Each week throughout the high school football season, we’ll chase down the stats, check out the highlights, and round up our Players of the Week from around the Lowco, as well as an area Team of the Week and a preview of the upcoming Game of the Week in the Lowco Football Spotlight.
It was a spectacular opening week, with Whale Branch and May River winning instant classics at home, Beaufort High dominating a border battle with a tough Peach State foe, and Hilton Head Christian Academy and Hilton Head Prep picking up impressive wins. We picked the top Players of the Week, handed out a few Helmet Stickers for strong performances, and picked a Team of the Week for Week 0 and a Game of the Week we’re looking forward to in Week 1.
It’s everything you need to know to get ready for another week of high school football in the Lowco.
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WEEK 0 RESULTS
Beaufort High 28, Richmond Hill 8
May River 34, Orangeburg-Wilkinson 33
Whale Branch 54, Calhoun County 50
South Florence 49, Bluffton 7
Hilton Head Christian Academy 54, King’s Academy 23
Hilton Head Prep 38, John Paul II 16
Andrew Jackson Academy 28, Colleton Prep 0
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
• Loncelle Daley, RB/DE, HHP: Rushed for 237 yards and two TDs on 22 carries and made three tackles on defense.
• Garvin Douglas, QB, MRHS: Rushed for 152 yards and three TDs on 15 carries and was 5-of-13 passing for 103 yards.
• Joseph HIcks, RB/LB, WB: Racked up 355 all-purpose yards and six TDs, rushing for 188 yards on 11 carries with four TDs and returning three kickoffs for 167 yards and two TDs, including the game-winner. Also made nine tackles and two tackles for loss on defense.
• Amariee Morris, RB, BHS: Rushed for 93 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries to lead an effective ground game.
• Joseph Robinson, RB, HHCA: Scored three different ways in his HHCA debut, rushing for 54 yards and a TD on two carries with a 55-yard TD reception and two punt returns for 75 yards and a score.
HELMET STICKERS
• Jace Blackshear, QB, HHCA: 4-5, 124 yards passing, 2 TDs, 0 INT; 2-30 yards, 1 TD rushing; 2 tackles, TFL, PBU, INT
• Xavier Chaplin, OL/DL, WB: 10 tackles, TFL; Team averaged 10.1 rushing yards per carry
• Mason Griffin, RB/LB, WB: 2-43 yards, TD rushing; 5 tackles, TFL, PBU
• Jackson Lanier, RB/LB, HHCA: 1-25 yards, TD receiving; 6 tackles, sack, FF
• Peter Nodelman, RB, HHCA: 4-88 yards, TD rushing
• Zyrin Odom, TE, BHS: 4-93 yards receiving
• D’Ante Parker, LB, WB: 11 tackles, 2 TFL
• Thomas Raisch, LB, MRHS: 10 tackles, 2 TFL
• Jake Rodney-Brown, FB/LB, HHP: 9-39 yards, 2 TDs rushing; 1-9 yards receiving; 5 tackles, 2 FF, 1 FR
• Eamon Smalls, DL, BHS: 7 tackles, 2 TFL, sack
• Zach Talbert, LB, BHS: 4 tackles, FF/FR for 54-yard TD
• Camauri Simmons, WR, BLHS: 80-yard kick return TD
• Christian Tilton, QB/DB, JPII: 22-101 yards, TD rushing; 3-7, 61 yards passing, INT; 6 tackles
• Caleb Tkaczyk, DE, MRHS: 13 tackles, 3.5 TFL, sack
• Trevor Weldon, K/P, HHP: 3-3 PAT, 3-3 FG (48 long), 1-43.0 punting
TEAM OF THE WEEK
Beaufort High Eagles
The Eagles went hard with their non-region schedule, including the opener with a Richmond Hill team that has been a Georgia Class 6A contender the past two seasons, and they made it look easy. Granted, the Wildcats were short-handed due to COVID-19 protocols, including starting quarterback Ty Goldrick, but that’s going to be an ever-present factor this season. It was a thoroughly dominant performance by Beaufort’s defense, which limited the Wildcats to 125 total yards and just 2.4 yards per carry on the ground with big men Eamon Smalls and Alvin Wilson plugging up the line of scrimmage. Quarterback Tyler Haley was somewhat out of sync, which is to be expected early in the season, but he connected with basketball star turned tight end Zyrin Odom four times for 93 yards and scored a rushing touchdown, and Amariee Morris had a strong game on the ground with 93 yards and two touchdowns. Beaufort hits the road for another border battle at Effingham County on Friday, and they shouldn’t have too much trouble with a Rebels team with just five wins over the past two seasons.
GAME OF THE WEEK
Thomas Heyward at Battery Creek
It has become increasingly rare to see Lowco-on-Lowco matchups across the SCHSL and SCISA ranks, but the Rebels have managed to land two such clashes on their schedule this season. They’ll travel to Class 4A Bluffton next week, but the appetizer is an opener at Class 3A Battery Creek. In many ways, SCHSL and SCISA football are apples and oranges — the public school teams tend to have more depth and more size in the trenches — but this is an intriguing matchup. The Rebels are the three-time defending SCISA 1A champions and would have to be considered a strong favorite to win a fourth, while Battery Creek is a long-struggling program hoping to find its footing in its second season under Terrance Ashe. If there’s a local SCISA school that can compete with teams from the larger classifications, it’s Thomas Heyward, which has excellent size up front.
WEEK 1 SLATE
Colleton Prep at Hilton Head Prep, 5 p.m.
Beaufort High at Effingham County, 7:30 p.m.
Bluffton at Bamberg-Ehrhardt, 7:30 p.m.
Thomas Heyward at Battery Creek, 7:30 p.m.
Beaufort Academy at St. John’s Christian, 7:30 p.m.
Hilton Head Christian at Dorchester Academy, 7:30 p.m.
