Week One Capsules: Huge inter-classification matchup highlights Greenville area schedule

Class 4A No. 1 Greenville (1-0) at Class 5A No. 7 TL Hanna (1-0)

Series record: TL Hanna leads 6-3, including a 36-29 win last season.

Last week: Greenville defeated Dorman 34-21; Hanna won at Boiling Springs 36-29

Radio/TV/Internet: TL Hanna – WABB 105.1 FM, 1390 AM, spirit1051.com/listen/

Location: Jim Fraser Field at Memorial Stadium, 2600 N Hwy 81, Anderson, SC 29621

Who to watch for Greenville: WR Mazeo Bennett, DL Bruce Knauber, DL Jamarion Jefferies

Who to watch for TL Hanna: RB Vashun Burton, RB KD Patterson

About the Red Raiders: Greenville is coming off an impressive opening chapter of what looks to be three consecutive games against ranked Class 5A teams to open the season. Bennett caught a pair of touchdowns, including the game-sealing score after Dorman had cut the lead to 28-21 in the fourth quarter. While the Red Raiders’ offensive line didn’t allow a sack, their defensive line accounted for four of Greenville’s five sacks – by four different linemen.

About the Yellow Jackets: Burton had 164 yards on 21 carries as Hanna held on for the win last week. Patterson added 117 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns on 11 attempts.

Greer (0-1) at Class 5A No. 9 Hillcrest (1-0)

Series record: Greer leads 18-1. Hillcrest won 62-14 last season for its first official victory in the series. A 13-0 Hillcrest win in 1970 was forfeited later that season.

Last week: Greer fell to Daniel 48-20; Hillcrest won at Laurens 55-9.

Radio/TV/Internet: Greer – WGYT 92.1 FM, yellowjacketsports.net; Hillcrest – facebook.com/HHSRamAthletics (Facebook Live stream).

Location: Chandler Stadium, 3665 S Industrial Dr, Simpsonville, SC 29681

Who to watch for Greer: RB LaDainnian Martin, LB Darius Johnson

Who to watch for Hillcrest: ATH Avery McFadden, QB Kalab Sutton, RB Thomas Stanley

About the Yellow Jackets: Martin was a bright spot in Greer’s loss last week as he had 145 yards on 15 carries for a 9.7 yards per carry average. His third touchdown cut the lead to 28-20 late in the third quarter before Daniel pulled away in the fourth. Outside of Martin’s rushing, the Yellow Jackets had just 67 yards on 34 plays. Johnson had five tackles, including two sacks.

About the Rams: Sutton threw a 75-yard touchdown pass on the opening play of the season and the tone was set for Hillcrest’s big win last week. Sutton finished with 140 yards and three touchdowns on just 5-of-7 passing and ran for 41 yards on six carries and another score. Stanley had 132 yards on 10 carries, including two touchdowns. The Rams’ defense didn’t allow a point as Laurens scored on an interception return and a safety.

Riverside (1-0) at JL Mann (1-0)

Series record: JL Mann leads 21-17, including a 14-7 win last season.

Last week: Riverside defeated Travelers Rest 49-7; JL Mann beat Eastside 49-0

Location: Slaton Field, 158 Ridge Rd, Greenville, SC 29607

Who to watch for Riverside: RB Mikkel Skinner, QB Tyshek Breeze, CB Somad Eaddy

Who to watch for JL Mann: QB Ethan Anderson, WR Jacob Wright, WR Mikel McClellan

About the Warriors: How good was Riverside last week? In his first start at quarterback, Breeze threw six touchdown passes, but wasn’t the school’s male athlete of the week. That honor went to Skinner, who ran for 129 yards and a touchdown and had 85 yards receiving and caught three touchdowns.

About the Patriots: Like his fellow quarterback this week, Anderson threw six touchdown passes last week. All of those came in the first half as Mann took a 49-0 lead into halftime. Anderson completed 15-of-20 passes for 268 yards. Wright had four catches for 96 yards and a touchdown, while McClellan had five receptions for 88 yards, two touchdowns and a 46-yard kickoff return.

