McCormick- 43
Ware Shoals- 18 Dixie- 43 Calhoun Falls Charter- Just pick one of these, I’m about out. Timmonsville- 32 Great Falls- I guess you could say they had great fall. Herp diddly haw hee. Lamar- 47 McBee- 7 Blackville-Hilda- 8 North- Is it really a “0” if you don’t actually play? Williston-Elko- 46 Denmark-Olar- 26 Ridge Spring-Monetta- 33 Hunter-Kinard-Tyler- The number of hyphens in their name, minus two Wagener-Salley- 46 Estill- Uma, Oprah. Oprah, Uma. Baptist Hill- 28 St. John’s- 27 Military Magnet- 46 The Charleston Charter School for matters unrelated to the Military- 38 Bethune-Bowman- 34 Branchville- 24 C.E. Murray- 22 Scott’s Branch- 14 Lake View- 39 Hemingway- 21 Green Sea-Floyds- 63 Creek Bridge- 8 Breakdown- First off, my apologies for not posting anything last week. Unfortunately, the two hurricanes pretty much finished off the crappy old roof in my office, so I spent last week moving to a new location. Seriously, though, I thought about you the whole time. Those desks and computers don’t mean nothing to me, baby. Anyway, we pretty much have our six Class A region champions at this point (more on that shortly). Obviously, the game of the night took place down in Region IV, where Baptist Hill clinched the championship with a come-from-behind 28-27 victory over St. John’s. The game sounded like it was a little sloppy with a lot of turnovers in both directions, which may be attributable in part to a heavy rain shower in the first half. Baptist Hill came in averaging a stupid, cartoonish 68.4 points-per-game in its previous five contests, so that should tell you what kind of defense the Islanders played. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Bobcats had 14 points on the board. That’s actually even better than it sounds, because St. John’s didn’t have many sustained drives to keep Rashad Maxwell and company on the sidelines. One of their scores was pick-six and one was a Tyrone Hicks 74-yard scoring run. St. John’s came up with multiple fourth-down stops and didn’t give up the big play. They made Baptist Hill earn every single thing they got. In the final seven minutes, though, Maxwell directed his team on two clutch scoring drives. It’s funny, he might have been the state’s best WR last year (he had 19 touchdowns, which is kind of a lot) but after the offense failed to click in two season-opening losses, he was moved under center and the team has just been humming along. Don’t forget that this is a senior-heavy team that is playing some legitimately good defense this year. They aren’t just eye candy, fireworks, holy crap they scored how many?, anymore. How impressive does it look now that they held The OC Semi-Pros to 17 points? Minus special teams and defensive scores, they held a dang good St. John’s well below its average. They get a first-round bye, then play either Branchville or Military Magnet, either of whom they’d be huge favorites against, then likely face a test in either Green Sea-Floyds or C.E. Murray. What St. John’s has done is impressive this year. Coach Harpe has a very inexperienced team, but they obviously have come a long way on defense, they are EXCELLENT on special teams and they find a lot of ways to get their playmakers the ball on offense. They should beat whoever the at-large team is next week, then have what should be a great game against Lake View… The only other really competitive game played for a region title was came in Region V, where the Mr. T Haircuts pittied the fools! (Is that a dated reference? It feels like it might be a dated reference). I was a little slow to warm up to this team early. They got smoked by Blackville-Hilda in the season-opener, but that really doesn’t look like a bad loss now given how well the Hawks are playing. Then they lost close to Denmark-Olar, won a couple of gimmes, then got railed by Whitmire. They then proceeded to beat three teams that ended with three wins between them, so they seemed to me to be just kinda meh. When they got my attention was a few weeks ago with a two-touchdown victory over C.E. Murray. That served notice that they maybe weren’t just a team who won and lost all the games you expected them too. Then they won their first region crown in 27 years with a win over a pretty good Branchville team. With a new coach and new offensive philosophy, maybe it just took time for things to click for the Mr. T Haircuts. What they have is an