By Kevin Eckleberry

Sports Editor

Game week is here, and what a first week it’ll be.

Callaway Stadium, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, will be the site of two marquee matchups this week.

Long-time rivals LaGrange and Newnan will kick things off Thursday at 7 p.m. at the old stadium, and on Friday night, Callaway and Troup will meet at 7:30 p.m.

While LaGrange and Newnan will be renewing a rivalry that goes back decades, Callaway and Troup will be playing for just the second time.

In the inaugural meeting last fall, Troup beat Callaway 15-7, although that outcome didn’t have much bearing on what was to come.

The Cavaliers won their next 10 games and didn’t lose until the second round of the playoffs, while the Tigers struggled to a 4-7 season that included a number of heart-breaking losses.

LaGrange and Newnan also played a year ago, with Newnan pulling away in the second half for a 31-10 victory.

That was the start of a fantastic season for Newnan, which went 13-1 and advanced to the Class AAAAA semifinals before falling to Camden County.

LaGrange also had another successful season, going 11-3 and making it to the Class AAA semifinals where it lost to Flowery Branch.

Callaway, LaGrange and Troup each got head starts on their seasons with preseason scrimmages last week.

LaGrange traveled to College Park Thursday night, and it led 12-0 at the half against the Westlake Lions.

Senior quarterback Jamius Gunsby threw a touchdown pass to Josh Manning, and Gunsby also had a scoring run.

The Grangers didn’t play their starters in the second half, and the Lions scored 20 unanswered points.

LaGrange head coach Steve Pardue said the team began its game week on Sunday rather than the usual Monday because of the Thursday game.

“Sunday will be our Monday,” Pardue said following last week’s scrimmage. “We’ve been getting ready for Newnan, trying to finalize some things.”

Troup traveled to Montgomery, Ala. for its scrimmage, and it came away with a 9-6 win over R.E. Lee High.

The defense was dominant, and quarterback Jaquante Holloway had a touchdown run.

“We were able to work out some kinks and kept it pretty basic,” Troup head coach Bubba Jeter said.

While that scrimmage was a defensive affair, the opposite was true in Hogansville Friday night as Callaway and Greenville got together.

The teams combined for 46 first-half points, with Greenville scoring right before the half to take a 26-20 lead.

Callaway’s touchdowns came on scoring runs by Marquis Terrell and Randy Bailey, and a touchdown pass from Chris Laye to Quantavius Leslie.

“I felt like our kids came out and fought hard,” Callaway head coach Pete Wiggins said.

In private-school football, Dawson Street Christian School will open its season Friday, while Lafayette Christian School will play its second game.

The Wildcats, who are set for the third season of GISA football, will play the Georgia Force in Marietta Friday at 7:30 p.m.

Lafayette Christian, meanwhile, will try to move to 2-0 when it hosts Skipstone at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.