SC football state championship guide: How to watch, ticket info, predictions

Lou Bezjak
·7 min read

This week’s South Carolina High School League football state championship games are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at Benedict College’s Charlie W. Johnson Stadium in Columbia.

The schedule

  • 7 p.m. Thursday, Class 3A: Beaufort vs. Powdersville

  • 2 p.m. Friday, Class 2A: Oceanside Collegiate vs. Abbeville

  • 7 p.m. Friday, Class A: Johnsonville vs. Christ Church

  • Noon Saturday, Class 5A: Fort Dorchester vs. Dutch Fork

  • 7 p.m. Saturday, Class 4A: South Florence vs. Northwestern

The games, predictions

▪ Class 3A: Beaufort (12-1) vs. Powdersville (13-1), 7 p.m. Thursday

Game notes: Second-straight state championship game for Beaufort. The Eagles played in the Class 4A title game last year, losing to South Pointe. Beaufort and Dutch Fork are the only teams this year that played in last year’s championship games. ... This is Powdersville’s first state championship appearance. The school opened in 2011. Powdersville knocked off two-time defending champion Daniel in the Upper State semifinals on its way to the title game.

Top players: Beaufort running back Kacy Fields started out the season as a receiver but moved to running back in the fourth game against May River. Fields rushed for 2,011 yards and 29 touchdowns. Appalachian State commit Colton Phares has 64 tackles, eight pass breakups and six interceptions for Beaufort. Jack Sumner leads the team with 6.5 sacks and eight QB pressures. ... Powdersville running back Thomas Williams is a Virginia Tech commit.

Lou Bezjak’s prediction: Beaufort

▪ Class 2A: Oceanside Collegiate (12-1) vs. Abbeville (12-2), 2 p.m. Friday

Game notes: Oceanside is making its first state championship appearance. The public charter school, located in Mount Pleasant, opened in 2016. The Landsharks have a first-year coach in Chad Wilkes, who previously coached at Lamar High School. Oceanside’s lone loss came against Class 4A finalist South Florence 29-28. ... Abbeville has won 11 state championships, including four in a row from 2015-18. Abbeville coach Jamie Nickles won his 200th game earlier this season.

Top players: Oceanside Collegiate offensive lineman Monroe Freeling is ranked the No. 1 recruit in the state by the 247Sports Composite and is committed to Georgia. Oceanside running back Vaughn Blue is a Charlotte commit and has rushed for 1,100 yards despite missing time because of injury. ... Running backs Jha’Louis Hadden and Altavious Patterson lead Abbeville with 12 rushing touchdowns. Abbeville QB Zay Rayford has 1,083 yards of total offense and 19 TDs. Zay Cade leads team with 55 tackles and in receiving yards with 224 yards.

Lou Bezjak’s prediction: Oceanside Collegiate

▪ Class A: Johnsonville (13-0) vs. Christ Church (13-1), 7 p.m. Friday

Game notes: Johnsonville is making its fifth championship appearance and first since 2012. The Flashes are 1-3 all-time in state title games, winning it all in 1993. Johnsonville finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in Class A and has allowed just 13 total points over its final three playoff games. Christ Church is in its fifth championship game, first since 2014. The Cavaliers won four-straight titles from 2011-14. Christ Church’s lone loss was to Holy Innocents Episcopal (Ga.) 40-0 on Sept. 2.

Top players: Daquan Burroughs is Johnsonville’s leading rusher and is a Shrine Bowl selection. He leads the team with 1,781 yards and 23 touchdowns. Quarterback Malik Shippy has thrown for 1,209 yards and 14 TDs. Landyn Criibb (103) and Kavontre Singletary (101) lead the Flashes in tackles. ... Christ Church quarterback Woods Windham has thrown for 2,226 yards and 29 touchdowns. CC running back Dashun Reeder leads the team with 2,005 rushing yards and 39 TDs. Defensive lineman Carson Shaw has 64 tackles and a team-high 15 sacks.

