Dillon football coach wins milestone game

Dorman looking to new QB; Small school knocks off larger rival; Wilds commits to Gamecocks.

Thumbnail image of this articles writer: Jason Gilmer
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Aug 25, 2010, 1:16am
It's hard for Jackie Hayes to go anywhere in Dillon, S.C. without being recognized.

He grew up there, played quarterback, graduated from Dillon in 1980 and took over as the head football coach in 1992. So he knows how important winning is in the small town.

"I know everyone in Dillon, you don't want to be in Dillon after you lose," he said.

That hasn't been a big issue for Hayes. With a 35-7 win over Cheraw on Friday, Hayes won his 200th game as the Wildcats' coach. Hayes said he hoped to be at the school long enough to reach that milestone, but it wasn’t something he thought about.

During his tenure, his team has never posted a record worse than 8-4 and that was in his first season there.

"I feel blessed to be able to do that," he said. “We got 200 in 18 years and one game. That's being consistent."

More top stories going into Week 1 of football action in South Carolina:

2. Dorman, the reigning 4A Division I state champions, are uncertain who will quarterback the squad on Friday at Gaffney.

Dorman’s incoming starter Nelson Hughes and second stringer Trey Robinson each suffered leg injuries in a recent scrimmage and cornerback-turned-quarterback Casey Cohen has been taking the snaps. Coach Dave Gutshall said that Cohen has played the position before, but had to learn it in one day to guide the team in a recent jamboree.

"What I've been impressed with is that he has really taken care of the football," Gutshall said. "He hasn't turned the ball over in two appearances. We have to create offense against Gaffney, we can't just hold on to it."

3. Strom Thurmond broke Williston-Elko's 14-game win streak on Friday, winning 7-0 over the reigning 1A Division II state champions.

The Rebels’ lone score came with 1:24 left in the second quarter when Antonion Hamilton caught a 2-yard pass from Raleigh Yeldell. Strom Thurmond's defense held the Blue Devils, who averaged 49.8 points per game last season (tops in 1A), to 109 total yards. It was the first time since Oct. 31, 2008, that Williston-Elko had been shut out.

"I didn't think we could (shut them out), to be honest," Strom Thurmond coach Lee Sawyer said. "In all seriousness, I would have never had an inkling that we could have shut them out. But we did."

4. The Bamberg-Ehrhardt Red Raiders won one for the little guys on Friday, as the 1A team knocked off 4A Orangeburg-Wilkinson 49-48 in overtime. According to the Orangeburg Times and Democrat, it was only the 15th time in state history and fifth since 1981 for a 1A school to beat a 4A school.

O'Keefe Jones scored on a one-yard run in overtime and Randon Sandifer kicked the game-winning extra point.
The Red Raiders, though, gave up a touchdown to the Bruins on their possession in the extra period. A pass on the two-point conversion was incomplete, which led to the historic win.

5. The Lewisville Lions were supposed to open the season last week, but their opener was pushed back following the death of running back Brian Colvin. Colvin collapsed during a jamboree on Aug. 13 and died at the hospital.

Because of the tragedy, the team’s game with York was postponed until Sept. 24. This week, the Lions host Chester at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.

Stars from last week:
Carolina Forest tailback Mark Timmons scored four touchdowns and set a school record with 203 rushing yards. Timmons carried 21 times to break Kenny Chestnut's mark of 197 rushing yards, a record set in 2001. … Bamberg-Ehrhardt's Demetrius Williams ran for 263 yards and two touchdowns in BE's 49-48 upset win over Orangeburg-Wilkinson. … Chester quarterback Tony McNeal threw for four scores and 283 yards in Chester's 35-21 win over Abbeville. … JoJo Brevard had 218 all purpose yards for the Camden Bulldogs in their 28-21 win over Spring Valley. Brevard scored twice, once on a 28-yard run and another on a 90-yard kickoff return. … Irmo running back Dawan Scott helped the Yellow Jackets to a 28-26 win over Dutch Fork as he ran for 212 yards and touchdowns runs of 1, 9, 1 and 71 yards. … Loris running back RJ Brown rushed for 236 yards on just 12 carries (yes, an average of 19.7 yards per carry) in a 36-3 win over St. James. He scored on an 89-yard run.

On deck this week:
Two of the biggest games of the week will happen on Saturday at Rock Hill's District 3 Stadium and will be broadcast on national TV. Here's a little about those contests and other big games in the state:

Byrnes (Duncan) vs. Hoover (Hoover, Ala.) — Two of the nation's top programs square off and it has the potential to be high-scoring. Hoover averaged 34.7 points last year, while Byrnes averaged 51.1. The Saturday noon game will be on ESPN.

South Pointe vs. Northwestern — These schools are six miles apart, have big-time prospects on each side and played each other for the state title in 2008. The 4 p.m. game on Saturday will be on ESPNU.

Dorman at Gaffney — The reigning 4A Division I state champions have a tough challenge to open the season. Gaffney won its opener last week and will outweigh the Cavaliers by a lot on the offensive front.

Recruiting news
Blythewood tailback Brandon Wilds won't be too far from home for college, as he announced his commitment to the South Carolina Gamecocks on Thursday. Blythewood is on the outskirts of Columbia. Wilds picked South Carolina over Illinois, Maryland and East Carolina.

Jason Gilmer is an award-winning writer who has covered football in South Carolina for more than a decade. He does a statewide high school football blog on GoUpstate.com. You can reach him at palmettofootballtalkblog@gmail.com.

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