Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Week 1 preview/wk 0 recap

High school football is one of the purest forms of sport. The cheerleaders, the fans who have been going to games for decades, the bands, and most of all, the players giving their all to their school and their community, sometimes playing both ways. Anything can happen on any given Friday.

This Friday was no exception. Not every team played in the Lowcountry, but a good portion of the schools started. There were some fascinating games involving local teams; most of them lived up to the billing. Sertoma also had its share of surprise, including Wando putting five touchdowns in a half on Bishop England.

Prayers to former Wando student Virginia Gilliam, who died in a Clemson area hospital on Sunday. She was a freshman at Clemson who was in her first weekend at the school. 

Last week's game of the week: James Island at Hanahan. This game was seen as a mismatch on paper. You had the two time defending region champions, Hanahan, who had gone undefeated in the regular season last year, hosting James Island, a school who was in its first game with its new coach, Ike Allred.

It was very emotional for the Trojans, who on their helmets this year will be wearing #41, for two former players who died over the summer. Tristen Allen, a star LB for the team, who died in a diving accident (http://carolinasportsthoughts.blogspot.com/2014/07/prayers-for-tristen-allen.html), and Matthew Gaither, who died in a plane crash.

The game did not start off as expected. Within the first 5 minutes, James Island got out to a quick 14-0 lead. An 80 yard drive leading to a Gage Moloney to Chad Hardin TD pass followed by a three-and-out and a botched Hanahan punt led to a Buss Hamilton TD, stunning the Hawk crowd. The Trojans got out to a 26-13 lead before Hanahan came back with a late 1st half TD to cut the deficit to 26-21.

Hanahan RB Vontre Howard ran for a TD to give the Hawks a 1 point lead at 27-26, before the defenses took over the rest of the game until Reggie Rosario's 34-yard FG just sneaked over the uprights with 6:46 left. Moloney, who threw for 232 yards, was knocked out with a foot injury, and was replaced with Hamilton at QB for most of the 4th quarter. Still, the Trojans pulled the game out in one of the biggest upsets of Week 0.

Team of the week: Cane Bay. When you break a 12-game losing streak (not winning since before Obama was reelected), and beat a fellow 4A school in Colleton County at home, you deserve the praise. Summerville and Fort Dorchester also deserve high praise for going on the road and beating great teams in Providence and South Florence.

Onto the preview of week 1. Almost every team in the area plays this week, and we will go into full force with TV stations doing game of the weeks and a full slate of games.

4A: Summerville (1-0) @ Cane Bay (1-0): Summerville rarely plays out of area teams in their schedule each year. The last time the Green Wave played one was when A.J. Green was on the team. However, this year's team accepted the challenge of traveling to a new area very nicely. Winning 31-9 against a very good Providence team was very important for Lowcountry football, as they dominated most of the game against competition who got more and more tired as the evening went on.

This week, the Green Wave travel to Cane Bay; two seasons ago they were robbed on a late game call giving the Cobras a huge upset win at home which people still talk about. Summerville this year has several great skill players like RB Chris Felder and WR Cam Burnette in addition to QB Sawyer Bridges. Cane Bay beat Colleton County by a point last week, and hope to spring another huge upset. They returned two interceptions for touchdowns last week against the Cougars; it may be tougher to do against the Summerville offense.

Goose Creek vs. Pickerington Central (4pm Saturday, Centerville, OH): Goose Creek, missing QB Pedro Manigault, still looks like a very stout team. QB Dominique Jefferson, now a junior, will lead the offense against the school from the Columbus area. They blew out West Ashley in Sertoma, showing very little to contest that they are one of the best teams in the area.

They will face Pickerington Central, one of the best teams in the Columbus area. Last year they finished 8-3 in a very tough region in OH, winning their eighth consecutive region title, losing to Cincinnati school Colerain in the playoffs. They have a hundred guys on their roster; and are led by DT DaVon Hamilton, a Pittsburgh commit. QB Matt Martello, a new starter, is getting looked at by several MAC schools. It will be a very interesting game to match up the two states, who rarely play each other.

Ashley Ridge (1-0) @ James Island (1-0): The Ike Allred era opened with a bang last week at Hanahan. Few expected the Trojans to compete, let alone win the game in front of a large, partisan Hawk crowd. They had scored just 18 points in the previous 2 games against Hanahan, with many of the same players. They had 21 with 2:30 in the first quarter, and won 29-27. Hanahan though had a starting QB in his first game at the controls.

Ashley Ridge has Steven Duncan, who was a Porter-Gaud transfer and threw for over 3,000 yards last season. They beat Woodland last week, in a game that many expected them to give a good fight; they won 21-6. James Island's QB, Gage Moloney, hurt his ankle in the fourth quarter last week, and was out for the rest of that game. He may be out for this one. They do however have RB Buss Hamilton, who led the Trojans offense in the 4th quarter and earned a couple key first downs. This will be a great battle between two up-and-comers.

Wando @ White Knoll (0-1): Wando coach Jimmy Noonan likes to play Midlands area teams; he was a coach at Wilson Hall and other Columbia schools. White Knoll lost 49-21 last week to Fort Mill at River Bluff High School; they played just six days ago and now make a trip to the Lowcountry. They are led by junior QB Calev Grubbs and RB E'Mond Brown.

Wando has been a sleeping giant in the area; everyone always wonders if this year will be their year. Sertoma definitely showed many people that they could be a team to be reckoned with. Winning 35-0 in a half of football is a huge statement against anyone, but especially against a rival like Bishop England. QB Bailey Hart returns, along with RB Kenny Waring and a number of other prospects, including the son of Zola Davis (the former South Carolina WR). This will be a fun game to watch.

Bluffton (1-0) @ Effingham County (1-0): Bluffton put three-quarters of a hundred on Battery Creek last week (winning 75-0), but now they make the short trip over to Springfield, GA to face an Effingham County team who went into Liberty County last week and blew them out 35-7. Junior QB P.J. Brown threw 3 TDs in the win, and Effingham had their biggest margin of victory since 2006. The Rebels will give Bluffton a game.

