Football Recap: Bandys Starts Season with Win Against St. Stephens

Bandys gave their fans exactly what they wanted out of a home opener on Friday. They enjoyed a cozy 38-19 victory over the St. Stephens Indians. The Trojans haven't had any issues with the Indians recently, as the game was their third consecutive win against them.

Tanner Stewart

Rushing Touchdowns (Career)

08/22/25 vs St. Stephens	4
11/09/24 @ East Burke	2
10/25/24 vs West Caldwell	2
10/18/24 @ Newton-Conover	2
09/12/24 @ South Caldwell	2

Tanner Stewart was nothing short of spectacular: he rushed for 94 yards and four scores. Those four rushing touchdowns gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Brady Swett, who threw for 221 yards and one TD while completing 75% of his passes.

Bandys didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off four passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Kayden Henrickson and Ryder McClure.

Bandys and St. Stephens could both be facing uphill battles in their next games considering their disadvantage in the MaxPreps North Carolina Rankings. The Trojans will challenge Kings Mountain at 7:30 p.m. on September 5 with a big rank disadvantage (131 vs. 23). Meanwhile, St. Stephens (ranked 256th) will meet Bunker Hill (ranked 61st) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.