Midlands Second Round Game Balls

The cream seems to rise to the top in the postseason. This past week, we had state championship-winning performances on the SCISA level and the SCHSL moved through the second round of their playoffs. The result was several outstanding performances across the Midlands.   Here is a look at the players and performances that earned Game Balls this week.   [player_tooltip player_id='1261525' first='Andrew' last='Turner'] QB and [player_tooltip player_id='1157738' first='Mike' last='Tyler'] WR, Hammond   State championship on the line. Twenty-three yards away. Fourth down. Forty-five seconds on the clock. None of that mattered to the senior duo for the Skyhawks as Tyler (pictured) made a diving catch in the end zone to give Hammond a 28-21 victory over Porter-Gaud to claim the Class 4A, SCISA state championship. It's the Skyhawks 8th straight title. It's the second straight season the pair connected for the winning touchdown in the closing minutes of the state championship game. Turner finished with 150 yards passing and three touchdowns. Tyler caught three passes.   Charlie Bonds QB, Richard Winn   We rarely look in the 8-man ranks but Bonds put together a magical season that was capped off Friday night in a 43-6 victory over Laurens Academy in the SCISA 8-man state championship. Bonds threw for two touchdowns and added two more rushing to finish his senior season with 45 total touchdowns. He finished with 155 passing yards and another 109 rushing yards in giving the Eagles their first state championship since 2014.   [player_tooltip player_id='1267286' first='Amadre' last='Wooden'] RB, Batesburg-Leesville   The Panthers star set school records in a 49-14 win over Andrew Jackson in the second round of the Class 2A playoffs. Wooden ran for a school-record 334 yards and scored five touchdowns on 26 carries. He scored on runs of 15, 50, 68, 10, and 1 yard. That gives him 2,053 yards on the season, which is fourth best single season total in school history.         [player_tooltip player_id='1012718' first='TyDarion' last='Grier'] RB, Fairfield Central   The senior is becoming a mainstay on this list but his performance each week warrants attention. Grier scored four total touchdowns, three rushing and one receiving, as the Griffins routed Chesnee 41-6 in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs. Grier caught a 39-yard TD and ran for scores from 54, 4 and 34 yards. Fairfield Central has scored 41 or more points in five straight games.      [player_tooltip player_id='1360203' first='Desmond' last='Washington'] QB and [player_tooltip player_id='1578660' first='Tyheim' last='McNeil'] ATH, Keenan   Washington finished with 430 passing yards and another 49 rushing yards with four passing touchdowns to lead the Raiders to a 38-7 win over Orangeburg-Wilkinson in the second round of the Class 3A playoffs. McNeil was his favorite target with 278 yards and three touchdowns on eight catches. McNeil also added an interception and two tackles.      Grayson Rimpf QB and [player_tooltip player_id='1575400' first='Wyatt' last='Thompson'] QB and [player_tooltip player_id='1165092' first='Tylin' last='Drakeford'] WR, Camden   The Bulldogs quarterback tandem combined to go 20-of-21 for 329 yards and three touchdowns in a wild 43-42 win over Wren in the second round of the Class 4A playoffs. Thompson was 5-of-6 for 101 yards and two scores and the senior also rushed for two scores. Rimpf, just a sophomore, was 15-of-15 for 228 yards and a touchdown. Drakeford caught eight of those passes for 200 yards and two scores, including the game-winner.        [player_tooltip player_id='1036777' first='Trevon' last='Williamson'] RB and [player_tooltip player_id='1809066' first='Chandler' last='Guthrie'] WR, Gilbert   The Indians went on the road and pulled off the 36-30 upset of Bishop England in the second round of the Class 4A playoffs. Williamson rushed for 165 yards on 23 carries and scored on runs of 10 and five yards. Guthrie added eight receptions for 162 yards and a 54 TD pass from Cooper James to open the fourth quarter.   [player_tooltip player_id='272698' first='Will' last='Wilson'] QB, Richland Northeast   Wilson capped his spectacular career in a 48-36 loss to Daniel in the second round of the Class 4A playoffs, but he went out with a bang. The NC State commitment threw for 370 yards and rushed for 136 more and accounted for all five Cavalier touchdowns. [player_tooltip player_id='591391' first='Blake' last='Betette'] (178 yards) and [player_tooltip player_id='1603911' first='Isaiah' last='Small'] (162 yards) each totaled nine catches.     Michael Steed DL and Daniel Williams DL, Dutch Fork   The Silver Foxes defensive line duo clogged up the middle and helped limit Boiling Springs to 12 yards rushing on 27 attempts in the 42-14 Dutch Fork victory Friday in the Class 5A, Division I playoffs. Steed and Willams each returned seven tackles with Steed registering a tackle for loss and Williams adding two tackles for loss. The Silver Foxes finished with 11 tackles for loss and t   [player_tooltip player_id='755890' first='Amire' last='White'] RB, Irmo   White scored two touchdowns, one in each half, to help the Yellow Jackets knocked off region foe Chapin 38-7 in the second round of the Class 5A, Division II playoffs. White's first TD was a two-yard run in the first quarter that gave Irmo a 13-7 lead they wouldn't relinquish. He later added a 1-yard score      [player_tooltip player_id='1172363' first='Khristian' last='Jackson'] WR and [player_tooltip player_id='840548' first='Tre' last='Howard'] QB, Ridge View   Howard threw for 242 yards and two touchdowns to help the Blazers earn a 22-15 road victory over Cane Bay in the Class 5A, Division I playoffs. Jackson caught seven passes for 105 yards and a touchdown. The other TD pass went to [player_tooltip player_id='1078102' first='Darius' last='Carter'].    [player_tooltip player_id='1578721' first='Blaine' last='Fender'] LB, River Bluff   Fender was a tackling machine in the Gators 34-17 road win over Rock Hill in the second round of Class 5A, Division I playoffs. The senior racked up 16 tackles as River Bluff held the Bearcats to just 109 yards rushing on 31 carries. River Bluff pitched a shutout in the second half after trailing 17-7 early.   Davon Bowman DB, Sumter   Bowman had interceptions on three consecutive second half possessions in the Gamecocks 55-24 victory over Ashley Ridge in the second round of the Class 5, Division I playoffs. He returned those three picks for 85 yards, setting the Sumter offense up in great field position. Bowman added six tackles. The Gamecocks outscored the Swamp Foxes 34-7 in the second half and forced a total of five turnovers.      [player_tooltip player_id='346199' first='Landon' last='Sharpe'] QB, White Knoll   Sharpe led a balanced offensive attack in a 39-14 road victory over Myrtle Beach in the second round of the Class 5A, Division II playoffs. The senior signal-caller was 14-of-22 for 246 yards and a touchdown while he added 70 rushing yards and two scores. The Timberwolves rolled to nearly 500 yards of total offense and seem to be getting healthy at the right time.

The cream seems to rise to the top in the postseason. This past week, we had state championship-winning performances on the SCISA level and the SCHSL moved through the second round of their playoffs. The result was several outstanding performances across the Midlands.