In the morning, there will be a story in the paper about the start of region play, specifically Region VIII-AAA.
That league -- which consists of Myrtle Beach, St. James, Socastee, North Myrtle Beach, Georgetown and Wilson -- appears to be the Seahawks' to lose (as you'll see by comments by St. James coach Billy Hurston in tomorrow's story).
But whether your team is considered a playoff lock or going to be scratching for a postseason spot at all, Myrtle Beach coach Mickey Wilson summed up how must teams are feeling heading into this week's region play.
"I think the biggest thing is, once you get into region play, that determines your playoff seeding," Wilson said today. "Each game is so important. It’s almost like you’re starting the playoffs now. ... They’re all important games, regardless of who you’re playing."
Myrtle Beach will open at Wilson; St. James will play at Georgetown; and North Myrtle Beach will travel to Socastee.
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Wilson is still taking the wait-and-see approach with quarterback Everett Golson, meaning a decision on the star quarterback may not be made until an hour before the Seahawks' Thursday game at Wilson.
The coach, though, did put into words what was generally assumed to be the case previously. Golson showed up to last Friday's Victory Bell game against Conway with his left foot in a walking cast and his left hand in a hard cast.
"The foot is the bigger of the two injuries, for sure," the coach said. "But they both come into play a little bit. ... He’s throwing the ball around a little bit. He’s come out for practice after he’s completed his rehab. The main thing we want him to do is throw so his timing doesn’t get off."
Wilson said the team is waiting to see how the foot responds to rehab. Essentially, the hard cast on Golson's could be cut off and replaced with a soft cast in a short period of time. Golson's foot will be evaluated Thursday earlier in the day. If it's ready to go, the appropriate action will be taken with the hand cast.
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Man, I'm on a roll. My picks from last week were spot on, as I went a perfect 7-0. Let's see if I can keep it going this week. (Remember, play starts a day early this week.)
Myrtle Beach 37, Wilson 17 (Thursday)
Georgetown 16, St. James 7
Timberland 14, Andrews 13
Dillon 41, Aynor 10
Carvers Bay 27 Lake View 10
Johnsonville 28, Green Sea Floyds 20
Loris 40, Marion 28
Socastee 31, North Myrtle Beach 10
Mullins 21, Waccamaw 15
Here were last week's picks, with actual score in parentheses; correct picks are bold-faced:
Georgetown 27, Kingstree 15 (Georgetown 28, Kingstree 19)
Carolina Forest 31, North Myrtle Beach 7 (Carolina Forest 28, North Myrtle Beach 9)
Hemingway 17, Carvers Bay 13 (Hemingway 12, Carvers Bay 0)
Myrtle Beach 31, Conway 27 (Myrtle Beach 29, Conway 19)
Green Sea Floyds 41, Latta 20 (Green Sea Floyds 35, Latta 8)
Loris 38, Hannah-Pamplico 14 (Loris 55, Hannah-Pamplico 9)
Scott's Branch 21, St. James 20 (Scott's Branch 62, St. James 28)
WEEK 5: 7-0. OVERALL: 37-15
