Class 3A Semifinals Preview

A star-studded roster that includes the top overall prospect in the Class of 2025.   A first-year super team that includes the top overall prospect in the Class of 2026.   A defending state champ led by a gunslinging super sophomore.   And a team that until this year had never played this deep into the season.    The four programs still alive for the Class 3A state have had somewhat different paths to the Upper State and Lower State finals. But what they all have in common is excellent individual play that has spurred a whole bunch of success.   NO. 2 BELTON-HONEA PATH (12-1) AT NO. 1 MOUNTAIN VIEW PREP (12-0)   This game is going to come down to a lot more than Bears senior [player_tooltip player_id='605525' first='Marquise' last='Henderson'] (1981 yards of offensive, 24 touchdowns) and [player_tooltip player_id='473001' first='Jaylen' last='McGill'] (2,027 yards, 31 offensive touchdowns), the aforementioned players atop Prep RedZone's 2025 and 2026 rankings. In fact, six players from each team joined those talented tailbacks in our last rankings cycle at the beginning of the season and it appears a few more are set to join them next time around.    We're also interested to see the head-to-head matchup between Stars senior [player_tooltip player_id='349806' first='Bryson' last='Drummond'] (2,004 passing yards, 26 touchdowns) and Bears counterpart [player_tooltip player_id='283891' first='Noah' last='Thomas'] (1,725 passing yards, 25 touchdowns) and their favorite targets, MVP's [player_tooltip player_id='1395046' first='KD' last='Hainsworth'] (947 yards, 16 touchdowns) and [player_tooltip player_id='779428' first='Tajeh' last='Watson-Martin'] (881, 13).   That's a lot of offensive fire power on one Class 3A football field.    “We really just approach it like it's a normal game,” Drummond said. “Mentally, we just have to stay level headed.”   Regardless of the to-be-determined pre-game approach for the Bears and Stars, all those game breakers are going to put even more pressure on these defenses to simply get off the field when they can. A third-down penalty either direction could be the most costly infraction of the year. And most importantly of all is how either squad will respond if this one is as good as advertised. Because neither team has been in a lot of tight spots this year.    That's where the Bears might find their edge. Senior defensive standouts [player_tooltip player_id='1556058' first='Tye' last='Kelly'] (pictured) and [player_tooltip player_id='1253982' first='Justin' last='Lathon'] and junior [player_tooltip player_id='1372151' first='Jakyri' last='Anderson'] were all vital pieces of last year's deep playoff run.   Matchup Within The Matchup: When coaches preach ball security, they could use either team as a great example. Belton-Honea Path has turned it over just nine times (two fumbles, seven picks) this year, while Mountain View Prep has had 11. That's nothing considering the high number of offensive plays and scoring output. We don't think we're going to get a rush of them, either, but that doesn't mean those high-impact defensive stops can't come in other forms. MVP senior defensive end [player_tooltip player_id='595830' first='Quay' last='McCauley'] (11 sacks, 17 tackles for loss) or Bears junior defensive tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1592470' first='Kylan' last='Dixon'] (team-high 12 tackles for loss, 21 for his career) clearly know how to get behind the line of scrimmage. If they shake up offensive plays, it could force a rare turnover directly or indirectly thanks to their pressure.    Underclassmen Impact: Of all the players who elected to enroll at Mountain View Prep for Year One, it's possible that sophomore kicker/punter [player_tooltip player_id='1422557' first='Henry' last='Phillips'] had the most to gain. Parked behind one of the state's best at Spartanburg, Phillips's transfer got him invaluable playing time this fall. He's made it count, recording touchbacks on 54 of his 87 kickoffs (62 percent), connecting on 10-of-11 field goal attempts and chipping in 58-of-64 extra point tries.     NO. 2 OCEANSIDE COLLEGIATE (9-3) AT NO. 1 LORIS (11-1)   Javon Johnson has been involved with some incredible growth at Loris. The Lions senior saw his team win four games as a freshman to seven each as a sophomore and junior and now this year's 11-win campaign.   For the high-impact defensive end, the rise started well before his varsity playing days.    “It's always been one team, brother bond, family,” Johnson said. “This team didn't just come from the high school. We've been brought up since we were little. It means a lot to still be playing with them and to get this far.”   Indeed, this season has led to a years-in-the-making historical first for Loris; the Lions have never played a December football game. The proverbial ice break has happened because of players like Johnson, tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1395062' first='Demarea' last='Thurmond'] and edge [player_tooltip player_id='473018' first='Landon' last='Conner'] along that line and quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='797160' first='Moon' last='Gerald'] (1,605 yards, 19 touchdowns) and [player_tooltip player_id='1422632' first='Makel' last='Stephens'] (914 yards, 16 touchdowns) on offense.   Oceanside, meanwhile didn't get here by luck.   Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1094944' first='Aiden' last='Manavian'] - the unexpected star of last year's Class 2A playoff run - has thrown for a school record 33 touchdown passes and is on the cusp of the program's single-season yardage mark after having already thrown for 2,825 yards. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='809757' first='Will' last='Virgilio'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1578702' first='Peyton' last='Shaw'] and junior [player_tooltip player_id='1592182' first='Terence' last='Johnson'] have each taken turns as Manavian's favorite target.   They've teamed up to overwhelm most of their opponents the last two months, as the Landsharks' third-round opponent (Dillon) was the the only team to keep the final score respectable over that span.   Matchup Within The Matchup: Nothing will likely affect the outcome of this game quite as much as the battle in the trenches. Loris's Johnson is running up on 30 tackles for loss. As teams try to slow him down, Conner has picked up his production on the other side. And Thurmond, the 6-foot-3, 305-pound tackle, is big and strong enough to take on multiple blockers to free up the edge. Conversely, Oceanside's line has been stout in terms of protecting its quarterback. Tackles [player_tooltip player_id='816747' first='Michael' last='Jones'] and Carson Lee, guards Grant Castelow and JB Crady and center Charlie Bean have barely allowed anyone into the backfield in passing situations, especially since the start of region play. Dillon's lone sack last week was coverage based. Most of the time, Manavian has all the time in the world.   Underclassmen Impact: While [player_tooltip player_id='1422629' first='Roderick' last='Purcha'] hasn't received as many carries as he might have liked, the Loris sophomore has shown he doesn't need the ball in his hands every play to be a threat. Of his seven touchdown runs this fall, five came from at least 15 yards out and four were from at least 30 yards. In this clip against North Myrtle Beach in mid-September, he showed off the type of moves and field vision that have made him a dangerous next man up for the Lions.

A star-studded roster that includes the top overall prospect in the Class of 2025.