Beaufort @ Colleton County (0-1) (MyTV Charleston): Colleton County had a very tough loss last week in their game at Cane Bay. They made several mistakes, including missing the extra point on what was the tying TD. They got the ball back on a onside kick but couldn't get the points needed to beat the Cobras on their home field. They host Beaufort, a team that has dropped down from 4A to 3A this year as the numbers have declined. Some reports say Beaufort has less than 40 players available.

Colleton County really needs a win in order to get back to their winning ways, since they only have five home games with just one in the region. Every game is very important for playoff positioning. With prospects like WR Latrell Nieves and others, the Cougars will have a chance in almost every game they play. They need to prove that this Friday, as the fans will be amped for a televised game (last year, their win vs. Wando on WMMP ended a 36 game losing streak).

Carolina Forest (0-1) at Fort Dorchester (1-0): Fort Dorchester looked really good last week. Over 400 yards on the ground and winning by 24 on South Florence's home field made a statement to the entire Lower State; that the Patriots are out for something this year. They have a lot of prospects like they usually do, and led by senior QB Kobe Garrett, the Patriots can compete with almost any school in the state. Carolina Forest, on the other hand, just hired a new coach, Marc Morris, and lost by 20 at home to Darlington last week. Unless they can recover from that loss, expect a rout.

3A: Stratford @ Berkeley (1-0): Whenever Stratford and Berkeley, long-lived rivals dating back to the 1980s, you can expect a great ball game. It will be hard to go to a Knight game and not see Ray Stackley on the sidelines. He has retired this year, and is replaced by former assistant (and baseball umpire) Joe Marion. He will keep most of the principles which have been a part of Stratford over the years. They are led by senior QB Jameson Mobbs, who hopes to replace Georgia commit and four-year starter Jacob Park.

Berkeley had a fight with 2A Johnsonville last week, trailing 14-0 in the first quarter, but they came back to beat Johnsonville. Berkeley is led by QB Joseph Dress, as coach Jeff Cruce hopes that this year will be the year in Moncks Corner that the Stags return to prominence in state football. With a new guy in charge at Stratford for the first time since the school began, it will be very interesting to see Coach Marion at work.

Whale Branch at Hilton Head (1-0): Hilton Head plays one of their required Beaufort County opponents; they beat Ridgeland/Hardeeville 31-0 last week. They're hoping to get off to a fast start; after this game, they don't host another game on the island until October 10.

Lake Marion @ Orangeburg-Wilkinson (1-0): O-W traveled to Edisto last week and blew out Lake Marion, 32-0; O-W has their home opener this week as they host the Gators. This starts a stretch of five home games out of six for the Bruins.

2A: Batesburg-Leesville (1-0) @ Woodland (0-1): Batesburg-Leesville, one of the best 2A schools in the state, hired a new coach this year; Perry Woolbright from North Myrtle Beach. He replaced former Berkeley coach Dr. Jerry Brown. Woodland hopes to bounce back from a loss in their home opener to Ashley Ridge; Batesburg-Leesville will be a tough opponent, even at home.

Estill (1-0) @ Battery Creek (0-1): Estill beat Porter-Gaud last week at Porter-Gaud, while Battery Creek starts the first of three straight home games.

West Ashley @ Bishop England: A very interesting game on Daniel Island Friday night. West Ashley has become a school with a growing football reputation, playing much better in the last couple of years. Bishop England on the other hand is replacing a lot of their seniors, including Nick Shiver, and have a lot of inexperienced players. It showed in Sertoma last week as they lost 35-0 in a half to Wando.

However, coach John Cantey will have his players ready to play in the first game of the season. With a raucous home crowd, hosting a 4A school, expect the Bishops to show much better than they did last Friday.

Baptist Hill (0-1) @ Garrett (1-0): Garrett won their first battle against Burke, 50-34, and now host Baptist Hill, who were shut out by Allendale-Fairfax. The new Garrett coach, Nick Hopp, will have have his guys ready to play again as the Falcons open up the home slate with a in-county opponent.

Military Magnet @ North Charleston- Military Magnet and North Charleston, in a all-North Charleston battle, will play Friday night. It will be a 2A vs. 1A battle.

Andrews (1-0) @ St. James (0-1): Andrews travels to St. James this week, as they beat Waccamaw last week 19-7.

Hanahan (0-1) @ Timberland: One of the best games of the weekend. It will be very interesting to see how Hanahan bounces back after the surprise loss to James Island. Some people perhaps were overlooking the James Island game and getting ready for this one. It didn't work out. Hanahan and Timberland have been rivals for most of the last couple of decades, especially as Art Craig and Charlie Patterson became coaches of Timberland and Hanahan, respectively; they are usually the cream of the crop in their regions.

Expect this to be a fun game from St. Stephen.

Waccamaw (0-1) @ Hannah-Pamplico (1-0): Waccamaw and Hannah-Pamplico will battle; Hannah-Pamplico is coming off a 50-18 win over Green Sea-Floyds.

1A: North @ Branchville: Branchville hosts North Friday night in a battle between 2 1A schools in Orangeburg and Calhoun County.

Hunter-Kinard-Tyler (1-0) @ Cross: Hunter-Kinard-Tyler, led by QB Khaliq Anthony, defeated Denmark-Olar 52-6 last week and now travels to Cross to face the Trojans in their opener. It will be a battle between these two sides.

Lincoln (1-0) @ C.E. Murray (0-1): C.E. Murray is coming off a 34-18 loss to Kingstree, while Lincoln has a rare winning record after a win over Academic Magnet last week.

Stall @ St. John's (0-1): Stall opens up the season at St. John's, who got shut out at Screven County last week. Stall starts the Joe Bessinger era on Friday night.

