By a wide margin, Friday was the most exciting and impactful night of the season so far, as Strom Thurmond crowned itself region champion, Thomson and Lincoln County all but clinched No. 1 playoff seeds, North Augusta and Wagener-Salley moved to within one win of a region title, and several more teams did themselves a favor in pursuit of advantageous postseason seeding. With so much on the line, and so many players stepping into the spotlight with high impact performances, it’s impossible to award one individual with “Best of the Best” honors this week.
So the defensive units for Strom Thurmond and Thomson, South Aiken’s elite offensive line, and Ridge Spring-Monetta’s two-way star Deonte Hopkins will all share the honor. In addition to the statistical accomplishments for all four entities, we will share either commentary from their coaches, or video footage of their feats. And we’ll mention as many other players as possible from around the area who deserve honorable mention.
A Ferocious Bulldog Defense
No. 6 Thomson dominated No. 9 Putnam County 27-3 to take a commanding lead in the class 2A, region 4 race. Fifth year head coach Michael Youngblood was thrilled that his defense allowed Putnam County only 97 yards in 41 plays, and he added that the War Eagles only managed 12 rushing yards.
The unit’s performance Friday continued a trend that was evident a week earlier when Thomson allowed Laney zero points during the final quarter-and-a-half to preserve a 15-14 win in a game that had been suspended a month earlier at the midpoint of the third quarter. When play resumed, the Bulldogs allowed only 76 total yards in four possessions. A day after the win against Putnam County, Youngblood clued us in on a recent change in formation that is bearing fruit for the Bulldogs (7-1, 5-0).
“We made a change defensively from 3-3-5 to 3-4, and it has made a world of difference for us,” Youngblood revealed. “We are starting to find our groove on the defensive side of the ball and the stats are starting to show.”
The video highlights below show the speed and force of Thomson’s defense during Friday’s win over Putnam County. Marcellus Brigham (8) recorded 9 tackles, including one for a loss. Travion Curry (30) made 8 tackles (2 for a loss), and Jamere Roberts (12) also logged 7 tackles, including 2 for a loss. Jaquan Hart (43), John Sallywhite (10) and Nolan Norman (23), who each made 7 tackles, can also be seen flying around for the Bulldogs, who look poised to make a postseason run after they wrap up a region title in the next two weeks.
Strom Thurmond Suffocated Silver Bluff
No. 7 Strom Thurmond became the first area team to clinch an outright region championship with a 17-7 road win over Silver Bluff. The Rebels remain the hottest team around after winning seven straight games, and the fingerprints of the defense was all over Friday’s win.
After Silver Bluff drove 84 yards for a touchdown to take a 7-0 first quarter lead, the Bulldogs were only able to manage 64 yards of total offense for the remainder of the game. Star quarterback Maleik Williams was sacked seven times as Chase Brightharp (two tackles for a loss and 1.5 sacks), Michael Blocker (two sacks and two tackles for a loss) and Cam Blacks (two tackles for a loss and a sack) made themselves at home behind Silver Bluff’s line of scrimmage.
https://youtu.be/yOqChgM_-iE
After Silver Bluff’s scoring drive, the Bulldogs got as far as Strom Thurmond’s 26-yard line during the second quarter, and to the 28-yard line in the third. But sacks by Darius Simpkins, Blacks, Brightharp and Blocker ruined both drives. And when Silver Bluff forced its third turnover of the game with less than four minutes remaining and reached the red zone, Blocker and Blacks made tackles for a loss on consecutive plays. Then Whitt Miller followed with an interception immediately afterwards to slam the door shut on any potential comeback.
Strom Thurmond’s offense performed at a championship level as well. Quan Edmond completed 10 of 18 passes for 131 yards and one touchdown to Dallas Hitt. Edmond also rushed for a touchdown. Izzy Glanton rushed for 77 yards, including a 50-yarder that set up Edmund’s rushing touchdown that tied the game at seven with 2:20 left in the second quarter. And dynamic receiver Gregory Bryant had 52 yards receiving and 51 yards rushing on only five total touches.
But Strom Thurmond’s defense shone brightest during the South Carolina class 2A, region 3 championship game.
