Byrnes @ Greer
The Byrnes Rebels come out of there early season bye week at 0-2 on the season, but ready to take on the nearby Greer Yellow Jackets, who are also winless.
Byrnes last took the field at Irmo on August 30th, where the Rebels battled late but dropped a close decision by a final score of 35-27. Down 35-13 in the fourth quarter, Byrnes fought back to get within one score but couldn’t get the ball back late to complete the comeback. This was a staple game for QB Cane Rogers, who started at the position for the Rebels and went 24-37 passing for 289 yards and four touchdowns, with three of them coming in the second half of Byrnes comeback. Expect Rogers to get a second-straight start this week, and be flanked by weapons in the passing game like RB Ty’lik Dawkins (8 receptions, 106 receiving yards, 1 touchdown against Irmo), WR Jackson Buckley (5 recaptions, 62 yards, 1 touchdown), and Channin Harris (5 receptions, 75 yards).
Greer dropped to 0-3 after last week’s loss at home against Hillcrest, but the game was much more competitive for the Yellow Jackets than their first two games. Though Greer never led, it was within a touchdown or tied with the Rams for the entire first three quarters, which is an improvement from the two lopsided losses from the first two weeks. RB Nick Holmes had his break-out game, carrying the ball 15 times for 128 yards and two scores with an electric 90 yard touchdown in the first quarter.
Both teams are looking to get on the right track headed into region play with its first win. Expect the ball to be flying around the yard and a lot of points.
Freedom (NC) @ Gaffney
The Gaffney Indians played its home opener two weeks later than anticipated with a matchup against the Greenville Red Raiders, and rolled to a 54-14 throttling and a 2-0 start.
The win over Greenville was comprehensive, with Gaffney out gaining Greenville 563 to 140 in total yards, 229 to 3 in rushing, and 334 to 145 in passing. The Indians had seven different scorers for their eight touchdowns, gaining over eight yards per play. QB Jayvon Gillmore picked apart Greenville through the air, finishing 24-27 with 334 yards and four touchdowns. WR Jamarcus Smith had another monster stat night, hauling in 9 balls for 118 yards and a touchdown. The Indians defense brought in two interceptions as well.
The opponent this week is the Freedom Patriots from Morganton, NC, a late add to the Gaffney schedule after Crest (NC) pulled out of a scheduled season-opener in the preseason. Freedom is coming in to the game off of back to back wins, holding its opponents to just seven points each. The Patriots went 3-7 in 2023.
