Friends, I’ve missed you and I’ve missed writing about 1A, but at the end of last year, I’d prepare my steaming batch of Class A nuggets and half the games would end up cancelled by the time Friday arrived. This year, giant slates of games would be cancelled week-to-week, or people would line up games a day or so in advance. In terms of trying to write about that, I felt like a guy in the woods who was certain he’d chased down Bigfoot, only to realize he’d spent a day in pursuit of the world’s most obese squirrel. Well, we’ve got a steady schedule from here on out since the playoffs have started, so let’s celebrate the majesty of South Carolina’s most entertaining classification…
Williston-Elko (3-7) at Southside Christian (8-0) It doesn’t seem like that long ago that W-E was like a guy at a bar who beats you up in the bathroom, leaves with your girlfriend, then takes her to your parents house, where your mom washes his socks and makes him a sandwich. They beat everybody and often ran it up in the process is my point (because my point was probably not immediately clear from that terrible analogy). Now, though, they haven’t finished over .500 since 2017. They did score a nice win over a high-scoring Denmark-Olar team this year, but also ended up on the business end of two major league rootins’ to close the season against Calhoun County and Ridge Spring-Monetta (by a combined score of 86-0). And honestly, unless their resume included “roster stocked with scary football robots and superheroes that can poop lightning” it doesn’t really matter. Barring something unforeseen, this feels like a coronation more than a competitive tournament anyone other than Southside Christian can win. Take it for what it’s worth, but since about 2011, if there is a private school present in Class A, they win Class A. The Sabres are the defending champs and seem considerably better than last year’s version, which was at least challenged in a couple of playoff games. They haven’t been this year, giving up 28 points all season…and 15 of those came in their win over AAAA Greer. Coaches have told me they are so good up front on defense, they would have a shot to win AA and would probably be competitive in AAA. People know the name of DT Michael Kennedy since he made North-South (and would have made the Shrine Bowl, were that a thing this year) but he’s one of many. Ja’Corey Martin is a true two-way threat at QB, the special teams are excellent…you have to look hard to find a weakness. When you put that up against a team that had struggles on offense and defense down the stretch, I’ve expended way more words than necessary to tell you “this won’t go well.” The winner- Southside Christian Wagener-Salley (4-6) at C.A. Johnson (5-3) Let me tell you something, the Hornets are legit. They came out of nowhere last year to have a winning season, but then ended up walking funny for a while after running into Southside Christian in the first round. This is a veteran group at some important spots, so I think the “HOLY WOW WE’RE IN THE PLAYOFFS” thing has been left behind now. Isom Harris is one of those kids who seems like he’s been starting at QB forever…like, when C.A. Johnson was a one-room school that students got to via carriage and where they had to poop in the woods because motor cars and indoor plumbing hadn’t been invented yet, he was under center. He’s at least a three-year starter, maybe four and he’s grown into an excellent QB and leader. Good passer, good runner and has some nice weapons at his disposal with guys like Dawan Rice and Ce Ce Bailey. They do a lot of split back stuff with those two and both are capable pass catchers too. Defense has been pretty good too and the team succeeded through multiple season pauses and it should be noted the three losses were to good teams (Lamar, Keenan and Wade Hampton) and those were competitive. The guys from Chitlinburg have had a bit of a down year given that they’ve made some deep playoff runs in recent years (though some of their losses were close ones against good teams). As with the past few years, they have guys up front who look like they should live at the top of a beanstalk and eat weird bone bread and a couple of really good running backs. Ian Stroman has had some big games on the ground this year but “big” is woefully inadequate when describing what Cam Davis did last week against the War Eagles of Blackville-Hilda. He had FORTY FIVE CARRIES FOR 320 YARDS AND SIX TOUCHDOWNS! It takes a bad dude to tote it 45 times in a game. He probably flosses with barbed wire and uses live rattlesnakes for belts. I think this is one of the two