Second round of football playoffs offers some fun matchups

Dillon senior Dillon WR Zay Robertson (6-0, 165) is committed to the University of North Carolina.

Larry Gamble HSSR, Photography Editor  Bennettsville — Sumner McLaurin is a senior who plays volleyball and soccer at Marlboro Academy . McLaurin said she started playing volleyball in the seventh grade, which is her favorite sport, and she also began playing soccer in the 9 th grade. Being a two-sport student athlete, McLaurin said,” My favorite part is being on a team with friends.” After high school, she plans to focus on education, and she will pursue a degree in health sciences. Her first choice for college is Clemson and possibly playing at the club sport level. Taking two classes from two schools, plus sports, she had this to say about making it work; “It helps me with planning my study time, and practice time,” she said. “Taking online courses from the “NETC” helped me to develop my time management skills.” McLaurin’s has done well managing academics and athletics in her life and she currently carries a 5.220 GPA. For all her athletic and academic accomplishments, McLaurin has been chosen the “NETC” Female Student Athlete of the Month.” This honor is bestowed through a partnership between the Northeastern Technical College and “The High School Sports Report” with the publication communicating with athletic directors at high schools in the counties of Dillon, Marlboro, and Chesterfield, where NETC serves the needs of high school students seeking to earn dual credits in various subjects that can be transferred to colleges after a student’s high school graduation. The “NETC” is currently offering over 44 online dual credit courses for the 2025-26 school year to students in the three counties they serve. Currently, McLaurin is enrolled in two dual credit online courses offered by NETC. She started taking classes in her junior year. She has already completed many basic requirements for her freshman year of college like Spanish and English. She says she took Music Appreciation first to get an idea about the online learning experience. When asked about how the “NETC” experience helped prepare her for the next step in her education, she said, “Taking NETC classes helped my communications skills with my professors, and introduced me to the stricter schedule of college and to complete the work on time. “The class experience with NETC was good and I have really good professors,” said McLaurin. “They helped me learn how to prepare my assignments, follow the discussion boards, and improve my ability to communicate at the college level. By taking these NETC online classes I will be well ahead towards my major in college.” With all the demands for her time, between academics, sports, plus family and friends, McLaurin said, “Setting priorities is a must; school first, Marlboro Academy classes, practice, NETC classes are next, then making time for family and friends. It helps that a lot of my friends are on the volleyball team.” Nearly have way through her senior year, McLaurin was asked to reflect on a memorable moment she had experienced in sports. “At senior night, we played Lee Academy, and the game was about the great teamwork and friends on the team. I really enjoyed the camaraderie and sportsmanship of team play this season.”

Larry Gamble HSSR, Photography Editor Bennettsville — Beckham Jacobs is a senior four-sport athlete at Marlboro Academy, where he earned all-region honors and All State honors this past baseball season. He just finished competing at the SCISA State Cross Country meet and he also played on the boys Volleyball team. He is looking forward to the start of basketball season, and in the Spring, he will participate in baseball. As a student athlete, he ran on the Marlboro Academy Cross Country team this year, played on the inaugural boys’ volleyball team, and looks forward to the basketball season. In the Spring, baseball will close out his high school athletic career. When asked about a favorite sport, Jacobs said, “Baseball is my favorite since I starting played T-Ball when I was big enough to swing a bat,” he said. Last season he earned All Region and All State honors playing baseball. “This was our first year having a boys volleyball team and that was fun also.” In terms of the opportunity to play baseball at the next level, Jacobs replied, “If the opportunity arises that would be great.” In the classroom, he carries a 4.5 GPA, and he plans to major in Electrical Engineering at the University of South Carolina.  For all his athletic and academic accomplishments, Jacobs has been chosen the “NETC” Male Student Athlete of the Month.” This honor is bestowed through a partnership between the Northeastern Technical College and “The High School Sports Report” with the publication communicating with athletic directors at high schools in the counties of Dillon, Marlboro, and Chesterfield, where NETC serves the needs of high school students seeking to earn dual credits in various subjects that can be transferred to colleges after a student’s high school graduation. The” NETC” is currently offering over 44 online dual credit courses for the 2025-26 school year to students in the three counties they serve. Jacobs is currently enrolled in two dual credit online courses offered by NETC. He started taking classes after a conversation with his sister who took advantage of the NETC program when she was in high school. “She recommended I can take classes now, for dual credit, because I’ll have to take them at some point,” said Jacobs. He plans to continue taking dual credit classes next semester, and has already completed English 101 and 102, plus a Personal Finance class and Public Speaking. When asked about managing his time to be successful academically and in sports, Jacobs had this to say; “Time management can be hectic, but you just have to plan ahead and stick to you your schedule,” he said. “With so many time commitments between school, sports, and having a social life, time management is very important. “It may look a little hectic, but plan ahead and take it as it comes,” said Jacobs. “This way, you can stay ahead.” He went on to say this about the classes he’s taken, “Hopefully, this will knock out a few freshman classes, and the Public Speaking is really helping me with my ability to communicate. “Taking online courses through the “NETC” I feel like I am being prepared for what my actual experiences could be once I get to college,” said Jacobs. “I am really enjoying the two online courses I am involved with right now, and I plan on taking two more online courses from the “NETC” next semester.” Getting back to sports, when asked about a favorite memory, Jacobs noted that even with baseball as his favorite sport, the standout memory is this year’s Cross Country meet, partly because he last ran Cross Country in the sixth grade and did not have any expectations for this season. He noted, “In the state championship, I wasn’t expecting this, but I posted a personal best for the three-mile with a 16th place time of 20.50 time. That was special for me to do that at State.”