SCISA: Pee Dee Academy @ Colleton Prep- New CP coach Thad Wells is a spread guy. No more wishbone.
Dorchester Academy (0-1) @ Calhoun Academy- Dorchester Academy was shut out last week by Robert E. Lee.
Bethesda Day (GA) @ Hilton Head Prep (5:00PM)- Hilton Head Prep starts with back to back home games.
Holly Hill Academy @ First Baptist (0-1)- First Baptist was blown out last Tuesday at Pinewood Prep, but bounced back nicely in Sertoma to upset Burke.
Northwood Academy @ Pinewood Prep (1-0)- Northwood Academy starts up with back to back road battles before they open up their new stadium September 12. Pinewood Prep looked mighty impressive in last week's 46-0 win.
Palmetto Christian @ Porter-Gaud (0-1)- Porter-Gaud and Palmetto will play at PG back to back years, but Palmetto has to replace QB J.T. Waters and their coach, Jim Daniel. Porter-Gaud last week succumbed to Estill at home.
Beaufort Academy @ W.W. King- The only non-region game on Beaufort's slate.
Richard Winn @ Cathedral Academy- The North Charleston private school opens up hosting Richard Winn from Winnsboro.
Coastal Christian (0-1) @ Charleston Collegiate- The Sun Devils open up with back-to-back home games, while Coastal Christian had a blowout loss last week in Laurens at Laurens Academy that they hope to bounce back from.
Laurens Academy (1-0) @ Faith Christan- Laurens Academy makes the long trip down 26 to play at Faith Christian on Royle Road.
James Island Christian @ St. John's Christan- One of the best SCISA games in the state this week. These are two of the best 8-man teams in the area battling each other.
Patrick Henry (1-0) @ Clarendon Hall- Patrick Henry makes the trip from Estill to play Clarendon Hall. PH beat W.W. King last week.
Ridge Christian @ Jefferson Davis- Ridge Christian starts out with four of five on the road. Tough sledding for them.

Enjoy the football!

Monday, August 18, 2014

Week Zero preview

Hard to believe, but the season is here. High school football is upon us. If you didn't read these articles last year, my name is Joe Wright. This is my second year doing these high school football previews.

I have been an avid football fan my entire life. I am a James Island alum. I helped to do stats for the football team for three seasons. I have been to almost every 4A school in the area, and another of my distinctions is that I saw both Jadeveon Clowney and Johnny Manziel play. I saw Manziel play at The Citadel in an all-star game, and Clowney during his junior season at South Pointe when he tore apart James Island in the playoffs.

Now onto the preview.

The off-season has been filled with many interesting stories. Eleven new coaches are a part of the Lowcountry. Stratford, James Island, Stall, and Garrett are just some of the schools who have hired new coaches during the off-season.

Here is the full list:

Stratford Joe Marion
James Island Ike Allred
Stall Joe Bessinger
Garrett Nick Hopp
Lincoln James Graham
First Baptist Johnny Waters
Palmetto Christian Chris Shimakonis
Dorchester Academy Chris Meyers
Colleton Prep Thad Wells
St. John's Christian John McCall
Faith Christian Dale Feagin

With only so many weeks during the season, there is a premium for teams to play games during Week Zero. The custom used to be for schools to play Sertoma during this week, then start regular season play the next week. That is not the case anymore. With South Carolina 4A schools playing the longest regular season schedule of anyone in the nation for high school football (11 games), there is a need for an open week.

Seven of the eleven 4A schools in the Lowcountry are playing this week on Friday night. Smaller schools also have used the week. This preview will only include regular season games played on Week Zero. For a Sertoma preview, go here: http://carolinasportsthoughts.blogspot.com/2014/07/2014-sertoma-preview.html

A good portion of the schools in the area will start this week. I will start with the smaller schools, then do a full preview of the larger school's games before I get into what I usually do next week.

All games will start at 7:30pm unless noted.

SCISA- First Baptist @ Pinewood Prep (Tuesday)- Pinewood Prep on Tuesday night, in front of Bill Murray, blew out First Baptist, 46-0. Pinewood had a 19-game losing streak prior to this blow-out, playing First Baptist, who moved to 11-man this year.

Several players excelled for Pinewood, including senior QB Lewis Vaughan, who passed for 153 yards and a TD. The TD was 96 yards to Tatum Rowland. Leslie Redden had 12 carries, 135 yards rushing for two TDs. DB/K Ryan Huiet picked off three passes and kicked four extra points.

Robert E. Lee @ Dorchester Academy- Debut of Chris Meyers as head coach in St. George. They will be hoping to improve on last year's tie for the region title.

Hilton Head Christian @ Trinity-Byrnes- Hilton Head Christian will make the long trip to the Pee Dee to face the Collegiate School in Darlington.

Estill @ Porter-Gaud- In a late scheduled game, Porter-Gaud will play a rare non private public school, with Estill coming to town on Friday night. 

Coastal Christian @ Laurens Academy- The boys from Mt. Pleasant will make a trip to Laurens to face Laurens Academy.

Patrick Henry @ W.W. King- Patrick Henry starts their season with a game at W.W. King, one of their two non-region games.

1A- Baptist Hill @ Allendale-Fairfax- For Baptist Hill, this week is amazingly one of just two trips outside of Charleston County all season. The other is Cross on Oct. 10. Being in a new region with other Charleston County schools will boost attendance for this school.

Burke @ Garrett (Saturday)- In the traditional Saturday night game on the first week of the season, Burke and Garrett will battle for supremacy. Burke has moved down to 1A this year, and hopes to have more success in their new class. Garrett's new coach, Nick Hopp, will start in this one. Last year, Garrett made it to the second round of playoffs before succumbing to Bamberg-Ehrhardt.

Academic Magnet @ Lincoln (Saturday)- James Graham will start his Lincoln career Saturday night in McClellanville. Academic Magnet and Coach Walpole hope to improve on a 3-7 mark last year, as the Raptors missed the playoffs in a rebuilding year.

