Georgetown football coach Adams finalist for Hilton Head job

Bradley Adams’ relative success in his brief time as the Georgetown football coach has been well-documented.

The Bulldogs were 5-5 in his first season and improved to 7-4 with a third-place region finish and playoff berth in 2011.

That notoriety, though, has pushed Adams’ name to the front of another coaching job. He is one of three finalists for the position at Hilton Head, the Island Packet newspaper reported over the weekend.

Adams, who has known Hilton Head Athletics Director Mark Karen for some time, was asked to apply for the job. Out of the 140 applications, Adams was selected as a finalist almost immediately.

When contacted Monday, the Georgetown coach wanted to make it clear he has not applied for any other jobs, and doesn’t want to be seen as a job-hopper.

“I’m a humble guy. I’m just humbled by the opportunity that people gave me the chance,” Adams said. “I think we could be doing better [at Georgetown], but to some, it looks like we’re a step better than where we are. Sometimes, opportunities come your way.”

The Island Packet cited Karen saying a hire was imminent. However, Adams sounded just as committed to Georgetown as the day he originally took the job nearly two years ago.

“Georgetown is a place where we can win championships,” Adams said. “We’ve got very hard-working kids. We think that we can win championships here.”

The Bulldogs were 3-0 in region play last season before losing to Myrtle Beach and Wilson in the final two games. The loss to Wilson prevented Adams and Co. from finishing second in the region and getting a home playoff game. Still, there’s plenty of reason to be optimistic. The coaching staff has produced a better product on the field the last two years and attendance for the cash-strapped school is up slightly.

St. James baseball to be honored

The “whirlwind” of St. James’ 2011 Class AAA baseball title continues Tuesday, when coach Robbie Centracchio’s team will be honored by the S.C. House and Senate for its championship run.

Centracchio will take his seven returning players from last year’s team, as well as college freshman Hugh Benton. Former player Tanner English, who is a freshman at the University of South Carolina, is also expected to meet the team for the ceremony.

“I think the whole whirlwind thing about it, there’s been so many different events, from the ring ceremony to the Christmas parade,” Centracchio said Monday. “It’s funny, the guys were talking. It’s a good motivating tool, too, just to get back there again. It’s something that so few people get to see.”

After the event, the team will be taking a tour of the Gamecocks’ baseball facilities.

Region VIII-AAA cluster

With six games to determine which four Region VIII-AAA boys basketball teams make the playoffs, there’s still no telling what will happen.

“I think all the region coaches will agree. Wilson is at the top of the line,” Socastee coach Tommy Johnson said. “And I really don’t think [there’s] two cents difference between the rest of us. … I have all ideas that it will go down to the last day of the region schedule. [Even then], it may not be settled. We may have to have a play-in game and a tiebreaker there.”

Wilson is 4-0 in region play. After that, St. James is 3-1, Socastee and Myrtle Beach are 2-2, North Myrtle Beach is 1-3 and Georgetown is 0-4.

On Friday, the rest of the field was shaken up some when Socastee knocked off St. James. Even Georgetown, which has yet to win a region game, shouldn’t be counted out. The Bulldogs have lost their conference games by a combined total of less than 20 points.

Tuesday night’s games, then, certainly won’t settle much.

Myrtle Beach heads to Georgetown, while Wilson is at St. James and Socastee is at North Myrtle Beach. And, as Johnson said, the fact that all six teams are in the mix makes the race that much better.

“It gives you an added incentive to practice harder every day, to play harder every Tuesday and Friday,” Johnson said. “There’s a sense of what you’re playing for. There are six games left, and all six count the same amount.”

CBCA Rankings/Fab Five

Heading into Tuesday’s prep basketball games, the Coastal Basketball Coaches Association shows just how close the majority of the schools in the area – regardless of class – really are.

Socastee (10-6) comes in at No. 1 this week, with Georgetown (9-7) No. 2. Myrtle Beach, Carvers Bay and Carolina Forest round out the top five.

Individually, Dashaun Aiken (Carvers Bay), Robert Gray (Carolina Forest), Travis Frye (Socastee), Tramond Wilson (Myrtle Beach) and Dejan Frasier (Waccamaw) were named to the CBCA’s Fabulous Five list for games played last week.

Preseason baseball rankings

The South Carolina Baseball Coaches Association released its preseason state rankings Monday, and two Class AAAA teams were in the top five.

Carolina Forest and Conway, which both return plenty of talent after playoff berths last year, are ranked No. 2 and No. 4, respectively. The only surprise was the lack of St. James.

The Sharks won the Class AAA title, but lost nine seniors to graduation. Seven of those players are now in various college ranks.

Monday marks the first day South Carolina high school Spring teams can practice. The first day of games and meets for spring sports is March 5, with the one exception being a Feb. 20 start date for lacrosse.