VALDOSTA — Valdosta High begins the Gwinnett County portion of its schedule today, hosting Collins Hill at 7:30 p.m.

The Wildcats will play Collins Hill tonight, a week before traveling to Brookwood. Both hail from Gwinnett County, one of the state’s most populated counties, and one of the state’s strongest prep football areas.

Collins Hill enters the game 0-1, after a 27-14 loss to Grayson last week. Valdosta head coach Rick Tomberlin expects a challenge from the Eagles.

“They’re a pretty good football team,” Tomberlin said. “We’re going to have to play well. These guys are pretty fair. They lost their first game, which they should have won, and that makes them dangerous.”

Like Valdosta’s week 1 opponent, Jordan, the Eagles use a spread offense.

“Collins Hill, to be honest with you, is a lot like Jordan,” Tomberlin said. “I don’t think they have quite the precision passing that Jordan did, but it’s a similar offense. They like to throw it. They probably run the ball more than Jordan does, but it’s the same kind of stuff, a lot out of the shotgun, some one-back, four-wide sets, sometimes even five-wide. They don’t have a receiver like (Jordan star Cody Raymond), but the receivers are still pretty good.”

But the Eagles’ strength is usually its defense. Last year, they allowed 10 points or less in seven of their 11 games. Only highly rated teams from Roswell, Norcross and North Gwinnett had a good deal of success scoring against them.

“Generally, they play pretty good defense,” Tomberlin said. “They’re quick. Their linebackers are a lot like Jordan’s, the way they attack the ball.”

So what must Valdosta do to win tonight’s game?

“We’re going to have to do a good job of protecting the ball,” Tomberlin said. “We’re going to have to play good. If we don’t play good, we’ll be in trouble. If we play good, protect the ball and get after it, we’ve got a chance to win the game.”

Collins Hill has been a perennial playoff team, including a Region 7-AAAAA championship in 2004 and a state semifinals appearance in 2001.

Collins Hill played in one of the more exciting first-round playoff games last year. The Eagles fell behind 28-0 to Roswell, the eventual state co-champion, but staged a furious rally and cut the deficit to 31-28 before finally running out of time. Much of that team has graduated, but Tomberlin says the Eagles still remain a talented bunch.

“They’ve got a good football team,” Valdosta’s head coach said. “Their No. 42 (Brad Wood) is a real good player at defensive end. He may be one of the better defensive linemen we face. The quarterback (Brent McDonald) is a good player. No. 58 at linebacker (Josh Sneed) is also a good defensive player.”

Last week, Grayson’s offense rushed for 219 yards, but passed for just 33. Collins Hill’s offense was balanced, with McDonald completing 6-of-15 passes for 71 yards and the Eagles rushing for 63 yards, 57 of them by sophomore Charles Perkins.

Last Saturday, Valdosta opened its season with a 23-21 victory over Jordan. David Arnold rushed for 105 yards and a touchdown and caught three passes for 55 yards and another score, while Curtis Weatherspoon sealed the win with a late interception. The Wildcats’ record in season openers is now 82-6-6.