Class 5A, Division I Lower State Third Round Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two undefeated teams and the top two seeds in the Class 5A, Division I Lower State playoffs are hanging around in Summerville and Sumter as we march into the third round of the playoffs. Not many people are surprised that Ridge View and James Island went on the road and earned victories last week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That leaves us with two intriguing matchups in the final four standing in this half of the bracket.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here is a look at the key players and key stats as we inch closer to the Weekend of Champions in just a few short weeks. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NO. 5 RIDGE VIEW (8-4) at NO. 1 SUMMERVILLE (11-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One thing might get overlooked when checking out the Blazers 8-4 record. Three of the losses came to teams that remain undefeated and playing in the third round of the playoffs – Northwestern, Dutch Fork and Sumter. The other came against Camden, still alive in the Class 4A playoffs. Sophomore QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='840548' first='Tre' last='Howard']</strong> is healthy, and he has a plethora of receivers to throw to. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1172363' first='Khristian' last='Jackson']</strong> (44 catches, 699 yards and 10 TDs) leads five players that have reached double figure receptions. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1078102' first='Darius' last='Carter']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='233146' first='Jordon' last='Gidron']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1042719' first='Hayden' last='Morris']</strong> and <strong>Omari Johnson</strong> are weapons as well. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1573970' first='Josh' last='Ladd']</strong> is a three-year starter on the offensive line and <strong>Joseph Brayboy</strong> has stepped in nicely at center. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='367350' first='Jaden' last='Cummings']</strong> is a three-starter at quarterback for Summerville, but it would be difficult to dismiss the impact <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1215391' first='Jayven' last='Williams'] </strong>has brought to the offensive mix. The sophomore scored two touchdowns in the Green Wave's 36-13 win over Fort Dorchester in the second round. Willams is at 1,500 yards on the season, and he's become a huge factor since <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1249768' first='Keshon' last='Washington']</strong> went down with an injury. <strong>JT Willams</strong> is becoming a leader from his linebacker position, and he capped the scoring last week with a pick-six. <strong>Jacqueez Walker</strong> and <strong>Rhyan White</strong> will be key in the defensive backfield against the Blazers receivers. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Matchup Within The Matchup: </em></strong>The battle between the Ridge View secondary and the Summerville receivers will be electric. It will be speed against speed and it's hard to determine who has the advantage. Ridge View's defensive backfield will consist of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1168540' first='Quency' last='Grant']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1267280' first='Jordyn' last='Best']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1165171' first='Elisha' last='Smalls']</strong>, <strong>Jaciyah Johnson</strong> and <strong>DeSean Rush</strong>. Those five are state champion track athletes that are also really good football players. The Green Wave will counter with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='378969' first='Jaiden' last='Kelly-Murray']</strong>, <strong>Carson Guinn</strong> and Williams out of the backfield.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Underclassmen Impact:</em></strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1078102' first='Darius' last='Carter']</strong> might not get the headlines as Jackson and Gidron, but the sophomore is an outstanding route runner that catches anything that comes near him. He's second on the team with 33 receptions for 514 yards and three touchdowns. Carter has dropped only one pass this season and shows great hands and body control when making catches. He also has the ability to run past defenders and haul in the deep pass.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/22413761/66df3fe84456c6d77685781e' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6745160d5f125"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>NO. 6 JAMES ISLAND (10-2) at NO. 2 SUMTER (11-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>James Island is going to have to find an offensive rhythm against Sumter. The Trojans are averaging just 21 points per game offensively, but they play it close to the vest and let an outstanding defense set the pace. They've only scored over 30 points four times this season but once came last week in a 31-21 victory over Carolina Forest. QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1592342' first='Connor' last='Dantzler']</strong> threw three touchdowns to James Hurteau in the win and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='605524' first='Amor' last='Scott']</strong> added 138 yards rushing and a TD. All this came behind offensive lineman <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1036776' first='Israel' last='Harris']</strong>, who is 330 pounds but moves well. Kicker <strong>Gray Dangerfield</strong> had five touchbacks and kicked a 37-yard field goal. He's a difference in the field position battle.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Gamecocks will counter with possibly the best 1-2 punch in the state at running back. <strong>Kam Fortune</strong> (1,233 yards and 18 touchdowns) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='809744' first='John' last='Peeples']</strong> (1,183 yards, 26 touchdowns in just nine games) are a force nobody has found a solution to this season. In 255 rushing attempts, the duo has combined to lose just 29 yards in tackles for loss. The Gamecocks defense has three players with over 86 tackles on the season. Defensive end <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='595702' first='Anthony' last='Addison'] </strong>has 99 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks and four forced fumbles. Linebacker <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1359132' first='Jeremiah' last='Burson']</strong> (100 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss and three interceptions) and <strong>Tymaries Thompson-DuRant</strong> (86 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss) create havoc and make plays coming off the edge.   </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Matchup Within The Matchup: </em></strong>Something has to give in this one. The Trojans are allowing just 8.0 points per game (one game they were rewarded a forfeit) while the Gamecocks average 49.7 points per game. Only three teams – Summerville, Ashley Ridge and Carolina Forest – have scored more than 20 points against James Island with the most being the 26 scored by the Green Wave. Sumter has set a school record for rushing yards in a season with 3,713 yards on the ground.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If the Sumter offensive line of <strong>Taveon Brown</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1253946' first='Jerius' last='Williams']</strong>, <strong>Cooper Zeigler</strong>, <strong>Cooper Geddings</strong> and <strong>Zy'Quaz Kelly</strong> controls the trenches, it will bode well for the Gamecocks. If the defensive front of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='272709' first='Malachi' last='Jefferson']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1012698' first='Hendrix' last='Beran']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1336760' first='Tra'Sean' last='White']</strong> can keep the Sumter ground game intact and force the Gamecocks into obvious passing situations, advantage quickly shifts to James Island. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Underclassmen Impact: </em></strong>Sumter QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1603974' first='Franklin' last='Richardson']</strong> has taken over a more than ideal situation. The sophomore has an experienced offensive line, two senior running backs and a senior wide receiver that is a threat any time he touches the ball. Richardson is completing 63 percent of his passes (52-of-83) for 1,127 yards with 14 touchdowns and two interceptions. He's also rushed for 862 yards and 10 scores.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/19708165/6742589fca1e3e0a35416e80' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6745160d5f15e"} /-->