High school football preview 2024: Top players to watch in the greater Rock Hill area
With less than two weeks away from Week 1 of the 2024 South Carolina high school football season, optimism abounds for the 200-plus teams getting ready to compete.
Sixteen tri-county schools are among them and will lean on key players for their successes. Coaches were asked to submit one player from their team for The Herald’s list of players to watch.
From longtime starters under center to multi-sport athletes, here are the players to watch for in the area in 2024:
Lancaster QB RJ Brown
Class: Junior
Height, weight: 5-foot-9, 190 pounds
The skinny: Brown is entering his second season as Lancaster’s starting quarterback. The two-sport athlete brings athleticism to Lancaster’s run-heavy style of offense. He led Lancaster to the state quarterfinals last year despite entering the playoffs as an at-large seed at 1-9.
Quotable: “He’s a young man who’s learning the quarterback position,” head coach Marcus Surratt said. “He’s a running back by trade, but he’s adapting to the quarterback position to fit our team needs. He’s a kid who’s easy to coach, picks up really well, has an understanding of the game from the offensive point of view.”
Great Falls QB Tremaine Caldwell
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-1, 165 pounds
2023 Statistics: 495 yards passing, 5 TDs, 4 INTs; 339 yards rushing, 3 TDs
The skinny: Great Falls is marching into the 2024 season 10 months after having to shut down its 2023 season early due to player safety concerns. One of the foundational pieces for the team this season will be starting quarterback Tremaine Caldwell. The two-sport athlete matches his passing ability with an equally devastating elusiveness that made him the team’s second-leading rusher last season.
Quotable: “He’s a total athlete,” head coach Syvelle Newton said. “He’s our starting quarterback. He’s our leader. He’s a senior. He’s been doing everything that we’ve asked of him. As far as believing what we’ve been doing, he’s been exceeding expectations...He’s taken every step to be an All-Region player.”
Rock Hill WR Malik Clark
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-3, 180 pounds
2023 statistics: 679 yards receiving, 7 TDs
The skinny: A four-star Florida State commit, Clark is gearing up to make his senior season a successful one. The Bearcats’ leading receiver from a season ago has blazing speed, posting a 4.35 40-yard dash time in April.
Quotable: “He has unbelievable size and speed for a high school player,” head coach Randy Birch said. “Accompany that with his work ethic, attitude and leadership skills, and we expect him to finish the year as one of the top wide receivers (statistically) in the state.”
Nation Ford OL/DL Savyion Drayton
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-1, 275 pounds
2023 statistics: 8 tackles, 1 sack
The skinny: Drayton is a seasoned veteran entering his fourth season on the team. Spending most of his time at starting offensive guard while also rotating in at defensive tackle for the Falcons, the senior earned All-Region honors for his play last season.
Quotable: “His daily impact on our program year around has been a tremendous asset for us,” head coach Michael Allen said. “He is a great leader on and off the field. He holds everyone accountable and is a formidable player on both sides of the ball. He is a great student, a tremendous athlete, and a fabulous person. We are grateful for all of his contributions to Nation Ford Football and our community.”
Chester QB Trooper Floyd
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-3, 195 pounds
2023 Statistics: 2,060 yards passing, 18 TDs, 5 INTs; 551 yards rushing, 5 TDs
The skinny: Floyd has started for Chester since his freshman year, becoming the full-time starter as a sophomore. The senior has a big arm and is a bruising runner as a fixture in Chester’s ground attack. This year, however, Floyd will play a big role on the defensive side of the ball as well.
Quotable: “This year, he’ll be playing both sides for us,” head coach Victor Floyd said. “He’ll be the starting safety for us while also playing quarterback. We really need for him to have a good year for us to have a good season.”
Andrew Jackson WR/DB Jy’Kevius “Boobo” Johnson
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-4, 185 pounds
2023 Statistics: 375 yards receiving, 5 touchdowns; 10 tackles
The skinny: Johnson is a big and athletic receiving threat for Andrew Jackson’s passing attack. The two-sport athlete averaged over 30 yards per reception last season and will look to step into a much larger role following the graduations of the Volunteers’ top two receivers Isaac Blackmon and Banks Helms.
Quotable: “Jy’Kevius is a better young man than he is a player,” head coach Jeremy Smith said. “He has a 3.9 GPA and has done everything ever asked of him. A very explosive player with speed and size, he will be a big target for our offense this year. He has tremendous ball skills and is a two-sport athlete who has bought into his role and our program.”
Fort Mill WR/RB Tanner Mays
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-2, 195 pounds
2023 Statistics: 963 all-purpose yards, 3 TDs
The skinny: Mays was the leading receiver for a Fort Mill team that won multiple games and made a playoff appearance for the first time since 2017. The senior wideout does a lot with the ball in his hands, serving as the team’s primary kick and punt returner and spending some time at running back.
