Week 0 Recap: Greenville County Standouts

*Photo courtesy of St. Joseph’s Catholic School

Out of the 18 Greenville County football programs in the South Carolina High School League, 14 opened their season in Week 0 last Friday. Here’s a look at some standout performances:

Darnell McLeod, J.L. Mann

In a battle of teams coming off historic winning seasons, McLeod was nearly perfect as J.L. Mann dominated Midland Valley 56-0. The Patriots won 11 games last season, while the Mustangs won 12, but it was evident early on who was winning Friday as Mann jumped out to a 35-0 halftime lead.

McLeod had 188 yards on 15-of-16 passing with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Keyshun Henderson had three catches for 76 yards and a touchdown, while LaDainnian Martin rushed 10 times for 71 yards and a touchdown, and also caught two passes for 37 yards.

Meanwhile, the Patriots’ defense not only posted a shutout, it also found the end zone a couple of times. Joshua Lee had a pair of interceptions including a 55-yard pick six, while 6-foot-1, 292-pound noseguard Mar’Quavis Thomas snatched a loose ball out of mid-air, broke one tackle on his side of the 50 and took off on a 57-yard fumble return for a touchdown. Wyatt Ward led Mann’s defense with 10 tackles and caused that fumble.

William Gillespie, St. Joseph’s

With St. Joseph’s trailing Cardinal Newman 17-7 and kicking off to start the second half, the Knights needed a spark. Gillespie (pictured) provided one and commenced the “William Gillespie Show” for the rest of the half.

Gillespie opened the half with an onside kick, which he also recovered. St. Joseph’s scored on that drive and after Cardinal Newman fumbled the ball back to the Knights on its first play from scrimmage, Gillespie ran for a seven-yard touchdown on the next play. Less than three minutes into the second half, St. Joseph’s turned a 10-point deficit into a four-point lead it never relinquished.

Gillespie added another touchdown on the Knights’ next possession and then sealed their 40-30 win with a fourth quarter scoring run. Gillespie finished with 190 yards rushing and four touchdowns on 24 carries, and also had nine tackles on defense.

Gideon Merhib, Riverside

Merhib didn’t look like a sophomore taking his first varsity snaps in the opening half of the season Friday. Merhib had 168 yards passing, 83 yards rushing and three touchdowns in the first half to give Riverside a 27-14 lead at Mauldin and the Warriors went on to a 39-20 win.

Merhib finished with 294 yards of total offense (217 passing, 77 rushing) and five touchdowns (four passing) for the game. His top target Friday was Jaiden “Speedy” Taylor, who had 138 yards on four receptions highlighted by an 81-yard bomb in the second quarter. Taylor also set up Riverside’s opening score with a 35-yard jet sweep run on his only carry.

Sha’Rod Williams had a sack and a fumble recovery after halftime as Riverside’s defense shut out the Mavericks in the second half.

Jaquavious Dodd, Eastside

Eastside opened the season by holding Southside to 73 yards of total offense in a 41-0 win. Leading the shutout was Dodd, the Eagles’ 6-foot-6 defensive end who’s committed to South Carolina. Dodd had seven tackles, four tackles-for-loss, two sacks, four hurries, three pass deflections, two caused fumbles and a fumble recovery.

Eastside’s offense piled up 530 total yards, including 452 rushing. Eli Foster and Maldravious Brown rushed for 122 yards apiece, while Lucas Tankersley had 91 yards on two carries.

Weston Willis, Hillcrest

Willis was the backup to Mr. Football finalist Avery McFadden last season. On Friday, he made sure those receiving numbers didn’t have a drop off. Willis caught five passes for 139 yards and scored both touchdowns in Hillcrest’s 16-0 win at Laurens.

The Rams limited the Raiders to 136 yards of total offense and forced four turnovers in recording the shutout.

Bojack Johnson, Fountain Inn

Johnson started and capped a 42-8 scoring run for Fountain Inn as the Fury rallied from a 20-0 deficit to defeat Liberty, 42-34. Johnson’s five-yard touchdown got Fountain Inn on the scoreboard late in the second quarter. His four-yard touchdown with 3:44 remaining extended the Fury’s lead to 42-28. He finished with 142 yards on 21 carries.

In between Johnson’s scores, quarterback Sam Holliday accounted for Fountain Inn’s other four touchdowns. Holliday ran for two scores in the third quarter and threw two to Zach Madden in the fourth quarter, the second of which gave the Fury their first lead. Holliday finished with more than 200 yards of total offense.

Banks Bouton, Greenville

Making his first varsity start, Bouton nearly rallied Greenville to a miraculous comeback at Dorman before the Red Raiders fell, 42-35. Greenville trailed 34-7 midway through the third quarter when Bouton hit Dre’Shaun Smith for a nine-yard touchdown. That started a string of four consecutive touchdown drives for the Red Raiders, with each of the next three ending on runs by Bouton.

His four-yard touchdown with 6:04 left in the game helped Greenville take its first lead at 35-34. Dorman scored with 55 seconds left to go up 42-35 before the Red Raiders drove 55 yards to the Cavaliers’ 25-yard line. With 18 seconds left, Bouton’s lone interception sealed Dorman’s win.

Bouton finished with 209 yards on 16-of-28 passing and 108 yards rushing on 21 carries.

Jude Hall, Christ Church

Hall had five catches for 140 yards and two touchdowns, one of which went for 78 yards, but Christ Church fell at SCISA powerhouse Hammond 56-28. Tucker Hendrix threw for 346 yards on 18-of-36 passing with three touchdowns and two interceptions for the Cavaliers.

Looking ahead

The big matchup of Week 1 looks to be at Mann’s Slaton Field, where the Class 5A sixth-ranked Patriots host 5A No. 2 Gaffney. It will be the season opener for the Indians, who have lost just three times in Greenville County since 1976.

In Class 3A, No. 10-ranked Christ Church hosts Asheville School, which has won each of the last two NCISAA Division II state championships.