What We Saw: Gray Collegiate, Adams Run Away To Class 2A Title

The newcomer knocked off the perennial power in the Class 2A state title game. Gray Collegiate, who started playing varsity football in 2014, claimed its first football state championship with a 49-14 victory over Silver Bluff Friday night at Benedict’s Charles W. Johnson Stadium. It was expected to be a highly anticipated showdown between a couple of the top running backs in the state – Gray Collegiate senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="89314" first="Kazarius" last="Adams"]</strong> and Silver Bluff sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="91348" first="Traevon" last="Dunbar"]</strong>. Neither disappointed but Adams capped one of the most impressive single seasons in South Carolina High School League history with his final performance. Here are the best performances and notes from the Class 2A championship. -          Adams was his typical performance. He is the first running back to ever rush for 3,000 yards in a single season and he capped his high school career with a 33-carry, 309-yard performance. He also played defensive back and finished with 2.5 tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. His first touchdown was a 3-yard run but his second showed why he is so electrifying. He took a handoff over the right side and outran the Bulldogs defense to the edge and into the end zone. He finishes his season with 3,344 yards and 40 rushing touchdowns. He did all this in front of his future coach at Georgia State, who was in attendance for both games Friday. Adams was leaving for his official visits right after the game. -          Senior QB <strong>Tre Robinson</strong> has been steady all season, but he saved his best for last. Robinson rushed for 138 yards and threw for another 34 yards and a touchdown. On his 60-yard run, he broke two tackles in the secondary then out-raced the remainder of the defense to the corner of the end zone. Robinson then dropped in a perfect pass to a streaking <strong>Savion Smith</strong>, a sophomore WR, for a 33-yard touchdown. He later added a 17-yard scamper on the first drive of the second half. -          Gray Collegiate coaches thought all week they could block a punt and it happened at the most opportune time. Senior defensive lineman <strong>Jakious Hilton</strong> blocked the punt and senior defensive back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="200691" first="Tory" last="Kelly"]</strong> scooped it for a score. That made it 21-7 with 3:34 remaining in the first half. -          Silver Bluff junior QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="91161" first="Maleik" last="Williams"]</strong> displayed his play-making ability on a 94-yard TD scamper that tied it at 7 with 6:47 remaining in the first half. Williams ran for 121 yards on 12 carries and added 46 yards passing. -          Dunbar finished with 121 yards on the night but the front of junior <strong>La La Radden</strong>, senior <strong>Savien Jones</strong>, senior <strong>Wesley Lorick</strong> and Hilton bottled him up for most of the night. Junior LB <strong>Jordan Robinson</strong> led the way with 5.5 tackles.