St. John's @ Screven County (GA) (Saturday)- St. John's will make a long trip to Sylvania, Georgia, but it is really not as long as you think. Coach Brad Bowles has made St. John's look more like a big time school with his experience at Goose Creek, including names on the uniforms. Screven County plays in Class 2A in Georgia, and finished 5-6 last year.

2A- Andrews @ Waccamaw- The two Georgetown County schools will do battle Friday night as each hopes to improve from a year ago. Andrews and Waccamaw both made the second round of playoffs last year before losing to Bishop England and Lake Marion respectively.

3A- Georgetown @ Conway- Georgetown, with a lot of underclassmen this season, will hope to improve on last year's 5-5 record, missing the playoffs. They start off by playing one of the Grand Strand's two 4A schools, Conway.

Johnsonville @ Berkeley (WTUA 106.1 FM)- Berkeley hosts an opponent from the Pee Dee in their first regular season game. Jeff Cruce is feeling the heat again this year as Stag fans expect a lot of their football team. Last year, the Stags finished 5-6, getting blown out in the first round of the playoffs by Myrtle Beach.

Lewis Lineburger of Johnsonville is one of the most experienced coaches in the state; he is now in the South Carolina Coaches Hall of Fame. Last year, they finished 8-3. Johnsonville moves up to 2A while Berkeley stays in 3A. Berkeley is led by QB Joseph Dress, while Johnsonville has a 6-6, 345 pound lineman in Shaq Crouch who has been offered by East Carolina and looked at by Clemson and South Carolina.

James Island @ Hanahan (extended preview as one of Games of Week)

Ridgeland-Hardeeville @ Hilton Head- Hilton Head starts the season playing close-by Ridgeland-Hardeeville, who has been a fixture in Bishop England's 2A region. Hilton Head has a smaller roster this year, and starts off with two home games before a brutal four-week road stretch.

Orangeburg-Wilkinson @ Edisto- O-W travels to Cordova to play Edisto. O-W made the playoffs last year, but lost in the first round. They went a perfect 5-0 on the road last season.

4A- Colleton County @ Cane Bay- This game will be a very interesting one between two up-and-coming coaches, Russell Zehr and Chris Collins. Colleton County broke their long losing streak last year, and looked much more competitive in 2013 than in previous years. They have a chance to make some noise with their early schedule.

Cane Bay on the other hand finished 0-11 last year, and are on a twelve game losing streak, not having won since November 2, 2012 at West Ashley. They are hoping to improve this season, as they still have some good players, such as LB Matt Rudy. The winner of this will get some momentum in the early season.

Woodland @ Ashley Ridge- This is a very sneaky game for Ashley Ridge. Woodland may even be a favorite in this one, as they have one of the best players in the state, regardless of classification. DE Michael Barnett is a Florida State commit, and plays both sides of the ball for Woodland. His defensive prowess is what has made him a major prospect.

QB Steven Duncan, on the other hand, for Ashley Ridge, transferred in from Porter-Gaud, where he was the starting QB last year, throwing thirty touchdowns and passing for more than three thousand yards. He is only a junior, meaning he has more time to improve for Ashley Ridge, who needs it as they play in tough Region 8-4A.

Battery Creek @ Bluffton- Bluffton plays one of their required games against Beaufort County competition as they face a improving Battery Creek side. Bluffton had their toughest season last year, finishing 6-5 and missing the playoffs. They hope to improve on that record this season.

Fort Dorchester @ South Florence- You never know what to expect from Fort Dorchester. The Patriots will open up at South Florence, who finished 12-1 last year before losing to Jacob Park and Stratford. South Florence is one of the top teams in the state this season, starting at #5 in the 4A rankings. Fort Dorchester has DT Eurndaurus Bryant, who at 335 pounds not only plays defensive tackle, but also a little bit of fullback in short-yardage situations. He is getting looks from many major schools.

The Patriots also have freshman QB Dakereon Joyner, someone who we will be talking about for the next several years. He has already gotten an offer from South Carolina before playing a high school down. They hope to improve on a first-round playoff exit last year to Dutch Fork.

Games of the Week

James Island @ Hanahan (MyTV Charleston)- James Island and Hanahan were region rivals for the past two seasons. Hanahan beat JI in both football games, as they controlled the region the last two seasons. Hanahan will replace QB Mason Schwerzler, but they still have several players who are some of the best in their region. Junior DT Dominique Green, sophomore WR Sam Denmark, and senior DB DeAndrea Thompson all return for the Hawks, who finished 11-1 last year but lost to Marlboro County in the playoffs.

The Trojans, on the other hand, hired a new coach in the off-season, from Chesterfield. His name is Ike Allred. He is from Newberry College, and has helped to change the culture on the island. Allred hired an almost entirely new coaching staff. Expect the Trojans to play more of a no-huddle style this year. The Trojans finished 2-8 last season, and are the only school to move up from 3A to the largest level, 4A in the area. They still have several pieces from last year, including WR Tre'Von Grant.

With the contrast in passing styles (Hanahan mostly pro-style, James Island a question mark), this will be an interesting game to watch.

Summerville @ Providence (NC) (7:00pm, 98.9 FM)- Usually, this game between two top powers in the Carolinas would be the game of the week in the Carolinas. This week though, with Byrnes and Northwestern playing at District Three Stadium in Rock Hill, it isn't even the best game in the Charlotte area.

John McKissick needs no introduction if you follow SC high school football. He has been the coach at Summerville longer than most of us have been alive. He has won 613 games in his career, leading the nation in wins for football coaches. He has been head football coach at Summerville since 1952.

McKissick may have one of his best teams in years this year. Last year, they unexpectedly made it to the state semi-finals, and had a two TD lead in the fourth quarter against Sumter before the Gamecocks came back; a 95-yard TD drive beat them by one point.

QB Sawyer Bridges is a year older (a Clemson baseball commit), and he has several great players around him. Zack Bailey, a lineman who moved from the state of Washington, is a South Carolina commit; and one of the best players in the area. Mac McCurry and Kewaun Cox lead one of the best defenses in the area.

