Eight Players Who Could Benefit From Offseason Changes

Even before spring practices start and the next crop of seniors around the state take their place atop the pecking order, we can connect some dots and see big things coming. Or, in some cases, even bigger things. Thanks to reloaded positions, coaching changes and even realignment, these eight players are primed to have huge 2022 seasons. [player_tooltip player_id="31310" first="Tyler" last="Smith"]/[player_tooltip player_id="124455" first="Clay" last="Pender"], Barnwell Two of the state’s best rising seniors are going to be lining up a few yards away from each other in the fall. And while Smith’s 2,151 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns and Pender’s team-leading 429 receiving yards and five scores (despite missing four games to injury) were eye opening, there’s a chance we ain’t seen nothing yet. Barnwell has been waiting for the type of quarterback to tie it all together, and rising sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="272720" first="Cameron" last="Austin"] - a two-sport star in the making - gives the War Horses a big arm to take advantage of Pender while taking some of the heat off Smith. Class 2A, get ready. [player_tooltip player_id="202725" first="Chris" last="Lofton"]/[player_tooltip player_id="202726" first="Markel" last="Townsend"], AC Flora When former coach Dustin Curtis departed for Dorman, the AC Flora job immediately became a big talking point among other coaches. It was a highly sought after opening - the Falcons were just a little over a year removed from a Class 4A state championship. But but promoting offensive coordinator Ken Floyd, receiver [player_tooltip player_id="202725" first="Chris" last="Lofton"] and tailback [player_tooltip player_id="202726" first="Markel" last="Townsend"]’s respective meaning to this team probably took a nice step forward (if you can believe that given this team’s production). The two top-50 ranked standouts will be the centerpiece of Floyd’s first year at the helm, and he’ll use them early and often to establish some consistency. [player_tooltip player_id="89341" first="Eamon" last="Smalls"]/[player_tooltip player_id="91356" first="Daryl" last="DePass"], Beaufort You know what teams love to see? A defending state runner up that is bringing back the majority of its defensive stars dropping down a classification. Smalls and DePass each had huge junior seasons in leading the Eagles to Columbia. DePass (pictured) recently verbally committed to Charlotte, while Smalls is going to have his pick of FBS offers at some point in the near future. Until they’re both in college, though, the dynamic duo should be able to put up some gaudy numbers on that side of the ball and then add some serious flair to a crowded Class 3A Lower State field come playoff time. [player_tooltip player_id="146359" first="Evan" last="Javis"]/<strong>Kenneth Jefferson</strong>, Spring Valley With the Vikings’ standout quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="59480" first="DeQuandre" last="Smith"] off to South Carolina, coach Robin Bacon makes no qualms about what the plan is for 2022. The two-headed running back monster of Javis and Jefferson are going to have no choice but accept more touches. As juniors, these two combined fro 146 carries, 1,046 yards and seven touchdowns in 10 games. Considering Smith threw for 1,752 yards and rushed for another 711, Jefferson and Javis’ time is now.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>