Bamberg-Ehrhardt out to finish season unbeaten with Class A football state title

Neill Kirkpatrick Special Contriibutor • December 5, 2025

Red Raiders to face 12-2 Lamar for championship

Bamberg – The top ranked Red Raiders had laid waste to every opponent they had played this season with only one team coming with in 15 points so when they entered the fourth quarter of the class A lower state finals trailing fourth ranked Cross 26-22 it was the first gut check time of the year.

 

Big time players make big time plays and that is exactly what Brian McMillian and Marcus Cann Jr did as they connected on 10-yard touchdown pass with just over two minutes to go in the game to give the Red Raiders a 29-26 win. The win kept the Red Raiders undefeated at 14-0 but more importantly propelled them into their 12th state championship game appearance.

 

The Red Raiders will face the Lamar Silver Foxes (12-2/5-0) a 48-27 winner over Lewisville. The 6th ranked Silver Foxes are in there 10th state championship game and they are looking for their 6th title.

 

“We challenge our kids in practice every day. We tell them standards should never change no matter the opponent. Practice is harder than the games and we put our kids in situations like that every day,” said BE head coach Corey Crosby. “Cross is a great team and I have a lot of respect for Shaun Wright  and the program he has built at Cross. It took our best game to come out on top.”

 

Coach continued, “Our kids have been grounded all year because they know what we have a head of us. Once region play ended and when we were getting ready for the playoffs we had a saying ‘We don’t want the best players, we want the right players on the field.’ It keeps the competition high every day.”

 

The Red Raiders have been equally as impressive on both sides of the ball. The offense has scored 723 points (51.6 ppg) while the defense has allowed only 101 points (7.21 ppg). The scored over 50 points seven times while pitching five shutouts. They have almost 8000 yards of total offense and have scored 108 touchdowns.

 

Leading the offense is junior quarterback McMillian. He has completed 78% of his throws for 3820 yards and 45 touchdowns while rushing for 853 yards and another 21 touchdowns. The last two weeks he has really stepped up his game throwing for 861 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also plays corner on defense and is tied for the team lead in interceptions with five including one he took to the house.

 

McMillian’s top targets have been Charles (Anthony) Williams, Jason Youmans, Jordan Bovain, and  Rocky Walker.  Williams leads the team in receptions with 48 for 1263 yards and 17 scores. Youmans has 36 receptions for 820 yards and 10 touchdowns while Bovian has 32 receptions for 781 yards and five touchdowns. Walker has only 18 receptions but 8 have gone to the house.

 

Cann Jr  and Jalen McGraw  have both rushed for over 1000 yards and are averaging over 13 yards per carry. Cann has crossed the goal line 16 times while McGraw has 11 touchdowns. Chris Washington adds depth to the backfield and had has rushed for 503 yards and 8 scores.

 

Leading the way for all this offense are Michael Manigault, Jaden Moody, Simeon Bamberg, Pierre Fuller, Aaden McCormick,  and Keegan Daff. They have controlled the line of scrimmage and paved the way for the Red Raider’s offensive onslaught.

 

Linebacker Darian Sease  has   been a terror all year. Coach Crosby said he has made plays all over the field. He leads the team in tackles with 134. He is second in tackles for loss with 18 to go with four picks, two fumble recoveries and 2.5 sacks.

 

Washington is second on the team in tackles with 112 and 9 pass breakups   while Darius Walker  is third in tackles with 88 to go with 16 tackles for loss, 8 sacks, and two fumble recover

 

Ahmad Busby also has 80 tackles on the year.

 

McGraw has spent just as much time in the other teams backfield as he does his own. He leads the team with 24 tackles for loss to go with 10 sacks. He also forced a team high three fumbles, recovered two and has a pick.

 

The defensive front of Darren Carter, Bamberg and Moody have combined for 135 tackles with 12 tackles for loss. They do a great job of controlling the line scrimmage allowing the Red Raiders speedy linebackers to roam freely.

 

Chaz Breland has been solid in the kicking game. He is 99 for 105 on extra points and has a 47-yard field goal. He has 77 touchbacks on 107 kick offs and is averaging 44.13 yards on punts.


State Championships

At Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

In Orangeburg

Friday, December 5

3A

Belton-Honea Path (14-0) vs. Oceanside Collegiate (12-2), 12:06 p.m.

1A

Lamar (12-2) vs. Bamberg-Ehrhardt (14-0), 4:06 p.m.

