Teams in Palmetto State gear up for title

COLUMBIA - South Carolina high school football's "Weekend of Champions" kicks off Friday night at Williams-Brice Stadium when Irmo pits its defense against offensive-minded Byrnes for the Class AAAA, Division II title.

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The action continues Saturday with the Class A clash between unbeatens Lamar and Calhoun Falls at 11 a.m., followed by Rock Hill vs. Stratford for the Class AAAA, Division I crown at 2 p.m. Former Class AAA powers Broome and Cheraw vie for the Class AA title at 5 p.m., and Dillon and Belton-Honea Path, both undefeated, square off at 8 p.m. in the AAA game.

Although no state championship is ordinary, Lamar and Byrnes each will be going for its third straight state title. Only about a half-dozen schools have won three championships in a row since the end of World War II.

No team listed among the state's smallest schools has won as many as three in a row since Epworth Orphanage dominated in the late 1930s. Seldom can a small school sustain the talent level required for three seasons.

Lamar is an exception.

"Our team has worked very hard to get back here," said coach J.D. Boyd, whose team has won 24 straight games and posted a 28-3 victory over Blackville-Hilda in the semifinals. "You have to hang your hat with defense."

The Silver Foxes do just that, yielding just 28 points this season, and Markee Hamlin ranks among the state's top players.

Calhoun Falls, under new coach Eddie Roberts, has made a living by grinding people into the ground.

"We're a Wing-T team, and we run the football," Roberts said. "We throw the football off the bus when we get to the game and back on it when we leave."

The Blue Flashes have thrown just 56 passes in 14 games.

Byrnes has won 40 of 42 games coming into the week. Coach Bobby Bentley's Rebels are led by quarterback Will Korn. Byrnes, which beat Aiken 56-29 last week, also averages 46 points per game.

"I would call a pass on every play if we didn't check it off," Bentley said. "We lost 26 seniors from last year, and this team is very young. We thought we would be decent, but it was by no means sure that we would be back here."

Irmo comes to the title game on a defensive roll, whipping Conway 9-6 and previously unbeaten Beaufort 14-12 in the past two weeks. The Yellow Jackets lost three of their first four games but have won nine of 10 to make their second appearance in the state title game in three years.