What We Saw: Westside 34 South Florence 32, 4A State Championship

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>ORANGEBURG |</strong> Westside coach Brian Lane warned not to expect a storybook ending but that's exactly what he got. [player_tooltip player_id='346189' first='Cutter' last='Woods']<strong> </strong>connected with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139296' first='Jimmar' last='Boston']</strong> on a 17-yard touchdown pass with 15 seconds remaining to give the Rams a 34-32 victory over defending Class 4A state champion South Florence Saturday afternoon.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's Westside's first football state title since 1969.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“I told our guys all year, they were going to have to prove it. We showed them proof. We're state champions,” Lane said. “I've been telling them this wasn't going to be Disney ending and then we get to the state championship and have a Disney ending. I love those guys for what they did.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Woods (pictured) and the Rams got the ball back with 2:44 remaining and needing 78 yards to overcome a five-point deficit. It turned out to work like clockwork.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Westside (14-1) converted two fourth downs on the 10-play state championship game march. The first came when <strong>Demarco Evans</strong> shifted into a Wildcat formation on a fourth-and-1 from their own 45. He bobbled the snap, picked it up and rolled to his right before throwing a 10-yard jump pass to <strong>Jay McClintock.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The second came on the game-winner. Boston ran a short post route, getting inside the cornerback on the break and catching it about the five-yard line before skipping into the end zone.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“I had all the confidence in the world in the coaches and play-caller in Coach Lane. He's the best head coach and offensive mind in South Carolina. I knew he was going to give us great stuff and all we had to do was execute,” Woods said. “It's surreal and like a dream.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Woods ended the afternoon 17-of-27 for 238 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He rushed for just 19 yards on 14 attempts, but he went for 19 yards on that final drive. He also was 4-of-4 for 34 yards and directed the two-minute offense to precision.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Things started well for South Florence (14-1). The Bruins came in with a 29-game winning streak and they had a 20-7 lead just seven minutes into the contest.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Rams received the opening kick and marched 77 yards in four plays with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139310' first='Dee' last='Robertson']</strong> running it in from a yard out just 51 seconds into the game. But after that, the Bruins scored three touchdowns in a span of three minutes and two seconds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='970351' first='Syree' last='Livingston']</strong> started it with a 5-yard touchdown on South Florence's first possession. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1142600' first='Terrance' last='Moorer']</strong> forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1157897' first='Cameron' last='Coe']</strong> recovered for the Bruins at the 19-yard line. Five plays later, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='272722' first='Zion' last='Gilbert']</strong> scored from seven yards out to make it 14-7. Two plays after that, [player_tooltip player_id='771242' first='Brian' last='Brownlee'] intercepted a pass and returned it 39 yards to the Rams five. Livington scored on the next play for the 20-7 lead after the missed extra point.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gilbert finished with 201 yards rushing on 21 carries. Livington added 82 yards on 17 attempts. South Florence only threw four passes and two of those came in the final 15 seconds after Westside had taken the lead.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1157819' first='Sharode' last='Richardson']</strong> got the Rams back on track. He ripped off a 70-yard scoring run that got the Rams back within 20-14 with 10:39 remaining in the half. But South Florence struck back on a 19-yard run from <strong>Raleigh Jett</strong> to make it 26-14 after the missed two-point conversion.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Woods then directed an 8-play, 80-yard drive that ended with his three-yard TD run with just 20 seconds left in the half.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bruins received the second half kickoff and managed their only scoring drive of the second half. Livingston scored his third TD of the day, this one from four yards out, to cap a 13-play, 74-yards that took 6:39 off the clock.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Westside trailed by 12 entering the final quarter. But a bad snap on a punt gave them life at the SF 17-yard line. Six plays later, Woods connected with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139314' first='Josh' last='Williams']</strong> on a 14-yard TD strike to pull them within 32-27 with 9:48 remaining.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Boston finished with 95 yards and a touchdown on six catches and Williams added 92 yards and a score also on six catches. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='346193' first='Zeke' last='Marshall']</strong> led the defense with 11 tackles. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='346197' first='Jameson' last='Wilson']</strong> added nine tackles and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='390972' first='Nore' last='Belton']</strong> finished with eight stops and a fumble recovery.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brownlee led the Bruins defense with 10 tackles, two tackles for loss and an interception. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='208354' first='Chantwan' last='Harkless']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='208353' first='Quincy' last='Rhodes']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='652832' first='Noah' last='Moore']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='996915' first='Dirrick' last='Goodman']</strong> each contributed six tackles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coaches from Clemson and South Carolina were on hand to watch 2025 prospect <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='809742' first='Amare' last='Adams']</strong>, a 290-pound defense tackles. He finished with four tackles and one tackle for loss. Adams is expected to announce his college choice on Sunday, December 3.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->