I can't believe it.

I must have said this phrase to myself at least a dozen times on my trip home from Warner Robins Friday night.

I never would have thought Gwinnett County would lose all three of its Class AAAAA teams in the quarterfinals. Even more shocking, Class A juggernaut Wesleyan went down. That leaves just Buford to carry the torch for Gwinnett County in the playoffs.

I can't believe it.

It's the first time Gwinnett has not had a team in the Class AAAAA semifinals since 2003. (I don't know what's more shocking. That stat or Georgia beating Georgia Tech this weekend.)

I can't believe it.

The way Grayson, North Gwinnett and Peachtree Ridge went make it even more tough to swallow. North was blown out by defending state champion Camden County 35-0. It was the first time the Bulldogs had been shutout since 2006.

Grayson had a chance to win the game on a last-second field goal, but it was blocked. That scenario sounds familiar. The Rams had a chance to go to the state finals last year, but a last-second field goal attempt was blocked. Same can be said for the 2006 playoffs when the Rams' field goal unit came up short against Norcross.

As the final scores came across my phone via Twitter on Friday, I knew Peachtree Ridge was the last AAAAA school with a shot to reach the semis. The Lions had a 10-3 lead going into the final minutes, but once Northside-Warner Robins scored on a 65-yard pass to tie the game, I could sense a change in momentum.

After three overtimes, it was Northside that came out on top and Gwinnett County was left without a Class AAAAA school in the semifinals.

I can't believe it.

On the nice two-hour drive home I had time to think a lot about Gwinnett County football. We've been spoiled for a long time. Gwinnett has put a team in the semifinals every year this decade except for 2003. We've had a team in the state finals 12 of the last 16 years dating back to 1993. As we head into the next decade, is this year a sign of things to come in Gwinnett County or this year just a fluke? Every year teams from outside of Gwinnett want to knock off a Gwinnett team just as bad as they want to win a state title. Don't believe me? You should see some of the e-mails that have already been sent from South Georgia fans bragging about three Gwinnett schools being taken down.

I don't think this year is a sign that Gwinnett County football will be down in the future. Three Gwinnett teams went up against three really good teams and lost. Just a play or two was the difference in the Grayson and Peachtree Ridge games.

It's going to be weird not covering a Class AAAAA state championship game in two weeks, it's a treat Gwinnett County football fans have been accustomed to for a long time.

I said it a lot this weekend, but I still can't believe it.

Time to rally behind Buford
Luckily not all is lost for Gwinnett football. Two-time defending Class AA champion Buford is still in the playoffs.

This year's team may not have been as dominant or filled with big-time names as the previous teams, but the Wolves are just two wins away from three-peating.
They will have to make a 215-mile trip South to Fitzgerald to play a Purple Hurricanes team that is 13-0. These two teams met in the semifinals last year with Buford pulling out a 44-21 victory.

Calhoun and Lovett are the other two teams left in AA and I wouldn't mind seeing a Buford vs. Lovett state championship game. I'm sure Buford would like another shot at the Lions, too, after giving the Wolves their only loss of the season.

If common opponents mean anything to you, Fitzgerald defeated Cook 42-12 nearly two months ago, while Buford knocked off Cook 26-0 last week in the playoffs.

Shout out to Rockdale
Now that Gwinnett has lost all of its AAAAA teams, I'm pulling for Rockdale in AAAA. Why Rockdale? Well, one of my best friend's little brother, Stevie Johnson, is the offensive line coach for Rockdale. I remember the kid when he was a punk middle schooler and now he's two wins away from getting a state championship ring. So good luck Stevie and Rockdale. Try not to break anything this week.

Other teams to pull for: Our buddies to the North in Hall County have Flowery Branch and Gainesville duking it out in Class AAA this week.

All-star game coming up
Just a heads up. The Gwinnett County all-star game is in three weeks. It's on Saturday, Dec. 19 at 2 p.m. at Grayson High School.

It will be the last chance to check out some of the top players in the county in the senior-only all-star game.

That's it for this week. Stay classy