Class 4A 2nd Round Preview: Myrtle Beach at Beaufort

Ian Guerin November 16, 2020 @ 03:07 PM

The team that was ranked No. 1 in Class 4A for most of the regular season suffered two losses near the end of the regular season that cost them a chance at the Region VI-4A crown. But Myrtle Beach showed in its playoff-opening win at South Aiken that all was not lost. The Seahawks ran off 37 points to wind handedly and set up a big showdown at Beaufort in the second round. The Eagles bring in their own impressive resume, beating everyone in their classification and making most of those games look easy. Second-year coach Bryce Lybrand has Beaufort heading in the right direction. Both teams bring considerable talent to the table. Now, it’s time to see which ones stand out more. Here are four that stand to make an impact. KELTRON BESSANT, LB, MYRTLE BEACH With fellow linebacker Cam Ward out for the rest of the year, Bessant is going to be even more prominently featured on this defense for the indefinite future. And he’s got the type of playmaking ability to fill the void. So far this year, Bessant has 54.5 tackles, 11.5 TFL, 6.5 sacks, forced a fumble, recovered a fumble and picked off a pass. [player_tooltip player_id="59464" first="Adam" last="Randall"], WR, MYRTLE BEACH Randall is the leading receiver in all of Horry County (with teammate J.J. Jones not far behind), and he may ultimately be the most recruited player to ever come out of his area by the time he graduates in 2022. He’s been dealing with an ankle injury the last two weeks, though, and hasn’t been his normal self. If he’s ready for Friday, though, he could be a difference maker. TYLER HALEY, QB, BEAUFORT The only knock on Haley during his junior season is that he’s had a few turnovers. But those two fumbles and three interceptions really aren’t that big a deal when you consider two things. First, he’s rushed the ball 35 times and thrown it another 90. Second, he’s putting up decent yards. So far in 2020, he’s combined for 1,380 of them to go along with 13 total touchdowns. DANIEL PHARES, LB, BEAUFORT The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder has started to really find a groove the last two week. He had six tackles and a fumble recovery in a non-region game against Carolina Forest and then blew up for 10 tackles, three tackles for loss and an interception against West Florence in the first round of the playoffs. The linebacker has the range to disrupt and offense from multiple locations.