5A Division II

Northwestern (12-1) vs. Irmo (12-1), 7:36 p.m.

 

Saturday, December 6

4A

South Pointe (13-1) vs. South Florence (13-1), 12:06 p.m.

2A

Strom Thurmond (12-2) vs. Hampton County (11-3), 4:06 p.m.

5A Division I

Dutch Fork (11-1) vs. Summerville (12-2), 7:36 p.m.

By Staff Reports January 15, 2026
HSSR Basketball Rankings HSSR Div. I AAAAA Boys (As of 1-15-2026) 1. Ridge View 2. Dorman 3. Dutch Fork 4. Cane Bay 5. Byrnes 6. Ashley Ridge 7. West Ashley 8. Carolina Forest 9. Sumter 10.Fort Dorchester HSSR Div. II AAAAA Boys (As of 1-15-2026) 1. Goose Creek 2. Westwood 3. Greenville 4. Riverside 5. Fort Mill 6. TL Hanna 7. Irmo 8. St. James 9. Nation Ford 10. Eastside HSSR Class AAAA Boys (As of 1-15-2026) 1. North Augusta 2. Gray Collegiate 3. Crestwood 4. Brookland-Cayce 5. Wilson 6. Darlington 7. Bluffton 8. Chapman 9. Camden 10. Hartsville HSSR Class AAA Boys (As of 1-15-2026) 1. Christ Church 2. St Joseph’s Catholic 3. Loris 4. Fox Creek 5. Keenan 6. Orangeburg-Wilkinson 7. Georgetown 8. Waccamaw 9. Mountain View Prep 10. Dillon HSSR Class AA Boys (As of 1-16-2026) 1. High Point Academy 2. Andrew Jackson 3. Hampton County 4. Liberty 5. Philip Simmons 6. Central 7. Ninety-Six 8. Marion 9. Pelion 10. Mullins HSSR Class A Boys (As of 1-16-2026) 1. Bethune-Bowman 2. Abbeville 3. Horse Creek Academy 4. CA Johnson 5. Latta 6. Carver's Bay 7. Calhoun County 8. Green Sea Floyds 9. Hunter-Kinard Tyler 10. Cross HSSR AAAAA Div. I Girls (As of 1-15-2026) 1. Byrnes 2. Mauldin 3. Blythewood 4. Dorman 5. Spartanburg 6. Wando 7. Sumter 8. Carolina Forest 9. Dutch Fork 10.Lexington HSSR Div. II Girls (As of 1-15-2026) 1. North Myrtle Beach 2. Goose Creek 3. Berkeley 4. Greenwood 5. Irmo 6. Gaffney 7. Eastside 8. Greenville 9.Catawba Ridge 10. Eastside HSSR Class AAAA Girls (As of 1-15-2026) 1. North Augusta 2. Westside 3. South Pointe 4. Camden 5. South Florence 6. Daniel 7. Blue Ridge 8. Darlington 9. Lower Richland 10. Wilson HSSR Class AAA Girls (As of 1-15-2026) 1. Walhalla 2. Dillon 3. Oceanside Collegiate 4. Southside Christian 5. West Oak 6. Aynor 7. St. Joseph's Catholic 8. Fox Creek 9. Orangeburg-Wilkinson 10. Keenan  HSSR Class AA Girls (As of 1-15-2026) 1. Clinton 2. Ninety-Six 3. Atlantic Collegiate 4. Kingstree 5. Andrew Jackson 4. Landrum 5. Saluda 7. Timberland 9. Whale Branch 10. Marion HSSR Class A Girls (As of 1-15-2026) 1. Military Magnet 2. Great Falls 3. North 4. Latta 5. HKT 6.Cross 7. Denmark-Olar 8. Lewisville 9. McCormick 10. Williston-Elko
By Staff Reports January 15, 2026
SCBCA Rankings - January 13, 2026 5A D1 Boys Top 10 1. Dorman 2. Dutch Fork 3. Ridge View 4. Cane Bay 5. Byrnes 6. Ashley Ridge 7. West Ashley 8. Sumter 9. Boiling Springs 10. Spartanburg 5A D2 Boys Top 10 1. Greenville 2. Westwood 3. Riverside 4. Fort Mill 5. Goose Creek 6. TL Hanna 7. St. James 8. Irmo 9. Nation Ford 10. Eastside 5A D1 Girls Top 10 1. Byrnes 2. Blythewood 3. Dorman 4. Wando 5. Spartanburg 6. Mauldin 7. Carolina Forest 8. Dutch Fork 9. Lexington 10. West Ashley 5A D2 Girls Top 10 1. Goose Creek 2. North Myrtle Beach 3. Berkeley 4. Irmo 5. Greenwood 6. Gaffney 7. Greenville 8. Catawba Ridge 9. Eastside 10. St. James 4A Boys Top 10 1. Gray Collegiate 2. North Augusta 3. May River 4. Crestwood 5. Wilson 6. Brookland Cayce 7. Bluffton 8. Darlington 9. South Pointe 10. Camden 4A Girls Top 10 1. Westside 2. North Augusta 3. South Pointe 4. Camden 5. Daniel 6. Blue Ridge 7. Darlington 8. Lower Richland 9. Wilson 10. Gray Collegiate Academy 3A Boys Top 10 1. Christ Church 2. Loris 3. Fox Creek 4. Keenan 5. Georgetown 6. Waccamaw 7. Orangeburg Wilkinson 8. St. Joseph's Catholic 9. Mountain View Prep 10. Battery Creek 3A Girls Top 10 1. Walhalla 2. Oceanside Collegiate 3. Dillon 4. St. Joseph's Catholic 5. Keenan 6. Southside Christian 7 West Oak 8. Aynor 9. Fox Creekl 10. Orageburg Wilkinson 2A Boys Top 10 1. High Point Academy 2. Andrew Jackson 3. Liberty 4. Philip Simmons 5. Central 6. Hampton County 7. Marion 8. Mullins 9. Chesnee 10. American Leadership Academy 2A Girls Top 10 1. Clinton 2. Atlantic Collegiate 3. Andrew Jackson 4. Landrum 5. Kingstree 6. Ninety-Six 7. Burke 8. Timberland 9. Marion 10. Blacksburg 1A Boys Top 10 (No CHANGE) 1. Bethune-Bowman 2. Horse Creek Academy 3. CA Johnson 4. Carver's Bay 5. Calhoun County 6. Green Sea Floyd 7. Hunter-Kinard Tyler 8. Branchville 9. Abbeville 10. Latta 1A Girls Top 10 1. Military Magnet 2. North 3. Great Falls 4. Latta 5. HKT 6. Denmark-Olar 7. McBee 8. Williston Elko 9. Lewisville 10. McCormick