Lou Bezjak’s prediction: Christ Church

▪ Class 5A: Fort Dorchester (11-3) vs. Dutch Fork (13-1), noon Saturday

Game notes: Fort Dorchester is making its second championship game appearance. The Patriots won the Class 4A Division I title in 2015. Two of Fort D’s losses this year were to out-of-state teams, with the other coming against Gaffney 35-31. ... Dutch Fork defeated Gaffney 51-28 in the Upper State championship game. This is Dutch Fork’s 10th state championship appearance, all coming since 2012 and all under coach Tom Knotts. The Silver Foxes won five-straight state championships from 2016-20. Dutch Fork is 7-1 all-time against Fort Dorchester, with six of the wins coming in the playoffs. The Silver Foxes’ lone loss this season came against nationally ranked St. Frances (Md.). Dutch Fork’s defense has allowed 190 points this season.

Top players: Fort Dorchester has a pair of 1,000-yard rushers in Davian Brown (1,459 yards, 12 TDs) and Zion Reynolds (1065 yards, 17 TDs). Quarterback Zolten Osborne has thrown for 1,267 yards and 11 TDs. ... Dutch Fork running back Jarvis Green went over 2,000 yards for the season last week and is second all time in career rushing yards with 4,367. He leads team with 33 receptions. Quarterback Aliam Appler has 1,989 yards of total offense and 27 total touchdowns. Linebacker Jaylen Hinton leads team with 135 tackles. Defensive backs Landon Danley and Ja’Von Mack each have four interceptions. John Buetow is second on team with 95 tackles and first with 16 tackles for loss and five sacks.

Lou Bezjak’s prediction: Dutch Fork

▪ Class 4A: South Florence (14-0) vs. Northwestern (13-1), 7 p.m. Saturday

Game notes: It’s the second meeting ever between two schools. Northwestern won 53-0 in the 2009 playoffs. ... This is South Florence’s first state championship appearance. The Bruins have been No. 1 in Class 4A for most of the season. ... This is Northwestern’s 12th state championship appearance and first since winning it all in 2015. The Trojans are 5-6 all-time in state title games. Northwestern’s lone loss this year was to Gaffney.

Top players: South Florence quarterback LaNorris Sellers is a Syracuse commit and Mr. Football finalist. He has thrown for 2,688 yards, 40 touchdowns and also ran for 1,146 yards and 21 TDs. Shikeem Shilow leads the team with 1,312 rushing yards and 16 TDs. Evin Singletary is SF’s top receiver with 44 catches for 1,042 yards and 12 TDs. Linebacker Jaylin Davis has 105 tackles, 15 sacks and 26 tackles for loss. Derrick Goodman leads the Bruins with 6 interceptions. ... Northwestern quarterback Finley Polk has thrown for 3,086 yards and 35 touchdowns. Running back Turbo Richard has rushed for 2,034 yards and 24 touchdowns. Jammar Perry leads the Trojans with five interceptions.

Lou Bezjak’s prediction: South Florence

Tickets, directions, how to watch championship games

▪ THE ADDRESS: Benedict College’s Charlie W. Johnson Stadium is at 1920 Two Notch Road in Columbia.

▪ TICKETS: $15, can be purchased at gofan.co or through each of the schools before gameday. No tickets will not be sold on site at championship games. The stadium will be cleared after each game. Fans must have a ticket for each game, and no re-entry is allowed.

▪ PARKING: Parking is $10 per car, cash only. Trailers pulled behind vehicles are an additional $10. Tailgating will be allowed. Parking lots will open one and half hours before the first game of the day.

▪ TV: All five games will be carried on Sinclair Broadcasting stations across South Carolina. Affiliates are WMYA (My40 Asheville-Greenville), WACH (57.2/1250/Columbia), WCIV (MyTV Charleston) and WWMB (CW21, Florence/Myrtle Beach).

▪ INTERNET: All five games will be streamed on www.nfhsnetwork.com. A subscription ($10) is required.

▪ RADIO: The Northwestern-South Florence game will be on Interstate 107.1 FM in Rock Hill, on the state’s mobile app and online at www.wrhi.com It also will be on 96.3 FM in Florence and on the radio station’s Facebook page.

The Abbeville and Oceanside Collegiate game will be on 92.9 FM in Abbeville and on online at wzlaradio.com

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