SCISA Playoff Battles Set To Start By: Gerald Doolittle Goose Creek, S.C. – The South Carolina Independent Schools Association has it 2025 playoffs set to start on November 7 with many hot battles expected before the finals. All five 2024 Champions return to defend their titles. Hammond (4A), Pinewood Prep (3A), Pee Dee Academy (2A), Thomas Heyward (1A) and Richard Winn (8 Man). All five 2024 runners-up are back to challenge again. Porter-Gaud (4A), Wilson Hall (3A), Bethesda Academy (2A), Williamsburg Academy (1A) and Laurens Academy (8 Man). In 4A can Hammond (9-1) take another title despite losing in regular season to Northwood Academy (9-1)? Can Heathwood Hall sneak in to take the Crown? In regular season the Highlanders were defeated 9-7 by Hammond. The other 4A teams in the hunt are Laurence Manning (6-4), Porter-Gaud (4-6) and Ben Lippen (3-7). The Northwood Academy Chargers has been led by quarterback Kevin Johnson (jr) who has passed for 1876 yards and 17 touchdowns. Kaven Ford (sr) has led the rushing attack with 1056 yards 20 touchdowns. In the passing game Johnson has had three targets in Aydan Hogan (sr), Drew Wolfe (jr) and Jacair Medlock (jr). Hogan has 783 receiving yards for 7 touchdowns. Wolfe has 471 yards for 4 touchdowns and Medlock has 365 yards for 4 touchdowns. The Hammond Academy Skyhawks has used a dual quarterback attack led by Ben Muela Kiser (sr) who has passed for 559 yards and 4 touchdowns . Cade Amell (fr) has passed for 562 yards and 4 touchdowns. Kiser also leads the rushing attack with 723 yards and 5 touchdowns. Levi Myers (jr) has 662 yards and 7 touchdowns. Kanye Reed (jr) has 298 yards and 8 touchdowns.  The Heathwood Hall offense has been powered by Patrick Belk . He has passed for 1723 yards 17 touchdowns. He also has rushed for 378 yards 5 touchdowns. Julian Hughes (sr) has rushed for 298 yards with 3 touchdowns. The top two pass receivers for the Highlanders has been Keon McKinnley (jr) and Jamonie Batts (sr). McKinnley has 529 yards 3 touchdowns. Batts has 408 yards for 3 touchdowns. Jackson Noble (sr) has 224 yards for 4 touchdowns. In Class 3A the Pinewood Prep Panthers offense has been powered by quarterback Silas Brawner (jr). He has 2593 passing yards for 33 touchdowns. Brawner has had four favorite receivers led by Jayden Alexander (sr) who has 995 yards for 13 touchdowns. Lavoris Lucas (jr) has772 yards for 7 touchdowns. Heyward Moore (jr) has 448 yards for 5 touchdowns and Tre Green (jr) has 369 yards for 8 touchdowns. Grayson Salego (jr) has led the Panther rushing attack with 629 yards for 10 touchdowns. Lucas has rushed 252 yards for 3 touchdowns. Jeremy Kendall (fr) has rushed for 200 yards 3 touchdowns. The Wilson Hall Academy Barons offensive attack has been led by Ford Wilder (sr) who has passed for 507 yards 4 touchdowns and rushed for 246 yards scoring 8 touchdowns. The Barons have six rushers with over 200 yards. Ben McLaurin (sr) has 854 yards 10 touchdowns. Milling Galloway (sr) has 562 yards 11 touchdowns. Cameron Wilsey (so) has 328 yards 5 touchdowns. Shep Vincent (so) has 208 yards 4 touchdowns. Riley Minton (so) has led the Florence Christian Eagle offense with 824 passing yards 3 touchdowns and rushed for 170 yards 5 touchdowns. The Eagles rushing attack has been led by Andrew Miller (jr) with 660 yards 11 touchdowns. Brooks Poston (sr) has 494 yards 7 touchdowns and Josh Davis (sr) has 317 yards 3 touchdowns. In Class 2A the Bethesda Academy Blazers offense has been led by Jordan Turner (so) from the quarterback slot. He has passed for 1551 yards 26 touchdowns and rushed for 163 yards with 4 touchdowns. The Blazers ground attack has been led by Jordan Cheever (sr) who has 981 yards 12 touchdown. Jeffrey Armstrong (so) follows with 314 yards 3 touchdowns. Joseph Adkins (so) has added 153 yards 2 touchdowns and Jamarri Young (sr) follows with 138 yards 3 touchdowns. The Calhoun Academy Cavaliers offense has been fired by Colt Layton (jr) from the quarterback slot. He has passed for 698 yards 6 touchdowns and has rushed for 1205 yards 21 touchdowns. Cael Parler (jr) follows Layton with 869 yards 14 touchdowns and Joseph Lyons (so) has tallied 600 yards 9 touchdowns. The Greenwood Christian Hawks has used a balanced offensive attack this season. Quarterback Leland Reed (jr) has passed for 754 yards 12 touchdowns. The Hawks rushing attack has been led by Leighton Davis (fr) with 469 yards 5 toucdowns. Holden Poole (sr) has 148 yards 1 touchdown and Isaiah Scott-Palacios (jr) has 113 yards 2 touchdowns. Ty Kennedy (sr) and Bryson Dixon (sr) have been top targets for Reed in the passing attack. Kennedy has 311 receiving yards with 6 touchdowns and Dixon has 181 yards 4 touchdowns. Cholly Williams has sparked the Orangeburg Prep Indians from the quarterback slot. He has passed for 1662 yards 22 touchdowns. He has also rushed for 254 yards 4 touchdowns. The top receiver has been Tilden Riley (sr) with 1003 yards 17 touchdowns. Council Burroghs (so) has 242 yards 3 touchdowns. Maxx Judy (jr) has 287 yards 2 touchdowns and Marshall Livingston (jr) has 176 yards 1 touchdown. In Class 1A the Williamsburg Academy Stallions has been led by Micah Balder (sr) who has passed for 841 yards 8 touchdowns and rushed for 456 yards 5 touchdowns. His top receiver has been Charlie Caulder (jr) with 548 yards 6 touchdowns. The Stallions rushing attack has been led by Grant Small (jr) with 1582 yards 24 touchdowns. Eli Brown (so) has rushed for 440 yards 4 touchdowns. The Dorchester Academy Raiders offense has been led by quarterback John Quattlebaum (sr) who has passed for 817 yards 12 touchdowns. The Raiders rush game has been led by John Whetsell (sr) with 1142 yards 15 touchdowns. Reed Almers ( so) has rushed 157 yards 4 touchdowns and Warren Judy (so) has 130 yards 3 touchdowns The top two receivers has been Abe Shuler (sr) with 344 yards 3 touchdowns followed by Noah Risher (jr) with 264 yards 5 touchdowns. The Colleton Prep Academy War Hawks has been led by dual quarterback Cale Owens (jr). He has passed for 1661 yards 17 touchdowns and rushed for 1029 yards 15 touchdowns. Tanner Wolf (sr) has rushed for 553 yards 10 touchdowns and Thomas Corbett (jr) has rushed 123 yards. Corbett has been the top receiver with 651 yards 7 touchdowns. Hartman Fisk (jr) has 376 receiving yards 3 touchdowns. In 8-Man the W W King Academy Knights have been led by a strong running game. Joseph Morse (so) has 1505 yards 25 touchdowns. Blake Rabar (fr) has 332 yards 3 touchdowns and Ty Doolittle has 120 yards 4 touchdowns. Elijah Hutto (jr) has passed for 956 yards 19 touchdowns . Dallas Hill (sr) has been the top receiver with 375 yards 11 touchdowns. Landell Anderson (jr) has 386 yards 6 touchdowns and Luke Harvey (jr) has 150 yards 1 touchdown. The Laurens Academy Crusaders offense has been sparked by their passing and rushing quarterback Ethan Collins (jr). He has passed for 1657 yards 23 touchdowns and rushed for 449 yards 11 touchdowns. The rushing has also been led by Caleb Hardy (jr) with 1206 yards 12 touchdowns. Mason Cooper (so) has 678 yards 6 touchdowns. Hardy also has 835 receiving yards 14 touchdowns. Other receivers has been Riley Whittaker (fr) and Nathan Bell (sr). Whittaker has 380 yards 4 touchdowns and Bell has 200 yards 2 touchdowns. The Holly Hill Academy Raiders has been led by Parker Kizer (jr) who has been involved in 50 touchdowns. He has rushed for 2962 yards 46 touchdowns and passed for 136 yards 4 touchdowns. Jake Kirven (so) has rushed for 428 yards 7 touchdowns and Jayden Krier (fr) has rushed for 165 yards 2 touchdowns.