By Staff Reports December 22, 2025
SCHSL Release 2026-2028 Realignment Final Columbia, SC (12-19-25) -- The South Carolina High School League (SCHSL) has finalized the classification placement of all schools beginning with the 2026-27 school year. This classification placement will be in effect for two years. The guidelines established by the Reclassification/Realignment Guidelines Committee served as the blueprint for schools’ placements. Schools were assigned based on their enrollment count, to include district additions and the 3.0 multiplier. Flexibility, as approved by the Reclassification/Realignment Guidelines Committee, was also used with consideration given to geographics and travel. “Appreciation is expressed to those who served on the Reclassification/Realignment Guidelines Committee,” said Dr. Jerome Singleton, Commissioner of the SCHSL. “Classification placement of schools is the initial phase of the process. The next step for the League staff is to place the schools into regions in their respective classifications.” The SCHSL’s Executive Committee will meet January 13-14, 2026, to hear appeals regarding the classification placements. The final reclassifications are attached.
By Neill Kirkpatrick December 22, 2025
This is a subtitle for your new post
By David Shelton December 21, 2025
By David Shelton Senior Writer Spartanburg – Stratford quarterback Jachin Davis threw a pair of touchdown passes and South Carolina defeated North Carolina, 17-7, in the 89 th Shrine Bowl all-star game in Spartanburg on December 20. Davis , named the offensive most valuable player for the Sandlappers, completed 10 of 15 passes for 184 yards in the game. He is headed to Liberty University as an early enrollee. “Great experience and great to get a win,” Davis said. “Playing with all of these great players was something I will never forget.” South Carolina dominated the game defensively, allowing only 136 total yards. The Tarheels completed just five of 19 passes. Stratford running back Maliq McGowan , a late addition to the roster, finished as the leading rusher for South Carolina with 42 yards on nine carries. West Ashley’s Bristol Biegenzahn played on the defensive front for the Sandlappers while Berkeley’s Zion Britt started on the offensive line. Cross safety, and South Carolina signee Caden Ramsey , Berkeley linebacker Gehad Sneed , and Timberland offensive lineman Desmond Green, who is headed to Florida, also played for the Sandlappers. “You win all-star games with defense and our defense was outstanding,” said SC head coach Paul Sutherland , who retired as the head coach at Liberty High after the season. “Glad to get the win for South Carolina. The kids were great. I am very blessed to have had this opportunity.” It took less than 10 seconds for the Sandlappers to score the game’s first touchdown as Davis combined with Dillon receiver Zay Robertson , heading to North Carolina , on an 80-yard bomb on the first play of the game for a quick 7-0 lead. Robertson finished the game with four catches for 131 yards. “He’s a great player,” said Davis of Robertson. “Getting that first touchdown was a tone setter.” South Carolina lost fumbles on their next two possessions, the second miscue leading to North Carolina’s game-tying touchdown after a 23-yard drive. Spartanburg’s Will Love , heading to Virginia Tech , kicked a 35-yard field goal late in the second quarter for a 10-7 halftime lead for the Sandlappers. South Carolina’s last play offensive snap in the game was Davis’s nine-yard touchdown pass to Jude Hall of Christ Church with :59 seconds left on the game clock. Chester linebacker Terry Rayford , who had 11 tackles, was the defensive most valuable player for the Sandlappers. Dorman's Kentavion Anderson and Ridge View's Jordan Best recorded interceptions The win gives South Carolina a 48-34 lead in the series. There have been seven ties.
