Georgia High School Association - Football

The Georgia High School Association (GHSA) administers high school football as a state championship sport organised by Region across its classifications. The official football programme provides a coaches handbook, concussion guidance, FieldTurf guidance, forms, official-ball information, rules and procedures, schedules, Post Season Rankings, playoff brackets and past champions. For 2026–27, practice in pads begins on 27 July, the first game may be played from 21 August, the regular season ends on 6 November, and state playoffs run from 13 November through the GHSA/Tommy Guillebeau Football State Championships presented by Alfa Insurance at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on 15–16 December. Football games follow NFHS rules together with GHSA regulations. Teams may play ten regular-season games, normally no more than one game per week at the same competition level; athletes playing varsity and sub-varsity football are limited to six quarters in a seven-day period. Schools file their schedules with GHSA by 1 March and regions establish representative selection and tie-breaking procedures. In multiple classifications, four representatives per region enter the post-season; other classifications use the GHSA Post Season Ranking Formula. Higher seeds host playoff rounds before the finals, subject to published equal-seed procedures. The programme also prescribes overtime procedures, region qualification provisions, official registration and safety guidance.