Providence High, on the other hand, had their most wins since 2006 last season, at 8-5. Providence is being talked about as one of the best teams in the Charlotte area this season, and are led by QB Caleb York. Providence looks to run a very high-tempo game, as their coach, Justin Hardin, focuses on playing tough competition. This game will be a great one.

Enjoy the football!

Friday, August 15, 2014

Notre Dame expelling four players for cheating scandal?

Major news coming out of Notre Dame. Four Notre Dame football players are possibly being expelled due to a cheating scandal. Reddit has a thread about this: http://www.reddit.com/r/CFB/comments/2dn4r2/nd_fans_in_a_panic/

The rumors are that these four players are involved:
  • #1 CB KeiVarae Russell
  • #1 WR DaVaris Daniels
  • #1 DE Ishaq Williams
  • Reserve LB Kendall Moore
Those players were some of the most important on Notre Dame's 2013 team. I am also hearing that Notre Dame's 12 wins from 2012 may be vacated.

From @Sankey72 on Reddit: Rumor coming out now, that it has something to do with Academic Advisers doing some shady crap. Rumors to go along with this are expulsions for these players not just suspensions as well as vacated wins. This allegedly is from 2012 and not from this summer.

: Yahoo sources: investigation into academic fraud at Notre Dame; football players (and regular students) part of probe

From Dan Murphy, Blue and Gold Insider:

A foursome of Notre Dame veterans was not seen leaving the Irish practice field Friday afternoon. Cornerback KeiVarae Russell, defensive end Ishaq Williams, linebacker Kendall Moore and wide receiver DaVaris Daniels were not among the players who exited the LaBar Practice Field Friday.
Notre Dame did not respond to questions about their absence. The Irish are planning to host a practice open to faculty and media Saturday morning.

Tuesday, August 12, 2014

2014 Lowcountry football schedules: SCISA

This is my last in a series of football schedules that you have seen over the summer. SCISA practice started on July 31. I did not want to forget the great fan bases in SCISA and all of the programs who work just as hard, if not harder than the public schools do.

Here are the rest of the schedules in case you didn't see them: 1A- http://carolinasportsthoughts.blogspot.com/2014/07/2014-lowcountry-football-schedules-1a.html
2A- http://carolinasportsthoughts.blogspot.com/2014/07/2014-lowcountry-football-schedules-2a.html
3A- http://carolinasportsthoughts.blogspot.com/2014/06/2014-lowcountry-football-schedules-3a.html
4A- http://carolinasportsthoughts.blogspot.com/2014/06/2014-lowcountry-football-schedules-4a.html

Schedules were released earlier this year, but here I will discuss them by school and analyze them, for both 11-man and 8-man football. In SCISA, for all schools, these schedules will be exactly the opposite in 2015.

Regions for our local teams are listed here. Local teams are listed in bold.


11-Man

Class A Region II: Bible Baptist, Colleton Prep, Curtis Baptist, Dorchester Academy, Hilton Head Prep, Thomas Heyward.

Class AA Region II: Bethesda Academy, First Baptist, Hilton Head Christian, Northwood Academy, Palmetto Christian, St. Andrews.

Class AAA: Augusta Christian, Ben Lippen, Cardinal Newman, Hammond, Heathwood Hall, Laurence Manning, Porter-Gaud, Pinewood Prep, Wilson Hall

8-Man

Region II: Beaufort Academy, Cathedral Academy, Charleston Collegiate, Coastal Christian, Faith Christian, James Island Christian, Patrick Henry, Ridge Christian, St. John's Christian.

Here are the schedules:

Class A Region II:

Colleton Prep

8/29: Pee Dee Academy
9/5: @ Williamsburg Academy
9/12: @ Dorchester Academy
9/19: Trinity-Byrnes
9/26: @ St. Andrew's
10/3: Hilton Head Prep
10/10: @ Holly Hill Academy
10/17: Curtis Baptist
10/24: @ Bible Baptist
10/31: Thomas Heyward 

Colleton Prep has a rather difficult schedule, having to go three of their first five on the road, including a couple of long trips to Savannah for St. Andrew's and Williamsburg Academy, but close with two of their final three at home. 

Dorchester Academy

8/22: Robert E. Lee
8/29: @ Calhoun Academy
9/5: @ Holly Hill Academy
9/12: Colleton Prep 
9/19: Pee Dee Academy
9/26: Thomas Heyward
10/10: @ Bible Baptist
10/17: @ First Baptist
10/24: @ Hilton Head Prep
10/31: Curtis Baptist

A difficult late schedule this year for the Raiders. After four of their first six games at home, they play three straight road games after a bye week, finishing up with new team Curtis Baptist.

Hilton Head Prep

8/29: Bethesda Day (GA) (5:00)
9/5: Northwood (5:00)
9/12: @ Bible Baptist
9/19: @ Palmetto Christian
9/26: Curtis Baptist (4:30)
10/3: @ Colleton Prep
10/10: @ Thomas Heyward
10/17: @ St. Andrew's (7:00)
10/24: Dorchester Academy (4:00)
10/31: Hilton Head Christian (3:30)

Hilton Head Prep is one of the only schools in the state without lights, so they play all their games in the late afternoons on Fridays, giving them an advantage at home. They have three straight region road games in a tough break for them.

Class AA Region II:

First Baptist

8/22: Pinewood Prep
8/29: Holly Hill Academy
9/5: @ Christian Academy (Myrtle Beach)
9/12: St. Andrew's
9/19: @ Hilton Head Christian
10/3: @ Bethesda
10/10: @ Williamsburg Academy
10/17: Dorchester Academy 
10/24: Palmetto Christian
10/31: @ Northwood

First Baptist has a decent schedule, drawing Class AAA Pinewood Prep in their opening game, and having two of their final three region games at home, but before the home stretch are three straight road battles.