HSSR Class A Football Ranking - (Entering Week 12 of Season, 11-14-2025) 1. Bamberg-Ehrhardt 11-0 (597-49) 2. Abbeville 9-2 (480-129) 3. Carvers Bay 10-0 (319-113) 4. Cross 9-1 (364-53) 5. HKT 9-2 (502-136) 6. Lamar 9-2 (401-277) 7. Johnsonville 8-2 (282-169) 8. Ware Shoals 10-1 (398-164) 9. Latta 8-2 (348-185) 10. Lewisville 7-4 (371-189) 11. Scott’s Branch 8-2 (316-183) 12. Blackville-Hilda 6-5 (182-209) 13. Lake View 5-4 (187-146) 14. CA Johnson 6-5 (258-331) 15. Wagener-Salley 5-6 (153-300) By Billy G. Baker Publisher Moncks Corner — There were no major upsets at the top of the Class A food chain in the first round of the playoffs on November, 7. Now that there are 16 schools left hoping to punch their tickets to the gold medal round, the winning margins are going to tighten up, and round two games should be much more competitive. The goals of the 16 teams left are all the same; be 1-0 every week and eventually punch your team’s ticket to the Class A gold medal round scheduled for 4 p.m. on Friday December 5 at South Carolina State University. (Be there and bring the whole town with you!) In the first week of the playoffs the HSSR number two ranked Abbeville (9-2) defeated Great Falls 63-0, and the “A” will now host Trent Usher’s Lewisville Lions team after the Lions drilled Whitmire 62-0 in the first round. These two teams met later in the playoffs last year with the Panthers winning easily. Abbeville will be seeking their 14 th overall state title this season. The Panthers earned number 13 last December in a 58-20 win over Cross . Last year’s Panther team was comprised of 27 seniors and this year’s team came into the 2025 season much younger but still loaded with home grown athletes. After his team’s season opening 42-0 win over Southside Christian , Coach Nickles told the HSSR, “We have a chance to be a really competitive football team. We have to keep working and improving. We’ll see how it goes.” Jaden Baylor took over the QB duties for Abbeville this season and he has improved with each game. Darius Riley is the team’s work horse at RB, and he started off the season with tackle breaking touchdowns runs of 71 and 67 yards in the season opener. Cole Driggers is a leader at left tackle in the offensive front. Top ranked Bamberg-Ehrhardt (11-0) has the distinction of being the most productive scoring offense in Class A, so far this season (597 points) and they also have the best scoring defense (49) in the state entering the playoffs. The Raiders will host Latta this week as a double-digit favorite. Latta advanced with a 34-14 win over Baptist Hill . Corey Crosby is in his 5 th season as the Raiders head coach and his team has now won 16 straight region games. His career record at B-E over this five- year period is 52-11 and the Raiders came into the 2025 season with 15 returning starters. A few impact B-E players include senior all-state WR Marcus Cann (6-2, 195) who is also a topflight DB. OL is one of the strengths of the team and three returners from last season have literally road graded the competition. They are center Michael Manigault (6-0,265), LG Jaden Moody (6-0,255), and junior RT Simeon Bamberg (5-11, 195). Carvers Bay is 10-0 and by Shrine Bowl OL Zyon Guiles (6-5, 295) who is committed to South Carolina. The Bears will host region rival Lake View this week in round two. They defeated Lake View 32-7 on October 10, but most observers feel like this game will be more competitive. The Bears advanced in round one with a 59-0 win over Allendale-Fairfax last week while the Wild Gators beat Hardeeville 28-6 to advance. In upper state Class A this week, Blackville-Hilda will host CA Johnson after getting by eliminating McCormick 15-0 last week. CA Johnson advanced on a 12-0 win over Calhoun County . Number five HSSR ranked HKT (9-2) HKT would love to be the Cinderella of Class A and claim the glass slipper at SC State in December. They eliminated Lee Central 56-14 in the first round and they are now ready to host a talented number 8 ranked Ware Shoals this week in one of the most competitive round two games in Class A. Ware Shoals advanced with a dominating 38-0 win over Ridge-Spring-Monetta last week. Number six Lamar (9-2) advanced with a 49-0 win over Calhoun Falls and the Silver Foxes will host Wagener-Salley this week, an upset winner over Dixie , 14-9 in round one. Remaining games amongst Lower State Class A teams include number four Cross (9-1), led by USC bound Caden Ramsey (6-5,200), hosting Bethune-Bowman . Cross had a bye in round one while Bethune-Bowman shut-out Ridgeland 38-0. Johnsonville and Scott’s Branch are teams with state championship experience, and the Flashes of Ken Cribb will travel to the Santee Lakes area this week in a game that should go down to the wire. Johnsonville advanced with a 48-14 win over Branchville while Scott’s Branch moved on with a 32-14 win over Hannah Pamplico .

