Briggs Steps Down as LMA Football Coach

   By Dennis Brunson

           hssr.com Associate Editor

           Manning – Robbie Briggs has stepped down as both the football head coach and athletic director at Laurence Manning Academy just five months after being hired for his second stint at the school in those positions.

           The school administration made the announcement on Thursday, October 4.

           “We are grateful to Coach Briggs for his hard work and his investment in the development of our players this year and in his previous time with us,” said Laurence Manning headmaster Tripp Boykin. “We truly wish him the best.”

           Patrick Anderson, who was Briggs’ offensive coordinator and assistant head coach, will be in charge of the football team for the remainder of the season. Anderson, who was just hired as the boys basketball head coach over the summer, doesn’t think the shuffle will have a major effect on the coaching staff.

           “Taking on the new role won’t change the rest of the coaching staff much,” Anderson said. “We will all just have to step up our game just a little bit.”

Anderson is a 2012 graduate of Laurence Manning. During his time as a student-athlete, Anderson was the starting point guard on the school’s last boys basketball state championship team in 2012. He was a 3-year varsity football letterman, a 4-year varsity basketball letterman and was named to the SCISA All-State team in both sports.

  Morgan Watt will assume the athletic director duties. Watt has served in that post at LMA before.

           Anderson’s first game as head coach happened to be against 7-time defending SCISA state champion Hammond on October 5. The Swampcats, who lost to Hammond in the AAAA state championship game the past two seasons, dropped a 65-14 decision.

           The Skyhawks led 23-0 after one quarter and 44-7 at halftime. The second half was played with a running clock.

           Brentston Rembert scored on a 4-yard run in the second quarter for the Swampcats’ first touchdown. Placekicker Daniel Vargas added the extra point to make it 37-7.

           Laurence Manning’s final score came on a 22-yard touchdown run by Cade Mooneyham in the fourth quarter. Vargas again added the extra point.

           Running back Pierson Gamble led the Swampcats in rushing with 58 yards on five carries. Running back Peyton Brown had two catches for 27 yards and carried the football seven times for 19 yards.

           The loss was the fourth in a row for Laurence Manning, which fell to 2-4 on the season. The Swampcats are 1-3 in AAAA contests.

           Laurence Manning has four regular-season games remaining, three of them AAAA matchups. The Swampcats play host to Cardinal Newman on October 11, travel to Columbia to face Ben Lippen on October 18 and visit Charleston to take on Porter-Gaud on November 1 in the regular-season finale.

           Laurence Manning is at home against Trinity Collegiate on October 25 in its non-AAAA game.

`          Anderson is happy with what he has seen of the Swampcats as they prepare for the final month of the season and try to finish strong.

           “The kids have positive attitudes and they are eager to get back to work,” Anderson said. “We want to continue to get better every day.”

           Laurence Manning started the season with a 54-25 triumph over John Paul II. The Swampcats followed that with a 30-28 triumph over Heathwood Hall in their AAAA opener.

           In the opener, sophomore quarterback Grainger Powell completed 18 of 24 passes for 285 yards and four touchdowns. Scoop Dennis had seven catches for 97 yards and three touchdowns, BJ Balls had five catches for 101 yards and a score, and Zy Dennis had six catches for 87 yards and a TD.

           The running game stepped up in the win over Heathwood Hall, Brown had 23 carries for 237 yards and a touchdown while also catching a 20-yard score. Gamble added 57 yards and a rushing score. Powell completed 11 of 14 passes for 178 yards and two touchdowns.

           Laurence Manning then began to have defensive struggles. The Swampcats lost to Northwood Academy 42-6, Wilson Hall 42-15 and Augusta Christian School 44-29 before facing Hammond.

           Anderson doesn’t see the remainder of the season as a lost cause at all.

           “I think we can improve in every aspect of the game, offense, defense and special teams,” he said. “We have a young team and they just need to continue to grow in every facet of the game.

           “I’m humbled to have the opportunity to have a positive impact on these kids’ lives.”

           Briggs, who was in charge of the program for six seasons from 2013 through 2018, was hired in May to replace Will Furse as both the football head coach and athletic director. Furse left his alma mater after two years in those positions to take similar posts at Lee Academy in Bishopville.

Briggs recorded a 50-24 record in his first stint at Laurence Manning. The Swampcats reached the semifinals in five of those six seasons and played for the state title in 2014 and 2017.

Before coaching at LMA, Briggs was the head coach at Manning High School, his alma mater, for 12 seasons. He posted a 103-45 record at Manning, giving him an overall record of 153-69.

Briggs guided the Monarchs to three lower state title games and 10 or more wins in five of the seasons. Briggs was on the coaching staff at Manning for 18 years, the first six as an assistant. He was an All-State linebacker on Manning’s 1988 AAA state championship team.