For the first few series Friday night at Thomas Heyward Academy, the tension was building.
The growing rivalry between the Rebels and Pee Dee Academy was palpable, as fans buzzed about Thomas Heyward’s win in last year’s state championship matchup or the Eagles’ miraculous comeback to knock the Rebels out of the playoffs a year earlier.
The defenses traded early punches, and the pressure mounted. The Rebels were backed up against their own goal line. Eleven plays — plus two key penalties — and 96 yards later, JR Patterson was in the end zone, and the pressure began to release.
John Clark Tilton followed Patterson’s 17-yard touchdown run with a 95-yard sprint to the end zone, and Peyton Bennett hit a streaking Josh Gobel for a 69-yard TD — all three capped by Bruzza Pusha two-point conversion runs — and the Rebels rolled to a 42-23 win over Pee Dee Academy in a SCISA Class 1A showdown.
Patterson rushed 17 times for 175 yards and a touchdown, Tilton added a 50-yard TD run in the second half to finish with 172 yards on 11 carries, and Bennett was 12-of-16 for 218 yards and two scores and added a rushing touchdown.
The Rebels built a 24-0 halftime lead, with the aid of two big defensive plays by Louie Smith — a strip sack that was recovered by Dalton Hayes and an interception — that halted promising Pee Dee drives.
The Eagles rallied in the second half, conjuring unpleasant memories of their stunning comeback on the same field in the 2017 playoffs, but the Rebels held them at bay, and Bennett connected with Smith for a 40-yard touchdown that made it 36-16.
The Rebels (4-0) travel to Northwood Academy next Friday.