Hilton Head Christian

8/22: @ Trinity-Byrnes
9/5: Bible Baptist
9/12: @ Northwood
9/19: First Baptist
9/26: @ Bethesda
10/3: @ Palmetto Christian
10/10: Christian Academy
10/17: Thomas Heyward
10/24: St. Andrew's
10/31: @ Hilton Head Prep

A weird schedule for Hilton Head Christian. Four of their five region games will be done by October 3, and they close with four straight games on Hilton Head Island, three on their home field.

Northwood Academy

8/29: @ Pinewood Prep
9/5: @ Hilton Head Prep
9/12: Hilton Head Christian
9/19: @ Thomas Heyward
9/26: Christian Academy
10/3: @ St. Andrew's
10/10: Palmetto Christian
10/17: Bible Baptist
10/24: @ Bethesda
10/31: First Baptist

Northwood Academy will open up the field at Carnes Crossroads with a game against Hilton Head Christian. They get three region games at home to open up the new field.

Palmetto Christian

8/29: @ Porter-Gaud
9/5: @ Lincoln
9/12: Pinewood Prep
9/19: Hilton Head Prep
9/26: @ Bible Baptist
10/3: Hilton Head Christian
10/10: @ Northwood
10/17: Bethesda
10/24: @ First Baptist
10/31: St. Andrew's

Palmetto Christian plays a public school, Lincoln, in their second game of the season, as they get three home games in region. They do have to replace J.T. Waters, their star QB, who had one of the craziest games of the year last year at Porter-Gaud.

Class AAA

Pinewood Prep

8/22: @ First Baptist
8/29: Northwood
9/5: Laurence Manning
9/12: @ Palmetto Christian
9/19: @ Ben Lippen
9/26: Heathwood Hall
10/3: @ Augusta Christian
10/10: @ Hammond
10/17: @ Wilson Hall
10/24: Cardinal Newman
10/31: Porter-Gaud

Pinewood Prep plays a rare 11-game slate for a private school. Five of six games in the middle of the season for them are on the road. From September 5 to October 24 they will have just one home game. Luckily, they get two home games to end the season.

Porter-Gaud

8/29: Palmetto Christian
9/5: Cardinal Newman
9/12: @ Bishop England (TV)
9/19: Hammond
9/26: @ Ben Lippen
10/3: Heathwood Hall
10/10: @ Wilson Hall
10/17: @ Augusta Christian
10/24: Laurence Manning
10/31: @ Pinewood Prep

Porter-Gaud, playing in the largest group of private schools, basically plays the same schools every year. They do start with three of four home games, which will help their young squad.

8-Man (bolded are non-region games)

Andrew Jackson: 

Beaufort Academy

8/29: @ W.W. King
9/5: Faith Christian
9/12: @ Patrick Henry
9/19: Ridge Christian
9/26: @ Cathedral Academy
10/3: Charleston Collegiate
10/10: @ St. John's Christian
10/17: Coastal Christian
10/24: Andrew Jackson
10/31: @ James Island Christian

Beaufort Academy has a favorable schedule, with two of their final three at home, but have three long road trips to Cathedral, St. John's, and James Island.

Cathedral Academy

8/29: Richard Winn
9/5: @ Coastal Christian
9/12: @ St. John's Christian
9/19: @ Carolina Academy 
9/26: Beaufort Academy
10/3: @ Patrick Henry
10/10: Ridge Christian
10/17: James Island Christian
10/24: @ Faith Christian
10/31: Charleston Collegiate

Cathedral Academy has three of their first four games on the road, including a long trip to Lake City. They do get three of their final four games at home, including James Island Christian.

Charleston Collegiate

8/29: Coastal Christian
9/5: Wardlaw
9/12: @ Richard Winn
9/19: @ Patrick Henry
9/26: St. John's Christian
10/3: @ Beaufort Academy
10/10: Faith Christian
10/17: @ Ridge Christian
10/24: James Island Christian
10/31: @ Cathedral Academy

The Sun Devils have a favorable schedule, opening the season with two games at home before they travel to Lake City and Estill. They close with two of their final three on the road.

Coastal Christian

8/22: @ Laurens Academy
8/29: @ Charleston Collegiate
9/5: Cathedral Academy
9/12: Carolina Academy
9/19: St. John's Christian
9/26: @ James Island Christian
10/10: Patrick Henry
10/17: @ Beaufort Academy
10/24: Ridge Christian
10/31: @ Faith Christian

Coastal Christian starts with a long road trip to Laurens, then after a road game at CC, has three home games in a row. After that though, they only have two more home games.

Faith Christian

8/29: Laurens Academy
9/5: @ Beaufort Academy
9/12: Ridge Christian
9/19: @ James Island Christian
9/26: @ Greenwood Christian
10/3: St. John's Christian
10/10: @ Charleston Collegiate
10/17: @ Patrick Henry
10/24: Cathedral Academy
10/31: Coastal Christian

Faith Christian ends the season with two games at home, but has two long road trips among their first five games.

James Island Christian

8/29: @ St. John's Christian
9/5: Patrick Henry
9/12: @ Andrew Jackson
9/19: Faith Christian
9/26: Coastal Christian
10/3: @ Ridge Christian
10/10: Clarendon Hall
10/17: @ Cathedral Academy
10/24: @ Charleston Collegiate
10/31: Beaufort Academy

James Island Christian has three of their first five at home, but closes with three of five on the road.

Patrick Henry

8/22: @ W.W. King
8/29: @ Clarendon Hall
9/5: @ James Island Christian
9/12: Beaufort Academy
9/19: Charleston Collegiate
9/26: @ Ridge Christian
10/3: Cathedral Academy
10/10: @ Coastal Christian
10/17: Faith Christian
10/24: @ St. John's Christian
10/31: Jefferson Davis

With Patrick Henry being out in Estill, this is a long road trip for many of the smaller Lowcountry teams. They have two long road trips to start the year. They will be done with region play early as they play local rival Jefferson Davis to end the year.