By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Sumter – Trying to figure out who the best football team is in the South Carolina High School League’s AA classification has not been an easy task. Records have been distorted with teams like defending state champion Clinton and defending runner-up Fairfield Central playing up in non-region games and taking losses. Then you have tough regions like Region 2 with Strom Thurmond , Batesburg-Leesville and Saluda locking up in epic battles. Then there is Region 4. It has the team with the best record among the contenders in Central with a 9-1 record after the first round of the state playoffs. However the Eagles didn’t even wn the region title. They lost to Andrew Jackson , which is the region champion. They could meet again – for the state championship – since Region 4 is a hybrid region. AJ is in the upper state bracket and Central is in the lower state bracket. Another region team, Cheraw , is still alive in the lower state bracket. So you know how we figure all of this out, right? By letting the playoffs play out. With one week in the books, let’s try to figure out who will be playing for the state title on Saturday, December 6, at South Carolina State’s Oliver C. Dawson Stadium in Orangeburg beginning at 4 p.m. Here we go starting with the upper state second round: Saluda at Clinton Fairfield Central at Andrew Jackson Batesburg-Leesville at Chester Liberty at Strom Thurmond These are all teams that have been consequential in AA in the last few years. You have four region champions in Region 1 Clinton, Region 2 Strom Thurmond, Region 3 Chester and Region 4 Andrew Jackson. There are three second-place teams in Fairfield Central, B-L and Liberty. Saluda finished third but it lost to both Thurmond and B-L in overtime and dropped a 1-point decision to Ninety Six . While the Tigers will put up a strong fight, Clinton shoul come away victorious with running back Javen Cook leadin the way. Fairfield Central is 8-3, while AJ is 7-4 with one of thosef losses coming to the Griffins by a 35-0 count. The Volunteers won’t be able to make up enough of that gap. Batesburg-Leesville has rebounded from a slow start and is 8-3. Chester started the season 1-3 but has won six of its last seven to go to 7-4. Running back Amadre Wooden and wide receiver KD Whitt should provde enough plays to give B-L a victory. Strom Thurmond is 9-2 and Liberty is 8-3. Playing in Region 2 should be enough to push the Rebels past Liberty. The quarterfinal games are: Fairfield Central at Clinton Batesburg-Leesville at Strom Thurmond Fairfield and Clinton will meet again in the playoffs only one round earlier. The Red Devils will win again because of their overpowering running game. Thurmond and B-L faced off in their region opener with the Rebels coming away with a 28-26 overtime triumph. They took Region 2 with an undefeated record, but it will come to an end with a Panthers victory. The upper state title game will be: Batesburg-Leesville at Clinton This could be a very quick game as both teams love the running game and rightfully so. Two of the best running backs in the state will play in B-L’s Wooden, the school’s all-time leading rusher, and Clinton’s Cook. They will be toting the rock on a regular basis. Somehow, some way, the Panthers are going to come out victorious and advance to the title game. The four second-round games in the lower state are: Cheraw at Hampton County Timberland at Manning East Clarendon at Central Atlantic Collegiate at Philip Simmons These are four games that are intriguing as well but in a different fashion. Save Central – which again, didn’t win its region – each has had something to overcome. After losing three straighr games, including its first two Region 4 contests to Central and AJ, Cheraw is on a 4-game winning streak and is 7-4. Hampton had a 3-game losing streak of its own but has reeled off five straight wins to claim the Region 6 title. The losses all came to solid to strong teams in higher classes though, and the Hurricanes should be victorious. Manning, which played for the lower state title last year, started 0-2 and lost its Region 7 opener. However, the Monarchs won the rest of their region contests and are on a 6-game winning streak. Timberland is 9-2 but finished second in Region 6 after losing to Philip Simmons 22-0. This will be a slugfest between two teams who methodically run the ball and play tough defense. Manning will be victorious. East Clarendon is 9-2 but finished third in Region 7 with losses to Atlantic Collegiate and Lake City . Central is 9-1 with the lone loss coming to AJ by a 21-20 count. With the exception of a 34-27 win over Cheraw, all of the Eagles’ wins have come in blowout fashion. They will pick up their 10 th win. Atlantic Collegiate, in just its second year of football, has had something of a magical run in the second half of the season. The Armada lost its first five games, albeit against a murderous non-region schedule. However, ACA went 4-2 in Region 7 to finish second and opened with a home win over Woodland . Philip Simmons is on a 9-game winning streak after losing its first two. The Iron Horses will ground the Armada’s season. That means the quarterfinal games are: Hampton County at Manning Central at Philip Simmons Hampton County will have too much offensive firepower for the Monarchs. Central will have to make the almost 3-hour drive from Pageland to Charleston , but the trip back will be a little shorter after a victory. The lower state title game will have: Central at Hampton County Central will make an almost identical trip to Varnville to take on the Hurricanes the following week. Again, the Eagles will be celebrating on the return ride home. And your state title game will be: Batesburg-Leesville vs. Central These are two historically strong programs where their hometowns generally shut down on Friday nights. The Eagles, led by the likes of Dwayne Louallen Jr. , Ashten Wilson , Marques Allen and Taveon