Saturday morning QB: Conway makes strong statement about its physicality

Honestly, it was more difficult to figure out who was more nervous — Conway kicker Will Smith or his father, city councilman and Tiger football play-by-play man Ashley?

Having to step away from his duties for a moment to be a father, the elder Smith let out a huge sigh of relief Friday night as his son’s 18-yard field goal sailed through the uprights. The kick delivered Conway a 51-48 triple overtime win over Carolina Forest, giving the Tigers a key Region VI-5A win.

It was a game chock full of twists and turns, momentum swings and tense moments. But maybe the biggest plot twist came as a result of the Conway offense, and its choosing to put an emphasis on the run rather than spreading things out with the pass.

Hearing all week about the Panthers’ offensive line and its ability to open holes for its running backs, the Conway coaches took the challenge personally.

“We like to punch teams in the mouth too!,” said Conway offensive line coaches throughout pre-game warmups.

The game plan certainly benefited the Tigers, who rushed for 182 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. Meanwhile, quarterback Peyton Derrick — accustomed the tossing the ball around the lot — had only 15 completions for 120 yards.

Conway head coach Chuck Jordan tried to downplay such motivational tactics, claiming the approach was by necessity.

“We just tried to put a game plan together together we thought could be successful,” Conway head coach Chuck Jordan said. “It had nothing to do with that. At the end of the day, we felt we could run the ball and we felt like that we needed to run it to be able to establish the pass a little better and protect our quarterback.”

Mission accomplished. And now, with two weeks remaining in the regular season, the Tigers have put themselves in a good position to sew up a playoff spot — and more importantly — a top-two finish in league play, which comes with the added perk of two home playoff games.

TICKETS PUNCHED: Unfortunately for St. James, its result was the one watched most among fans in Region VII-4A, a loss by the Sharks clinching a playoff berth for the other four members of the league. Of course, their opponent North Myrtle Beach has loftier pursuits. The Chiefs proved to be legit homecoming party crashers on Friday, limiting St. James to 48 total yards in a 64-0 shellacking.

While the North Myrtle Beach defense did its thing, its running game had a little fun as well, rushing for 384 yards in the contest.

With the win, the Chiefs moved to 8-1 overall, and 2-1 in league play.

What the Chiefs did on the ground, Myrtle Beach made happen through the air, as quarterback Lawson Cribb passed for 309 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-27 victory over Wilson. The Seahawks signal caller’s favorite target on the night was wideout Will Vereen, who caught nine passes for 176 yards.

Myrtle Beach remains undefeated at 8-0, and more importantly are 2-0 in Region VII-4A with two games left to play.

SETTING UP A SHOWDOWN: Continuing its recent roll, the Georgetown offense preyed upon Waccamaw Friday night, racking up 449 yards of offense en route to a 35-0 victory. The Bulldogs were particularly exceptional on the ground, rushing for 296 yards. Shammond Holmes was the chief contributor, his 134 yards on six carries and two touchdowns leading the team to a win over its Georgetown County rival. As a result, Georgetown clinched a playoff berth along with setting up quite the matchup next Friday night, when Lake City pays a visit to Georgetown with a top-two finish in Region VI-3A at stake.

GETTING THE JOB DONE: It hasn’t at all been the type year Loris football fans are accustomed to, but it will have a familiar destination. The Lions locked up playoff spot on Friday, escaping Aynor with a narrow 15-14 win. Following a Blue Jackets touchdown by Caleb Jenerette, their two-point conversion attempt and an opportunity to take the lead was unsuccessful, allowing Loris to pull out the victory.

LOST OPPORTUNITY: Carvers Bay came into Friday night’s game against Latta with an opportunity to sew up the Region VII-2A crown. Instead, the Vikings were able to extend their mastery over the Bears, claiming a third consecutive victory. As a result, it creates a three-way tie atop the league between Latta, Carvers Bay and Andrews, significantly enhancing the possibility of a tiebreaker being used to decide a champion.

ANOTHER NARROW MISS: Green Sea Floyds head coach Tony Sullivan has to wonder what it will take for his team to earn a statement win. Another opportunity fell just out of the grasp of the Trojans, falling 31-28 to Hannah-Pamplico. Despite rushing for 307 yards, Green Sea Floyds was unable to stop a potent Warriors offensive attack. Now, a promising season for the Trojans now hinges on their final two games against East Clarendon and Creek Bridge — two necessary, but winnable contests.

ROUGH GOING ON THE WARPATH: Nothing is earned easily at Sumter Memorial Stadium. Socastee learned that the hard way on Friday night, the Gamecocks running roughshod to a 37-0 victory. Putting up yards in bunches the previous week against South Florence, the Braves’ fortunes changed against an aggressive Sumter defense, earning less than 100 total yards of offense.

GAME BALLS

Lawson Cribb, Myrtle Beach: In his team’s first game back after a 28-day layoff, the Seahawks quarterback completed 17 of 38 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-27 win over Wilson.

Jakarius Davis, Carolina Forest: The Panthers defensive back had an interception and a blocked punt in his team’s 51-48 triple overtime loss to Conway.

Peyton Derrick, Conway: The Appalachian State commit proved there is more to him than a golden arm, rushing for 57 yards and five touchdowns in a 51-48 triple overtime win over Carolina Forest. He also completed 15 of 25 passes for 120 yards in the game.

Shammond Holmes, Georgetown: Stepping in for an injured Tony Lara, the Bulldogs running back had 134 yards on six carries and two touchdowns to help his team to a 35-0 win over Waccamaw.

Will Vereen, Myrtle Beach: The Grand Strand’s leading receiver did his best to live up to that, catching nine passes for 176 yards.

POWER RANKINGS

1. Myrtle Beach: Not playing for nearly a month did little to derail the Seahawks, who remain perfect on the season.

2. North Myrtle Beach: Clinching a playoff berth, the Chiefs did it with style by completely dismantling St. James.

3. Conway: The Tigers have put themselves in great position for a top-two finish in Region VI-5A after another epic triple overtime game.

4. Carolina Forest: Only six points separate the Panthers from an undefeated season – both losses coming to their two biggest rivals.

5. Georgetown: The Bulldogs bounced back in a big way, dominating rival Waccamaw to set up a big game against Lake City.

This story was originally published October 29, 2016 at 11:18 AM with the headline "Saturday morning QB: Conway makes strong statement about its physicality."