With Week 1 officially in the books, let's take a look at the games that were played and how I did with my picks.
I rebounded well after a rough Week 0 by going 13-0 on my picks after a few games were canceled at the last minute.
Anderson at Southside Christian: I picked SS Christian to win 49-12 and they won 42-0. The Sabre defense continue to be lights out with two shutouts so far this season. In the 1A ranks, I don't know that there is a team in the state that can contend with Southside Christian.
St. Joseph's at Buford: I picked St. Joseph's to win 35-27 and they won 56-21. The Knights have an electric offense and a stout defense to compliment it. I am interested to see if this continues when region play gets here for the Knights. Very good start so far for St. Joseph's.
Chesnee at Broome: I picked Broome to win 35-28 and they won 48-41. Once again, Chesnee battled for the 2nd week in a row but fell just a little short. Hats off to the Eagles for battling tough, but the Centurion offense was too much to handle. Dylan Ramirez, QB for Broome, proved once again that he is one of the top QB's in the area. I really like this Broome offense and I think they are built to score alot week in and week out.
Woodruff at Hillcrest: I picked Hillcrest to win this one 30-28 over Woodruff and Hillcrest won 41-24 in a game that was not as close as I expected it to be. Woodruff is a very good team in the 3A ranks, but struggled against the 5A Rams. It was a big night on the ground for Logan Coldren & the Ram's offense. Both of these team are talented and will be competitive in region play.
Riverside at J.L. Mann: I picked Riverside to win 35-20 and they won 14-7. It was a defensive battle but the Warriors are 2-0 and I really can't believe I just typed that. Riverside has shown through 2 weeks that they are well coached & the Warriors also have some weapons on offense.
Eastside at Pickens: I picked Pickens to win 21-14 over Eastside and they won 23-0. Eastside has had some struggles this season and Pickens took advantage with a big win to get to 1-0 on the year. I saw Pickens in the pre-season 7 on 7 and the Flame have talent, especially on the offensive side of the football.
Greenville at Wade Hampton: I picked Greenville to win 38-10 and they won 70-7. The Red Raiders had the machine well oiled and rolled on Friday. This Red Raider team is so talented on both sides of the football. After a bad taste in their mouths from not making the post-season last year, I think the Red Raiders are on a mission in 2021.
Spartanburg at Mauldin: I picked Mauldin to win 24-21 over Spartanburg and they won 14-9. Fulmer got the start for the Vikings (as reported last week) but Jeter did come in the game a few drives later but the Vikings were unable to get the offense going. The Viking defense was incredible on Friday as was the Maverick defense. Spartanburg needs Jeter to get back to 100% in order for this offense to perform like they expect it to & according to Coach Ramsey (Spartanburg), Jeter will be back at 100% for Friday's game. Going into Week 0, the report of Jeter being out 2-4 weeks as the starter did turn out to be correct as he was not fully healthy on Friday at Mauldin.
Wren at TL Hanna: I picked TL Hanna to win 34-17 over Wren and they won 27-16. This was one of the more competitive games of the night and Wren bounced back well after losing badly to Dutch Fork last week, but could not hold off the ground attack of the Jackets.
Christ Church at Landrum: I picked Christ Church to defeat Landrum 38-28 & they won 36-14. Landrum had a really tough opener after not having much preseason and practice coming into the season. Christ Church is a good football team & Landrum is as well, but the Cardinals just need reps and I think they will improve as the season continues.
Byrnes at Chapman: I picked Byrnes to win 50-35 over Chapman & they won 37-27. I was off by 5 points on this pick. This was the absolute best game of the week and one of the best I have ever watched. Chapman led the majority of the game, but at the end, Byrnes took the lead and held on. These are two of the best teams in the state, no doubt. For Chapman, Settle & DJ Black were great and on the Byrnes side, Rogers was terrific as well as Mack Long, Imhoff, Morris, & Thomas Gregory. These two teams will both have fantastic seasons, in my opinion.
Boiling Springs at Dorman: I picked Dorman to win 28-14 and they won 33-0. Dorman still has yet to go with one QB, but all 3 performed well on Friday. Boiling Springs struggled to get the offense going as the Cavalier defense was amazing. Boiling Springs is young, but will improve as the season goes on.
Summerville at Gaffney: I picked Gaffney 38-20 and they won 35-7. Loftis & the Indian offense was terrific while Summerville struggled on offense. Gaffney starts 2-0 on the season and I have been impressed with the new QB Loftis in the first 2 starts.
Southside at Woodmont: I picked Woodmont to win 45-14 and they won 14-9. I was way off on the amount of points scored here but Woodmont was still able to get the win. Southside is still trying to figure things out with a first year head coach.
For more scores, predictions, and high school football news, stay tuned all week long at ESPNUpstate.com.