Blackville-Hilda football returns talent, experience for Class A title chase

Blackville-Hilda's football team enjoyed a breakout season in 2022, winning 10 games and giving itself a chance at the Region 3-A title.

Head coach Kevin Jones knows his Fighting Hawks may have snuck up some opponents last year, but that won't be the case this time around.

Just ask Ninety Six coach Matthew Bennett. He agreed to a non-region game this year against Blackville-Hilda over offers from larger schools like Chapman and Gilbert, then texted his staff to let them know the good news.

Then came a knock on his door within 30 minutes from his bewildered defensive coordinator.

"Did you even look at their film?," Jones said the assistant asked, as Bennett told him during a recent coaches' clinic. "... Dude, they're good. They've got dudes."

The secret is out about the Hawks, who will be considered among the favorites to win the state championship in the new-look Class A.

It's a team with a ton of returning talent, led by a dozen seniors who know what's at stake this year - they know they have to work harder, which is why after a highly-successful spring track season nearly half of the roster didn't miss a single summer workout.

"I think the big thing, especially for that older group of juniors and seniors that played a lot of football last year and maybe in previous years, it's helping these guys understand that you can't just show up on Friday night and roll your helmet out there and expect to win," Jones said. "We have an incredibly tough schedule. We struggled to find some 1A schools to play us out of region, so we had to schedule up a good bit. I think that helps with the offseason workouts, when you know that your non-region schedule is as tough as ours is going to be. I think that adds a little bit to that mindset and preparation. We can't wait around until Week 3 or 4 to figure these things out. We've got to work hard all summer, and they've done so."

Everything starts with running back/linebacker Jaquel Holman, who rushed for 1,610 yards and 26 touchdowns on only 153 carries last season while also making 76 total tackles to lead the defense. One of the top-ranked recruits in the state, Holman recently committed to the University of South Carolina.

Wide receiver/defensive back Namair Anderson is also getting some Division 1 attention, and quarterback Samari Williams is back for year four running the offense.

They're all speedsters and have college camp-verified times to prove it - Holman was clocked at 4.4 seconds in the 40-yard dash, Anderson at 4.53, Williams at 4.55, Williston-Elko transfer Jamarien Kirkland at 4.6 and Messiah McFadden at 4.58.

They're big at receiver and running back, but they still know games are won up front.

"Our offensive line is like the land of the honey badgers," Jones said with a laugh. "These are small cats, man. I think when we look at our offensive line across the front, it goes from 6-1, 250, down to 5-6, 235, 5-6, 230, 5-6, 200 and then 5-9, 200. But they're all incredibly strong. They work really hard in the weight room. We do some things in our scheme offensively to take advantage of the fact that, while we're not very big, we can pull very well. They play, not to sound bad, they play with a nasty streak. They are not intimidated by size."

The defensive line will have more depth than in recent years, which is key because it will give the Hawks opportunities to rotate players on the defensive line to keep their top offensive linemen fresh. Their three losses last year were due to offensive misfires, so they're hopeful this added depth will help in that regard.

The defense gets to the ball in a hurry and gang tackles, playing that trademark brand of physical Blackville-Hilda football. Timothy Beard and Jabarius Johnson are among the team's biggest hitters on a group that knows who's going to be where anytime the ball is in play.

The non-region schedule is full of tests, starting with the opener against a county rival in Barnwell that they beat last year. Edisto and Ninety Six are also Class AA opponents, and Silver Bluff is a new Class AAA member. Former region opponent Denmark-Olar fit in the same spot on the schedule, leading up to the Region 3-A grind.