Northwood Academy ready to complete the journey

Summerville – One of the sports cliches you hear is “Worst to First” and it is one that applies to

the Northwood Chargers when you look at where the football program was when head coach

Johnny Waters and his staff took over in 2023.

The Chargers were riding a 29-game losing streak and had not scored 100 points in a season in

three years. However, this was not a new situation for coach Waters as he faced a similar

situation when he took over the head coaching job at First Baptist in 2014. In 2017 and 2018 the

Hurricanes were the SCISA Class AA state champions.

In the Chargers first game under Waters and his in 2023 they ended their 29-game losing steak

by beating Greenwood Christian 28-26. Fast forward and you find the Chargers at 10-1 with a

region championship and the opportunity to win their first state championship since 2014. They

would also be part of the “Worst to First” cliché club.

“We played them my last year at First Baptist and beat them pretty good but I saw a group of

young kids fighting and playing hard until the very last whistle. That was encouraging and I saw

talent on the field but they lacked the fundamental’s. When my staff and I came from First

Baptist we really concentrated on teaching them the fundamental’s and techniques we expected,”

said coach Waters.

Coach continued, “That first summer was huge for us as a program. We approached our 7-on-7

competition with the mindset of winning every game. We needed to teach our kids how to win

because that was one of the biggest issues we had to overcome. Then we were able to end the

losing streak in our first game. We had 1900 people at the game and after the win everyone was

so emotional. The big thing was the kids learned they could win and it got us over the hump

early on in the building process.”

The Chargers ended one of their most successful regular seasons by beating Friday night’s

opponent Heathwood Hall 39-20 to finish the regular season at 9-1 and 6-0 in region play

earning them a region championship and the top seed in the SCISA AAAA playoffs.

Along the way they ended 23 times SCISA state champions Hammond’s 28-game winning streak

but it was the team’s only loss on the season that coach Waters points to as a turning point in

their season. The loss was to North Carolina Independent school Cannon/ Concord Academy 19-

13.

“We learned a lot about our team after we lost that one game. We were reading our press

clippings and listening to everyone outside the program instead of staying focused on what we

needed to do. After that game, the team realized that they had not accomplished anything and

that had to continue to work and get better, “ said coach Waters.

The Chargers have not lost since winning 7 in a row. Included is a 23-10 win over seven-time

defending state champion Hammond 23-10 ending the Skyhawks’ 28-game winning streak.

Coach Waters was excited to earn the top seed in the playoffs but not a fan of the bye week. He

felt sometimes it can take you out of the rhythm you have established during the regular season.

The Chargers took care of business in the semis by beating Porter Guad 34-20 to earn their shot

at the championship.

Heathwood Hall is the only thing standing in the Chargers way of the quest to go from “Worst to

First” and despite defeating them 39-20 just three weeks ago coach Waters knows his team will

have to play four quarters to win Friday night’s battle.

“Heathwood is an outstanding team. We jumped on them early in the last game but we know it

will be different this time. They have a very good quarterback, who can make plays with his feet

as well as his arm. We need to keep him in the pocket. We need to play four quarters of football

for the first time all year to get the win,” said Waters.

Defensively, the Charges have been a hand full for every offense they have faced. They give up

13 points per game and have only allowed 20 points twice during the regular season. Defensive

tackles Hammer White and Garrett Andy have been the first line of defense as they have

controlled the line of scrimmage. White leads the team in tackles for loss (15) and sacks (5.5)

while Andy is second in TFL’s with 10.5 and has three sacks.

At defensive end for the Chargers are Mitchell Lanier and Nate Cross. Cross, just a freshman,

has 9 tackles for loss and four sacks while Lanier has six tackles for loss.

Linebackers Cody McLeary and Dominque Russell have benefited from White and Andy’s

stellar play at the line of scrimmage as they are first and third in tackles. Russel leads the team

with 75 tackles and McLeary has 50 tackles. Russell is also second in sacks with 4.5.

Safety MJ Davis has been a big hitter all season and has shown great instincts in pass coverage.

Davis is second on the team in tackles with 57 and he is second on the team in solo tackles with

31. He also has two interceptions, a fumble recovery and two blocked field goals.

The Chargers defensive backfield is made up of Antwaun Henderson, Quincy Lingard, Jordin

Carter, and Brice Jenkins. Henderson leads the team in solo hits with 31 while Jenkins leads

the team in interceptions with five, four passes defended and fumble recoveries.

The Chargers offense has put up 396 points on the year and scored over 30 points in 8 of their 10

games. They have great balance averaging 222 yards on the ground and 187 thru the air. The

leader of the offense has been junior quarterback Kevin Johnson. He has thrown for 2149 yards

and 19 touchdowns with just five interceptions. He has excellent pocket presence and can by

time in the pocket which he showed on a 50-yard touchdown pass to Jacair Medlock in the

Heathwood Hall contest. Coach Waters says he has next level talent.

The Chargers have three running backs who have rushed for over 400 yards. The work horse has

been Kaven Ford. He has rushed of a team high 1115 yards, averaging over seven yards a carry

and has scored a team high 21 touchdowns. Ford has good vision in the hole and the ability to

take it the distance on every play.

Michael Polite and Carter have provided a change of pace for coach Water’s offense. Polite has

456 yards with five scores while Carter has 560 yards and seven touchdowns. Carter is ultra

quick and is averaging over 13 yards a carry. On the year he has over 900 all-purpose yards.

Leading the receiving corps is Tennessee State commit Ayden Hogan. He leads the team with 66

receptions for 908 yards and 8 touchdowns.

The Chargers have three other receivers that have over 20 catches in Medlock, Scott Geisel, and

Drew Wolfe. Wolfe has 587 yards and is averaging 19.7 yards per catch. He and Medlock both

have four touchdowns while Geisel is second on the team in receptions with 32.

Of course, all of this offensive output is courtesy of the offensive line in left tackle Kaeden

Wagner, left guard Jacob Harrelson, center Kenny Robbins, right guard KJ Burroughs, and

right tackle Brayden Andy. The running game averages over seven yards a carry behind these

road graders.

SCISA Championships

AAAA

Friday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Heathwood Hall (9-3) vs. Northwood (10-1), 7 p.m.

8-Man

Friday

at Greenwood Christian

W.W. King (11-0) vs. Laurens Academy (9-2), 7 p

AA

Saturday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Pee Dee (8-3) vs. Bethesda (11-0), noon

Class A

Saturday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Williamsburg (10-1) vs. Colleton Prep (9-2), 3:30 p.m.

AAA

Saturday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Wilson Hall (11-1) vs. Pinewood Prep (9-3), 7:30 p.m.