Quotable: “He’s a first class individual,” head coach Rob McNeely said. “He’s got some of the highest character of any kid I’ve coached in 28 years. He works hard in the classroom, he works hard in the weight room, and he leads by example on the field.”
York WR/DB Jay McCoy
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 5-foot-9, 160 pounds
2023 Statistics: 487 all-purpose yards, 2 TDs
The skinny: York returns only four starters from last year’s team; McCoy is one of them. The senior receiver finished tied for first on the team with 27 catches last year and also spent time returning kicks for the Cougars. His final high school season will include an even larger role.
Quotable: “He’s a student of the game,” head coach Dean Boyd said. “He runs good routes. He knows what to do. I think he’s just an all-around good player. He’s going to play wideout, kickoff returner, punt returner, he’ll play some safety. He’s going to play all over.”
Indian Land ATH Sequel Patterson
Class: Sophomore
Height, weight: 6-foot, 165 pounds
2023 Statistics: 200 yards passing, 5 TDs; 960 scrimmage yards, 8 TDs
The skinny: Patterson was one of the best freshmen in the state last season, earning an All-State honorable mention. A two-sport athlete, one of Patterson’s best traits is his ability to play anywhere, playing at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, kick-off returner and defensive back. This season, he will even be expected to take on some kicking duties as well.
Quotable: “Sequel is a special player who has the rare mix of ability and drive,” head coach Adam Hastings said. “There isn’t too much he can not do or is not willing to do to help the team be successful. He is the type of competitor that desires to be challenged and pushed.”
South Pointe RB Mason Pickett-Hicks
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 5-foot-10, 165 pounds
2023 Statistics: 1,231 yards rushing, 10 TDs; 249 yards receiving, 1 TD
The skinny: Mason Pickett-Hicks played in a tandem backfield with Aidan Turner last season, producing 1,000-yard rushing seasons for both. With Turner now at West Charlotte High School, Pickett-Hicks will carry the mantle as the South Pointe’s lead back for his senior season.
Quotable: “Mason Hicks is the most dynamic player I think in the state,” head coach Bobby Collins said. “He will be returning kickoffs and punts for us, playing running back, wide receiver, whatever we got to do to get the ball in his hands so we can score touchdowns.”
Northwestern QB Finley Polk
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-2, 185 pounds
2023 Statistics: 2,902 yards passing, 38 TDs, 7 INTs; 179 yards rushing, 8 TDs
The skinny: Polk is entering his third season as the Trojans’ starter, amassing a 24-4 record and over 6,000 passing in his career. The Gardner-Webb commit led the team to a state championship appearance in 2022.
Quotable: “We are excited to have Finley back as our starting quarterback,” head coach Page Wofford said. “He has worked very hard in the pre-season to build on his strengths and improve on his weaknesses. He is a high character leader who we will depend on to have a successful season.
Catawba Ridge OL/DL Lewis Price
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot-4, 285 pounds
2023 Statistics: 64 tackles, 17 TFLs, 7 sacks
The skinny: Price was a bright spot in an otherwise forgettable 1-9 season for Catawba Ridge last season. The defensive tackle was very disruptive in the middle, leading the team in sacks and tackles for loss and finishing second in total tackles.
Quotable: Head coach Zac Lendyak said that Price has been a key veteran in what hopes to be a turnaround season for the Copperheads. Lendyak said the senior has also been getting reps on the offensive and is “expecting good things on both sides of the ball this season.”
Lewisville QB/DB Zack Rogers
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot, 185 pounds
2023 Statistics: 67 tackles, 6 TFLs, 9 PBUs, 2 INTs
The skinny: Rogers spent his junior year as part of a lockdown Lewisville defense that allowed less than four points per game and shut out opponents seven times last season. Heading into his senior season, Rogers will also be starting under center as the Lions aim for another successful season.
Quotable: “Zack is an old school football player,” head coach Trent Urban said. “He is hard-nosed and willing to do anything for his team. I think when he was a baby, he had a football in his crib.”
Buford OL/DL Conner Shumate
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 5-foot-11, 265 pounds
The skinny: Shumate is part of a returning senior trio to Buford’s offensive line protecting returning starting quarterback Noah Crump. Shumate graded at 88% and earned All-Region honors for his play last season.
Quotable: Head coach Joe Watson said Shumate “played multiple positions on the offensive line for us last year and will do the same this year.”
Clover RB Landon Stone
Class: Senior
Height, weight: 6-foot, 185 pounds
2023 Statistics: 2,254 yards rushing, 21 TDs
The skinny: Stone set the program rushing record last season, finishing first in the tri-county area and fifth in the state in rushing yards. The senior back will serve as the focal point in a power-heavy Clover offense that uses the run game to open downfield passing opportunities.
Quotable: “Landon is an extremely talented player with a great work ethic,” head coach Perry Woolbright said. “He is a leader on and off the field to his teammates. He is not a cocky guy; he just shows up and goes to work every day.”
This story was originally published August 13, 2024 at 5:00 AM.