Ridge Christian

8/29: @ Jefferson Davis
9/5: W.W. King (6pm)
9/12: @ Faith Christian
9/19: @ Beaufort Academy
9/26: @ Patrick Henry
10/3: James Island Christian (3:30pm)
10/10: @ Cathedral Academy
10/17: Charleston Collegiate (4pm)
10/24: @ Coastal Christian
10/31: St. John's Christian (2pm)

Ridge Christian ends the year with three of five to end the year at home. One of their road trips is just 2.1 miles away, to Faith Christian. All of Ridge Christian's home games will be played during the daytime, as their field does not have lights this year.

St. John's Christian

8/29: James Island Christian
9/5: Greenwood Christian
9/12: Cathedral Academy
9/19: @ Coastal Christian
9/26: @ Charleston Collegiate
10/3: @ Faith Christian
10/10: Beaufort Academy
10/17: @ Wardlaw
10/24: Patrick Henry
10/31: @ Ridge Christian

An odd schedule for the Moncks Corner private school. Three straight home games to start year, followed directly by three on the road. Three of their home games are long road trips for the road team (Greenwood, Beaufort, PH).

Now, I am done with my schedule series for this year. More posts will come as the season gets closer.

Monday, August 11, 2014

Robin Williams dead

Famous actor Robin Williams has died. From @NBCBayArea: Actor Robin Williams has died at age 63. Found dead at home in unincorporated Tiburon, CA, per .

Robin Williams passed away this morning. He has been battling severe depression of late. This is a tragic and sudden loss.

Saturday, August 9, 2014

Tony Stewart runs over competitor in sprint car race

Breaking news in NASCAR. Tony Stewart got into a major accident, possibly running over a driver in a sprint car race tonight at Canandaigua Motorsports Park. He has been known for riding sprint cars at local tracks near NASCAR races. NASCAR is at Watkins Glen this weekend.

Breaking: The Ontario County sheriff will do a press conference at 5pm today (Monday) with Sheriff Phil Povero talking about the Tony Stewart-Kevin Ward incident. The people who have been contacted have knowledge. From Sheriff Povero: Autopsy on Mr. Ward was done today. Cause of death was massive blunt trauma. No timelines set on this. Right now, they continue to try to find relevant information about this investigation.

30m
Just learned that Attorney Jim Voyles will represent Tony Stewart

From @jeff_gluck.


 

Kevin Ward has died. Dead on arrival. Stewart will not race at Watkins Glen on Sunday.

He got into an accident with driver Kevin Ward Jr. Some reports say it was intentional, while other reports say it wasn't. This pic is from @loganmesserly, who was at the track. He has been hauled away from the track. Kevin Ward is a 20 year old driver, who drives the Rider Racing Engines Powered #13 360 Sprint Car. This is Ward's bio from a sprint car website. http://www.sprintsource.com/profile/?rt=driver&r=18403

 ·  2m
Was just told Ontario County Sheriff currently meeting with victims parents. Will talk to media momentarily.

Ward started in the third row in the race. He is from Port Leyden, NY. Apparently there was no sign of a trauma alert, which is a very bad sign.

Very graphic video of accident.




From @danielfarish, talking with MRN officials: Word from the MRN officials are that Tony Stewart intentionally swung his car at Kevin Ward. Oh hell.

Adam Longo, a Phoenix news anchor (@adamlongocbs5) **UPDATE**: One witness tells me they DO NOT believe Tony Stewart hit the driver intentionally, but rather swerved to get out of his way.

UPDATE: Witness: Incident happened coming out of turn 2. Tony Stewart spun another driver. That driver got out of his car. UPDATE2: WITNESS: When the field came around to turn 2 under yellow, driver who was out of his car got hit by Stewart's right rear tire.

UPDATE 3: Witness: Tony Stewart apparently fishtailed his car into the other driver. Afterwards, that driver layed motionless on the track. Another fan reported to me that the driver who was on the track was hit and was knocked back about 25 feet.

Another eyewitness report:




This was a pic of Tony's car:



This pic is from @loganmesserly, who was at the track.

the driver made contact with Stewarts right tire and landed about 25 feet from where he started

Bob Dillner of Fox Sports reports this:

According to a witness on scene at Canadaigua Speedway in NY Tony Stewart & Kevin Ward tangled during a Sprint Car wreck, Ward got out of car & walked toward Tony Stewart's car to confront him. Stewart's car made contact w/Ward. Witness says police secured area, track cancelled rest of racing for the night and everyone was ushered out of the track.

Bob Pockrass of Sporting News:

Rich Willis, who was at the track, said he didn’t see exactly what happened but his sister down in Turn 1 did. He saw Stewart and Kevin Ward get into the wreck.
“People (who could see it better) said the guy got out of his car and was gesturing angrily at Tony Stewart when Tony Stewart came by during the next lap under yellow,” Willis said in a phone interview. “He approached him and evidently when he was driving by the guy standing on the track gesturing at him, he gunned his engine.

 Tyler Graves, a sprint-car racer and friend of Ward's, told Sporting News in a phone interview that he was sitting in the Turn 1 grandstands and saw everything that happened.

"Tony pinched him into the frontstretch wall, a racing thing," Graves said. "The right rear tire went down, he spun on the exit of (Turn) 2. They threw the caution and everything was toned down. Kevin got out of his car. … He was throwing his arms up all over the place at Tony for most of the corner.

"I know Tony could see him. I know how you can see out of these cars. When Tony got close to him, he hit the throttle. When you hit a throttle on a sprint car, the car sets sideways. It set sideways, the right rear tire hit Kevin, Kevin was sucked underneath and was stuck under it for a second or two and then it threw him about 50 yards."

“What happened was the back end kicked out and clipped the guy and the guy flew across the track.”

Right now from Mike Stanton of I Kick a Touchdown Racing (11:34pm): Unconfirmed reports of Tony Stewart in a Sprint Car altercation with Kevin Ward Jr where Stewart ran him over under caution. We will keep you updated through the night as confirmed reports come out. ~Mike

This was a fan at the race:


Another post, from Twitter user @DaleEarnhardSr, who had a friend at the track. Pardon the language.

