2024 Preview: Fountain Inn Fury

Only one group of seniors can say they were the first graduating class of a high school. This school year, seniors at Fountain Inn will be able to say that. Seniors on the Fury football team hope to add some other "firsts," namely the program's first playoff game and first winning season.   While this will be the fourth school year for Fountain Inn, it will be the third season of varsity football. After suffering through a winless campaign in 2022, the Fury went 3-7 in 2023. They recorded road wins to start and end the season and captured their first home win along the way.   "From day one, we've known how this process was going to go and what we were facing," Fountain Inn coach Brett Nichols said. "To see us take that step, have some success and come very close to making the playoffs (last year), that was a really good thing for us.   "For us to finally have four classes in the building, it will be exciting to see if we might take that next step and compete with every team on our schedule."   Offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='1359209' first='Jackson' last='Njoku'] (pictured) is one of those seniors Nichols is depending on this season. At 6-foot-4 and 330 pounds, Njoku is an imposing figure whether he lines up at tackle or guard. He said a fun part of being in a program from the start is building traditions such as rivalries. Njoku believes a rivalry with Woodruff has already started and new region foe Laurens should be a new one that begins this season.   "Collectively as a team, we just want to go to the playoffs and have a winning record," Njoku said. "We want to leave here with a sense of pride."   A sophomore could have a lot to do with what kind of mark that first class of seniors leaves on Fountain Inn. [player_tooltip player_id='429920' first='Sam' last='Holliday'] was the star of one of the "feel good" stories in the state last season. As a freshman, he got the starting nod in Week 0 and had four touchdowns (two rushing, two passing) as the Fury recorded their first win in school history, 28-0, at West-Oak.   "Coach says all the time that we've got to have leadership. Even though I'm a sophomore, I feel like I have to step up especially in that quarterback role," Holliday said. "I've worked to become more vocal and more of a leader. I think we have something special here. ... I feel like I'm a lot more ready than I was last year."   While competing every week is the goal, it might be a bigger challenge this year. Realignment numbers don't care how new your school is, only how many students you've got. After playing in Region II-3A with a Powdersville team that won 13 games in 2022 and a Belton-Honea Path team that won 13 games last season, Fountain Inn is now in Region I-4A with reigning Class 4A state champion Westside.   "During the realignment and multiplier process, we heard all these programs talk about player safety and all that. I just kind of had to laugh when thinking about what our (former) ninth- and tenth-graders had been through in going to play teams with full rosters," Nichols said. "That was tough to go through, but our kids are better for it. ... It really doesn't matter what class we're facing. We've just got to line up and be the best version of Fountain Inn we can be."   STARS SET TO SHINE   Zach Madden WR, 2025 - Fountain Inn's offense didn't feature a ton of passing last season, but Madden (5-foot-7, 145 pounds) helped turn some of those into home run balls. More than a third of his 15 receptions went for scores as he had six touchdowns. Madden finished with 377 yards for an eye-popping 25.1 yards per catch.   Xeviel Gonzalez LB, 2025 - Gonzalez (5-foot-10, 201 pounds) led the Fury defense with 81.5 tackles, including 16.5 tackles-for-loss. He capped his standout year with 10.5 tackles, including 2.5 tackles-for-loss, in Fountain Inn's 27-16 win at Southside in the 2023 season finale.   Colby Flood WR, 2027 - Flood (5-foot-8, 150 pounds) was another home run hitter in the Fury pass offense. He had 13 receptions for 211 yards (16.2 yards per catch and four touchdowns. Flood and Madden combined to catch 10 of Fountain Inn's 12 passing touchdowns.   FILM REVIEW   [player_tooltip player_id='1359209' first='Jackson' last='Njoku'] OL, 2025 - While Njoku's size is an intimidating factor for him in the trenches, that's far from all he brings to the table. Whether its a one-hand swat away of an blitzing defender, a pancake block that often ends with him lying on top of the defender, or maintaining a block well downfield until the whistle blows, Njoku has shown a variety of ways to protect Fountain Inn's offensive backs. He also had 12 tackles on defense last season.    UP-AND-COMING POTENTIAL   BJ Curenton WR, 2027 - Cureton (5-foot-7, 130 pounds) could work his way into the offensive mix more this season. As a freshman last year, he had seven receptions for 52 yards.   Tison Garrett DL, 2026 - Garrett (5-foot-11, 198 pounds) was fifth on the Fury last season with 32.5 tackles and ranked third on the team with 6.5 tackles-for-loss.    While Holliday already has plenty of playing time under his belt, Nichols believes his quarterback's star will continue to rise. Last season, Holliday led the Fury in passing with 567 yards and seven touchdowns and rushing with 540 yards and eight touchdowns. He also displayed toughness you might not expect from a freshman. In his second start, he carried the ball 25 times and then ran it 34 times the following Friday.

Only one group of seniors can say they were the first graduating class of a high school. This school year, seniors at Fountain Inn will be able to say that. Seniors on the Fury football team hope to add some other "firsts," namely the program's first playoff game and first winning season.