Northwestern football’s run to this Upper State title game started in the lows of 2019
Editor’s note: To read about tonight’s game results, return to heraldonline.com
Northwestern football head coach Page Wofford took a bit longer than usual to emerge from the locker room on that Friday in September of 2019, when Dutch Fork scored 49 unanswered points in District Three Stadium in Rock Hill.
When he finally did arrive outside, he told reporters he’d just had an “honest” conversation with his team. It was the last game of the Trojans’ non-region schedule — a contest that marked the end of a six-game stretch that featured six teams ranked in the top-10 by the South Carolina preseason Prep Media Poll. His team had just fallen to 1-5.
“In two years, nobody will look back and say, ‘They were 1-5, but look who they played,’” then-first-year coach Wofford said after that 2019 game. “They’ll see a 1-5 team.”
Maybe in two years, that’s what history will say and people will see.
But today, a year and a few months after the lowest point in a two-win 2019 season, the Trojans (7-0) are headed to their first Upper State title appearance since 2015 — and their head coach recognizes that last year’s losses are inextricably linked to this year’s gains.
“We learned a lot from last year,” Wofford told The Herald Monday via phone interview, adding, “Sometimes, you learn a lot and you can still win. But some of the teams we were playing last year, there was no time to learn a lesson and still win a football game.”
Several ways in which Northwestern has improved since last year can be seen or measured: Junior quarterback Will Mattison has amassed 1,371 yards and 14 touchdowns, completing 66% of his passes and only throwing three interceptions — and he’s been supported by position players with explosive potential, like wide receiver Gerrell Watkins (who caught a touchdown pass last week) and running back Kyle Aldridge (who had two scores and ran for 88 yards last week). Mattison has also been given opportunities by a great defense — headed by South Carolina Mr. Football finalist Gregory Johnson III, LB Deuce McCrorey and others — and he’s been protected by a formidable offensive line, led by sophomore Jordan Knox and junior Riley Morris.
But in some ways, Northwestern’s improvement is most prominent in the abstract. In “relationships” forged by past struggles. In confidence.
Said Wofford when his team was down early on the road at Ridge View in its 2020 season opener: “It was a good feeling against Ridge View,” Wofford said. “Last year, when we went down, it was, ‘Here we go again.’ This year, we went down, and it was, ‘OK, what do we need to do to get this right.’ And we came back and beat them.”
For most teams competing in statewide semifinal contests, Friday night will mark the culmination of an entire season.
For Northwestern, it marks that and more — an opportunity for vindication of last year’s stumbles and attainment in this year’s success.
“I’ve been here when we’ve won those games,” Wofford said, referring to his days earlier this decade as an assistant coach at Northwestern. “And to know what they really mean for the school and the program, you might not realize until later on, a few weeks or a few months or even a few years later what a win like this would mean. What it really means.
“Of course, on the surface right away, it would be really nice.”
TL Hanna scouting report, prediction
Friday’s matchup poses an interesting symmetry. TL Hanna finished fifth in the final SC Prep Media Poll and defeated a Spartanburg-area team in Gaffney last week; meanwhile, Northwestern finished sixth in said poll and defeated a Spartanburg-area team in Dorman last week. TL Hanna’s strength has been its run game — the Yellow Jackets ran the ball 65 of their 67 offensive plays for 466 yards against Gaffney — and Northwestern has been known to run the ball 50-plus times at points this year, too, including in its clobbering of South Pointe in the regular season.
And they’re both undefeated — though TL Hanna has been tested in tough games, winning two games by one point and another by one-possession, whereas Northwestern has only had one game come down to one-possession, and that was after Dorman made a substantial comeback in last week’s second round 5A playoff game.
Said Wofford of TL Hanna: “They’re a good football program. They’re a good football program from top to bottom.”
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Zietlow’s prediction: Northwestern wins.
Editor’s note: Zietlow is 39-14 on the season with his picks and correctly predicted 3-of-3 outcomes from last week’s slate of games.
This story was originally published November 25, 2020 at 9:02 AM.
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