‘On the fly’: Seahawks’ new starting QB finds success in opening win over Darlington
In Ryan Burger’s first regular-season start at quarterback, things didn’t necessarily go as planned.
They went better than he could have expected in a 69-0 romp over region foe Darlington.
The junior, who started four playoff games last season for the No. 1 ranked Seahawks (1-0, 1-0 Region VI-4A) came out of the gates a bit frazzled by his own admission, but settled in to help Myrtle Beach sprint past Darlington.
“I didn’t start the game well and didn’t put my team on the right track early on,” he said following the season opening victory. “We have really good receivers, running backs and a great offensive line – so I have to do my part and not slow us down.”
Slow down the Seahawks he did not, as Burger threw five touchdown passes to three different receivers before sitting out much of the second half. He may have started shaky, but his coach, Mickey Wilson, was pleased with the effort.
“Ryan is still a young quarterback trying to get experience on the fly,” Wilson said. “You could tell he was a bit nervous early on, but once he settled in you saw how he can lead and what this offense can look like (when it clicks). We’ve got a lot to do to get better, but as a coach you will take a game where you play well on offense, defense, and special teams.”
From the opening kickoff, Myrtle Beach took control of the trenches, running 13 plays and more than five minutes off the clock to go down for an opening score. They would hold Darlington down on its first drive, then hit back-to-back-to-back-to-back-to-back scoring drives ending in Burger touchdowns. That’s five consecutive drives, with a pair of scoring strikes going to J.J. Jones, two going to Adam Randall, and one finding Raykwon Williams. A Rhino-package score by Cam Ward would put the Seahawks up 48-0 at halftime, earning the starting offense an early rest.
“Region games are always tough and starting the season with a team like Darlington was a challenge for us,” Burger said. “We saw some things on film that we thought they were going to do and they showed some different looks, so we had to make some adjustments on the fly. Thankfully, our defense put us in some really good spots with short fields and made our job a little bit easier.”
For the game, Darlington finished with under 50 yards rushing and turned the ball over three times. In addition to turnovers, Myrtle Beach blocked or tipped two punts and got incredible pressure on a handful of others.
Burger finished the game 8-15 passing for 175 yards and five touchdowns, with another 26 yards rushing. His favorite targets, Randall and Jones, combined for 161 yards and four scores.
In a region where three teams are ranked in the SC Prep Media Poll, with Myrtle Beach taking the top spot, Hartsville coming in at third, and North Myrtle Beach at ninth; and two new members of the region come from the Class 5A ranks last year, a region win is a big deal.
“We stressed it to our guys all week in practice,” Wilson said. “This isn’t a normal opening season game where we’re playing a team from a different classification and the result doesn’t affect our playoff seeding. We had to come out focused from the opening game and be ready to play. I’m pleased with the effort our guys showed tonight and now we have to get ready for a good Georgetown team next week.”
DAR – 0 0 0 0 – 0
MB – 13 35 7 14 – 69
Scoring Summary
First Quarter
MB – Andrew Doss 2-yard run (Sullivan Hardin kick no good) 7:07
MB – Ryan Burger 32-yard pass to JJ Jones (Hardin kick) 1:49
Second Quarter
MB – Burger 60-yard pass to Adam Randall (Hardin kick) 10:25
MB – Burger 11-yard pass to Raykwon Williams (Hardin kick) 2:30
MB – Burger 18-yard pass to Jones (Hardin kick) 6:53
MB – Burger 30-yard pass to Randall (Hardin kick) 3:43
MB – Cam Ward 4-yard run (Hardin kick) 00:42
Third Quarter
MB – Ward 8-yard run (Hardin kick) 6:09
Fourth Quarter
MB – Andrew Doss 18-yard run (Hardin kick) 11:06
MB – Robert Amodio 41-yard pass to Williams (Hardin kick) 7:31
Statistical Leaders
Passing
DAR – Deuce Hudson 17-35-228-0-0
MB – Ryan Burger 8-15-175-5-0
Rushing
DAR – Brian Robinson 7-33
MB – Andrew Doss 11-74 2TDs
Receiving
DAR – Daedae Bowens 3-79
MB – Adam Randall 3-106 2TDs
Interceptions
DAR – None
MB – Trey Baker 1-8