By Jason Hickman
MaxPreps.com
Korn "Byrnes" Glades Central in Top 25 Showdown
A crowd of more than 10,000 fans in Duncan, S.C., watched homestanding Byrnes survive against Glades Central, Fla., 27-15, Saturday in a game televised by ESPN.
Byrnes quarterback Willy Korn passed for 268 yards and three touchdowns in his national television debut. The future Clemson Tiger also threw three interceptions against a determined Glades Central defense.
The visiting Raiders, making the trip to Duncan for their first high-profile, out-of-state showdown, may have let the ESPN cameras get the best of them, racking up 115 penalty yards in the first half alone.
The game would have to be considered a success for both teams. Byrnes, MaxPreps' preseason No. 3, lived up to the hype by knocking off a Glades Central team loaded with future Division I-A players. For Willie Snead's Raiders, the game showed they were capable of going toe-to-toe with one of the nation's elite programs.
"It hurts, but we've got other plans," Glades Central running back Damien Berry told the Palm BeachPost. "We have a lot of players with talent, like Deonte (Thompson), who is one in a million, and (quarterback) Bryan Mann. We can play with anyone."
South Panola Gets No. 46 in Mississippi Showdown
South Panola won its 46th-straight game Saturday in a battle between Mississippi's No. 1 and No. 2 teams. But it wasn't easy.
The Tigers beat Clarksdale, 19-13, getting two touchdowns from quarterback Leroy Diggs and a big effort from their defense, led by MaxPreps Preseason All-American Chris Strong.
South Panola's streak looked like it may be in jeopardy of being threatened until the Tigers pieced together a 15-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that gave the defending champions a cushion going into the latter half of the fourth quarter.
"That's the best team we've played since I've been at South Panola," Strong told The Clarion Ledger after the game.
South Panola looks for No. 47 against Moss Point Friday.
Dread-Not, Rainey Shines in Lakeland Opener
MaxPreps' Preseason No. 1 team nationally, Lakeland, Fla., lived up to its billing Friday with a ho-hum, 42-7, road victory at Venice.
Chris Rainey was head coach Bill Castle's weapon-of-choice, as the star running back carried 15 times for 269 yards and four touchdowns. Backfield cohort Jamar Taylor added 107 yards and a score on 13 touches.
The Dreadnaughts attempted just six passes in the game.
"The offensive line did a good job, and Jamar and Rainey, what can you say, they ran the ball tough," Castle told The Lakeland Ledger. "The defense played good. Just a good opening game for us."
Lakeland hosts Norland of Miami, a 7-6 loser to Central over the weekend, Friday.
Warriors Run Wild Again
If last week's 61-7 win over Franklin Central (Ind.) didn't send a message that there would be no letdown at Warren Central under new head coach Steve Tutsie, then Saturday's result certainly did.
The Warriors blasted Maine South - Illinois' 8A runner-up a year ago - 61-12, to advance to 2-0 on the season.
Warren Central racked up 341 rushing yards, including 134 from Darren Evans, and got nine sacks from its defense in the rout. Evans has eight touchdowns in the first two games.
No Tebow, No Problem For Nease
Losing a player like current University of Florida freshman Tim Tebow might signal a downturn for many programs.
But that didn't appear to be the case Saturday as St. Augustine's Nease High dominated Memphis University High, 34-3, as part of the Bill Bates High School Football Classic at North Florida University in Jacksonville.
The Panthers were known for a high-powered aerial attack during Tebow's days with the program, but it was the ground game that pushed Nease to victory over the weekend.
Freshman Chris Johnson, Zach Tronti, and quarterback Ted Stachitas combined for 275 yards on just 25 carries, each putting the ball in the end zone once.
Stachitas also threw for 153 yards and a touchdown that went to senior Quinton Huggins.
Nease has a week off before traveling to Seminole Sept. 8.
Top 25 Rundown
A quick look at weekend scores from MaxPreps' Preseason Top 25 teams.
1. Lakeland, Fla. (1-0) - Defeated Venice 42-7
2. South Panola, Miss. (1-0) - Defeated Clarksdale 19-16
3. Byrnes, S.C. (2-0) - Defeated Glades Central, Fla. 27-15
6. St. Edward, Ohio (1-0) - Defeated Benedictine 24-7
10. Warren Central, Ind. (2-0) - Defeated Maine South, Ill. 61-12
12. St. Xavier, Ohio (1-0) - Defeated Wayne 52-14
15. Independence, N.C. (2-0) - Defeated West Mecklenburg 58-0
19. Glades Central, Fla. (0-1) - Lost to No. 3 Byrnes, S.C. 27-15
22. Maryville, Tenn. (2-0) - Defeated Alcoa 17-14
24. St. Augustine, Fla. (1-0) - Defeated First Coast 17-9
Team of the Week: South Panola, Miss.
We didn't dig deep to tab head coach Ricky Woods' South Panola squad the "Team of the Week", but the Tigers deserve the honor after winning a No. 1 vs. No. 2 showdown right out of the gate.
Not mentioned above was the fact that they did it on Clarksdale's home field in front of a crowd of over 6,000, according to The Clarion Ledger.
Max Performers of the Week (As Reported to MaxPreps)
Paul McCoy, Running Back, Matewan, W.V.
This is not a misprint. McCoy, a 5-9, 170-pound running back at Matewan High in West Virginia, carried 33 times for 537 yards and six touchdowns in a 48-43 win over Shelby Valley, Ky., Friday.
The senior team captain reached the end zone on runs of 60, 30, 13, 4, 73, and 93 yards. His 537 rushing yards is a state record, and would be the eighth-best single game performance of all time, according to the NFHS National High School Sports Record Book, if verified.
McCoy also recorded six tackles and returned a pair of kickoffs for 48 yards in the game.
Looking Ahead
The MaxPreps USA Football Tour heads to San Antonio, Texas this week for Dave Campbell's Texas Football Classic. Five games will be played over three days, including a big match-up between The Woodlands and Smithson Valley Saturday.
Here is the complete, five-game slate at The Alamodome this weekend.
San Antonio Madison vs. Seguin (Aug. 31)
Pflugerville Hendrickson vs. New Braunfels Canyon (Sept. 1)
The Woodlands vs. Smithson Valley (Sept. 2)
Austin Lake Travis vs. Texas City (Sept. 2)
McAllen Memorial vs. Victoria Memorial (Sept. 2)
In other action, Tulsa, Okla., will be the site of a battle between a pair of MaxPreps Preseason Top 25 teams as No. 21 Union High hosts No. 4 Hoover, Ala.
The game will be the debut of former Warren Central, Ind., head coach Kevin Wright at Union, while Hoover - the subject of MTV's "Two-A-Days" - looks to begin its quest for a sixth state title in the last seven years.
Bulletin Board Material
- South Panola head coach Ricky Woods to The Clarion-Ledger's Todd Kelly on a 95-yard punt return touchdown by junior Bud Barksdale, after breaking the "Golden Rule" of taking a punt inside his own 10-yard line:
"That's good coaching. I tell him to get back and he picks it up and runs 95 yards. He came down (by the sideline) and I said, `Good job, good job.'"
- Matewan, W.V., head coach Yogi Kinder to John Raby of the Associated Press on the record-breaking, 537-yard rushing performance by his running back, Paul McCoy:
"I've never seen nothing like that in my daggone life. That kid was all over the field."