Lining Up the Rushing Records
South Aiken kept hope alive for a South Carolina class 4A, region 4 championship when the Thoroughbreds finished an offensive firework show of a game by kicking a field goal with zero seconds on the clock to top Midland Valley 52-49, a set of details that closely track a certain college football classic played on the prior Saturday.
The Thoroughbreds improved to 2-1 in region play, and Midland Valley (also 2-1) missed a chance to play for an outright championship this Friday against North Augusta (3-0). A road win over Aiken this Friday will probably result in the Thoroughbreds hosting a playoff game at the very least.
The Thoroughbreds rushed for 424 yards and 7 touchdowns in Friday’s win. Terrence Smith (21 carries for 270 yards and 4 touchdowns) and Jevon Edwards (22 carries for 127 yards and 3 touchdowns) grabbed the attention, continuing a season-long trend. Through 9 games, Smith has amassed 1,641 rushing yards (11.9 yards per carry) and 22 touchdowns, and Edwards has piled up 1,386 yards (8 yards per carry) and 15 touchdowns.
Smith, a junior, and the sophomore Edwards have grabbed the headlines in almost every media outlet after almost every Friday this Fall. But every football coach will tell you that in front of every great rusher you will find at least five usually unheralded linemen in a three point stance, ready to clear the way to glory for the grateful ball carriers. We media types can have a difficult time conveying the value of the heroes in the trenches, so I asked South Aiken’s offensive coordinator Bowen Smith to give us his assessment of the offensive linemen that power the South Aiken rushing machine.
“I think it comes down to genuine love our guys have for seeing each other succeed,” Smith explained in a message Saturday. “None of our guys ever say ‘Coach I was open, or why aren’t we throwing it more.’ If Jevon is having a big night, Terrence is celebrating just as much. If T is hitting on all cylinders, Jevon is the first one in the end zone celebrating. That all stems from our O-line. Obviously, they don’t fill up the stat sheet, but they don’t need that or care for it. They love what they do. It helps that 3 of the 5 are brothers, in Brooks, Reece and Will Jenison, but John Fogle, our center, and Ashley Yaughn, our right tackle, are just as much brothers as all of them. Sophomore left tackle Sebastian Galo stepped up big for us last night and played as well. They are so football smart, and we have the most confidence in them that we could have. They just find a way and never, and I mean never, complain.”
Ridge Spring-Monetta’s Comeback Unlike Any Other
Ridge Spring-Monetta probably would have earned a playoff spot as its region’s No. 4 seed had it fallen to No. 7 Calhoun County last Friday, as most expected to happen. But after overcoming a 35-20 deficit in the final five minutes to earn a one-point victory, the Trojans have a chance to be the two-seed if things break right this Friday.
Fourth year head coach Brian Smith told me Saturday he hasn’t seen a finish to a game that resembled RS-M’s victory Friday in his longer than 30-year coaching career. Here are the amazing details and then the video footage to support it directly under the timeline:
Trailing 35-20 with 5 minutes remaining, the Trojans opened a drive from midfield with a 57-yard touchdown completion from James Bosket to Tykeem Martin. Calhoun County’s lead became 35-28 after a successful 2-point conversion.
Ridge Spring-Monetta followed with a successful onside kick and then came inches away from completing a touchdown drive that failed when Martin was taken down at the one-yard line after a reception from Bosket on fourth-and-goal from the fourteen yard-line.
Calhoun took over with its back against its own goal line and earned itself breathing room and an apparent victory by picking up a first down on a run to the 20-yard line with 1:20 remaining. Ridge Spring-Monetta called its final timeout, and a couple error free victory formation snaps were all that remained for the Saints to improve to 5-0 in region play.
But with 50 seconds remaining, Calhoun County fumbled a snap and RS-M fell on the ball to give the Trojans one more chance for an upset victory. A couple plays later Bosket found Martin in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown, and Deonte Hopkins followed a bulldozing block by Kanaan Ligons to cross the goal line for 2 and a 36-35 lead with 3.3 seconds remaining. The score held for an amazing victory for the Trojans.
