2021 Class 4A Upper State First Round Playoff Preview
In this article:
South Pointe, A.C. Flora and Greenwood are the only three teams with only one loss on the season and are the early favorites to be the last teams standing in the 4A Upper State bracket once we get to Thanksgiving…
Access all of Prep Redzone
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingSouth Pointe, A.C. Flora and Greenwood are the only three teams with only one loss on the season and are the early favorites to be the last teams standing in the 4A Upper State bracket once we get to Thanksgiving Weekend. But teams like Greenville, York, Irmo, Westside or Easley could provide challenges for those favorites.
Here’s a breakdown of the first round matchups in the Upper State 4A bracket:
No. 4 Indian Land (5-3) at No. 1 A.C. Flora (8-1)
Indian Land will look to their go-to target, WR/DB Drew Hardin Drew Hardin 5'11" | 180 lbs | DB Indian Land | 2022 State SC on offense, while LB Dumkele Idehen Dumkele Idehen 6'0" | 215 lbs | LB Indian Land | 2022 State SC will look to bring his hard hitting style to Columbia on Friday on defense. Flora has a potent offense which includes RB Markel Townsend Markel Townsend 5'8" | 170 lbs | RB AC Flora | 2023 State SC , who is a bruiser and WR Chris Lofton Chris Lofton 5'10" | 165 lbs | WR AC Flora | 2023 State SC , who will test Indian Land’s secondary.
No. 3 Walhalla (2-4) at No. 2 Greenville (7-2)
QB Prometheus Franklin II Prometheus Franklin II 6'3" | 195 lbs | QB Greenville | 2022 State SC and sophomore WR Mazeo Bennett Mazeo Bennett 6'0" | 170 lbs | ATH Greenville | 2024 State SC will lead a Red Raider offense that can score in bunches, as long as they don’t make mistakes. Walhalla can also score as well with QB Bryce Payne. Whichever defense gets consistent stops will walk away with the win in this one.
No. 4 Greer (5-5) at No. 1 Westside (5-4)
QB Peter Zamora Peter Zamora 6'0" | 200 lbs | QB Westside | 2022 State SC and the Rams will get a rematch against the Yellow Jackets to kick off the playoffs. Dee Robertson Dee Robertson 5'6" | 150 lbs | ATH Westside | 2024 State SC (pictured above) and a stable of running backs got a heavy workload last week in a rout of Pickens, and that should continue. Greer QB Hollis Crosby can sling it and could create some matchup problems for Westside.
No. 3 Irmo (5-3) at No. 2 York (7-2)
York will lean heavily on their defense as they look to make their first state title appearance since 2014. LB Mekayle Burris Mekayle Burris 6'2" | 200 lbs | LB York | 2022 State SC is a run stopping machine while DB Amarion Husky Thompson has been improving in the secondary throughout the year. Irmo senior LB Nick Emmanwori will look to slow down York’s run game while Erick Tucker will look to shorten the game for the Yellow Jackets.
No. 4 Richland Northeast (3-6) at No. 1 South Pointe (7-1)
South Pointe has a lethal connection on offense with QB Zay McCrorey Zay McCrorey 6'5" | 220 lbs | QB South Pointe | 2022 State SC and WR Waymond Jenerette that is getting hot at the right time. Anquerrious Davis Anquerrious Davis 6'0" | 225 lbs | DL South Pointe | 2022 State SC also is an anchor on the defensive line and can disrupt the run game. This makes the task for Richland Northeast tough with two quarterbacks who have split time this year in William Wilson and Dylon O’Neal.
No. 3 Laurens (5-3) at No. 2 Easley (5-4)
Easley QB AJ Brown is a dynamic dual threat who can help the Green Wave put up points. The duo of James Rawl and Zy Todd for Laurens will present a challenge for the Easley defense led by Noah Pierce and Luke Peeples.
No. 4 Pickens (3-6) at No. 1 Greenwood (8-1)
Greenwood is going to run the ball early and often led by Ve Morton and a supporting cast of Daylan Rappley, Lowndes Still and Ty Patterson. Pickens will have their work cut out for them trying to slow them down but perhaps they could shorten the game with Andon Rogers, who had a touchdown in a loss against Westside.
No. 3 Catawba Ridge (5-4) at No. 2 Westwood (5-4)
QB Jadyn Davis Jadyn Davis 6'1" | 185 lbs | QB Providence Day | 2024 State NC should be back for the Copperheads and will be a huge boost for them combined with WR/DB Jacobie Henderson Jacobie Henderson 6'0" | 185 lbs | WR Catawba Ridge | 2022 State SC . DE Asa Johnson Asa Johnson 5'11" | 260 lbs | DL Catawba Ridge | 2022 State SC has been problematic all season and will present a challenge for the Westwood offensive line. Westwood has a trio of offensive talent of WR Noah Jennings, QB Camren Brown and RB Juilian Mulligan.