Williamsburg off to 6-0 start in first season under Furse
Stallions were averaging 345 rushing yards a game behind Small, Balder
Kingstree – Will Furse couldn’t ask for a much better start than what he has achieved in his first season as the football head coach at Williamsburg Academy. The Stallions won their first five games and were ranked No. 1 in the High School Sports Report SCISA Class A poll.
“We’ve gotten off to a great start,” Furse said. “We have a really good group of young men, who are not only great players, but they care about each other, lifting each other up. It hasn’t been easy every week, but our players and coaches are all working hard.”
Of course, Furse inherited a tremendous program. Williamsburg has played for a state championship each of the past four years. The first two were under Don Shelley while the last two were under Tyler Boyd. The Stallions won the AA state title in 2022.
If you take a look at Williamsburg’s statistics through the first five games, it’s not hard to see the reason for the success. The Stallions can run the football. They were averaging 345 yards a game.
Leading the way is junior running back Grant Small. He was averaging 207.4 yards per game, picking up 1,037 yards and 15 touchdowns on just 73 carries.
“Grant is a very powerful runner,” Furse said. “He runs behind the pads, he’s explosive, he’s good in traffic, and he has a gear that not many people can match.
“Not only is he a very good player, but he has developed into one of the team leaders, and that’s something I proud to see.”
There’s more to the rushing attack than Small though. Senior quarterback Micah Balder is averaging just under 70 yards a contest, havin 348 yards and four touchdowns on 27 carries. Sophomore Eli Brown is just under 60 a game with 299 yardds and four touchdowns on 45 carries.
“It’s good to be able to run the ball like this, but it’s good to have balance,” Furse said. “We’ve been working on it a lot. Grant’s not getting a ton of carries (averaging just under 15 a game). It’s between him, Micah Balder and Eli Brown.
We’ve had a lot of big plays with 10 or 11 runs of 50 yards or more. The big plays come because our offensive line is doing a tremendous job blocking and our receivers are doing a phenomenal job blocking on the outside.”
Williamsburg’s offensive line has junior Michael Ard at right guard, junior Marlin Morris at right tackle, junior Mason Cribb at left tackle, junior Sammy Tomlinson at left guard and sophomore Henderson Livingston at center.
Balder was averaging just seven passes a contest, but that’s because the running game has been so successful, not because he can’t spin the football. The 2-year starter threw for 1,072 yards and 14 touchdowns last season.
Balder, who also started the first five games of his sophomore season, has completed 17 of 36 passes for 326 yards and four touchdowns against no interceptions.
Furse is more than happy to be able to put Balder behind center every Friday night.
“Micah’s got a ton of game experience so he never panics,” Furse said. “He has the legs to run the football, and when we call on him to throw the football he’s done a good job.
“He has a tremendous effect on the game. Against Florence Christian (a 34-21 triumph), he had a Pick 6 (interception return for a touchdown), an 81-yard touchdown run and a 50-yard run that set up another touchdown. He can do a lot of things to put stress on the opposing defense.”
Junior tight end Charlie Caulder has been Balder’s primary target with 10 catches for 183 yards and two touchdowns. Senior wide receiver Jay Kellahan had four catches for 98 yards and a touchdown.
Furse has been extremely pleased with the performance of the defense. The Stallions have allowed just 62 points in the first five games.
“Our defense has played really well all year,” he said. “We’ve done a good job against the run and we’ve been strong in pass coverage too. We’ve forced turnovers, done a good job of taking the ball.
“Our defense plays with a lot of physicality and an aggressive nature and it shows. We have a lot of guys who get to the football and understand their assignments.”
Ard was the leading tackler from his linebacker position with 52. Caulder, also a linebacker, had 26 tackles and a team high five tackles for loss. Kellahan, another returning linebacker, had 30 tackles.
Williamsburg had forced nine turnovers, six via interceptions and three by fumble recoveries. Junior defensive back Hall Dukes had four picks with Balder picking up the other two from his safety position. Sophomore defensive back Gamble Wilson had two recoveries and junior linebacker Seth Cherinko had the other.
The Stallions began their Region 1 schedule on October 3 by traveling to Lake City to face Carolina Academy. They play host to Lee Academy on October 10 before playing a couple of non-region games. They travel to St. George to meet Dorchester Academy in their final region game on October 31.
“It’s a new season now,” Furse said. “We started 5-0 and we could have started 0-5, but now you throw everything you’ve already done out the window. We have to win going forward. What we did yesterday or last week does not help us tomorrow. That’s where our head has to be.
“We’ve got to continue to be hungry, practice hard, do the things we need to do in the weight room and just be coachable all the while maintaining a humble attitude. With that spirit, that frame of mind, we’ll continue to do well.”
