Week 7 capsule: A final Rock Hill rivalry game, full SC football rankings and more
The fates of all but one of the 15 high school football teams in The Herald’s coverage area are set in stone ahead of Week 7.
Here’s all the information you need heading into the final week of the weirdest regular season in recent memory — including a list of Week 6’s Tri-County Player of the Week awards; game-by-game storylines; picks from The Herald’s sports editor Alex Zietlow (who went 7-0 last week and is now 27-7 on the season); full results from the latest Prep Media Poll; and more.
Game storylines and Zietlow picks
Rock Hill (0-5, 0-4) at South Pointe (4-2, 4-0): Besides fighting for the moniker of “second-best team in Rock Hill” in 2020, this game is inconsequential. South Pointe’s playoff seed is already locked in, and Rock Hill was eliminated from playoff contention weeks ago. But questions still abound: Is Rock Hill, a team that’s hung tough in pretty much all of its region games this season, better than its record? Will South Pointe coach DeVonte Holloman’s absence on the Stallions’ sideline for a second straight week — after being ejected from a non-varsity football game on Thursday, Oct. 29 — have an effect on the game’s outcome? These legitimate questions will be answered in District Three Stadium on Friday night.
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Zietlow’s prediction: Rock Hill wins.
Cheraw (2-1) at Andrew Jackson (3-1): Perhaps the only meaningful high school football game around this week is the one that’ll take place at 8 p.m. on Friday in southern Lancaster County. An Andrew Jackson win means a trip to the playoffs for the third time in as many years — despite the fact that COVID-19 effectively cut three games from the team’s schedule.
Zietlow’s prediction: Andrew Jackson wins.
Great Falls (1-4, 1-3) at North Central (4-0, 4-0): Great Falls is out of the playoffs, and the team will have its hands full as it steps up to the 2A ranks against a very strong North Central team. North Central handed Andrew Jackson its only loss of the year in Week 2.
Zietlow’s prediction: North Central wins.
Chapin (4-2, 2-2) at York (3-2, 2-2): York steps up to the 5A level for a contest against a solid Chapin team on Friday night. Although the Cougars won’t play in the 4A state playoffs, they’ll go “bowling” so to speak next week when they face longtime archrival Clover on Nov. 13 to add another proverbial chapter to one of the oldest high school football rivalries in the state of South Carolina.
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Zietlow’s prediction: York wins.
Fort Mill (0-5, 0-3) at Indian Land (2-4, 1-3): Here’s another battle for pride between two schools that are less than 10 miles apart. Indian Land took Nation Ford to overtime last week in an exciting, high-scoring game.
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Zietlow’s prediction: Indian Land wins.
Lewisville (3-2, 2-2) at Eau Claire (0-4, 0-4): Lewisville is out of the playoffs, but the team wants to continue its winning streak. The come-from-behind, high-scoring win last week against a good East Clarendon team should give the Lions plenty of momentum heading into Friday’s contest.
Zietlow’s prediction: Lewisville wins.
What about the teams that aren’t playing this week?
Seven high school football teams from The Herald’s coverage area aren’t playing this week: Northwestern and Chester have open weeks this week and have already secured playoff berths. Clover and Nation Ford had their region contest canceled after an individual associated with the Nation Ford football program tested positive for COVID-19.
Catawba Ridge was originally scheduled to play Nation Ford this week, but Nation Ford’s region contest against Clover took priority and thus Catawba Ridge is also off. And Legion Collegiate and Lancaster each had COVID-19 foil their Oct. 30 and Nov. 6 games last week.
Who won Tri-County Coaches Association Awards after Week 6?
Each week, the Tri-County Coaches Association selects a slate of “Players of the Week.” Here are the results from this week’s vote, which was facilitated by The Herald on Tuesday.
5A Offensive Player of the Week: Northwestern quarterback Will Mattison completed 19-of-24 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns in the Trojans’ regular-season finale over Spring Valley.
5A Offensive Lineman of the Week: Northwestern linebacker and Army commit Gregory Johnson III notched 14 tackles, three pass breakups, one tackle for loss and one quarterback pressure in last week’s win.
5A Defensive Lineman of the Week: Daryl Dunifer of Northwestern had 10 tackles, one quarterback pressure, one sack and two tackles for loss last Friday night.
4A Offensive Player of the Week: Catawba Ridge quarterback Kayden Hager threw for 264 yards and two touchdowns, adding 12 carries for 95 yards and two touchdowns in Catawba Ridge’s win over Fort Mill on Friday night. Hager has helped lead the Copperheads to five straight wins heading into the 4A state playoffs.
