Midlands Week 11 Game Balls

The end of the regular season saw a slew of important games across the Midlands and that translated to a lot of outstanding performances with playoff implications on the line. We take a look at the players that made the biggest impact on their respective wins this week.   [player_tooltip player_id='1552692' first='John' last='Sawyer'] DE, Batesburg-Leesville   In a game that was an old-fashioned defensive battle, Sawyer and his mates came up with plays when they needed in an 8-7 victory over Strom Thurmond. That secured the program's first region title since 2014 and first unbeaten regular season since 2000. Sawyer had a strip sack and fumble recovery deep in Panthers territory to keep it a one score game. Batesburg-Leesville later stopped a fake punt from the Rebels 15-yard line for [player_tooltip player_id='1267286' first='Amadre' last='Wooden'] to add the game-winning 9-yard TD run and two-point conversion with 3:43 remaining.      [player_tooltip player_id='1255998' first='Anthony' last='Turnbow'] ATH, Chapin   Turnbow did a little bit of everything in the Eagles heart-pounding 35-34 win over White Knoll. He tallied three touchdowns in three different ways with his 80-yard kickoff return for a score being the difference-maker late in the fourth quarter. He also added a 42-yard TD reception and scored on the defensive side of the ball with a 20-yard interception return for TD.    [player_tooltip player_id='1012706' first='Josh' last='Smith'] LB and [player_tooltip player_id='1012701' first='Maurice' last='Anderson'] RB, Dutch Fork   In a battle of unbeatens, Smith and Anderson came up huge. Smith had 10 total tackles and a tackle for loss to help the Silver Foxes hold Irmo scoreless in the second half of a 24-14 victory. The Yellow Jackets came in averaging over 35 points per game but were limited to just 14 points and 362 yards. Anderson didn't score but he added 166 yards rushing on 20 carries and added another 30 yards on one catch. He was the workhorse and moved the chains when Dutch Fork needed a first down.      [player_tooltip player_id='1012718' first='TyDarion' last='Grier'] RB, Fairfield Central   The Griffins secured the Region III-2A title with a 45-13 win over Mid-Carolina. Grier was dominant like he's been all season when he went over 1,500 yards on the season and added four more rushing scores to run his season total to 27 rushing scores.   Kamari Brown DE, Gilbert   Brown scored twice from the defensive side of the ball in a 52-7 trouncing of Aiken. He scored on a fumble return and added a blocked punt return for a score to give the Indians a 35-0 lead at the half. Gilbert limited Aiken to 176 yards of total offense.   [player_tooltip player_id='1575317' first='Immanuel' last='Johnson'] RB, Hammond   The Skyhawks opened defense of their Class 4A SCISA state title with a workmanlike 35-6 win over Cardinal Newman. Johnson was the offensive catalyst with 113 yards rushing and two touchdowns on just eight carries. That gives him 14 rushing touchdowns on the season and 15 overall.   Bryce Satterwhite WR, Newberry   Satterwhite caught two TD passes from [player_tooltip player_id='1267234' first='Kenton' last='Caldwell'] to give the Bulldogs the Region IV-3A title after a 33-21 victory over Silver Bluff. Caldwell has a large array of offensive weapons and Satterwhite came to the forefront in a game that decided the region championship.    [player_tooltip player_id='1360013' first='Sam' last='Burks'] RB, Northside Christian   The Crusaders senior totaled four touchdowns in a 53-28 win over First Baptist in the first round of the SCISA 3A playoffs. He ran for 131 yards on 11 carries and scored on runs of 6, 6 and 21 yards and threw a 37-yard touchdown to Clayton Myers in the second quarter.   [player_tooltip player_id='1422592' first='Caleb' last='Pinkney'] DB and [player_tooltip player_id='1592250' first='Hayden' last='Myers'] RB, River Bluff   The Gators upended Lexington 24-10 in a huge rivalry game and Pinkney and Myers were huge. Pinkney had three of the four River Bluff interceptions and helped limit the Wildcats to 223 yards of total offense. He totaled 87 return yards to set the offense up in solid position. Myers did the bulk of the offensive work. He ran for 103 yards and two touchdowns and added a three-yard reception to account for 106 of the 169 total yards for River Bluff. [player_tooltip player_id='464880' first='Stephen' last='Collier'] also returned a punt 65 yards for a score.    JT Lott DL, Saluda   The Tigers had their way with American Leadership Academy on Friday with a 57-0 victory and Lott was right in the middle of it for the short period of time he played. It was 29-0 at the end of the first quarter and that included ALA QB Brice Cook getting tackled in the end zone for safety. All in all, Saluda held the Patriots to a negative 8 yards rushing and 13 yards passing.   Offensive Line, Sumter   The Gamecocks offensive machine kept rolling Friday night in a 49-6 victory over Ridge View to help them claim the Region V-5A region championship. The offensive line includes Zy'Quaz Kelly, [player_tooltip player_id='1253946' first='Jerius' last='Williams'], Cooper Zeigler, Cooper Geddings and Ta'Veon Brown along with tight end Joseph Chapman and H-Back Jayden Kennedy to lead the way. Sumter rushed for 417 yards with three players rushing for 96 yards or more. Sumter averages 49 points per game and 340 yards rushing per game. Those guys leading the way deserve some credit.

The end of the regular season saw a slew of important games across the Midlands and that translated to a lot of outstanding performances with playoff implications on the line. We take a look at the players that made the biggest impact on their respective wins this week.