Boiling Springs (0-1) at Mauldin (0-0)

Series record: Boiling Springs leads 27-17, but Mauldin has won each of the last three meetings including a 20-7 win last year.

Last week: Boiling Springs lost to Hanna 36-29; Mauldin did not play

Radio/TV/Internet: Boiling Springs – upstateprepcast.net/boiling-springs

Location: Freeman Field, 701 E Butler Rd, Mauldin, SC 29662

Who to watch for Boiling Springs: RB Javen Chhim, WR Kyle Patterson, QB Lincoln Huskey

Who to watch for Mauldin: RB/LB Devan Ortega, DL DeMario Moore

About the Bulldogs: After falling 43-0 at Hanna to open the 2022 season, it was a much better showing for Boiling Springs in this season’s opener. Chhim had 116 yards on 14 carries and a touchdown, while Patterson had five catches for 95 yards and two scores. Huskey completed 11-of-22 passes for 207 yards and three touchdowns, while rushing for 45 yards.

About the Mavericks: After going 2-9 last season, Mauldin has a new head coach in former Airport head coach Andre Cook. Ortega led the Mavericks with 836 yards rushing and three touchdowns in 2022. Moore is a 6-foot-2, 245-pound junior, who’s already been recruited by Ohio State, Auburn, Miami (Fla.), Virginia Tech and others.

Walhalla (0-0) at Woodmont (1-0), 8 p.m.

Series record: Woodmont leads 5-4, including a 53-34 victory last season.

Last week: Walhalla did not play; Woodmont defeated Palmetto 28-13

Radio/TV/Internet: Walhalla – WGOG 107.1 FM, wgog.com/listen-live/

Location: Whitt Memorial Field, 2831 W Georgia Rd, Piedmont, SC 29673

Who to watch for Walhalla: OLB Silas Parrish, DE Jaden Boyd

Who to watch for Woodmont: RB Ezekiel Belcher, DL RJ Flemmings, MLB Ethan Davis

About the Razorbacks: Former Mauldin offensive coordinator Chris Stone is the new head coach at Walhalla. He succeeds Padgett Johnson, who stepped down after a successful seven-year run. After not having a winning season for 21 years, the Razorbacks had winning seasons in five of Johnson’s last six years including a 6-5 mark in 2022. As a sophomore last season, Parrish made 128 tackles. Boyd had 85 tackles, including six sacks.

About the Wildcats: Belcher ran 13 times for 179 yards and a touchdown to help new coach Ty Sutherland win in his debut. Woodmont piled up 262 yards rushing and 179 passing, while limiting Palmetto to 24 yards rushing. Flemmings and Davis each had two sacks to lead the defense.

Travelers Rest (0-1) at Wade Hampton (0-1), 8 p.m.

Series record: Wade Hampton leads 14-13 and has gone 10-3 in the series since 2000. The Generals won 49-28 last season.

Last week: Travelers Rest lost to Riverside 49-7; Wade Hampton fell at Seneca 43-0

Location: Wade Hampton High, 100 Pine Knoll Dr, Greenville, SC 29609

Who to watch for Travelers Rest: WR/DE Drew McKibben, LB Lucas Tankersley

Who to watch for Wade Hampton: CB/WR Jamarion Mckinney, DL/LB Za’Nias Rosemond

Southside (0-0) at Class A No. 2 Christ Church (0-1)

Series record: Southside leads 2-1, but Christ Church won 48-7 last season.

