CCC West Florence: 2025 MVP and Award Winners

Potential New Subscribers: Take advantage of our 40% off special by using the offer code Guerin40 at checkout. In addition to our 365-day-a-year football approach, Prep RedZone South Carolina is the official media partner of the 2024 Carolinas Coaches Combines, meaning subscribers will get first-hand information on many of the 1,200 athletes in attendance at all four sites.   FLORENCE | West Florence is no stranger to hosting a show for the Carolinas Coaches Combines.   Sunday was more of the same.   The star-studded affair wasn't over for the rising senior class, though, until a whole bunch of hardware was handed out and some more bragging rights found new homes. The top award winners from the event did something special, even if it was only for one or two events at a time.   Here are each of the recipients.    MVP: [player_tooltip player_id='809742' first='Amare' last='Adams'] DL, South Florence   Adams impressed some of the Combine staff when he showed up to the event; it's still a sizable question whether all of the state's top talent has bought it to participating. And Adams clearly wasn't going through the motions. During one-on-on drills he showed off his dominant burst. And during the combine portion, he put up a 5.1-second 40 time and a 22.4-inch vertical leap despite measuring 6-foot-3.75 and a shade over 300 pounds.    Leadership Award: [player_tooltip player_id='1012620' first='Web' last='Barnes'] LB, Hartsville    Barnes is well on his way down the comeback trail after missing all of 2023 with a foot injury. After being selected for the Joanne Langfitt in December, he's remained hard at work and was turning some heads for his play Sunday with the rest of the linebackers. He didn't earn top honors there, but his body language and effort was undeniable to the coaches in attendance.   Fastest 40: [player_tooltip player_id='1250948' first='Zoom' last='Jackson'] ATH, Lamar   In 2023, Jackson (pictured) hauled in 448 yards and nine touchdowns worth of receptions. He rushed for another 174 yards and two more touchdowns. When Lamar starting quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='1165108' first='Zori' last='Pierce'] was out with an injury, Jackson stepped in and threw for 354 yards and three more scores. On defense, he had 33 tackles and two picks. During the Combine, though, Jackson let everyone know he's not just a small-school gadget guy by running a 4.44 40-yard dash.   Fastest Pro Shuttle: [player_tooltip player_id='1149045' first='Charles' last='McCray'], DB, Carolina Forest   McCray wasn't the only Panther who showed out Sunday (more below). However, his 4.33-second Pro Shuttle was a veritable blowout, all things considered. In windy and cold conditions, McCray out-paced the rest of the 175-plus competitors by a bare minimum of seven-one hundredths of a second.    Best Bench: [player_tooltip player_id='1254112' first='Joe' last='Ober'] H-Back, Carolina Forest   To say that Ober had a strong weekend was an understatement. After finishing second in his weight class in the state strength meet on Saturday, he showed up Sunday morning and ripped off 33 reps on the 185-pound bench. It was a nice showing for a player who started every game for the Panthers last fall and was among the team's best blockers. There are plans to throw his way more this fall, but his best attribute is clearing some paths.    Best Vertical: [player_tooltip player_id='272717' first='Tre' last='Leonard'] RB, West Florence    Leonard did a lot right, from his 4.63-second 40 time to a 9-foot, 4-inch broad jump to a respectable 4.62 on the pro shuttle. His 29.5-inch vertical, though, was tops in the session. It might just help him re-kickstart a varsity career that has included early FBS offers but then some ups and downs during his junior season. Leonard's ceiling is certainly much higher than we've seen on a consistent basis.   Best Broad Jump: [player_tooltip player_id='272701' first='John' last='Simmons'] WR, Myrtle Beach   Simmons was a little disappointed in his 22.8-inch vertical leap Sunday morning. After all, he finished 11th in the state last year in the high jump during the Class 4A state meet. The Myrtle Beach Seahawks receiver - fresh off an offer from Dartmouth - then backed up his leaping ability with a 9-foot, 11-inch broad jump. That was what he's much more accustomed to doing.    Top Specialist: [player_tooltip player_id='346192' first='Jackson' last='Garstka'] K, Atlantic Collegiate   This was a bit of a misnomer, as Garstka was the lone specialist to attend Sunday's combine. Still, it was also somewhat of a banner moment for the first-year program to have one of its player earn an award in front of coach Antoine Rivens. Garstka hit a 4.3-second hangtime on a punt and drilled a 42-yard field goal.    Top Defensive Skill: [player_tooltip player_id='272699' first='Da'Marion' last='Coe'] DB, Hartsville   While it feels as if Coe has been playing forever, he does, in fact, have one more year of high school eligibility left. The Red Foxes' safety has tried-and-true game speed and an ability to cover in space and traffic alike. He did that Sunday, lining up against some pretty good receivers and holding his ground. Coe is a dangerous defensive back with all-state written all over him this fall.    Top Defensive Combo: [player_tooltip player_id='1253928' first='Torrance' last='Wilson'] LB, Lake City   For guys who looked the part, Wilson was certainly among the leaders in the clubhouse at West Florence. The Panthers' rising senior had excellent one-on-one sessions and showed why he finished last season with 12 tackles for loss. Wilson is excellent in pursuit and plenty strong enough to make up for a little bit of a lack of height for the position. Wilson's star is certainly rising.   Top Defensive Line: Jaylnn Coard Manning   Remember what we said about Wilson? Yeah, same goes for Coard, a hybrid lineman who is built like a freight train. Coard also woke up a few opposing defensive players when the Monarchs would insert him at tailback last year (he ran for 617 yards and 15 touchdowns, if you're curious). Back on defense Sunday, though, Coard finished only behind Adams for players in this positional group, showing off some serious strength and quickness.   Top Offensive Line: [player_tooltip player_id='790770' first='Christian' last='Smith'] Lugoff-Elgin   At a hair under 6-foot-4 and 275 pounds, Smith moved the needle among the big guys at West Florence for the coaching staff in charge of the position. He moved his feet well and held leverage despite the defensive linemen in attendance having a little more name recognition among them heading into the one-on-one drills. His size and strength are prevalent.    Top Offensive Combo: [player_tooltip player_id='272722' first='Zion' last='Gilbert'] RB, South Florence    The only knock on Gilbert has been his breakaway speed. So when he put up a better-than-expected 4.7-second 40 time on Sunday, it was a nice step forward for him (he was clocked at 21.5 miles per hour back in December, for what it's worth). And nobody is going to question his strength (17 bench reps) or cutting ability (4.58 pro shuttle). You don't run for 1,535 yards by accident.   Top Offensive Skill: [player_tooltip player_id='272698' first='Will' last='Wilson'] QB, Richland Northeast   New rule: When Wilson shows up for an offseason event, just go ahead and give him some hardware. Wilson forced yet another staff's hand after he came out Sunday and was zipping passes around despite less-than-stellar conditions for the quarterbacks. Wilson's arm strength might be the best in the entire state and he's left nothing to prove for himself until the 2024 season fires up in August.

Potential New Subscribers: Take advantage of our 40% off special by using the offer code Guerin40 at checkout. In addition to our 365-day-a-year football approach, Prep RedZone South Carolina is the official media partner of the 2024 Carolinas Coaches Combines, meaning subscribers will get first-hand information on many of the 1,200 athletes in attendance at all four sites.