The Greenwood Eagles lost seven games last season, but were far from your average seven-loss high school football team. They even had a losing record heading into postseason play. They lost the first three games they played in, didn’t win their region, and suffered a 50-point loss in round two of the playoffs.
Of course, this sent social media up in arms. How could the Greenwood Eagles look so bad on paper? Probably because you weren’t looking hard enough.
Greenwood’s workhouse back, Ve Morton, went down in week 0 vs Flora and was never healthy the rest of the season. They hosted Sandy Creek, who eventually went on to have 13 wins and won the AAA state championship in Georgia. The Eagles traveled to Dorman, one of the premier AAAAA programs not named Dutch Fork. TL Hanna’s victory over Greenwood sparked them to go on an eight-game win streak in the middle of the season. Not to mention, they are in a region with Westside and Greenville.
The Eagles played far and away the hardest schedule in South Carolina last season and are doing it again in 2023.
“You can’t win it all if you don’t play good teams,” said Greenwood head coach Chris Liner, now entering his fourth year leading the Eagles. “Sometimes that’s a double-edged sword. People who know football, they get that. Some people only care about wins no matter who you play and those are the ones that are the most vocal on Facebook.”
AC Flora, Sandy Creek, Dorman, TL Hanna, and North Augusta all appear on the Eagles non-region schedule for the second year in a row. The full schedule features six teams ranked inside the top 10 for their respective classes.
Unlike last year, Greenwood will run a spread offense. This is a major leap for a team that has been option-dominant since Liner took charge in 2020.
“From watching our middle-schoolers the last couple of years, we knew we had quarterbacks coming,” Liner said. “This year we have five guys in the program that could play quarterback for a lot of high schools in this state.”
With the addition of the spread, a QB competition has been brewing all summer for the Eagles.
Triston Lewis, a 6-foot-3 QB prospect, was the first to take snaps during practice just a day prior to the Greenwood Jamboree. Lewis has a very long frame with lengthy limbs. He also has a cannon for an arm, boasting a 90-mph fastball.
“The sky’s the limit for that kid,” Liner said of Lewis. “I’ve been blessed to have seven quarterbacks who went on to play Division I football and he has a lot of those intangibles.”
Marnarien “Punkin” Chamberlain took his fair share of reps at QB as well. Chamberlain has made strides in the latter stages of the summer. He’s silky smooth from the pocket and possesses a high football IQ.
“(Chamberlain) is just a super tough kid. He’s gotten so much better the last couple of weeks,” said Liner.
“Competition brings out the best in everyone and it makes you better. If you think you’ve got the job, you can become mediocre real quick,” Linder added.
Kaleb Burton, who played primarily under center for the Eagles last season, returns to the offense, but as a slot receiver.
Burton will be joined by Zion Hawkins, Jayden Adams, Jay Duncan, and even Chamberlain will see reps at WR.
Ty Patterson will add another element to the Eagle offense as he is making a full recovery from an ACL tear. He is a few weeks away from putting the pads back on.
Tank Gary, who shined last season in Morton’s absence, returns to Greenwood’s backfield in 2023. He will lead the ground attack once again, but with more room to work with in the spread. He is the only returner from the 2022 running back room.
Greenwood’s defense lost Syracuse signee Josiah Jeffery and Anderson signee Carson Lewis to graduation over the spring. The Eagle defense has been so young the last couple of years that Jeffery’s and Lewis’ replacements have all made starts in the Eagles defense.
“There are a ton of guys who started games last year who are back with us on the defensive side,” said Liner.
Griffin Jones and Michael Holloway are two names that Liner is seeking big years from at the linebacker position.
While Greenwood might have a young talent, they aren’t necessarily a young team. Furthermore, the wealth of their experience comes within the trenches on both sides of the ball. That might just be the recipe for success for the Eagles in 2023.
2023Prediction: Greenwood has a ceiling of 6-4, but a floor of 4-6. With the Eagles unforgiving schedule, things could go haywire in a millisecond. Barring any injuries, I see Greenwood and Westside having an absolute bloodbath competing for 2nd in their region. Being battle tested, an Upper State quarterfinal appearance for the Eagles will cap off a successful season.
