Undefeated Williamsburg Academy (6-0) & Undefeated Bethesda Academy (7-0) Pick Up Late Season Game Against Each Other At Hammond on Thursday Night (October 16)
Williamsburg Academy's Grant Small from earlier in this season. Photo courtesy of Angela Feagin,
By Billy G. Baker
Publisher
Columbia---Both Williamsburg Academy (7-0) and Bethesda Academy (6-0) are currently undefeated and ranked number one in SCISA A and SCISA AA football respectively, coming into their recently scheduled game in Columbia at Hammond School this Thursday at 7 p.m.
The last time these two rich traditional SCISA teams played each other was in the 2023 Class A state football finals at CSU, when the Blazers rallied from being down 17-6 to start the fourth quarter, to claim their team’s first football title ever, 18-17.
WA is head coached by Will Furse, who came to the Stallions this season after serving in a similar role at Laurence Manning and Lee Academy in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Bethesda head coach Antwain Turner founded the football program at Bethesda 21 seasons ago.
The HSSR will first preview the Stallions after observing their Tuesday practice.
“Both teams could only find 8 games to play this season, so it just happened that we both had a bye week this week and neither one of us wanted to travel to play the other team,” said Coach Furse. “It just so happened that Hammond was off this week, and they are also out of school on Friday and Monday, and they have a turf field, and we both want to get use to playing on turf, because the state finals will be played on a turf field.
“We wanted to play a quality opponent before our final region game against Dorchester Academy (Oct., 31) and before the play-offs start, and Bethesda is a well- coached team and we are glad we were able to pick up a game with them,” said Coach Furse. “We are excited about the opportunity to play them this week.
“We wanted to get our hard-working guys at least one more game during the regular season, so we are glad things worked out to make that happen,” said Coach Furse. “Bethesda is well coached with a solid quarterback, several very good skilled athletes at running back and receiver, and they are very big in both lines.”
The Stallions have defeated teams (249-65) this season, including a 29-0 win over Lee Academy last week. Bethesda have defeated teams (296-48) including Dillon Christian, 40-6 last week.
The Stallions are led on offense by junior RB Grant Small (5-11, 185) who will come into the game on Thursday with 1,301 yards on 109 carries with 20 TD’s. “Grant has matured into a leadership role for us this season and he has become a vocal leader,” said Coach Furse. “He has excellent speed, and he runs with good low pad level.”
Grant is also an excellent punter with a very good hang time, and he has averaged 48-yards average on his 9 punts this season.
Senior QB Micah Balder (6-0,190) is also a key leader who is in his 4th season on the varsity. Balder has completed 30-of-54 passes to date for 599 yards and seven TD’s. He has also rushed for 429 yards on 33 carries with four rushing TD’s.
“Micah is a solid dual threat quarterback, and he is a good senior leader also,” said Coach Furse.
Sophomore Eli Brown (5-8,170) has added 382 rushing yards on 59 carries including four TD’s. The top WR/Wingback on the team is junior Charlie Caulder (6-3,185) who has 18 receptions for 348 yards and four TD’s. A utility starter/TE on offense is senior Jay Kellahan who is also the back-up QB.
The WA offensive line is led by the leadership of RT Marlin Morris (6-2, 230) who is like a captain up-front. The LG is junior Sammy Tomlinson (5-10,190) while the center is soph Henderson Livingston (5-7,240). The LT is junior Mason Cribb, and the RG is junior Michael Ard (5-11, 190).
On defense many players flip both ways in the Stallions 3-4 scheme. Tomlinson flips to DE and senior all-region returner Connor Morris (6-1,) starts at nose. The other DE is Marlin Morris.
The two OLB’s are junior Seth Cherinko (5-8,170) and Caulder flips to the other OLB. The inside players are Ard and Kellahan who flip from the offense.
The secondary has sophomore Gamble Wilson at one CB with sophomore Lane Patrick at the other corner. The double safeties include Balder who flips from offense along with junior Hall Dukes (5-10,170).
A key special team’s player is freshman Caden Morris who is averaging 13.1 yards on punt returns and 17 yards on kick-0off returns. Morris is also a top catching prospect in baseball.
Ard leads the Stallions in tackles (77), followed by Kellahan (51), Caulder (37), C. Morris (27), M. Morris (23), and Patrick (21). Dukes leads the team with four interceptions while Wilson and Balder have two picks each. Caulder leads the team with 9.5 TFL.
“Win or lose, our goal is to come out of the game with Bethesda with no injuries and we will benefit from playing a hard-nosed physical team that challenges us the entire game,” said Coach Furse. “I feel like both these teams will make deep play-offs runs.”
Bethesda could have stayed in SCISA A, but they requested to be moved up to AA. “We really wanted to compete against larger schools, and we hope to grow into a AAA program,” said Coach Turner. “In Class A we had many teams dropping off our schedule when they went down to 8-man over the summer, so we just feel better off playing up one classification.”
The Blazers are led on offense by sophomore QB Jordan Turner (5-10,150) who has completed 42-of-60 passes for 1,090 yards and 18 TD’s with only one interception. “Jordan has worked hard since he became a starter as a freshman in week two of the season when our starter went down with a season ending injury,” said Coach Turner. “He keeps us in the middle of the road, and he throws a really nice deep ball.”
Senior WR Ralo Wesley (5-10,160) is the team’s top senior prospect. He has an offer from Georgia State and serious interest from Georgia Southern and James Madison. To date Wesley has 18 catches for 548 yards and 12 TD’s.
“Wesley broke the SCISA AAA 100-yard dash record in the Spring with he ran a 10.6,” said Coach Turner. “He has good hands, and he is a great route runner.”
The team’s top RB is senior Jordan Cheever (5-10,195) who has gained 625 yards on 66 carries with 9 TD’s. The team will sometimes use a two-back set and when they do sophomore, Jeffrey Armstrong enters the game on offense. He has gained 232 yards on 18 carries with two TD’s.
Without a doubt, Bethesda has one of the biggest offensive lines in SCISA. Junior Ian Platts (6-1, 295) starts at LT, while senior Keni Jones (5-10,245) holds down RT with junior Steven Mitchell (6-1, 270) starting at center. The RG is senior Jadyn Grant (5-11, 340) and the LG is senior Arlando Chaney (6-0,250).
On defense, the Blazers play a multiple look, but they are mainly a 3-4. The two DE’s are seniors Keshaun Wright (5-10, 240) and Isaiah Redmond (5-11, 225). The OLB’s are junior Isaiah Jones (6-0,190) and Armstrong who flips from offense. The inside players are soph Nicholas Jackson (5-7,220) along with sophomore Ka’mond Young (6-0,170).
The secondary is patrolled by senior Malachi Morris (5-8,150) who starts at both WR and flips to SS on defense. Freshman Adrian Cook starts at FS. Junior Mell Flowers (6-1, 140) is a CB along with Wesley, among others.
The top five tacklers on the hit index include Jones (51), Jackson (50), Young (44), Redmond (37), and Armstrong (33). Redmond and Jackson have 10 and 9 TFL, respectively.
The combo kicker is 9th grader Hociel Garcia who has made 19-of-26 PAT attempts with a 33-yard punting average.
“We are looking forward to playing a quality well-coached team like Williamsburg,” said Coach Turner. “We are looking forward to the challenge, and we should come out of the game better prepared for a deep play-off run.”
