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The Class 2A has three major players that I think will be scrapping in the playoffs this year, with all three having a good chance at making it to the 2A title game.
Fairfield Central has to be considred a favorite with the way they stormed out of the gates last week against Carvers Bay. They have a freshman phenom at quarterback who is big, strong, fast and slings the ball out of his hand and makes it look like it was fired from a cannon. They have three very impressive wide receivers, including sophomore Ty Grier, senior Jai Boyd and two way starter Donovan Watkins. This team is explosive on offense and will be tough to handle.
Gray Collegiate saw the wheel fall off in a weather beaten game last week against sister school Oceanside Collegiate. The War Eagles are loaded this season with talent, including sophomore runnin gack BJ Montgomery, but their is a void there from the graduation of the state’s best player, KZ Adams. They have solid talent at quarterback in junior Riley Staton and I believe they will lick their wounds and recover from last week’s nightmare.
Saluda is in a reload mode, but they have excellent quarterbak play, a lethal wide receiver and one of the Midlands’ best running backs in Montravious Baker. This team can cause problems in match ups for a lot of 2A schools and I think they are poised for another run this year, if they can mature quickly on defense.
Andrew Jackson gets under way this week and while I reserve opinion until after we see them in action, I like what this team brings to the table. They are strong on the offensive front, they have a very good, slashing running back in Trey Thompson and they have one of the best linebackers in the Midlands, Fuller Sims, anchoring their defense.
The Newberry Bulldogs lost by two scores to Union County this past week and the verdict is still out on them. They have not looked over powering in preseason scrimmage nor jamboree play, and certainly didn’t look like a contender last week. They take on a Clinton team that is probably more their level of competition this week, so we should get a good look at them.
Batesburg-Leesville has not looked very strong any of the times I’ve seen them in preseason. They are young and not very productive on offense. That said, they have some good athletes on this roster and one them, Patrick Swygert, could be the most under rated athlete in the Midlands. He’s a great tight end prospect, very strong at defensive end, and athletic enough to be an impact player in both of those positions. I think this team is headed towards a fourth spot in their region.
The Pelion Panthers got a solid win this past week against a bad Bethune Bowman team but I don’t think I’d go out and reserve seats for the playoffs yet. I’ve seen them in action once and just don’t see how they won’t struggle this season. They have a solid athlete at quarterback in Luke New but the type of players they need to be a contender are just not there.
Mid Carolina is very much like Pelion in terms of players. They will struggle this season but they do have a couple of impressive guys that will turn your head if you happen to see them play. Michael Lindler is a ferocious linebacker and tight end, and even sometimes at defensive end. He is one of the top unheralded players in the Midlands and is fun to watch.
Keenan has some players and their quarterback, Hernandez Oneal is one of the more productive signal callers in the Midlands. They return 14 starters to their line up from last season but they won just one game in region play last year and while I think they will improve on that number, they will still be a fifth placer finisher at best in this tough region.
Columbia, Eau Claire and North Central are all on the same boat, which is headed for a dogfight for last in their regions. Columbia may be the best of the three and have solid play at running back to get them through the few winnable games they have this season. Eau Claire will struggle this year, despite having some good athletes at key spots. North Central was dealt a bad hand this season with their head coach leaving a week before football practice was to begin. I don’t think they win more than one game in region play.
THE IMPACT PLAYERS
DB Donovan Watkins, Fairfield Central
QB Cam McMillon, Fairfield Central
QB Riley Staton, Gray Collegiate
RB BJ Montgomery, Gray Collegiate
RB Montravious Baker, Saluda
RB Trey Thompson, Andrew Jackson
LB Fuller Sims, Andrew Jackson
WR/DB Shaquille Good, Newberry
TE Michael Lindler, Mid Carolina
TE/DE Patrick Swygert, Batesburg-Leesville
QB Luke New, Pelion
QB Hernandez Oneal, Keenan
QB Jamel McDaniel, Columbia
WR/DB Christian Anderson, Eau Claire
QB Landan Anderson, North Central