best matchups we have in the first round. I will say that Wagener-Salley had real trouble with a couple of mobile quarterbacks who can throw it this year and they’ll see another Friday. I think having a year of playoff experience now will be a big help to the Hornets so… The winner- In a close one, C.A. Johnson Calhoun County (6-4) Bye. The Saints, to me, have some serious dark horse, might-make-a-run potential. They were supposed to play Military Magnet in the first round, but the Eagles (0-9 and outscored 367-28 on the year) opted not to accept a beating or t-shirts emblematic of their participation in the playoffs. This seems like a really good time to remind everyone that pre-set brackets suck and we need a points system. Ware Shoals (3-6) at McBee (2-5) I have to admit, the Panthers had me stumped. I saw them against Lewisville when they were fresh off a 40-point output against Great Falls. As they plodded down the field at a glacier pace on a drive that went 17 plays, 51 yards (so three yards per play) and about 9 minutes of clock later. I thought “How in the world did they score 40?” WELL…that answer became clear in short order as their three-yard runs turned into five-yarders, then 10 as they kept the opposing defense on the field and wore them down. They are physical and they stay in that bone. They use a lot of different backs and just pound you. It should also be noted that since Johnny Kline became their coach, McBee seems to have played its best football down the stretch and into the playoffs, each year where it has been a tough out. I take delight in telling you that Ware Shoals has a 130-pound RB named Justice Lomax (a name that just oozes awesomeness…and you should go watch his highlights, BTW) but two of their three wins came against winless Calhoun Falls Charter (the other was a tight victory over Whitmire) and most of their losses weren’t real competitive. This might be a close game but I’ll take the team with the more consistent offense. The winner- McBee Whitmire (2-6) at Ridge Spring-Monetta (7-2) The boys from the Pearl of the Piedmont have had a little bit of a rough year. The Wolverines are really young, with freshmen getting lots of snaps at QB, RB and other important positions. I saw them in the year and they didn’t punt, even on 4th-and-long from deep in their own territory. Every kickoff was of the onside variety. They gamble and force you to make plays, which can apply pressure to an opponent, or, you know, not work. But if you’re running a bunch of `14 and 15-year-olds out there, that’s probably a way to give yourself more of a shot. This is a growing and learning year for them. RS-M is already growned and learned, however. Just start with QB Remedee Leaphart. On time of having an incredibly awesome name, I think he’s one of the best signal-callers in the state. Don’t forget, he led them to a state runner-up finish as a sophomore. He reminds me of Corey Fields, really, or of a football-playing cyborg sent from space to embarrass other school-age children. He’s athletic, but he runs to keep passing plays alive as well he does run for yardage. Consequently, they make a lot of big plays, as evidenced by their outlandish point totals. The defense is really good too and aside from a close loss to Calhoun County, they’ve just laid painful, awful beatings on everybody (they’ve outscored the opposition 158-8 in the last three games). They move on and have a shot to keep dong so for a while. The winner- Ridge Spring-Monetta Great Falls (6-3) at Dixie (7-2) I don’t think this is a typical 4 vs. 1 matchup. Great Falls has one of the most dynamic backfields in Class A with QB Xavier Brown and RB Foxx Moore. Both average over 8 yards-per-carry, both have run for double-digit scores…Brown has near 2,000 yards of total offense and Moore nearly 1,400 (which doesn’t even include kick returns). Brown had never started at QB until this year, but he’s not just a run around guy, he developed into a good passer very quickly. When you’re an old, unathletic person with the vertical jump of a limbless possum, that’s kind of hard to fathom, really. Moore is diminutive, but he DOES NOT shy from contact. He’ll bounce around in traffic like a bumper car, knocking elderly drivers and kids who should really be on a merry go round out of harm’s way into the wall (am I the only one who tried to disable other bumper cars at Carowinds?) before accelerating out of reach. Will Manning (a 6’7 TE) and Jordan Holmes (who has about 80 percent of his catches go for TDs) are nice complimentary weapons and the Red Devils do have 5’9, 220-pound change-of-pace back Jaylan