Hopkins turned in an incredible stat line. On defense he made 9 tackles, recovered 2 fumbles and made an interception. And on offense he rushed 22 times for 142 yards and 1 touchdown. Bosket completed 16 of 28 passes for 230 yards and 3 touchdowns. Two of those strikes went to Tykeem Martin during the final 5 minutes. Martin caught 11 passes for 160 yards.
Elsewhere in South Carolina class 1A, region 4, Wagener-Salley improved to 5-0 with a 36-32 win over Denmark-Olar (3-2). The War Eagles will have a chance to overcome severe injury problems and win the region championship this Friday at home if it can hand Calhoun County (4-1) its second consecutive loss. Also, if RS-M (3-2) can knock off Hunter-Kinard-Tyler (1-4) and the tie breaker breaks their way, the Trojans might leapfrog Calhoun County and Denmark-Olar and grab the two-seed.
But no matter how the region schedule ends, Coach Smith and his players won’t ever forget, and probably won’t ever see again, what happened last Friday night in St. Matthews.
Honorable Mention
Senior Jontavis Curry rushed 13 times for 131 yards and a touchdown, and sophomore Anthony Jeffery rushed 15 times for 95 yards and 3 touchdowns in No. 6 Thomson’s 27-3 win over No. 9 Putnam County.
Maleik Williams passed for 128 yards and rushed for a touchdown, and fellow senior Arthur Walker accounted for 143 all-purpose yards (82 returning and 41 receiving) in Silver Bluff’s 17-7 loss to No. 7 Strom Thurmond.
The official stats from Midland Valley’s offensive explosion against South Aiken weren’t available in time for this release. But 3 rushing touchdowns (including one for 72 yards and another for 64) for quarterback TJ Mcelmurray and a pair of passing TDs from Mcelmurray to Desmond Evans were shown on the news soon after South Aiken’s 52-49 victory over the Mustangs.
Washington-Wilkes (2-1) took the inside track for the two-seed in class 1A (Division II), region 8 with a 34-26 win over Aquinas (1-2). A freshman and a senior for both teams turned in eye-catching statistics in the instant classic off of Highland Avenue.
Freshman Jamari Curry rushed 14 times for 155 yards and 2 touchdowns, and senior Desmond Cofer rushed for a touchdown and made an amazing, leaping go-ahead touchdown catch late in the fourth quarter for Washington-Wilkes.
For Aquinas, freshman Jack Rhodes completed 28 of 36 passes for 299 yards and 2 touchdowns. Both scoring strikes went to senior Kevin Douglas, who snagged 7 receptions for 120 yards.
On the defensive side, Trace Calloway led the way for Washington-Wilkes with more than a dozen tackles.
North Augusta improved to 3-0 in South Carolina class 4A, region 4 action with a 24-7 win over Airport. DJ Curry rushed 33 times for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns and Taylon Washington caught 8 passes for 82 yards. Washington also completed a touchdown pass out of the Wildcat formation for the second straight week.
Lincoln County improved to 3-0 in class 1A (Division II), region 8 action with a 31-21 win over Greene County (2-1). And No. 2 Barnwell topped No. 4 Woodland to come within one win of clinching the South Carolina class 2A, region 6 championship. Stats weren’t available from Lincoln County and Barnwell in time for this release. But Lincoln County quarterback Trey Huff and Barnwell running back Tyler Smith were shown on the news Friday night scoring multiple touchdowns each.
Wilson Donnelly completed 18 of 27 passes for 203 yards and two touchdowns in Augusta Christian’s 13-12 loss to Ben Lippen. Elton Wilson (12 tackles, 4.5 for a loss) and Wes Michaelson (11 tackles, 1.5 for a loss), Aaron Gregory (10 tackles) and Gavin Hammond (10 tackles) paced the defense for the Lions. Gregory also had a touchdown reception.
Joseph Jean rushed 20 times for 113 yards and two touchdowns, and Amare Clark rushed 12 times for 105 yards and a touchdown for Grovetown in a 21-7 win over Lakeside. Zaidon Gunn (11 tackles), Joseph Jean (9 tackles) and Amari Walker (interception) led a Grovetown defense that held Lakeside’s offense to 120 total yards and zero points.
Chad Cook is a sports columnist who is known on the field and court as AugBball. Follow him on Instagram @AugBBall