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Proposal has AAAAA going from 54 schools to 40 and not being split into divisions
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By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Bluffton – The 2025 football season was an unusual one for the Hilton Head Christian Academy football team. The Eagles, who had won three SCISA state titles in the five previous seasons, got off to a 2-5 start. On top of that, starting quarterback Reid McCollum left the school in the middle of the season. With the reshuffling, Hilton Head Christian lost its first game. However, the Eagles responded with four consecutive wins, including a 42-20 win over Trinity Collegiate in the first round of the AAA state playoffs. The season came to an end the next week with a 50-29 semifinal loss to Wilson Hall . Eagles head coach Ron Peduzzi is happy with the way his players rebounded to finish with a 6-6 record. “I was really proud of our guys, the way they rallied around the team and each other,” Peduzzi said. “They literally battled the second half of the year every play. “It was a very tough season. A lot of guys stood up and elevated their games. They had to stand up and become leaders also, so I was really happy with that.” HHCA had four players selected to the All-Region 1-AAA offensive first team in junior wide receivers Joey Houpt and Jackson Richardson , sophomore wide receiver Sam Strom and senior kick returner Tommy Gehm . Those on the first-team defense were sophomore defensive lineman Hayne Burden , junior linebacker Kres Langhals , sophomore linebacker Chase White and senior linebacker Finn Ussery . Houpt, who was named HHCA’s outstanding offensive contributor, was the leading pass catcher with 69 receptions for 1,313 yards and 13 touchdowns. Richardson had 45 catches for 645 yards and five scores, while Strum had 31 catches for 415 yards and five scores. Gehm returned two kickoffs for touchdowns and averaged 21.1 yards per return on 24 attempts. He returned six punts for 46 yards. Burden, who was named Hilton Head Christian’s outstanding defensive contributor, led the team in tackles with 105, tackles for loss with 13, quarterback sacks with four and quarterback hurries with 21. Langhals, who was the quarterback in the second half of the season, had 39 tackles, five TFLs, 2 ½ sacks, two interceptions, two caused fumbles and two fumble recoveries. White, who received HHCA’s Sledgehammer Award, had 82 tackles, five TFLs, one sack and one interception. Ussery, who received the team’s Captains Award, had 87 tackles, five TFLs, one sack and one interception.. Ussery and Gehm played in the SCISA North-South Seniors All-Star Game, while Houpt, Richardson, Strom, Burden and Langhals played in the Futures contest. Senior running back Hudson Baker , sophomore offensive linemen Caleb Altizer and Josh Koepke and sophomore cornerback Keyvon Aiken were selected second-team All-Region. Baker received the team’s Coaches Award and Burleson Award, and freshman Max Zwilsky earned the Lunchpail Award. Peduzzi believes good things await the Eagles in 2026. “We have a very large sophomore class that will be juniors next year, so I look forward for to next season,” he said. “We do need to elevate the number of players in our program playing, so that’s something we’ll be working on.”
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Timberland's Zion Prioleau, named on of Class AA's top seniors by the SC Basketball Coaches Association, averaged 14.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 2.8 steals per game in 2024-20225.
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