Sanders. He’s the “oh, I’d rather not try to tackle him” balance to Moore’s “I’m tired of chasing him so I’m going to stop trying” skillset. Now, I’ll tell you tackling hasn’t been a strength for the team and they’ve gotten in some shootouts. Dixie, we all remember, had a big, senior-laden team a few years back that got to upperstate, but they bottomed out the last two seasons. Well, they rebounded nicely this year and their only losses came to Southside Christian and Crescent. They run a double wing, they use a lot of backs and appear to have a good kicking game. Having said that, their seven wins have come against teams with 15 combined victories and a lot of those were VERY close. I’m not saying they aren’t good. If you’re 7-2 and have found ways to win close games, you are, in fact good, but how will they handle a dynamic, big-play offense? I think it being the fourth time Great Falls has faced this offense this year makes a difference too. I may be wrong, but what fun are picks without an upset? The winner- Great Falls Blackville-Hilda (3-5) at Lamar (6-3) I’ve heard all year “you know, Lamar is a little down.” I saw them in person twice and the only thing I noticed is they probably don’t have anywhere near the depth they normally do. Aside from C.A. Johnson, their 1A contests were not close and when considering the three losses, understand they played a BIG BOY schedule that included Dillon, Timberland and Aynor (who they took to overtime). They run both a spread and a wishbone look. The first time I saw them was early and they were spread heavy, then QB Tyler McManus got hurt and I saw them run nothing but triple-tight, two backs the second time. They are effective at both. I was told McManus was expected back for the playoffs, so we’ll see how that goes. Even when in the spread, they leaned on the run and dadgum they’re good at it. They block downfield well, Pat Anderson is a very good back and Ja’Quan Toney often looks like a grown man playing with children…like, an overly-competitive grown man with anger issues that stiff-arms his 7-year-old son, then spikes the ball in his daughter’s face and admonishes her for poor tackling effort. Blackville-Hilda, by the standard of the past few seasons, had a down year. That really showed on defense because remember, they allowed 10 points-per-game last year and gave Southside Christian a serious challenge in the playoffs. They enter this postseason having lost 5-of-6 and gave up a lot of points while doing so. I think the Silver Foxes advance. The winner-Lamar McCormick (3-4) at Denmark-Olar (6-3) Let’s have a little appreciation for what Jarvis Littlejohn has done with D-O this year. With a killer backfield of QB Keithan Washington and RBs T.J. Williams and Chris Sanders, the Vikings averaged over 45 points-per-game and won six games after being in the “meh” to “yuck” category for a while. Now, they needed every last one of those points in a couple of shootouts and had a bit of a head-scratcher loss to Williston-Elko, but this is a potent offense that can seemingly light anybody up. I’ve honestly been a hair puzzled by the fact that McCormick hasn’t done the same thing. They obviously have a dynamic player in A’Chean Durant, who is Mataeo’s brother. As an aside, you ever notice how when a good player has a younger brother, somebody always wants to whisper, “You know, his little brother coming up is better than him” even if the younger brother is bow-legged, eats his own boogers and prefers collecting stamps to athletics? Well, trust me, A’Chean is NOT that kid. Few are as good as his brother was but he’s real dang good. Maybe the lack of eye-popping points totals is owed to a brutal schedule that included Abbeville and a season that was only seven games long. I think we’re going to get an entertaining shootout here but I think the Vikings get an intriguing matchup with Lamar next week. The winner- Denmark-Olar Cross (2-4) at C.E. Murray (4-1) I think C.E. Murray managed to slip under the radar a bit for most of the season, because they only played five games and had two separate breaks that stretched on for three weeks. So, they should theoretically be healthy and like every Brian Smith-coached team, I’ll bet there as tough as the steaks I saw at the Dollar Tree once-upon-a-time (real thing that happened and no I did not buy any). They have a North-South guy in QB/DB Tyree Prunes and after an early loss to the OC Semi-pros (that was closer than the score would make it appear) they won a close one over Carvers Bay and pretty well smashed everybody else. It’s pretty telling that if you watch highlights of their