Lakelands games for Week 0
Northwood Academy at Greenwood Christian
The two teams met for the first time last season, a 48-20 shellacking by the Hawks, and Northwood comes calling in 2023 toting a 29-game losing streak. It probably won’t get much better at Victory Field this year as the Hawks return almost every playmaker who helped them win their lone contest of the season. Bryson Dixon and Hamp Davis both scored twice in the rout last season and the duo will likely do the same again Friday night.
Final: GCS 56 Northwood 12
Dixie at Pendleton
The Hornets will host the Pendleton Bulldogs Friday night. Pendleton is a town well-known for its history, but history has not been kind to the Hornets in the series. Dixie is 0-7 all-time against Pendleton and the 9 points the Hornets scored in the 41-9 loss at Pendleton last season was the most since Dixie rolled up 13 points in the loss in 1972. The Bulldogs put up 41 points that night also.
Final: Pendleton 49 Dixie 6
Whitmire at Ware Shoals
Whitmire kicked off an impressive 2022 season with a 16-6 with win over Ware Shoals in the northern tip of Newberry County and included wins over a couple 2A teams and a 3A team. The Fighting Hornets find themselves with a new coach and a new scheme in 2023. It’s been a bit of an adventure in the off-season for Ware Shoals and adapting to an entirely new offense will make it tough for the Fighting Hornets to pull off a W in Week 0.
Final: Whitmire 18 Ware Shoals 12
Calhoun Falls at Blackville-Hilda
The Flashes head into the land of Hyphenated High Schools in Week 0 when they travel to Blackville-Hilda Friday. Nestled among the likes of Willison-Elko, Bamberg-Erhardt, Denmark-Olar, Wagener-Salley, Hunter-Kinard-Tyler, and Allendale-Fairfax, Blackville-Hilda will have to defend its hyphen against a non-hyphenated Calhoun Falls squad that is ready to make a splash in 2023. The Flashes have dropped 29 straight—the last win coming against Ware Shoals to open up the 2019 season—and 45 of their last 46, but this version feels different. Week 0 begins a statement season for Calhoun Falls.
Final: Calhoun Falls 27 Blackville-Hilda 13
McCormick at Abbeville
There’s a lot of excitement building around the McCormick Chiefs and first-year headman Leroy Collier, particularly after their performance against Barnwell in a jamboree. Just a short way up the Georgia border there is also a lot of excitement building around an Abbeville Panthers team that slayed 2A athletic magnet Oceanside in last season’s title game and has done nothing but reload with more talent. The Chiefs hang in there early, but the A-Bone is too much for their lack of depth, particularly along the lines of scrimmage.
Final: Abbeville 48 McCormick 20
Saluda at Mid-Carolina
Saluda clobbered Mid-Carolina 42-7 to open up a 2022 campaign that ended with a loss in the Upper State Championship, the Tigers’ fifth trip to that game in the past eight seasons. They toppled Abbeville in 2019 en route to their first state title since 1963. The other four trips all ended with losses to Abbeville. After losing nearly 20 seniors, this young Saluda team is ready to make their own mark on the 2A ranks.
Final: Saluda 35 Mid-Carolina 13
Laney (Ga) at Strom Thurmond
The Rebels are 4-3 all-time against Laney but were shut out by the Wildcats in last season’s opener over in Augusta. Laney will bring their high-powered offense into the Peach Fields to take on the Rebels’ Blue Steel defense. The real story will be how new receivers Braylon Staley (Tennessee commit) and Demarius Tolen add to Head Coach Andrew Webb’s prolific offense. Expect fireworks early and often with two titan offenses trading blows from beginning to end.
Final: Strom Thurmond 31 Laney 28
Ninety Six at Emerald
The Wildcats and the Vikings open up the 2023 season as they have nearly every season since the late 90s, with this edition taking place at Frank Hill Stadium. Last season, the Wildcats were about a yard short of a game-tying touchdown as the clock expired and they likely have not forgotten it. The Vikings have to replace a lot of talent, most notably in the secondary, and could be vulnerable to the Wildcat passing attack led by lefty senior Braden Mitchell.
Final: Ninety Six 28 Vikings 27
Clinton at Batesburg-Leesville
Batesburg-Leesville looks to be back to their old form of rolling over opponents with a potent ground game, but they will have to open the 2023 season against perennial 3A powerhouse Clinton. The Red Devils didn’t lose a ballgame until Powdersville got the best of them in the Upper State Championship and still have tons of talent all across the field and the Panthers aren’t quite there yet.
Final: Clinton 49 Batesburg-Leesville 12
A.C. Flora at Greenwood
If football schedules were famous battles through history then the Greenwood Eagles non-region schedule would be D-Day. The gauntlet begins Friday night when the A.C. Flora Falcons come to J.W. Babb Stadium and the Eagles look to avenge a 38-20 loss last season in a game that cost them standout running back Ve Morton to injury. The Eagles will be debuting a new spread offense against an A.C. Flora squad that didn’t lose until they ran into LaNorris Sellers and eventual 4A state champion South Florence.
Final: A.C. Flora 47 Greenwood 20