Game Preview: Rabun County at Thomasville

There’s a MASSIVE 2A matchup this week as North Georgia power Rabun County travels down to South Georgia to take on Thomasville. These are two proud programs who know how to win, and this might be thee best overall game across the state on Friday night. Here are a few top players to know about in the game.... &nbsp; <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="33862" first="Gunner" last="Stockton"] - QB - Rabun County</strong> The elite QB and future Georgia Bulldog is already a Georgia high school football legend, setting multiple career records this year as a senior. He’s accounted for 14 total touchdowns through the first two rounds, playing his best football now that playoff time is here. He’s one of the top QB prospects in the country who can beat defenses with both his arm and his legs. So far this season, Stockton has thrown for 3,974 yards and 53 touchdowns this year, while rushing for 844 more yards and 14 more scores. He’s an elite prospect and he’ll be tough to stop, even for a Thomasville defense that has given up more than 20 points since early September. Stockton is easily the biggest prospect playing in this giant matchup. &nbsp; <strong>Malik Harper - RB - Thomasville</strong> One of the top senior backs in South Georgia, Harper is coming off a big final year as he rushed for over 1,000 yards and 19 touchdowns. He isn’t the biggest or fastest guy, but he has great vision and he runs hard. He’s been consistently productive all season and was the team’s leading rushers this season. The Bulldogs relied on him a ton this year, and they’ll need him at his best again on Friday night. &nbsp; <strong>Ty Anderson - LB - Thomasville</strong> One of the top senior linebackers in all of South Georgia, Anderson had a monster fall for the Bulldogs, leading one of the top defenses in the area this fall. A quick, instinctive linebacker, Anderson doesn’t miss tackles. He made 144 total tackles this season, leading the entire 2A classification by a mile. He led 2A in that category by 24 tackles, showing he was one of the more productive defenders across the entire state. He was active, showed a true nose for the ball, making 19 TFLs and getting to the QB an impressive 12 times, which was 2nd most in all of 2A. He’s most certainly a player to keep a close eye on during the game. &nbsp; <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="145593" first="Jaden" last="Gibson"] - WR - Rabun County</strong> One of the state’s leading receivers, Gibson has dominated all season long for Rabun County and has been a go-to weapon for QB [player_tooltip player_id="33862" first="Gunner" last="Stockton"] this season. The 2023 wideout did it all this season, taking screen passes to the house and proving to be a down-field weapon as well. He’s great after the catch and wants to score every time he touches the ball. The junior caught 80 passes this season for 1,816 yards and 18 touchdowns. He averaged over 150 receiving yards per game, proving he was one of the more dominant pass-catchers across the state. If Thomasville wants to come out with the upset, they’ll need to double cover Gibson as much as they can. &nbsp; <strong>Other players to know...</strong> 2022 DB <strong>Jimmy Bowdry</strong> - Thomasville - 5 INTs and 53 tackles 2023 ATH <strong>Lang Windham</strong> - Rabun County - 764 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns. He also had 39 receptions for 594 yards and 8 more touchdowns. 2023 DB <strong>Evan Wynn</strong> - Thomasville - 88 tackles and 3 INTs 2022 QB <strong>Shannen White</strong> - Thomasville - 1,600 passing yards and 19 passing TDs 2022 LB <strong>Will Turpin</strong> - Rabun County - 96 tackles, 20 TFLs and six sacks. &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;