old-fashioned plow horse of a running back in Jesus Benjamin who get 20-ish carries a game. I watched some highlights and he may not have super top-end speed, not the cheetah mating with a lightning bolt kinda thing, but he’s quick, has really good balance, nice cutting ability and looks tough as crap. They also feature a senior, I think four-year starter at quarterback, in Braxton Wedgeworth III, esq. (NOTE: I don’t know if his name is multi-generational or if he’s an attorney, but it just seems to fit). He’s throws it pretty well, though they don’t throw it much, but he’s an experienced guy and leader who can make things happen with his feet. They get a bye to open the playoffs, then get Scott’s Branch or Hemingway. Quick Hits- I was at Timmonsville v Great Falls last week. You can’t overstate what a great job Coach Scotty Steen did with the Red Devils this year. With, I think, on senior on the roster and a 24-game losing streak coming in, to get to 4-5 is quite an accomplishment. Bowser, Moore, Funderburk, Talford; their young talent is top-notch and they’ll take another step forward next year. The Whirlwinds have no depth to speak of at all, but Jamaric Morris is a high-end, dynamic athlete who never leaves the field and Fanando Jackson is a beast at RB. They’ve also played really good defense for new coach Ron Baker this year. They get a tough draw in Ridge Spring-Monetta in the first round of the playoffs, which will be an interesting matchup…Lamar beat McBee which doesn’t exactly rate on the “holy crap” meter, but let me tell you, the Panthers played better down the stretch, in retrospect they played as tough a schedule as anybody and they get Ware Shoals to open the playoffs, which is a likely win. Also, Lamar is good…I had high hopes early in the year for Green Sea-Floyds and Ridge Spring-Monetta, but both were a bit up-and-down over the course of the season. Both seem to be finishing strong, though, so keep an eye on both. Playoffs I’ve alluded to a couple of matchups already, but let’s go through the bracket as it is currently posted on the SCHSL website. First off, all region champs get first round byes, so Dixie, Lamar, Wagener-Salley, Baptist Hill, The Mr. T Haircuts and Lake View will be off next week. In the upperstate, Timmonsville gets Ridge Spring-Monetta, with the winner going to Dixie. McBee faces Ware Shoals, with the winner headed to Blackville-Hilda. McCormick matches up with Williston-Elko in round one and the lucky winner gets an all-expenses paid trip to a savage rootin’ (Lamar). Whitmire matches up with Estill and the winner gets the not-very-envious honor of playing Chitlinville. In the lowerstate, Military Magnet and Branchville face off for the right to go to the greater Hollywood, Peter’s Point area to maybe lose by the kind of score you see, text to your buddy and go “OOOH DANG!” (Baptist Hill for those unfamiliar with Peter’s Point…which is a funny name). Green Sea-Floyds is listed as playing “bye #6” even though the two from that region doesn’t get a bye, I don’t think. Someone from the lowcountry let me know what the deal is with that, please. If it is what it says, then either Green Sea or #9 Dream or Engine, Engine #9 or whatever goes to C.E. Murray the following week. Scott’s Branch is listed as going to the third-place finisher from Region VI, which technically hasn’t been decided yet, but will be Hemingway. The second round opponent for that winner takes on the Mr. T Haircuts. St. John’s hosts an at-large team. There aren’t many lowerstate teams left really…it’ll be like Creek Bridge or Cross who, no offense, shouldn’t be in the playoffs, but whatever. If we had a points system and upper-to-lower flexibility like God intended instead of pre-seeded brackets, we wouldn’t have this foolishness, but them’s the berries, Hoss. Anyway, St. John’s will beat whoever that is and have an excellent second-round match-up at Lake View. All-Stars The Shrine Bowl and North-South rosters were announced recently. One Class A player made it on the Shrine Bowl roster, that being uber-awesome Williston-Elko TE Keshawn Toney. His team underwhelmed a bit this year with youth an injury and he was banged up at times, but he’s a nearly 6’3, 245-pound man beast who frequently lines up wide, runs past people and wins jump balls. He can also flatten hapless defenders. He’s like a bull, but one that can soar high to the heavens to high point