Week 5 Previews: Greenville County

REGION I-5A

JL Mann (1-3, 1-0) at Greenville (3-1, 1-0)

The 57th edition of this rivalry will be a historic one Friday at Sirrine Stadium. JL Mann will become Greenville’s most prolific opponent in program history, surpassing the 56 times the Red Raiders faced Parker over the years. The Patriots snapped Greenville’s nine-game winning streak in the series last season with a 55-12 win, but Coach Scoot Watson is now on the opposite sideline.

After being shut out in Week 0, Watson’s Red Raiders haven’t lost. Greenville outgained Woodmont 463-108 in a 28-18 win last Friday. Sophomore quarterback Kiishawn Farrow threw for 181 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 124 yards and a score. Receiver Jadyn Rice caught four passes for 61 yards and ran six times for 73 yards, while Deandre Dogan rushed for 90 yards also for the Red Raiders. Franklin Whitley had two sacks and Jaqwon Haygood had two interceptions to lead Greenville’s defense.

Bryce Smiley recorded his first head coaching win last Friday when JL Mann opened the home portion of its schedule with a thrilling 14-13 victory over Easley. The Patriots trailed 7-6 with less than a minute left in the third quarter when Gage Watkins threw a six-yard touchdown pass to AJ Bush. Buddy Griffin’s two-point conversion run gave Mann a 14-7 lead. The Patriots held on when the Green Wave missed a two-point conversion with two seconds left in the game. Shaun Carvalho had nine tackles to lead Mann’s defensive effort against an Easley team that was averaging 37.3 points per game.

Hillcrest (3-1, 1-0) at No. 8 Greenwood (3-1, 0-1)

Hillcrest is coming off a 29-7 win over rival Mauldin for the Golden Strip Derby last Friday. The Rams led 13-7 after three quarters before pulling away in the fourth. Jackson Free threw for 194 yards and a touchdown and rushed for another score. Ny Allen rushed for 83 yards for Hillcrest, while Trey Booker had 70 yards on just five carries, including a three-yard touchdown.

Greenwood suffered its first loss last Friday as the Eagles saw a 21-7 lead disappear in a 22-21 loss to TL Hanna.

Mauldin (2-2, 0-1) at TL Hanna (3-1, 1-0)

Mauldin will try to bounce back from a 29-7 loss to rival Hillcrest last week. Mavericks quarterback Reddick Langston had 93 yards passing and a team-high 96 yards rushing in the loss. Taurus Thomason added 66 yards rushing and 71 receiving for Mauldin. Langston’s 66-yard pass to Thomason accounted for Mauldin’s lone touchdown.

Hanna rallied from a 21-7 second quarter deficit to win at Greenwood, 22-21, last Friday. Jimmarion Boston made his lone carry of the night count as it went for a 25-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to give the Yellow Jackets the lead.

Easley (2-2, 0-1) at Woodmont (1-3, 0-1)

Woodmont will try to bounce back from a hard-fought loss to Greenville last week. The Wildcats were outgained 463-108 in total offense, but only lost 28-18. JaCobie Robinson’s 95-yard kickoff return set up one of Devonte Taylor’s two touchdowns for Woodmont in the loss. Taylor also caught a two-point conversion pass from Harper Doyle to cut the lead to 10 early in the fourth quarter. The Wildcats are led up front by lineman Adrian Estrich, who this week was selected to play in the North-South Touchstone Energy Bowl.

Easley’s coming off a heartbreaking 14-13 loss to JL Mann in which the Green Wave failed to convert a two-point try with two seconds left. Easley junior quarterback Josiah Coleman had 205 yards passing and 55 rushing in the loss.

REGION II-5A

Eastside (3-1, 0-1) at Boiling Springs (2-2, 0-1)

Eastside will try to get back on track after a hard-fought 48-34 loss to Spartanburg to open region play last week. The Eagles took a 21-17 lead into halftime before the Vikings outscored Eastside 21-0 in the third quarter to take command. Lucas Tankersley had a huge night despite the loss. He had 229 yards on 22 carries with three touchdowns on offense with a team-high 13 tackles on defense. Quarterback Peyton Schrader has 107 yards passing and 71 rushing with a pair of rushing touchdowns. Cayden Workman caught five passes for 78 yards and had 11 tackles defensively also for Eastside.

Boiling Springs is coming off a 34-7 loss to Gaffney last week. The Bulldogs were held to less than 200 yards of offense and suffered four interceptions. Imri Logan’s 17-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter helped Boiling Springs avoid the shutout. Dennis Glenn led the Bulldogs’ defense with 10 tackles, including two tackles-for-loss.