Moore , will be too hard for the Panthers to handle. Central will be a state champion for the first time since 2010. First Round Friday Upper State Clinton 56, North Central 7 Saluda 33, Mid-Carolina 13 Andrew Jackson 34, Ninety Six 16 Fairfield Central 50, Chesnee 21 Chester 50, Blacksburg 6 Batesburg-Leesville 42, Eau Claire 0 Strom Thurmond 49, Chesterfield 0 Liberty 35, Pelion 14 Lower State Hampton County 56, Lake City 22 Cheraw 17, Andrews 7 Manning 48, Academic Magnet 7 Timberland 46, Barnwell 8 Central 56, Kingstree 6 East Clarendon 14, Lake Marion 0 Philip Simmons 57, Whale Branch 12 Atlantic Collegiate 14, Woodland 0 Second Round November 14 Upper State Saluda at Clinton Andrew Jackson at Fairfield Central Batesburg-Leesville at Chester Liberty at Strom Thurmond Lower State Cheraw at Hampton County Timberland at Manning East Clarendon at Central Atlantic Collegiate at Philip Simmons

By Billy G. Baker Publisher Moncks Corner - When Oceanside Collegiate used a highly rated junior quarterback. ( Aiden “Laser” Manavian ) to defeat AAAAA power Dutch Fork back in September, the media boys were about ready to phone in to the engraver at the South Carolina High School League to get the Class AAA trophy ready early for the Land Sharks. This reporter was on hand for that mild upset win at Charleston Southern back in September but there is too much football left to be played in Class AAA just to go ahead and give the trophy to the most talented team in AAA in South Carolina. The AAA SCHSL state finals will take place at high noon on Friday December 5 th at South Carolina State University so you AAA fans go ahead and phone in to your boss about having the flu because this is not a Saturday game. Oceanside Collegiate, coached by Brent LaPrad , advanced this week to host Marlboro County by defeating Georgetown 49-15 last week. The Bulldogs, who have an 180- mile ride to Charleston in front of them this week, advanced with a 49-13 win over Swansea. Do not be surprised if the Bulldogs hang around for three quarters against Oceanside but in the final quarter the Sharks should win with their depth numbers. BHP did survive the graduation of all-world running back Maurquise Henderson , and the number one ranked 11-0 Bears advanced with a 56-7 win over Palmetto in round one. Russell Blackstone’s team has been the most offensive productive team at all levels of prep football in SC with a state leading 558 points! (Wow!) Coach Blackston told the HSSR recently, “It sure is good when you can graduate 8,000 yards and 100 touchdowns in Marquise Henderson, that you can still be very good. There are people who thought we were not going to be anything and that’s okay. I knew we had 23 seniors back and six starters back on both sides. We’re where I thought we would be. We had a tremendous Spring and a tremendous summer.” BHP will host Southside Christian this week. The Sabres defeated Chapman 55-18 to advance. Senior BHP QB Noah Thomas is among the best dual threat athletes in the state. By season’s end Thomas should pass for well over 2,200 yards and he will be close to 1,000 yards rushing. His favorite target is junior stud Tajeh Watson Martin . Third ranked Loris (11-0) beat Dillon for the second year in a row and that got the folks around town pretty whipped up for sure. The Lions whipped Battery Creek 49-14 last week to advance. They will host upstart Orangeburg-Wilkinson this week after the 9-1 Bruins beat Keenan 25-12 last week. This game should be a one possession lead for either team well into the fourth quarter. Dillon has won a state title before with three losses, and the Wildcats have a rising star in 9 th grade QB Khayel Fong Talia (6-2, 200) who recently visited Clemson for the Florida State game. This Under Armour Next Level All-American has helped make talented North Carolina WR commitment and Shrine Bowler Zay Robertson the top WR in South Carolina. Robertson has drawn comparisons to former New England NFL receiver Troy Brown who played high school football at Blackville-Hilda . Dillon is also led by Shrine Bowl LB Daniel Capehart and North-South LB Keryien Brown . Dillon advanced in round one with a 49-8 win over Fox Creek and the Wildcats will host Silver Bluff this week, a 34-13 winner over North Charleston . It seems strange that Newberry (11-0) is competing in the playoffs as a lower state team this season but that is the case. Newberry is led by SC tight end commitment Jamel Howze (6-3,215) and they have dominated teams 470-142 this season. Newberry advanced with a 54-14 win over Aynor last week and they will host Hanahan this week. The Hawks advanced with a 38-21 win over Waccamaw last week. In the upper state , Powdersville advanced with a 66-0 win over Carolina , and they will host Pendleton this week. Pendleton advanced with a 24-21 win over Broome last week. Mountain View Prep (MVP) can be a sleeper but an early season loss to Woodruff exposed some of their weaknesses. MVP had a close 28-21 win over St. Joseph’s in round one to advance and they host Crescent this week. The Tigers advanced with a 52-14 win over Union County . Christ Church won Class A titles under head coach Quin Hatfield (a Manning native) in recent years but moved up to AAA with realignment two years ago. The Cav’s advanced with a 42-7 win over Walhalla last week and they will be at Woodruff this week. The 10-1 Wolverines are ranked 5 th by the HSSR this week and they advanced with a 49-7 win over West-Oak . Woodruff is led by a talented 1-2 punch junior pair on offense. QB Connor Davis (6-2, 210) has completed 147-of-242 passes for 1,904 yards and 23 TD’s coming into the game with Christ Church. Junior RB Amari Gibson has gained 1,284 yards on 159 carries and 19 TD’s. This makes Woodruff a very balanced team on offense between passing and running. While Class AAA might look like a BHP vs OC rematch anything can happen, and most teams are just one unfortunate injury away from a course correction so staying healthy is so important.