defensive players, they are usually labeled “textbook tackling” or “he squashed that WR like a bug” because that’s kind of a Smith Hallmark. I admittedly don’t know a ton about Cross, but it’s usually a good thing for them when they have a RB named Wright (and they do in Caleb). They gave Baptist Hill the toughest game they had all year, but also only beat two teams with a combined one victory between them teams and dropped one to St. John’s. Probably a quick, run-heavy game and a physical contest in both directions, but I figure it will be the first of at least a couple of playoff wins for the War Eagles. The winner- C.E. Murray Johnsonville (4-3) at Branchville (5-1) The Sausages got into some high-scoring games this year and have an excellent RB in Daquan Burroughs, an elusive guy with power that ran for near three bills on Hannah-Pamplico a few weeks ago. Branchville, though, played really good defense all year and its easy to forget they had Bamberg-Ehrhardt in a 14-7 game at halftime before getting knocked around a bit in the last 24 minutes of that one. Could go either way, but I’ll take defense in this one and that’s about all I can offer you here, Hoss. The winner- Branchville Estill (3-7) at Lake View (8-2) In retrospect, Estill’s season-opening win over Denmark-Olar was pretty impressive, but there hasn’t been much of note since then. Lake View is among the most talented teams in the lowerstate and sometimes you don’t really have to detail how horrendous the end is for a skeeter that hits your windshield when you’re doing 90 down a country back road on a hot summer day. Hit the wipers and keep on drivin’. The winner- Lake View East Clarendon (2-6) at Whale Branch (6-1) The Warriors were one TD from being unbeaten, winning their region and taking a number one playoff seed. As the guys at LowcoSports.com (check them out if you haven’t) pointed out, though, finishing second actually puts them on the opposite side of the bracket from Bamberg-Ehrhardt. So, that’s kind of like slipping on fresh dog poop and falling, but in so doing your big, dumb head cracks the ground open and reveals a gold mine. Because, you know, that happens a lot. Anyway, Whale Branch has a mega-productive RB in Joseph Hicks, who has run for right at 1,000 yards in seven games. Aside from a wild early game against Calhoun County, the defense has been consistently good too. East Clarendon, um, made the playoffs, which is nice. The winner- Whale Branch Hannah-Pamplico (4-3) at Bamberg-Ehrhardt (9-0) Am I crazy to think H-P has a shot here? The conventional wisdom is B-E is a favorite to win the lowerstate title. Go back to their game with Johnsonville, though, and you’ll see QB Zander Poston throwing for 382 yards and SIX EXPLETIVE TOUCHDOWNS. Now, if you try to beat B-E at their own game, if you go in their and try to have a tater kickin’ contest with them, you’ll end up drooling, crying and speaking in a voice that’s a few octaves higher than it is now. But, if you come in with a big passing attack, maybe you can make some headway. It’s hard to say since that hasn’t much happened this year. Also keep in mind, H-P beat Lake View, which shows they’re capable of hanging with most anybody. B-E has only given up 62 points all year and 21 of those came in a win over AAAA Airport. They are going to run the ball with a trio of Quintin Banks, Quincy Bias and Nick Folk. They haven’t been challenged this year (including by Airport) and I think they move on…but I’m just saying it might be interesting. The winner- Bamberg-Ehrhardt St. John’s (2-6) at Carvers Bay (7-3) CB has been a little up-and-down, but St. John’s has mainly just done the down part. The winner- Carvers Bay Baptist Hill struggled with turnovers in the first half and trailed at the break but rolled Scott’s Branch 56-20 Thursday night WHICH I TOTALLY WOULD HAVE PICKED! Bobcats feel like a lock to make it to the third round, to me. Allendale-Fairfax (3-4) at Green Sea Floyds (7-2) A venerable hyphenated team against one that seems like it ought to have one. Green Sea lost the opener at Blacksburg (which you can’t get to from Green Sea without fording across a river on horseback and cutting threw thick brush with a machete) and lost late to Lake View. They have a couple of productive backfield options, including Colby Thorndyke. A-F played a brutal schedule, so I feel like this isn’t the runaway it looks like on paper. Still… The winner- Green Sea Floyds
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TravisI am Travis, the king 0f SC 1A Football Archives
November 2021
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