throws. So, like if a bill and a bald eagle had a baby, it would be him…or something. Anyway, he’s a South Carolina commit, which I’m sure helped his cause but he deserved recognition. On the North-South roster, we got exactly the minimum that can be taken (six, one from each region) as per usual. De’Iveon Donald from Dixie (big, strong RB who will knock your teeth out your ears on defense), Jamario James from HKT (incredibly active guy, all-around terrific player), Jacquez Lucas (a frightening person who plays for Lamar), Rashad Maxwell from Baptist Hill(did you miss the 19 TDs last year, guiding an offense to 68 a game this year thing earlier?), Braxton Wedgeworth II, esq (big-time player on both sides of the ball) and Darius Williams from Hemingway (he’s a large person who runs fast and hits hard) all made the game. My problem is that for whatever reason, we rarely get more than one 1A guy on the Shrine Bowl and we get the bare minimum on North-South. First of all, unless there’s something I’m missing, how in the world did Maxwell not make the Shrine Bowl roster? He caught 19 touchdowns last year, selflessly switched positions this year and is guiding the most explosive, dynamic offense in the state. He has multiple nine TD games this year, a fact I’d like for you to let simmer in your head for a few minutes. If he gets the recognition he deserves in the Shrine Bowl, then an extra spot suddenly opens up on the North-South roster. I’ll admit a lot of Class A teams seem to have an inordinate amount of youth this year and Class A has fewer teams than in the past, but this is a recurring problem. Last year, they passed right over Quentin Sanders, Mikial Fourney and Josh Belk from Lewisville, despite Sanders having 2,000-plus yards and a seventy flobbity jillion TDs, Fourney being an absolute stud on both sides of the ball and Belk posting insane numbers at a premium position. Lake View, Wagener-Salley, RS-M, Green Sea-Floyds, all have had good years this season, all have talented seniors, none got a sniff. This comes despite the fact that in Class A, most players rarely leave the field. Ain’t much two-platoonin’, Jabbo. If you start at QB, you also start at safety, and return kicks and cover kicks. RBs are LBs who also have to kickoff. I’m sure there are two-way starters in other classifications, but it’s the exception there, not the rule. It would be nice to see more Class A guys rewarded for what they do, instead of starting the all-star process with demerit next to their name. Now, if someone will hand me a ladder, so that I may dismount and climb down from my high, high horse. POLL TIME As always, I am posting my ballot for the S.C. Prep Media Poll, followed by the actual final poll. 1. Lamar- Duh 2, Wagener-Salley-See above. 3. Dixie- A power running team with one of Class A’s best defenses. They got a really tough playoff draw, though. 4. Baptist Hill- Showed they could win close and against good competition last week. Their best win of the season. 5. Blackville-Hilda- One of the season’s most pleasant surprises. Physical and nasty on both sides. 6. Lake View- Dynamic playmakers at QB and RB and pretty solid defense make them formidable. 7. St. John’s- This young team hustles, they can hurt you a lot of ways on offense, they held Baptist Hill to 28 points and they’re terrific in the kicking game. 8. Whitmire- They maximize their talent as well as anybody…and they’ve got some to work with. Well-coached with kids that never stop coming at you. 9. Bethune-Bowman- Since getting beat down by the team at number eight, they seem to have legitimately improved. Great backfield. 10. Green Sea-Floyds- Don’t forget about this experienced bunch who lets the air out of the ball and beats the will to compete out of you over the course of 48 minutes. 1. Lamar (13 first-place votes) 2. Wagener-Salley 3. Dixie 4. Lake View 5. Baptist Hill 6. Blackville-Hilda 7. Bethune-Bowman 8. St. John’s 9. Ridge Spring-Monetta 10. Green Sea-Floyd’s Suggested Reading If you’ve been injured on the job, dial all 7s for Braxton Wedgeworth III, esq. There are some game capsules here you can choose to read. But then, making smart choices isn’t your forte, now is it Rachel? I bet if he’d caught 19 TDs at Dorman/Summerville/Et al he’d have made the Shrine Bowl.
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November 2021
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