Prep Talk

Conway lineman makes college choice

Conway offensive lineman Tim Fowler has committed to Presbyterian, where he hopes to make the connections that could lead to a coaching career.

Another award for area football player

Myrtle Beach receiver Jamere Valentine can add another postseason award to a resume that was already overflowing with honors. Valentine has been named to the Orlando Sentinel's 90th All-Southern football team, which recognizes the best players from 12 states in the South. Only 11 players from each state are named to the illustrious team, and one is them is named that state's Player of the Year.

Area player commits to Western Carolina

South Columbus (N.C.) football standout Rashawn Grate has committed to play collegiately at Western Carolina. Grate, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound tailback, chose the Catamounts, a member of the Football Championship Subdivision's Southern Conference, over Division II Newberry.

Area football coach set to change schools

South Columbus (N.C.) football coach Joey Price is set to become the next head coach at Wallace-Rose Hill (N.C.), the school his mentor turned into a small-school powerhouse.

Price has accepted Wallace-Rose Hill's offer to become the school's next football coach, he said Friday. The school fired first-year coach Glenn Sellers after he went 2-10 this past season, finishing with 10 straight defeats.

If Price is approved by the Duplin County School Board on Jan. 6 - Price said he doesn't expect any opposition - then his 12th season as the head coach of the Stallions will be his last.

Two area players named to AP all-state team

Myrtle Beach is one of only six South Carolina schools to place multiple players on the Associated Press all-state football team.

Shrine Bowl receiver Jamere Valentine and North-South All-Star Matt Smith, a defensive end, were both selected to the team on Monday, 16 days after they led Myrtle Beach to the school's fifth state championship.

Valentine led the state in every major receiving category, catching 98 passes for 1,515 yards and 19 scores. He also added 12 rushing touchdowns. Smith had 46 tackles for loss and 18 sacks this year.

There were no other area players chosen for the all-state team.

S.C. roars back to win Shrine Bowl

South Carolina scored 21 unanswered points to erase a 13-point halftime deficit to win the 72nd annual Shrine Bowl 24-16 at Spartanburg's Gibbs Stadium.

Update on five Shrine Bowlers

I just wanted to give everybody an update on how the area's five Shrine Bowl selections - Conway's Tim Fowler and Michael Frazier, Myrtle Beach's Jamere Valentine and Demazio Skelton and South Columbus' (N.C.) Pat Worley - were doing in practice this week. The game is Saturday in Spartanburg.

Two football teams end season in rankings

Myrtle Beach and Carvers Bay were the only two area football teams to finish the 2008 season ranked in the McClatchy Prep Polls, which were released on Wednesday. Class AAA state champion Myrtle Beach is ranked first in that classificiation. Carvers Bay, which lost in the Class A, Division I title game, is fourth in Class A. Conway received two votes in Class AAAA but did not make the final top 10.

Myrtle Beach has role in ESPN documentary?

ESPN plans to air its documentary this weekend featuring Ruth Lovelace, the boys basketball coach at Boys & Girls (N.Y.), which will make its second consecutive appearance in the Beach Ball Classic this year. "A Woman Among Boys" will air on Sunday at 9 p.m. on ESPN2. Film crews from the network were in Myrtle Beach for last year's Beach Ball, so footage from that event could be included.

Area athlete has big performance on national stage

St. James swimmer Cole Dutton dropped nine seconds off his personal best in the 1,650 freestyle at the prestigious 2008 Speedo Short Course Junior National Championships in Austin, Texas, this past weekend.