Orangeburg Prep football team gets a lot accomplished in spring practice
Indians looking to shore up running game entering Brooks Smith's second season
Orangeburg – As Brooks Smith prepares for his second season as the football head coach at Orangeburg Preparatory School, he likes what the team was able to do during its recent spring practice.
“We got a lot accomplished,” said Smith, who led the Indians to a 7-4 record last season. “We were able to go about two weeks, and we did the varsity and middle school together. That way we’re teaching them the same things -- techniques, drills – and install it from the top on down.
“We had a really good spring. We’re really excited about it.”
Orangeburg Prep has several starters returning on both sides of the football. Seven offensive starters are back with eight on the defensive side.
One of the starters lost on each side was in the name of one Tilden “T” Riley. The standout graduated in December of 2025 to enroll at Vanderbilt where he is waiting for his first football season.
The 6-foot-4-inch Riley was named the Region 2-AA Player of the Year. He caught 55 passes for 1,050 yards and 17 touchdowns as a wide receiver and had 30 carries for 309 yards and three scores. Playing in the secondary on defense,
Riley had 68 tackles, four tackles for a loss, two interceptions and one caused fumble.
Despite losing his top offensive player, Smith likes where the Indians are as far as throwing the football with rising junior quarterback Cholly Williams.
Williams is back for his second year as the starting signal caller. He completed 104 of 185 passes for 1,739 yards and 22 touchdowns. He also ran for 292 yards and four scores on 53 carries.
Smith said having Williams with a year under his belt makes a big difference.
“It’s huge,” he said. “In 7-on-7 we’ve looked better than we did last year. It helps that the quarterback has done it, knows the system.
“He’s bigger, faster, stronger. Last year, we had T Riley, and he was the show. We were always looking for him to do T Riley things. This year, it’s Cholly’s opportunity to step up. He’s a great kid, and I’m excited for him.”
The Indians made some changes to what they do in the running game, trying to implement a more physical style. That’s because they have a new offensive line coach in Caden Haws, who was an offensive lineman at Brigham Young.
We switched things up in our run game,” Smith said. “We felt good coming out of the spring. We told the guys we’ve got to be able to run the ball some this year.
“Coach Haws has been fantastic. I’m really excited about where the run game is going. We have to be able to stay in front of the chains.”
Smith said he and his staff made some changes to their summer routine. After affording the players the opportunity to do a weightlifting session either in the morning or the evening last year, all of the sessions are in the evening this summer.
“We lift from 5 (p.m.) to 6:45 and it’s been great,” Smith said. “It’s helped us in becoming a team, lifting together, pushing each other. We have accountability teams where the players have to answer to each other.”
There are four seniors who serve as accountability captains. They are Marshall Livingston, Thomas Fanning, Maxx Judy and Blake Inabinet. They picked teams that compete against each other in different events.
“It’s connecting the seniors to the freshmen and that’s a good thing,” Smith said. “The more you compete, the better you are. We strive for that, and we believe it will help us be ready for Friday nights.”
Orangeburg Prep will again be competing in AA following reclassification. However, it will be part of a very tough Region 2. The Indians will be joined in the region by Pee Dee Academy, Williamsburg Academy, Greenwood Christian School and
Spartanburg Day School.
Pee Dee beat the Indians in the first round of the AA playoffs last year on the way to a state runner-up finish. Williamsburg is moving up from Class A, but it is the defending state champion with most of its starters returning. Greenwood Christian is coming off a 9-3 campaign in which it lost in the AA semifinals to eventual state champion Bethesda Academy. Spartanburg Day will be fielding a team for the first time.
“It is going to be a very difficult region,” Smith said.
The Indians competed in two 7-on-6 events in June, hosting one and traveling to Sumter for one at Wilson Hall. They begin their scrimmage schedule on July 31 at home against both Laurence Manning Academy and Beaufort Academy. They will travel to Thomas Sumter Academy on August 7 before competing in a jamboree ag Florence Christian School in August 14.
Orangeburg Prep opens its season on August 21 at Wilson Hall. Its other non-region games will be at home against Dillon Christian School and Clarendon Hall and on the road against Dorchester Academy, Carolina Academy and Calhoun Academy.
SCHURLKNIGHT, LAMBRECHT, LIVINGSTON SELECTED TO SCISA ALL-STATE TEAMS
Two Orangeburg Prep softball players, senior shortstop Prestan Schurlknight and senior catcher Hannah Lambrecht, along with baseball player Marshall Livingston were selected to their respective SCISA All-State teams.
Schurlknight, who will be playing collegiately at Lander, finished the year with a .521 batting average, leading the team. Lambrecht wasn’t far behind with a .491 average.
Livingston led the Indian baseball team in hitting with a .360 average. He was one of three Indians selected to the All-Region team. The other two were Maxx Judy, who batted .325, and Cholly Williams, who finished with a .320 average.
