Monroe Area will meet Grady on Legion field at 7:30 p.m. Friday with hopes of moving on to the semi-finals in the Georgia High School 2012 Football Championship.

According to Maxpreps High School Football Daily, this is the first time these two teams meet. Grady, at 9-1 is the No. 3 seed from Region 6-AAAA and unranked. Monroe Area goes into the matchup 10-1 and No. 1 seed from 8-AAAA. The Hurricanes also are unranked.

Last week, the Hurricanes pulled out a 21-14 victory over Shaw after QB Stanton Truitt scored on a 33-yard run with 1:47 left on the clock. Grady pulled out a win over River Ridge last week 27-17. Region 8 Champion Monroe Area goes into this weeks matchup against Grady in a top quarter that has no ranked teams – one will progress to the semifinals. Monroe Area has never been there before – Grady has, in 1953 and again in 2005.

The winner of Friday’s game will face the winner of the South Effingham/Westover game. The experts give Grady the edge. Maxwell predicts Grady by 1, Georgia High School Foot Daily’s Todd Holcombe also predicts Grady as the victor. Only GHSF Daily's Chip Saye gives it to the Purple Hurricanes.

What started as a dream season with a resounding defeat of the Loganville Red Devils is on the line Friday. Having only tasted defeat once this season, the Hurricanes hope not to experience it again.

OK Canes, time to bring it home!