@IamMufasa on Twitter's account.

, IMO, simply had a racing accident. Ward got out of his car and did not have a helmet on and when to confront Stewart. Period!
Witnessed Tony Stewart accident, what's I'm seeing on Twitter is naturally way out of control and not entirely accurate!

There are a lot of rumors spread about this. I will keep you updated.

 ·  3m
Don't hold me or my employer to any of this information. The number one right now is prayers, I'm a dirt tracker, and we stick together.

Here is the report from Jim Utter of the Charlotte Observer.

The Ontario County (N.Y.) Sheriff's Department is investigating an incident at Canandaigua (N.Y.) Motorsports Park involving NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Tony Stewart which occurred on Saturday evening.

  At approximately 11:30 p.m. ET, a spokesman for the department said it had no comment at this time but said a news release would be prepared and available in "two to three hours."

Posts on the social media sites Facebook and Twitter, including photographs, indicate Stewart was involved in an on-track incident with driver Kevin Ward, which left Ward on the track receiving treatment for what were described as serious injuries.

Canandaigua Motorsports Park is a half-mile dirt track north of Syracuse. In recent weeks, Stewart has returned to dirt track racing after a breaking two bones in his right leg in a wreck at a dirt track in Iowa last summer.

There was no immediate response to a request for comment from Stewart's NASCAR public relations representative.

Read more here: http://thatsracinluckydog.blogspot.comFrom @zeven13: More reports- sheriff cars were surrounding Smoke's trailer. Crime scene tape in place at accident. Life flight for Kevin Ward cancelled.

Unconfirmed rumor from @danielfarish: Buddy of mine in PA knows photogs and media people in NY, all confirming Kevin Ward has passed away. Tony Stewart lit the tires and hit him.

Anonymous commenter on my page: I was at the race in turn one. The guy left his car with out his helmet and ran down the track at him. I highly doubt that Tony Stewart would intentionally run over a local in a small town race.

Tuesday, August 5, 2014

Shelby Rogers stuns Eugenie Bouchard

Lowcountry tennis star Shelby Rogers had the biggest win of her tennis career tonight in Montreal, a second-round victory in the Rogers Cup in Montreal, over Canadian star Eugenie Bouchard, who made the Wimbeldon finals this year. The final was 6-0, 2-6, 6-0. Bouchard was playing in her hometown.



Shelby Rogers has grown as a player over the past few months, highlighted by a finals appearance in Bad Gastein, where she defeated Carla Suarez Navarro, Camila Giorgi and Sara Errani in straight sets before falling to Andrea Petkovic.

Monday, August 4, 2014

Wofford and South Carolina both on ESPN marathon

Tuesday, November 18 will be a big day for college basketball in the state of South Carolina. Wofford and South Carolina will both be playing home games in the ESPN 24-Hour Tip-Off Marathon.

Wofford will host Iona at 7am that morning on ESPN2, while South Carolina will host Baylor at Noon on ESPN. South Carolina was in the marathon last year with a game at Baylor, while Wofford has never been in it. Wofford has participated in three NCAA tournaments in the past five years, earning this national spotlight. I don't think they have had a nationally televised home game before.

College of Charleston was the last SC team to participate in a home game in the marathon, playing an 8am game against Morehead State in 2011.

The entire schedule is here: http://espnmediazone.com/us/press-releases/2014/08/espn-networks-showcase-19-games-seventh-annual-college-hoops-tip-marathon/

Jim Senter new Citadel athletic director

The vacancy at The Citadel has finally been filled in the athletic director's position. The new AD is Jim Senter, who has worked at the University of Colorado for three years. He is 52 years old, and has never worked east of the Mississippi. He graduated from the University of Tulsa in 1985.

Here is a recent picture of him with Medal of Honor Recipient Tom Norris.



From his University of Colorado bio:

Included in his duties is serving as the sports administrator for several programs, including football, overseeing most aspects of the football program, with particular emphasis on human resource needs and coaches contracts.

Senter, 52, officially transitioned into that latter role that also carried an associate AD title on Sept. 1, 2011, moving over from the CU Foundation, where he had been associate athletic director for development for five years after being named to that position in June 2006.

In his previous role, his responsibilities included all fundraising efforts, including the annual fund (student-athlete scholarships), major gifts and coordinating all donation-related activities and staff.  He brought to CU an extensive background in college administration, coaching and fund development.

Senter was also athletic director at Idaho State for a year.

Senter was a football coach through 1997, as he started as a coach at Coffeyville Community College in Kansas before going to Tulsa. He was an assistant coach at Idaho from '85-'97.

Saturday, August 2, 2014

High school television schedule released for 2014

In the Charleston area, televised high school football has become a growing moneymaker over the past few seasons. Beginning in 2010, WMMP (Channel 36) started carrying games on Thursday nights. Generally, in the first couple of seasons of the package, smaller schools were carried, but over the past couple of seasons, larger schools began to participate. Being the only game in town helped to provide buzz for the schools involved.

This year, however, it is a new frontier. Partially due to Thursday night NFL moving to CBS, WMMP will now show games on Friday nights. Last year, the last game of the season between Ashley Ridge and Fort Dorchester was televised on Friday. Now, on ten Fridays a game will be televised for those who are unable to go to a game or for those who want to see their favorite school play.

Here is the schedule:

08/22 Hanahan vs. James Island
08/29 Colleton County vs. Beaufort
09/12 Bishop England vs. Porter Gaud
09/19 Fort Dorchester vs. Goose Creek
09/26 Timberland vs. Berkeley
10/03 Summerville vs. Stratford
10/10 West Ashley vs. Wando
10/17 St Johns vs. Burke
10/31 Ashley Ridge vs. Summerville
11/07 James Island vs. Wando

Wando and James Island will each be featured twice on the package. Darren Goldwater will announce the games with Nate Ross.

This is part of a series of posts getting you ready for the season.