Week 0

The long wait for the high school football is over! Week 0 kicks off on Friday night and the schedule is packed with some exciting matchups all over the area. But let’s take a closer look for the matchups in the 2A/3A local listening area.

Daniel @ Chapman 

The Chapman Panthers just didn’t have their best season a year ago due to injuries and young inexperience players having to play bigger roles probably before they were ready to. The Panthers finished the season at just 3-8 and lost in the first round of the playoffs to Palmetto.

Right off the bat the Panthers find themselves in a tough matchup to begin their season as Daniel. The lions went 6-0 inside their region and were 11-2 overall. Their season came to an end when they loss in the upper state title game against South Pointe.  The lions have been a powerhouse at the 3A level, but they did have their fair share of some drama in their offseason, will that have any impact on them, we shall see.

The Panthers did show improvement as the season went on and they will look to build on that, the bright side of having such a young team that means they will have a ton of players returning so that experience will always help. I do think this is a tough game for Panthers but a game that will help them in long run, I look for the Lions to get the win.

Pendleton @ Chesnee 

The Chesnee Eagles had a solid season a year ago as they went 6-6 overall and finished in second place in their region to host a home playoff game, in which they were victorious against Ninety Six but fell to Fairfield Central in the second round.

They open this season against Pendleton who they lost to last year by a final score of 47-21. Chesnee gave up a ton of yards and big plays in the game both in the air and on the ground, as they allowed 317 yards passing and nearly 150 yards on the ground. Several players from the Pendleton squad that had big game are returning this year like their quarterback Jace Grass and running back Bray Spear. The Eagles will have to find a way to generate some pressure and make some plays at or behind the line of scrimmage.

Chesnee will have some news guys in starting roles this year as they are replacing 13 Seniors, but they do have a mix of some experience guys returning as well. I think Chesnee will put a much better effort in this game vs how they did last year but I do feel Pendleton will have enough to get the win.

Landrum @ Walhalla 

The Landrum Cardinals went 5-5 on the season last year and finished 1-3 inside region play and were eliminated last year in the first round of the playoffs. This year they enter the season with a new head coach Mike Reid and he will look to lead the Cardinals to a strong 2025 campaign

Last year it was Walhalla who defeated Landrum in a close hard fought football game by a final score of 20-14. The Cardinals ran into a problem that a lot of teams had to encounter last year and that was stopping Landon Robinson, who went on to rush for 217 yards on 35 carries and two touchdowns. The good news is Robinson has graduated so the Cardinals will not have to worry about him.

The Cardinals will be returning a lot of guys from a year ago including their quarterback Ty Foster who had a strong Junior year as he ran for 7 touchdowns and threw 20. He got a lot of familiar weapons to work with as well and the experience is one thing I like about this Cardinals team this year. I look for the Cardinals to flip the script and get the win over Walhalla to begin their season.

Newberry @ Union 

The Union County Yellow Jackets have had a string of struggling seasons the last couple of years and they are hoping to get off to a strong start this year to build some confidence and continue to move in the right direction.

Last year Union was defeated pretty easy against Newberry as they fell to the Bulldogs by a final score of 41-14. They went into the fourth quarter and were down 41-0 as they were then able to finally break through and punched in twice in the their final few drives.

Union was able to run the football in the loss and they will look to have that success again, but they will need more in the passing game from Qa Brannon to help keep drives alive and perhaps put more points on the board. The Yellow Jackets only had nine yards passing in the lost to Newberry that will have to change to give them a shot.

I look for Newberry despite having a lot of their talent graduate a year ago to get the win. Union has to show they are turning a corner until then it hards to pick them in a matchup.

Clinton @ Woodruff

The Woodruff Wolverines are coming off a really strong year and have seen to excelled under the leadership of Brett Sloan and his staff.

Woodruff was able to win a shootout against Clinton last year by a final score of 40-36. The game went back and forth for the most part of the game but in the end it was the Wolverines that were able to make enough plays and started their succesful season on the right foot.

The Wolverines rushed for over 200 yards in the win and their star running back Aiden Gibson rushed for 173 of them and 2 touchdowns in the win. The Wolverines will lean on him heavily once again to be their workhorse and have him lead them to a lot of victories.

Clinton will have to find a way to stop him if they are going to win the game, which we all know is easier said than done. Defensively the Wolverines will have their on challenge of stoping the run as last year they gave up 369 yards rushing and now senior Javen Cook had 120 of them.

For me this game will come down to who can stop the run, both teams are going to feed their backs often and whoever can stymie the run should win this game.

BHP @ Broome

The Broome Centurions 2024 season had a series of ups and downs as they finished the year 3-8 and 0-4 in the region. The Centurions will to snap the losing streak they are on and start this year off with a win.

That will be a tough task as they are playing a strong BHP team, who they fell to last year by a final score of 45-14.  They struggled to stop the run in that game giving up over 200 yards on the ground so that will have to find a way to slow down the rushing attack.

For Broome they are returning a lot of guys and that should help them turn things around this season, But right now I am leaning towards BHP winning this game.

MVP @ Atlantic Collegiate 

MVP is in their second year and the first season was a successful one for the Stars as they went 12-1 and were just one game away from getting to the state championship but feel to good BHP team. The Stars will look to build off of their inaugural season and make another run to winning a state title in year number 2

Last season MVP had zero issues against Atlantic Collegiate as they went on to win 69-0, they scored on their very first play of the game. It simply was just one of those games where there was no doubt who was going to win right from the opening kick off. MVP was able to run for over 300 yards in the win and they will look to replicate that type of dominance on the ground once again in this matchup

Defensively MVP was lights out in this game a year ago, they allowed only 45 yards off offense for the entire game! MVP will have to replace a lot of guys from a year ago but still have some returning and added more talent. I think they have no problem in this game as well and start the year off 1-0.