Look for Defending Champ South Florence to Face South Pointe for AAAA Title By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Sumter – As is normally the case, the first round of the South Carolina High School League AAAA football state playoffs, the overwhelming majority of the 16 games were blowouts. Half of them were decided by by 20 points or more with six of the eight having victory margins of at least 30 points. Four more of them came by at least 14 points. Only four games were decided by less than 10 points. Only three games were won by the lower seeded teams. One was the 8-9 game in the upper state bracket with No. 9 Emerald topping No. 8 Foutain Inn 44-36. The other two came in the lower state. No. 10 seed Wilson beat No. 7 May River 36-28. The other was a fairly significant upset. No. 12 seed Gilbert knocked off No. 5 seed Bluffton 38-21. A huge upset came oh so close to occurring. Perennial power, once-beaten and No. 2 seed Daniel had to score a fourth-quarter touchdown to beat No. 15 seed Dreher 14-10. The Blue Devils ended the year with a 3-8 record. With all of the preliminaries out of the way, it’s now time to get down to business. Let’s work our way down each of the brackets and see who will be in Orangeburg on December 6 at South Carolina State’s Oliver C. Dawson Stadium for a noon kickoff with the state championship on the line. We’ll start with the upper state bracket: Second Round (9) Emerald at (1) South Pointe (5) A.C. Flora at (4) Seneca (6) Wren at (3) Westside (7) Camden at (2) Daniel Easily the most intriguing of these four games is 8-3 Camden visiting 10-1 Daniel. The teams have a long playoff history together, meeting for the AAA state title in 2020, 2021 and 2023. The Lions won all three times with the last one coming by a 45-44 count in overtime. Camden, the seventh seed, beat No. 10 seed Greer 38-20 to win a first-round playoff game for the eighth straight season. Bulldogs head coach Brian Rimpf said his team is excited for the opportunity to face Daniel again. “Playing Daniel this year has a little added motivation for us,” Rimpf said. “We have a recent history with them and are excited to be able to play a familiar team. Like all Daniel teams, they are well-coached, play with great effort and will be a tough opponent.” Daniel is in its first season under head coach Chris Stone . The Lions are led by sophomore quarterback Jace Grass . He has completed 170 of 275 passes or 2,641 yards and 29 touchdowns against just one interception. This should be a fun game but look for the Lions to be victorious. South Pointe is 10-1 and the No. 1 seed. The Stallions are led by South Carolina commitment Z’zavien Currence . He is a standout strong safety and is also the starting quarterback. They should come away with a comfortable victory over 6-4 Emerald. In the matchup between No. 4 Seneca and No. 5 A.C. Flora, you have two 10-1 teams. Flora’s only loss was to Camden while the Bobcats only loss was at the hands of Daniel. The Falcons have an explosive offense led by quarterback Roper Wentzky and will return to Columbia with a win. The other game pits 2023 state champion and defending upper state champion Westside playing host to Wren. The Rams lost their first four games of the season by a combined score of 199-67. Since then, they’ve reeled off seven straight wins, including a 49-21 win over Pickens last week. Wren and Westside are Region 1 foes. The sixth-seeded Hurricanes lost to Westside 21-7 on October 30. Wren beat Blue Ridge 42-28. Westside should win again. The quarterfinal matchups will be: (5) A.C. Flora at (1) South Pointe (3) Westside at (2) Daniel South Pointe beat A.C. Flora in the regular season, so there’s no reason to think it won’t win again. Look for Westside’s upper state reign to come to an end against Daniel. The upper state title game will be: (2) Daniel at (1) South Pointe. So it will be No. 2 Daniel traveling to Rock Hill to face the Stallions for the upper state title. South Pointe is on a mission and should advance to the state championship game, Here are the lower state second-round games. ( 8) Bishop England at (1) South Florence (12) Gilbert at (5) North Augusta (6) Hartsville at (3) Gray Collegiate (10) Wilson at (2) Hilton Head Island South Florence is the team to beat, regardless of the success of some of the other teams still remaining. When you’re the defending state champion, the 3-time defending lower state champion and the winner of two of the last three state titles and are 10-1 after a 47-7 win over Darlington , that’s how it has to be. The Bruins shouldn’t have much trouble against Bishop England. North Augusta has only one loss, that coming to Gray Collegiate, and beat 6-5 Gilbert 56-14 in a Region 4 contest, so it should win. Hartsville is a perennial power and has the ability to put up points. However, it has struggled defensively this year, and that’s not a good thing against GCA. After losing two of their first three games, the War Eagles have won eight straight. They should make it nine in a row. Wilson has had a bounce-back season under first-year head coach Brian Wilson . They are 7-4 after traveling down Interstate 95 to beat May River 36-28. They’ll be making a return trip to the Lowcountr y to meet 10-1 Hilton Head Island. The Seahawks will be too much. So for the quarterfinals, you will have: (5) North Augusta at (1) South Florence (3) Gray Collegiate at (2) Hilton Head Island South Florence traveled to North Augusta last year to win the lower state championship. The Yellow Jackets will return the visit this year, but the Bruins will be victorious. Although Hilton Head has had a tremendous season, Gray will be too much to handle. So the lower state title game will be: (3) Gray Collegiate at (1) South Florence This should be an offensive explosion by both teams, but until someone takes the Bruins down, you’ve got to go with them. The state championship game will be: South Pointe vs. South Florence This is the matchup that everyone has been looking toward this season. This will be an interesting game. Both teams are outstanding offensively but have their moments defensively as well. The Bruins will be trying to win back-to-back state titles like in 2023, and again they will come up short. Pointe will be behind South on the state championship trophy this year.