Riverside (1-3, 0-1) at Wade Hampton (0-4, 0-1)

After competitive losses each of the first three weeks of the season, Wade Hampton had a tough night in Duncan last Friday as it fell to Byrnes, 45-3. It marked the 18th consecutive loss for the Generals.

Riverside suffered its third straight loss last Friday in a 31-3 setback at Dorman. It’s the second time this season the Warriors were held without a touchdown as they were limited to just 98 yards of total offense, including 22 rushing. In Riverside’s other two games, it’s scored a combined 75 points.

REGION II-4A

Pickens (1-4, 0-1) at Berea (1-3, 0-1)

Berea will try to rebound from a 56-0 loss at Greer in the region opener last Friday. The Bulldogs were held to just 42 yards of total offense and didn’t attempt a pass in the loss. The last time these teams met in Greenville, Berea pulled out a thrilling 28-25 win in 2023. The Blue Flame recorded a 52-0 win in last year’s matchup at Pickens.

Pickens is going for its first region win after losing a shootout with Blue Ridge, 50-42, last Friday. Junior quarterback Brooks Dow had 326 yards passing, 126 yards rushing and accounted for all five offensive touchdowns for the Blue Flame.

Greer (1-4, 1-0) at Travelers Rest (2-2, 0-1)

After a tough non-region schedule, Greer will try to make it 2-0 in region play in a series it leads 22-3. The Yellow Jackets have won 19 of their last 20 meetings with Travelers Rest with the lone loss coming in 2019. Greer opened region play last Friday with a 56-0 win over Berea. Calvin McCoy ran 16 times for 223 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Yellow Jackets, who outgained the Bulldogs 548-42 in total offense. Lewis Bussey led Greer’s defensive effort with 12 tackles, including 4.5 tackles-for-loss and two sacks.

The Devildogs are coming off a 42-10 loss at a loaded Seneca team.

Other games

Landrum (3-2) at Blue Ridge (3-1)

Blue Ridge will try to start a season 4-1 for the first time since 2014 as it wraps up non-region play Friday. The Tigers are coming off a wild 50-42 win over Pickens. Quarterback Gavin Forrester, who was named to the North roster for the Touchstone Energy Bowl this week, rushed 12 times for 159 yards and three touchdowns and completed 11-of-15 passes for 103 yards with no interceptions in the victory. Jakorey Dodd added 117 yards and a touchdown on just nine carries for Blue Ridge.

Landrum will try to rebound from a stunning 36-16 loss at West-Oak last Friday. It marked West-Oak’s first win over a SCHSL program since the Warriors defeated Calhoun Falls on Sept. 22, 2023. The Cardinals trailed 23-0 after three quarters, which proved to be too big of a hole to climb out of in the fourth. When Landrum and Blue Ridge last met in 2023, the Cardinals rolled to a 74-34 win. 

Hampton County (3-2) at Christ Church (3-1)

After losing its opener against a powerhouse Hammond program, Christ Church will be going for its fourth consecutive win. In last Friday’s 48-20 victory over Chapman, Michael Martin rushed for 126 yards and four touchdowns. Quarterback Judd Windham completed 9-of-12 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran six times for 57 yards and caught a 52-yard touchdown pass from standout receiver Jude Hall. Hall and Anthony Atkins, who made the North all-star roster for the Touchstone Energy Bowl this week, caught Windham’s scoring throws. Hayes Lyman caught five passes for 98 yards also for the Cavaliers.

Hampton County makes the long trip from the Lowcountry coming off a 45-21 loss to Hilton Head Island last week.

Carolina (2-2) at Pendleton (1-3)

Carolina hits the road going for its first 3-2 start to a season since Mark Hodge’s final season as head coach there in 2011. A win would also give the Trojans their first season with at least three wins since 2013. Carolina’s coming off a 6-0 victory over rival Southside last Friday. Cord’e Davis’ six-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter was the lone score of the game. Kyleat Belcher followed that score with his third interception this season to seal the win for the Trojans.

Pendleton’s coming off a 35-7 loss to Powdersville last Friday.

Carolina Forest (3-1) at Southside Christian (1-3)

This will mark the first time this season that Southside Christian hasn’t faced a ranked opponent and the Sabres will look to build off their first victory. Last Friday, Southside Christian made a long trek to Saluda and left with a 28-0 win. DJ Lee ran 32 times for 203 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Sabres’ offense and had an interception and three pass breakups on defense. Quarterback Max Breit had 12 carries for 85 yards and the Sabres’ other two touchdowns. Breit also completed 6-of-10 passes for 105 yards with no interceptions. 

Carolina Forest is coming off a 40-27 win over Ashley Ridge. The Panthers only loss this season came at Class 5A No. 1-ranked Irmo, 51-21.