Last week: Southside did not play; Christ Church fell at Gray Collegiate 49-21

Location: Carson Stadium, 245 Cavalier Dr, Greenville, SC 29607

Who to watch for Southside: RB Javontae Searles, DE Christopher Smith, LB Jaylen Hagood

Who to watch for Christ Church: RB Dashun Reeder, WR Luke Baumhofer, LB Acie Hatfield

About the Tigers: In its first season in the rugged Region II-3A, Southside lost four of its final five games in 2022 to finish 4-7 for the second consecutive season. Graduation and players transferring have been a blow to the Tigers’ roster, but the cupboard isn’t bare. Searles led the team in rushing last year with 459 yards and an 8.1 yards per carry average in seven games. Smith had 63 tackles, including a team-high 15 tackles-for-loss, while Hagood made 76 tackles, including 8.5 tackles-for-loss.

About the Cavaliers: Reeder looked like the all-world running back that he is last week, but it was not enough as Christ Church lost a regular season game to an in-state school for just the second time since the 2020 season. Reeder ran 24 times for 184 yards and two touchdowns. Hatfield led the Cavaliers’ defense with a team-high seven tackles and an interception. 

Eastside (0-1) at Pendleton (1-0), 8 p.m.

Series record: In the teams’ first ever meeting, Pendleton won 34-8 in Taylors last season.

Last week: Eastside lost to JL Mann 49-0; Pendleton defeated Dixie 48-12

Location: Cunningham Stadium, 7324 SC-187, Anderson, SC 29625

Who to watch for Eastside: RB Kalvin Banks, FS/LB Andrew Moree

Who to watch for Pendleton: QB Luke Gray, WR Abijah Webb, WR Kory Jones

About the Eagles: Things got away from Eastside quickly last week as the Eagles fell behind 49-0 at the half. Banks, who averaged 159.5 rushing yards per game last season, was held to 39 yards on 17 carries. Eastside had just 74 yards of total offense (60 rushing, 14 passing) on 42 plays. Moree had a team-high five tackles, including two tackles-for-loss.

About the Bulldogs: Gray, who passed for 2,198 yards with 23 touchdowns and six interceptions in 2022, was nearly perfect last Friday. The senior completed 13-of-14 passes for 245 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. Abijah Webb, who caught 54 passes for 932 yards and 10 touchdowns as a sophomore last season, had 90 yards on four catches and two scores Friday. Jones had five receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns.

 

Liberty (1-0) at Blue Ridge (0-1), 8 p.m.

Series record: Liberty leads 19-13, but Blue Ridge won 20-7 last year.

Last week: Liberty defeated Carolina 28-20; Blue Ridge fell at Chesnee 41-30

Radio/TV/Internet: Blue Ridge – upstateprepcast.net/blue-ridge

Location: Howard Stadium, 2151 Fews Chapel Rd, Greer, SC 29651

Who to watch for Liberty: RB J.J. Hernandez, RB Austin Smith

Who to watch for Blue Ridge: RB K.B. Henderson, WR Asheton Stokes, DE Eli Smith

About the Red Devils: Liberty fell behind 20-7 in the second quarter last Friday before rallying for the eight-point win. Smith led the way with 175 yards rushing and a pair of second-half touchdowns that capped the comeback.

About the Tigers: Blue Ridge fell behind 27-0 early in the second quarter last week and while the Tigers never quit, they couldn’t recover from the big early deficit. Henderson ran 20 times for 134 yards and three touchdowns, while Stokes caught two passes for 121 yards. Smith had a team-high nine tackles.

West-Oak (0-1) at Carolina (0-1)

Series record: Carolina leads 10-2, including a 22-6 win in Westminster last year.

Last week: West-Oak lost to Fountain Inn 28-0; Carolina fell at Liberty 28-20

Location: Farnham Field, 2725 Anderson Rd, Greenville, SC 29611

Who to watch for West-Oak: RB/LB Clayton Baxter, QB Lane Allen, RB Landon Stephens

Who to watch for Carolina: RB Kimoray Holland, QB JaSean Bowens, CB Josiah Fleming

About the Trojans: Bowens’ pair of touchdown passes to D’Marcus Riley and a 16-yard touchdown run by Holland staked Carolina to a 20-7 second quarter lead last week, but the Trojans were outscored 21-0 the rest of the way. Holland finished with 125 yards on 19 carries, while Bowens completed 15-of-19 passes for 130 yards and had one interception. Fleming, a sophomore, had a team-high 12 tackles.