By David Shelton Senior Writer Moncks Corner – After the first-round of the AAAAA state playoffs went about as expected, round two may offer a few more eyebrow raising results. However, expect most of the favored teams to move on to round three. Upsets can and will happen but after 11 weeks of games, we all have a pretty good idea of who the best teams are this season. The only true upset of the first round was Blythewood’ s comeback win over Clover. In Division, defending state champion Dutch Fork had a bye in round one and should be poised for a repeat run. If we have learned anything over the last decade, it’s Tom Knotts doesn’t lose much after November 1. Dutch Fork will be favored in every playoff game but the most intriguing matchup would be if Dorman can reach the Upper State finals against the Silver Foxes. Remember though, Ridge View is a sleeper and already played Dutch Fork close earlier this season. On paper, the Lower State of Division I may be more wide open. The favorite has been Summerville b ut the Green Wave are far from a shoo-in. Summerville gets a shot at revenge when they visit Ashley Ridge in round two. Ashley Ridge dominated the Green Wave during the regular season meeting, 42-19. Plus, this is already a very big rivalry game. The 9-1 Sumter Gamecocks host the 10-1 James Island Trojans in round two. Sumter eliminated James Island from last year’s playoffs so the revenge factor is alive and well. Carolina F orest and Stratford are coming off byes and both are heavily favored in round two. A dark horse in the Lower State of Division I may be Stratford , with a 9-1 record. The Knights have a winning quarterback in Shrine Bowl selection Jachin Davis and also have a big-time running back in Maliq McGowan . Division II The Division II ranks are the deeper of the two divisions with more serious title contenders. Most of the top teams reside in the Upper state but the conversation starts with last year’s two finalists, Northwestern and Irmo . Both teams are as good as they were a year when Northwestern beat Irmo with a last second field goal. Both teams entered the season having to replace big-time quarterbacks and Northwestern’s Xavier Means and Irmo’s Devron Dobson have not missed a beat. Both offenses are explosive and high-scoring so some team will need a great night offensively to keep up. Greenwood and Gaffney , two storied programs, will clash in the second-round with a good team packing up after Friday night. Greenwood has been good all year but can Shrine Bowl quarterback Tristian Lewis , a South Carolina commit as a defensive back, do enough to advance. Speaking of Gaffney, the Indians went through some adversity early but seem to be hitting their stride after a quarterback change. The Indians clearly have the talent to win the Upper State. Two teams to keep an eye on are T.L. Hanna and Hillcrest but both would be dark horses. The Hillcrest at Indian Land game is one to watch in round two. The Lower State probably doesn’t have a team capable of beating Irmo. If there is team to watch it would be Berkeley. The Stags are very good defensively and run the football well . If the Stags can cut down on penalties, they could be around for a while. Lucy Beckham, Lugoff-Elgin and Myrtle Beach have solid teams but taking down Irmo is a tremendous challenge. Second-round Division I-AAAAA matchups Boiling Springs at Dutch Fork Rock Hill at Byrnes Spartanburg at Ridge View Blythewood at Dorman Fort Dorchester at Carolina Forest Summerville at Ashley Ridge James Island at Sumter River Bluff at Stratford Second-round AAAAA Division II Catawba Ridge at Northwestern Gaffney at Greenwood Hillcrest at Indian Land Greenville at T. L. Hanna Lugoff-Elgin at Irmo Lucy Beckham at White Knoll West Florence at Myrtle Beach Westwood at Berkeley