The final scores from Friday night's CNB Kickoff Classic:
Waccamaw 14, Green Sea Floyds 6
North Myrtle Beach 20, Aynor 6
Carolina Forest 10, Socastee 7
Conway 14, St. James 0
Myrtle Beach 31, Loris 0
Some random thoughts on the teams:
>>The Myrtle Beach offense looked in midseason form. Junior quarterback Everett Golson can simply make all the throws. He was able to throw between defenders, check to multiple options and move away from pressure against Loris. His best highlight was a touchdown throw to Donte Sumpter. Golson rolled to his right and on the run threw it 35 yards across his body to hit Sumpter in stride down the left hash mark. The thing that stands out about Golson is his poise in the pocket. On the first offensive play, a Loris defender broke through the middle on a blitz and looked to have an easy shot at Golson, but the third-year starter rolled to his right at the last moment and left the defender laying in the backfield. The Seahawks were missing junior running back Daiquone Ford, who sat out the event. Not sure what was wrong with him, but as far as I know he will be ready for the opener. Coach Mickey Wilson didn't say anything about him missing time on Tuesday. They didn't miss him as Isaiah Chestnut filled in and displayed impressive speed and moves. The Seahawks' offense looked very explosive.
>>Loris couldn't get much going. The talk is that this may be the season for them to blossom under Jimmy Longerbeam, but it didn't show on Friday night. Senior quarterback Adam Peterson looked OK, but the team had several turnovers and the running backs looked young, which they are. Defensively it's not really fair to base anything off of what they did against the Seahawks. It was 21-0 before you could blink, but once Golson was out, the Lions held their own against Myrtle Beach's backup quarterback. You have to believe this program is going to turn the corner with Longerbeam's devotion to it. He has gotten kids out to play and he has been huge in helping kids go on to play collegiately. Maybe this is the year, but next year is more likely to be when the Lions can make some real noise in AA.
>>In a surprising move, freshman quarterback Mykal Moody got the start for Conway, Senior D.J. Samuel, who started in a scrimmage last week at Georgetown, is the assumed starter but was said to be out with an injury. He could end up as the Tigers' own Wally Pipp because Moody looked real good. It wouldn't surprise me if coach Chuck Jordan decides to turn the offense over to Moody, who made a name for himself on the middle school level in Conway. For a freshman, he looked poised in the pocket, made several nice throws and even showed his toughness on a few runs. He also got some help from 6-3 senior receiver Spencer Goffigan, who had several nice catches and runs. If Trevon Owens can return from injury and Moody is consistently as good as he was on Friday night, the Tigers are going to put up a lot of points. The defense hasn't looked overly impressive at any point, but in two scrimmages I have seen (at Georgetown and at the CNB), they have yet to give up a point. Still, Georgetown and St. James moved the ball on the ground against the Tigers consistently, not a very good sign. Expect a lot of points at Conway games this season.
>>St. James is still messing with its quarterback situation, Incumbent Chase Smith, a junior, got the start at the CNB, but junior Carl Buddin got a majority of the snaps. Smith did come back in for a late series. Coach Billy Hurston is high on both guys, but Smith looked good in his short time. Smith drew a lot of praise from the Offense-Defense camp coaches this summer at Doug Shaw. The two look a lot a like, with Smith the bigger body. Hurston is probably still trying to evaluate Buddin on this level, but it seemed odd that Smith got so little action. St. James has high expectations this season
>>Waccamaw senior quarterback Terron Britton looked very good against an undersized Green Sea Floyds squad. Britton rushed for 89 on 11 carries and two touchdowns. The Warriors looked solid at the offensive skill positions. Along with Britton, senior running back John Gibbs had some nice runs. Waccamaw coach Burney Bourne said earlier this week that lineman Jerome Maybank, 6-foot-4, 305 pounds, could end up as the best player he has ever coached. That's saying a lot since Bourne has been coaching for over 35 years and had a lot of success at AA powerhouse Cheraw. As good as the Warriors looked against the young Trojans, they stiil don't look big enough or physical enough to be a threat in AA this season. The offense should be able to score some points, but the defense will have a hard time stopping the Mannings and Timberlands on the schedule.
>>I am starting to think North Myrtle Beach may be able to compete for a playoff spot. On paper, the Chiefs look young and inexperienced at almost every position, but in the CNB and in Wednesday's scrimmage against Carvers Bay, South Columbus (N.C.) and South Florence, this team has done some good things. Running backs Kelton Chestnut and Travis Evans looked good in the CNB and quarterback Trace Mooney continues to get more comfortable running the offense. But the biggest surprise for the Chiefs is on the defensive front where Temmarick Hemingway and Adrian Isom have good size and toughness at the defensive end spots. Hemingway didn't play last season and has been a huge surprise so far. Lake City and Myrtle Beach are clearly the top two teams in Region VII-AAA but the final two playoff spots are up for grabs.
>>Nick Asbury is as tough as they come. The Aynor senior running back showed speed, power and vision against North Myrtle Beach. The Blue Jackets struggled with turnovers at the CNB. Junior quarterback Peyton Hill is experienced but he still needs to take care of the ball better. The Jackets' biggest concerns are the interior of their defense, where North Myrtle Beach gashed them all night long. Asbury may get a lot of tackles from his safety position.
>>Green Sea Floyds had good showings from running backs Lassan Reaves and Perry Oliver. The Trojans look small. Coach Wayne Williamson said their numbers are good, but I think it's hard to expect much from GSF this season.
>>Carolina Forest quarterback Marlon Horton looked good throwing the ball. I didn't see him last year, but he looks very comfortable running the offense now. Horton made some nice throws and Wide receiver Ronnie Moses gives him a nice big target. Despite the win and Horton's talents, the Panthers still have a long way to go to be competitive in the region. A few non-region wins this season are definitely possible, but that's probably about it.
>>Zack Elliman was out with an injury for Socastee, so sophomore Jordan Renfrow took the snaps at quarterback. The Braves didn't move the ball all that well against the Panthers. The absence of Elliman makes it hard to evaluate the Braves, but again, it's hard to imagine them beating Myrtle Beach and Lake City. The biggest bright spot had to be sophomore running back Michquan Brown, who rushed for 17 yards on three carries. The combination of Brown with P.J. Brave, Jake Fullwood and a healthy Elliman does give the Braves a talented backfield. If the line can give them some room to run, the offense could be hard to stop.