4A Offensive Lineman of the Week: Indian Land’s Jack Beachum graded out at 82% and notched eight knockdowns in Indian Land’s overtime loss to Nation Ford last week.
4A Defensive Player of the Week: Indian Land’s Drew Hardin had 10 tackles and two interceptions against Nation Ford last week.
4A Defensive Lineman of the Week: JT Knight of Indian Land had 10 tackles and two sacks in his team’s loss last week.
3A, 2A, 1A Offensive Player of the Week: Jonathan Goldsborough of Chester had three catches for 56 yards and two touchdowns, and he also corralled the game-sealing interception on a wild Wednesday night at Chester.
3A, 2A, 1A Offensive Lineman of the Week: Riley Alexander of Lewisville graded out at 91% at center with three knockdowns, paving the way for over 330 yards rushing in the Lions’ win last Friday night.
3A, 2A, 1A Defensive Player of the Week: D’Arrius Edwards of Lewisville had 10 tackles (seven of which were solo) and two quarterback sacks last Friday night.
3A, 2A, 1A Defensive Lineman of the Week: Jaymes Gilmore was another Lion with a solid statline: six solo tackles, three tackles for loss.
3A, 2A, 1A Special Teams Player of the Week: Henry Glenn of Chester went 7-for-7 on extra points — a notable boost in a game when Lower Richland struggled in point-after attempts. In fact, you could argue Glenn’s leg was the difference in the game: Chester and Lower Richland each scored eight touchdowns on that aforementioned wild Wednesday night. The difference? Lower Richland only scored on two of its PAT tries, whereas the Cyclones hit all seven of their extra points and also converted a two-point conversion.
Members of the Tri-County Coaches Association include Page Wofford (Northwestern head football coach); Bubba Pittman (Rock Hill head football coach); Rob McNeely (Fort Mill head football coach); Michael Allen (Nation Ford head football coach); Brian Lane (Clover head football coach); Marcus Surratt (Lancaster head football coach); Adam Hastings (Indian Land head football coach); Zac Lendyak (Catawba Ridge head football coach); DeVonte Holloman (South Pointe head football coach); Dean Boyd (York head football coach); Victor Floyd (Chester head football coach); Will Mitchell (Lewisville head football coach); DeMarcus Simons (Great Falls head football coach); and Todd Shigley (Andrew Jackson head football coach).
Week 6 Prep Media Poll in South Carolina
Northwestern, South Pointe and Catawba Ridge are the only ranked teams from York, Chester or Lancaster counties in this week’s South Carolina Prep Media Poll.
Class 5A
1. Dutch Fork (12)
2. Gaffney
3. Fort Dorchester
4. Dorman
5. Sumter
6. T.L. Hanna
7. Northwestern
8. Byrnes
9. Boiling Springs
10. Carolina Forest
Receiving votes: Ridge View, Hillcrest
Class 4A
1. AC Flora (11)
2. North Myrtle Beach (1)
3. Myrtle Beach
4. Greer
5. Westside
6. South Pointe
7. Catawba Ridge
8. Greenville
9. (tie) North Augusta
9. (tie) Greenwood
9. (tie) Beaufort
Receiving votes: West Florence, Hilton Head Island, May River
Class 3A
1. Dillon (8)
2. Chapman (4)
3. Daniel
4. Camden
5. Gilbert
6. Wren
7. Aynor
8. Fairfield Central
9. Oceanside Collegiate
10. Powdersville
Receiving votes: Lake City, Hanahan, Palmetto, Chester, Union County, Belton Honea Path
Class 2A
1. Abbeville (12)
2. Gray Collegiate
3. Chesnee
4. Newberry
5. Cheraw
6. Batesburg-Leesville
7. North Central
8. Woodland
9. Marion
10. Andrews
Receiving votes: Saluda, St. Joseph’s, Timberland, Pelion, Christ Church, Wade Hampton
Class A
1. Lake View (11)
2. Southside Christian
3. Blackville-Hilda
4. Lamar (1)
5. Bamberg-Ehrhardt
6. Whale Branch
7. Johnsonville
8. Wagener-Salley
9. Carvers Bay
10. Green Sea Floyds
Receiving votes: McCormick, C.A. Johnson, Williston-Elko, Allendale-Fairfax, Baptist Hill, Ridge Spring-Monetta, Branchville
Sam Copeland contributed to this report.
This story was originally published November 5, 2020 at 12:19 PM.
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