What We Saw: Aun & McKay Kickoff Classic

The 9^th annual Aun &amp; McKay Kickoff Classic were missing a couple of teams, but six Midlands area schools were still able to get a dress rehearsal before games begin for real next week. Gray Collegiate-Westwood, Blythewood-Newberry and host Chapin-Spring Valley were able each able to get in a half of play on a hot, humid Friday night. Here are a few of the highlights and players that caught our attention. <strong>GRAY COLLEGIATE 28, WESTWOOD 6</strong> The War Eagles looked to be in midseason form already. <strong>KZ</strong> <strong>Adams</strong>, who of the state’s best backs and a Georgia State commitment, scored two touchdowns. He also started in the secondary so he could be a solid two-way player this season. Quarterback <strong>Tre Robinson</strong> looked good in a brief outing. He threw a short touchdown pass to <strong>Devin Johnson</strong> and had a long run to set up another score. Unfortunately, Robinson took a hard hit on a two-point conversion try and had to be carted off the field. One name to remember for the future is freshman running back <strong>Caleb Ford</strong>. He’s already 5-11, 205 and scored a touchdown on the final drive. Defensive linemen <strong>Savien</strong> <strong>Jones</strong> and <strong>Dayton Williams</strong> clogged the middle and made it hard for the Westwood attack to get much traction. The Redhawks did get a score on a short run by [player_tooltip player_id="92206" first="Julian" last="Milligan"]. Westwood were led on defensive by <strong>Jaylin McDuffie</strong> and <strong>Jeremiah Jennings</strong>. <strong>BLYTHEWOOD 13, NEWBERRY 12</strong> The Bengals had to turn to back-up quarterback <strong>David Herndon</strong> early but the junior transfer from North Carolina didn’t disappoint on two long touchdown plays. Herndon played 8-man football last season and got in late in the summer but showed he could be a solid option under center. He first ran the option play to perfection and <strong>Anthony McCullough</strong> went 73 yards for a score. Later in the scrimmage, he connected with <strong>Jake Parker</strong> on a 58-yard score with 1:39 remaining that ended up being the winning score. <strong>Tyrell Brown</strong>, a huge defensive lineman, got Newberry on the board when he stepped in front of a screen pass and rumbled in for the score. <strong>Zy Epps</strong> threw for a touchdown pass for Newberry. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="59467" first="Zack" last="Chalmers"]</strong> looked like one of the better wide receivers in the state. <strong>CHAPIN 19, SPRING VALLEY 7</strong> It is expected that running back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="89315" first="Bennett" last="Galloway"]</strong> and quarterback <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="139289" first="Jayden" last="Bradford"]</strong> will make plenty of big plays for the Chapin offense this year and they both gave a glimpse of that Friday night. Galloway, a North Carolina State commitment, scored on a 90-yard pass from Bradford then later added a 75-yard kick-off return for a score. That came after <strong>Kaden Isidore</strong> tackled a Vikings running back in the end zone for a safety. Spring Valley scored its only points on a short pass from <strong>DQ Smith</strong> to <strong>Thomas Roberts</strong>.