following season, going 14-1 and winning the 3A state championship in 1986, and having a solid run into the early 1990s.
Ringgold-East Ridge (TN)
- Have met 15 times
- Ringgold leads series 8-7
- Haven’t met since 1993
There is something really fun about a border war between teams just across state lines, and that’s what we got for 14 straight seasons between 1980-1993 with the Ringgold Tigers and East Ridge Pioneers.
With both schools sitting less than 20 minutes from each other, longstanding coaches Don Patterson (Ringgold) and Raymond James (East Ridge) had this game as a mainstay on their schedules, and rightfully so. The Tigers and Pioneers played some very competitive games during that 14 year stretch, splitting them 7-7.
The final matchup in the series in 1993 saw Ringgold pull out a 1-point win over East Ridge, 21-20. The Pioneers made a coaching change at the end of 1993 season, Don Patterson retired in 1998, and we’ve never seen this “border war” again.
Northwest Whitfield-Murray County
- Have met 31 times
- Murray County leads series 17-14
- Haven’t met since 2009
Murray County makes their 2nd appearance on this list with a very underrated rivalry gam vs. Northwest Whitfield.
With the exception of a 4 year stretch from 1994-97, the Bruins and Indians played every single year since Northwest Whitfield High School opened in 1975, until their most recent matchup in 2009. Murray County won the first 6 meetings in the rivalry, but since that point, the Bruins have had a 14-11 edge.
A few matchups stand out above the rest. In 1984, both teams entered the game 7-0 with major playoff implications on the line. The Indians wound up being the team that stayed perfect, winning 14-6, and eventually making a run to the state semifinals. In 1999 & 2000 this game decided the 7-4A champion, with Murray winning it in 1999, 35-14, and Northwest Whitfield getting revenge and bringing home their own title, 28-14, in 2000.
After the opening of North Murray High School in 2009, Murray County moved down classifications, and the Indians and Bruins haven’t met since.
Brooks Carter is the Director of Media for Coahulla Creek Football, and a contributor to NWGA Football. Follow him on X @BrooksACarter
This is awesome …… brooks 👍