Best Upstate high school football sophomores for 2024 SCHSL season

With the South Carolina high school football season approaching the first day of practice on Aug. 2 and Week Zero regular-season games on Aug. 23, here is a look at some of the Upstate’s top sophomores in 2024. They are listed in alphabetical order.

CJ Brooks

Gaffney | 6-4, 325 | Offensive line

Brooks is one of the biggest offensive linemen in the state and also one of the lightest on his feet, protecting the edges out at tackle. Gaffney led Region 2-AAAAA in total points scored and won nine games.

PJ Chancellor

Daniel | 5-9, 145 | Athlete

Chancellor is already one of the best two-way players for Class AAA state champion Daniel (15-0). He had 32 catches for 340 yards and three touchdowns. He played in eight games on defense with eight solo tackles and a pick.

Aiden Gibson

Woodruff | 6-1, 200 | Running back

Gibson led Woodruff in rushing last season with 765 yards (4.8 per carry) and seven touchdowns with three games eclipsing the 100-yard mark. He was also the team’s third-leading receiver with 28 catches for 405 yards and three TDs.

UPSTATE JUNIORS TO WATCH: Greenville subscribers | Spartanburg | Anderson

Dennis Glenn Jr.

Boiling Springs | 6-1, 275 | Defensive line

Glenn made immediate impacts as a freshman, especially as a pass rusher. He had six tackles for loss, 14 quarterback hurries and 28 total tackles. Glenn was ranked by a recruiting site as the state’s No. 1 overall player for the 2027 class.

Angel Gomez

Wade Hampton | 5-10, 210 | Linebacker

Gomez led Wade Hampton with 60 tackles, including 36 solo stops, with three quarterback hurries and a sack. He will help hold things together on defense as the offense improves to makes the Generals competitive in Region 2-AAAA.

UPSTATE SENIORS TO WATCH: Greenville subscribers | Spartanburg | Anderson

Chanin Harris

Byrnes | 6-2, 165 | Wide receiver

Harris already has offers from Boston College, East Carolina and Georgia Southern. He’s one of the fastest players in the state, showing his speed by posting a 40-yard dash time of 4.41 seconds at the Carolinas Coaches Combine.

Sam Holliday

Fountain Inn | 5-11, 185 | Quarterback

Holliday is in his third season on varsity for a third-year program. The Fury improved from a winless debut season to go 3-7 in 2023. Holliday had 1,100 yards of total offense with eight touchdown passes and eight rushing.

Trenton Lynch

Spartanburg | 5-9, 185 | Running back

Lynch got more work last season than initially expected, but he responded by rushing for 828 yards (7.3 per carry) with five TDs. His emergence could allow Spartanburg to use other multi-talented running backs at a variety of positions.

Tre Segarra

Byrnes | 5-11, 195 | Running back

College offers: Segarra rushed for 1,115 yards (6.7) and 12 touchdowns as a freshman. He also had 23 catches for 278 yards and four TDs. Segarra already has offers from Coastal Carolina, Tennessee, Central Florida, Virginia Tech. He’s also a soccer standout and scored 20 goals last year.

Tajeh Watson

Belton-Honea Path | 5-10, 160 | Defensive back

Watson found immediate success at the varsity level for Class AAA Upper State runner-up Belton-Honea Path (13-1). He had seven interceptions, one returned for a touchdown, and another 14 pass breakups with 39 solo tackles.

Todd Shanesy is an award-winning senior writer who now covers high school athletics for the Greenville News, Spartanburg Herald-Journal and Anderson Independent Mail in the USA TODAY Network. Contact him by email at todd.shanesy@shj.com . Follow him on X, formerly called Twitter, at @ToddShanesySHJ .

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Best Upstate high school football sophomores for 2024 SCHSL season