2024 Comeback POY Candidates

The 2023 football season included a bunch of players making the most of their return to the game.   The leader in the clubhouse was Midland Valley tailback Traevon Dunbar, who after returning to full strength following a nasty knee injury rushed for, well, all the yards. That type of bounce-back season isn't typical. However, this fall certainly has a few Comeback Player of the Year candidates, too.    These seven players all missed significant time to injuries in 2023 - if not the entire season - but have shown reason for us to believe they're back and ready to perform at a high level again.    [player_tooltip player_id='464882' first='Jamarcus' last='Williams'] RB, Hannah-Pamplico   Williams was well on his way to a second straight 2,000-yard rushing season as a junior when he suffered a partial ACL tear and elected for an immediate surgery in order to return tot he baseball diamond. It cost him 80 percent of his junior year on the gridiron, but he showed during baseball season that he was tip-top again. Williams dropped a little bit in our rankings, but we've still got him as the No. 7 tailback in the state in the Class of 2025 because we've seen him at his best. If he's close to it, he can do some serious damage again.    [player_tooltip player_id='1012620' first='Web' last='Barnes'] LB, Hartsville   Barnes has been chomping at the bit for the better part of the last year. He missed his entire junior season (after recording 101 total tackles as a sophomore) with a lower leg injury. As we've mentioned before, he even showed up to the Joanne Langfitt Challenge in an effort to motivate himself during rehab. Not long after, he was fully cleared to resume football activities. Within months, he hit 21.37 miles per hour in a Catapult vest at the Carolinas Coaches Combine and jacked up 22 reps on the 185-pound bench. Yeah, he's ready to go again.   [player_tooltip player_id='473014' first='Patrick' last='Belk'] QB, Heathwood Hall   There's no telling what kind of numbers Belk would have put up last season had he not gone down in the second game of the season with a leg injury. All he did the week prior to the injury was start off the year with five total touchdowns against an SCHSL opponent. Now add in that Belk's head coach at Heathwood Hall now (Tymere Zimmerman) is a likely pass-happy play caller who will want his QB to sling it around, and you've got a recipe for success. Don't be surprised if Belk puts up huge numbers the next two seasons.    [player_tooltip player_id='1013114' first='Antwain' last='Jones'] LB, Lake City   At 6-foot-2 and 225 pounds, Jones is a prototypical college middle linebacker masquerading as a high school kid. He's also survivor of the devastating bus accident that cost him all of 2023. Jones is the embodiment of Lake City's determination to rebound and we can't help but root for him. We had recognized in the weeks prior to the accident that he had the potential to be among the best linebackers in all of South Carolina. When he's back in pads, he'll make an impact, even if he's not carrying quite the same momentum he was prior. Either way, he looked good by all accounts during spring practices and is ready to do his thing.   [player_tooltip player_id='464881' first='Jayden' last='Sellers'] WR, South Florence   Sellers (pictured) wasn't the only player who went down in the physical region game against Hartsville last fall. However, his loss forced the coaching staff's hand. The dynamic receiver and University of South Carolina commitment suffered a torn ACL in the contest and missed the rest of the year. The Bruins went run heavy and carried that M.O. all the way to the Class 4A state championship game. But make no mistake: His return and an interesting quarterback battle between [player_tooltip player_id='1166986' first='Messiah' last='Jackson'] and De'Eric Davis is going to result in the staff going back to what it feels is its top overall weapon - getting the ball to Sellers.   [player_tooltip player_id='1110005' first='Cody' last='Peterson'] OL, Ashley Ridge   Peterson went down in game three of his sophomore season when he broke his right foot. It was a sizable loss for the Swamp Foxes, despite the fact that the rest of the line is pretty big too. Still, playing primarily left guard, Peterson (6-foot-4, 330 pounds) takes up a lot of space. He sat out this track season and instead has been a force in the weight room, where he recently squatted 600 pounds (seriously, there's film). His return will do wonders for Ashley Ridge and a pass-oriented offense led by [player_tooltip player_id='402509' first='Trevor' last='Kalisz'] at quarterback.    [player_tooltip player_id='473017' first='Kyler' last='Johnson'] OL/DL, Trinity Collegiate   We have had Johnson not only on our radar, but in our rankings, for some time. He's 6-foot-4 and 280 pounds and has a ceiling that includes him anchoring both the offensive and defensive lines for Trinity. Consider this: In four games last fall, he had 17 tackles and eight tackles for loss. The Titans have plenty of other size and length for a SCISA program, meaning Johnson won't be alone in the trenches. He might need a little bit of an acclimation program, but with the tide rising against at Trinity Collegiate, Johnson will help in the overall uptick.

The 2023 football season included a bunch of players making the most of their return to the game.