Region play begins this week, and here is a look at what’s coming up in 4A and 5A this Friday.
I’ll start with the Spartanburg Nutrition Game of the Week, Spartanburg at Byrnes. The Vikings lost to Dutch Fork 42-13, while Byrnes was on a bye.
Region 2-5A is wide open. This game has huge playoff implications and both teams would love to get off to a good start in region play. Spartanburg didn’t look great last week, but few teams do against the top ranked Silver Foxes. Rahiem Jeter and the Vikings offense will look to get back on track against a Byrnes defense that has given up a ton of points in non region play.
The Rebels have been able to score plenty of points so far this year, despite several injuries on the offensive side of the ball. Quaterback Gabe Rogers has put up numbers reminiscent of the Bobby Bentley days through the first five games. The question is whether or not Coach Reggie Shaw and his staff have been able to fix the issues on defense during the bye week.
I think we’re going to see a high scoring game on Friday and I expect both quarterbacks to play well. This one could come down to which team can get a defensive stop in the fourth quarter. This game is a toss up, but if I had to pick I’ll go with the home team coming out with a close victory.
The Gaffney Indians will look to remain undefeated as they open region play at Boiling Springs. Gaffney beat Gray Collegiate 38-35, while the Bulldogs fell to Mauldin 58-7 last Friday.
Gaffney pulled out a win over a previously unbeaten Gray Collegiate team last week. It was the first time the Indians had to play from behind this year, and they responded well. Quarterback Grayson Loftis threw for 261 yards and running back Tyler Smith had 129 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the ground, in what was a very balanced attack for Gaffney.
Boilings Springs struggled offensively once again last week, and I don’t expect it to be any different this week against an athletic Gaffney defense. The Indians will roll in this one and move to 1-0 in the region.
Another big game in 5A is Riverside at Dorman. Riverside beat Blue Ridge 37-0, while the Cavaliers won 42-20 over Ridge View.
Dorman looked like they figured out the issues on offense last week, finishing with over 400 yards and 42 points in a road win over a good Ridge View team. Running back Demarius Foster was unstoppable last game, finishing with 269 yards and 5 rushing touchdowns. They will once again look to establish the run game this week against a 6-0 Riverside team.
While this isn’t the same type of Riverside team we are used to seeing, I still think the Cavaliers can get physical along the both lines, and should be able to overpower the Warriors. Dorman is looking for their fifth straigh region title, and while I think the Cavs will drop a game in region play, I don’t think it’s this Friday.
In 4A play Greenville is at Greer. Greenville won over Southside 31-0, while Greer defeated Woodruff 35-19.
Greer has won two straight after last week’s win, and they will try and continue that trend as they take on the region favorite Greenville. Offensively it looks like the Yellow Jackets have fixed some issues from earlier in the year as they have scored 34.5 points in the last two wins. They may need to top 30 points again if they want to keep up with an explosive Red Raiders offense.
I think this game is close for four quarters, but I think the Red Raiders will be a bit too much for Greer. If the Yellow Jackets can win the turnover battle they will have a chance, but in the end I believe Greenville’s offense will move the ball well enough in the second half to put this one away.