Fountain Inn (1-0) at Woodruff (0-1)

Series Record: Woodruff won the only previous meeting between the teams 31-0 last season.

Last week: Fountain Inn beat West-Oak 28-0; Woodruff lost to Chapman 57-34

Radio/TV/Internet: Woodruff Wolverine Sports Network (meridix.com)

Location: W.L. Varner Stadium, 710 Cross Anchor Hwy., Woodruff

Who to watch for Fountain Inn: QB Sam Holliday put Fountain Inn on his back last week. He accounted for nearly 250 yards of offense and all four TDs for the Fury, tossing two and running for two more. He also scored a pair of two-point conversions in the win.

Who to watch for Woodruff: QB TJ Morris had an eye-opening varsity debut last week. The junior threw for 268 yards and three TDs for the Wolverines.

About the Fury: Fountain Inn waited an entire season for the program’s first victory, but it didn’t come in dramatic fashion. Instead, the Fury dismantled West-Oak, winning 28-0 and creating some momentum for their second season.

About the Wolverines: Woodruff suffered a loss in the first game under new coach Brett Sloan, but there were plenty of positives. Morris played well at QB, Tre Rodgers provided some punch on the ground, and Kory Scott did Kory Scott things, with more than 130 yards receiving and two touchdowns. The Wolverines are young, but there’s a bunch of promise there.

Berea (0-0) at Landrum (0-0)

Series Record: The all-time series is tied 2-2.

Last Meeting: Landrum won 34-3 last season.

Last Week: Neither team played a Week Zero contest.

Radio/TV/Internet: upstateprep-cast.net

Location: Cardinal Stadium, 18818 Asheville Hwy., Campobello

Who to watch for Berea: Amazay Robinson is a dynamic dual-threat QB for the Bulldogs. He’ll be the key to their offensive success.

Who to watch for Landrum: Colton Link quietly put together one of the best seasons in the area last year, rushing for 1,267 yards, 18 touchdowns, and a 9-yard-per-carry average.

About the Bulldogs: Berea is in its first season under new head coach Drew Chisholm, who has served as the school’s AD since 2020, and was previously head football coach at Blacksburg. The Bulldogs didn’t have much success last season, but have a strong core of returning players to build around.

About the Cardinals: The Cardinals are switching to a spread offense behind new head coach Brent Bridges this season. Most of their success came on the ground last season, with Link leading the way and Braden Mashtare adding more than 800 yards and nine scores. No matter the offense, those two are playmakers.

Class 1A No. 4 St. Joseph’s (1-0) at Blacksburg (1-0)

Series Record: St. Joseph’s leads the all-time series 5-1, including a 35-7 win last year.

Last Week: Blacksburg beat Buford 42-15; St. Joseph’s beat Fox Creek 42-0.

Location: T.A. Campbell Stadium, 201 W. Ramseur Dr., Blacksburg

Who to watch for St. Joseph’s: Brayden Johnson ran for 164 yards and three touchdowns for the Knights, scoring on runs of 33, 46 and 18 yards.

Who to watch for Blacksburg: WR Ziyon Harris had a huge night in Week Zero, catching three touchdown passes for Blacksburg.

About the Knights: St. Joseph’s football is heavy on the fundamentals, particularly running the ball and stopping the run. Last week, the Knights ground out 349 yards and six touchdowns on the ground, while Johnny Jaraczewski and Joe Patterson led a defensive effort that included 11 tackles for loss and the team’s first shutout since Week 4 last season.

About the Wildcats: Things couldn’t have started much better for the Wildcats in their first game under Josh Batchler with the interim tag removed. Blacksburg picked up a win over Buford with a complete performance, keyed in part by Harris and by RB/LB Zaydron Burris, who led the team in rushing and contributed a 40-yard fumble return for a TD.