By Thomas Grant Jr.
A ‘bye’ week came right on time for Irmo quarterback A.J. Brand to recharge his energies for a final playoff run
“It was definitely a great week off,” he said. “We got to put in some work outside when others weren’t watching. Quick and fast, so getting this another little break was definitely needed for all our banged up guys.”
The Yellow Jackets (8-0, 3-0) are two wins shy of an undefeated season. In order to achieve that feat and earn a first-round bye in the Division II playoffs, it essentially must win the Lexington/Richland District Five championship.
This means defeating district rivals Chapin this Friday at home and top-ranked Dutch Fork the following week to close out the regular season and extend their winning streak past 20 games.
“We’re not really worrying about the regular season now,” Brand said. “We’re trying to get these wins, but we all know what we ultimately want to come up with at the end of the season.”
The focus on a state title nearly blinded Brand to the career milestone he’s approaching. With 59 total yards, he can reach rarified air with 10,000 career yards.
“Having a milestone like that is all God,” Brand said. “It just shows how much me and my teammates put in. Without all of my teammates throughout the past, none of this would have been able to happen. Just with the help of them is definitely a blessing.”
Dutch Fork at River Bluff
Over in The Swamp, the defending Class 5A champions look to do their part to set up an all-Irmo ‘Winner Take All” for the Region 4-5A and District Five title.
Dutch Fork (7-0, 3-0) enters the contest with several streaks it looks to extend:
- 15 consecutive victories
- Holding opponents scoreless for nine straight quarters
- Two straight shutouts (5 on the season)
- 8-0 all-time against River Bluff
As a team, Dutch Fork has allowed just 17 points this season. Shrine Bowl flex linebacker Josh Smith leads the team with 47 tackles and is second with 10 sacks. Daniel Williams has a team-high 17 sacks and defensive backs Elgin Sessions and Malachi Smith each have two interceptions.
Offensively, senior quarterback and Clemson baseball commit Ethan Offing has thrown for 1,585 yards and 15 touchdowns. His main targets are Boykin Bickley (34 receptions, 555 yards, four touchdowns) and K.J. Smith (27 receptions, 330 yards, five touchdowns) and Touchstone Energy Cooperatives running back Maurice Anderson has a team-high 513 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns.
River Bluff (7-1, 2-1) is coming off a 30-8 win over Chapin. Quarterback Parker Murray made his return and threw two touchdowns and running back Hayden Myers moved within 52 yards of reaching 1,000 yards.
S.C. PREP FOOTBALL MEDIA POLL
Class 5A
1. Dutch Fork (17) (7-0)
2. Northwestern (1) (9-0)
3. Summerville (9-0)
4. Irmo (8-0)
5. Sumter (8-0)
6. Spartanburg (6-1)
7. Gaffney (6-1)
8. Hillcrest (7-1)
9. JL Mann (6-2)
10. River Bluff (7-1)
Others receiving votes: TL Hanna, Dorman, Boiling Springs, Catawba Ridge, Greenwood, Clover
RPI RATINGS
Division I
(Upper State)
1.Dutch Fork, 7-0, 0.86230, 2. Spartanburg, 6-1, 0.76799, 3. River Bluff, 7-1, 0.71766, 4. JL Mann, 6-2, 0.69060, 5. Lexington, 5-3, 0.64505, 6. Boiling Springs, 5-2, 0.61839, 7. Clover, 6-3, 0.60427, 8. Dorman, 5-3, 0.60012, 9. Blythewood, 6-3, 0.56370, 10. Rock Hill, 5-5, 0.55063, 11. J.F. Byrnes, 3-5, 0.50899 Mauldin, 2-6, 0.36005, 12. Wade Hampton, 0-7, 0.18146
(Lower State)
1. Summerville, 9-0, 0.79045, 2. Sumter, 8-0, 0.74792, 3. Ridge View, 5-3, 0.64150, 4. James Island, 6-3, 0.61407, 5. Ashley Ridge, 6-3, 0.59774, 6. Carolina Forest, 4-3-1, 0.56675, 7. Fort Dorchester, 5-4, 0.52885, 8. West Ashley, 4-5, 0.47636, 9. Stratford, 4-5, 0.46697, 10. Wando, 4-5, 0.43045, 11. Cane Bay, 1-7, 0.30064, 12. Spring Valley, 0-9, 0.29078, 13. Stall, 0-8, 0.24091
Division II
(Upper State)
1.Northwestern, 9-0, 0.82032, 2. Gaffney, 6-1, 0.72599, 3. TL Hanna, 6-2, 0.66066, 4. Hillcrest, 7-1, 0.65533, 5. Greenwood, 6-2, 0.61888, 6. Catawba Ridge, 7-2, 0.61365, 7. Riverside, 4-3, 0.54554 8. Indian Land, 5-4, 0.48251, 9. Eastside, 4-3, 0.46149, 10. Woodmont, 2-6 ,0.41322, 11. Nation Ford, 1-8, 0.36377, 12. Greenville, 1-7, 0.34569, 13. Fort Mill, 1-7, 0.32326, 14. Easley, 1-7, 0.32369
(Lower State)
1.Irmo, 8-0, 0.81999, 2. West Florence, 6-3, 0.60689, 3. Chapin, 4-4, 0.60022, 4. White Knoll, 4-4, 0.58711, 5. Goose Creek, 5-3, 0.58686, 6. Berkeley, 5-4, 0.53913, 7. Westwood, 5-4, 0.52112 , 8. Myrtle Beach, 4-4, 0.49774, 9. Lugoff-Elgin, 4-6, 0.45234, 10. Lucy Beckham, 4-5, 0.44693, 11. Socastee, 3-5, 0.43563, 12. North Myrtle Beach, 3-4, 0.40963, 13. Conway, 1-7, 0.30356, 14. St. James, 0-8, 0.22422
Photos by GoFlashwin.com – Irmo quarterback A.J. Brand
