Dutch Fork 24 Spartanburg 0
These two teams have a history of playing one another lately. Mark Hodge likes to do it because the old adage is true. “To be the man, you gotta beat the man.” The Silver Foxes have been ranked #1 in the 5A polls all season long and that has not been without good reason.
They are “the Man”, and the road to the state championship game runs through their corner of Irmo.
Earlier this season, the Vikings played host to Dutch Fork, falling 24-7. The rematch on Friday night down in Irmo did not go any better. Spartanburg was shut out, surrendering 24 points yet again. But, that is not an indictment on the Vikings as much as it is a point proven by Tom Knotts and his squad. Again – they’re the best.
Spartan High netted just 161 yards of total offense on 42 plays run while the defense, good as they have been all season long, surrendered what may be a season-worst 452 yards – 269 of which came in the passing game. Spartanburg Quarterback Trey Burke finished the game just under 50% passing (7 for 15) with 88 yards and an interception. On the flipside, Dutch Fork’s Ethan Offing was 15-22 with a pair of passing touchdowns.
Justin Rice was the Vikings’ leading receiver with 3 catches for just 38 yards while running back Trenton Lynch was held to 57 yards on 10 carries. Spartanburg finishes the 2024 season with an overall record of 9-3 and 5A division I upperstate runner-up.
Northwestern 58 Gaffney 40
The Gaffney Indians’ offense has been steadily gaining confidence and getting better ever since the return of star running back Jaiden McDowell nearly a month ago. They would need their offense to have its best game of the season in order to keep pace with the explosiveness of the team that has easily been the best in the upstate on the 5A division 2 level all season long.
Neither offense could crack the scoreboard until the 4:45 mark of the 1st quarter when the Trojans connected on an 18 yard fieldgoal. The Indians answered almost perfectly, going right down the field and scoring on a 10 yard Jamarcus Smith touchdown run, however botching the snap on the PAT to make for just a three point advantage. As it turns out, it would not matter if they were chasing that 1 point in the end or not.
Northwestern tied it with another three-pointer on their ensuing series, and Gaffney once again answered perfectly with a touchdown, only to have the PAT blocked. Eventually, Trojan QB Finley Polk found his stride and threw a 64 yard TD pass to give Northwestern the lead, but it was short-lived as once again Jamarcus Smith found paydirt from 2 yards out. The 2 point try was no good, leaving the Indians chasing 4 points as the Trojans went back down the field and reclaimed the lead, complemented by a gutsy gamble.
Up 20-18, they kicked an onside kick and recovered it, setting the stage for the Trojans to up the ante to 27-18 heading to the half. Northwestern added on with a TD out of the gate in the 3rd frame, making their lead 34-18.
Gaffney’s offense began to chip away, striking back with a 50 yard TD pass from Jayvon Gilmore to Jaiden McDowell. After a NW fieldgoal, Jamarcus Smith added rushing score number 3 of the night from a yard out to cut the lead to just 5, but it was all for naught as the Trojans scored 21 unanswered to make it 58-32. Gaffney mustered a late score, but they fell, ending the illustrious career of Dan Jones, who achieved 2 state titles as the Indians’ head coach and was part of 5 more as an assistant. He posted a 140-53 record in his tenure.
Gaffney finished their 2024 season 10-2.
Belton-Honea Path 30 Mountain View Prep 22
This matchup was one that was much-anticipated throughout the course of these playoffs. Early on, the story of the game was BHP’s turnovers. Star running back Marquise Henderson was responsible for 2 costly fumbles, leading to 10 points for the Stars. On the opposite side, MVP’s offense, behind Jaylen McGill, Kaevon Washington, and KD Hainsworth, was able to move the ball well, taking a 16-7 lead to the half.
The 2nd half had 3 different key storylines. With MVP having the chance to put the game away after forcing a three and out on the Bears’ opening series of the 3rd quarter, the ensuing punt was muffed, giving BHP the ball inside the Stars’ 30. They only ended up getting a fieldgoal out of it, but the 6 point deficit made for a brand new ballgame.
From there, the story became the turnover bug switching hands. MVP QB Bryson Drummond threw a couple of interceptions, both on deep balls. The first was into double coverage and short of his intended target. The other was on an overthrow. Both flipped the game on its head.
The first pick resulted in a long drive where the Stars were flagged for Pass Interference twice and gave up a big 4th down conversion. Eventually, on third and long, Marquise Henderson finally made his presence known with a wide open 30 yard TD catch and run along the far sideline. The very next play after the 2nd pick, he took off for an 82-yard TD rush up the gut to go up 8 points late. But the game was far from over as the Stars’ Jacobie Smith returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown. They elected to go for 2, but Drummond’s pass fell right through the arms of Kaevon Washington, forcing Grey Ramsey’s squad to have to try for an onside kick they would fail to recover as it was booted out of bounds.
The Stars managed to force a three and out, but got the ball back with just 4 ticks left on the clock, forcing a decision. Hail Mary with a QB that has struggled with deep balls or a hook and ladder? They opted for the.. Well… latter. Ended up tossing backwards and hitting the ground for a fumble with nobody around but white jerseys to recover and the Bears put the exclamation point on with a fumble recovery TD as time expired.
Tip the cap to MVP and Grey Ramsey. Their first season as a program and his first as a head coach, they went toe-to-toe with the 3A upperstate favorite and did not lose a game until they were a win shy of going to state. Although they had the lead and let it slip away in the 4th quarter, no doubt with the core returning for Mountain View next year, no doubt they will be back and probably even better in 2025.
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