Rock Hill, South Pointe rivalry tops tri-county high school football Week 1 matchups

Six Rock Hill-area schools head into Week 1 with a perfect 1-0 record. Unfortunately, at least one of them will have their football record tarnished.

Powerhouse Andrew Jackson plays its season opener this week.

The remaining Rock Hill-area teams dropped their Week 0 season openers and are looking to get in the win column this week to avoid starting the season.

All games start at 7:30 p.m. Friday unless noted otherwise. The rankings are based on the latest prep media poll released on Tuesday.

The Herald’s Game of the Week: No. 6-4A South Pointe (0-1) at Rock Hill (0-1)

South Pointe lost its season opener on a last-minute field goal to Spartanburg, while a turnover-heavy performance caused Rock Hill to drop its Week 0 matchup against River Bluff. Heading into the first of three games to determine the Rock Hill city championship, both head coaches expect their teams to play better showing in Week 1.

“It’s a big crosstown rivalry,” South Pointe head coach Bobby Collins said. “This is what people paid to see. We’re in Football City, USA. You got a first-year head coach (at Rock Hill), a Florida State commit in Malik Clark, another young player Kaiden Watkins over there with multiple Division I offers, so it’s going to be a good football game. It’s been a hot week of practice. Both teams have been able to get out there and compete all week long in practice, so what we have to do is put it all together and enjoy some Friday night football.”

“Big time rivalry game,” Rock Hill head coach Randy Birch said. “Excited to be a part of it. Everybody says that your best improvements will be from (your first game to your second game). Both of us are coming off losses. We both had some turnovers and several penalties that ended up hurting us. Special teams hurt both teams last week in our losses. We’ll see which team makes the biggest improvement from (the first game to the second game), and I’m just excited to be a part of it.”

South Pointe quarterback J’Zavien Currence scored four touchdowns in his debut last week. Rock Hill played quarterbacks Ian Grissom and Kason Canupp in last week’s loss; Grisson threw for 137 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions while Canupp threw for 232 yards with a touchdown and a pair of picks to go along with 79 yards rushing.

No. 3-5A Northwestern (1-0) at Ridge View (1-0)

Northwestern beat Hough (N.C.) 45-44 in a Week 0 showdown in Charlotte, the Trojans scoring the final 21 points in the contest to do so. Quarterback Finley Polk accounted for five touchdowns in that win.

This week, Northwestern heads to Columbia to take on a Ridge View team coming off a 42-18 win over Fairfield Central. These two teams used to be region foes, with a 52-22 Northwestern victory in 2021 being the latest result.

No. 3-2A Chester (0-1) at Fort Mill (1-0)

Chester suffered a 23-20 season-opening loss to Lancaster and will look to bounce back against a Fort Mill team rolling after a 56-point shutout of Ballantyne Ridge. These two programs have met five times in the past six seasons, with Chester winning all five of those games. Cyclones starting quarterback Trooper Floyd suffered an injury that kept him from finishing last week’s contest, and head coach Victor Floyd said there’s “no chance” that Trooper plays against Fort Mill.

Sophomore Jackson Wilburn subbed in for Chester following Floyd’s injury in the loss to Lancaster.

Nation Ford (0-1) at York (0-1)

Nation Ford is looking to bounce back following a 44-6 loss to Blythewood to open the season, while York suffered a narrow 22-20 defeat to Indian Land. These two schools have played each other each of the previous two seasons, with the Cougars victorious in both games. York is looking to avoid its first 0-2 start to a season since 2019, while Nation Ford is looking for its first win against York since 2016. York quarterback Tayshon Freeman threw for 234 yards and two touchdowns in last week’s loss.

Catawba Ridge (0-1) at East Gaston (N.C.) (0-1)

Catawba Ridge dropped its season-opener 47-37 to Chapin and will look to bounce back as the Copperheads travel to Mt. Holly to face a East Gaston team moving on from a 24-7 loss to North Gaston.

Despite the loss, Catawba Ridge managed to find success in the passing game, with senior quarterback CJ Couch and junior Will Griggs combining for 450 yards and four touchdowns through the air. This is the first season since 2020 the Copperheads will not play multiple games against teams from North Carolina.

Clover (1-0) at Hillcrest (1-0)

Clover beat Chambers 28-20 in Week 0 to avoid a repeat last year’s season-opening loss. Now, the Blue Eagles head on the road to take on Hillcrest following its 16-point shutout of Laurens.

These two schools have met each of the past two seasons, with the Rams being victorious in both of those contests.

Clover running back Landon Stone ran for 168 yards and a pair of touchdowns in last week’s victory.

Lancaster (1-0) at Indian Land (1-0)

Lancaster and Indian Land are both coming off narrow victories to open the season. Now these two Lancaster County rivals meet for the ninth consecutive season. Indian Land has won each of the previous five meetings after Lancaster won the first three games. Lancaster quarterback R.J. Brown and Indian Land QB Sequel Patterson each scored a pair of touchdowns in their team’s Week 0 victories.

Bluffton (1-0) at No. 7-2A Andrew Jackson (0-0)

Andrew Jackson opens its season in Week 1, hosting a Bluffton team that just beat Whale Branch 57-0 in Week 0.

It’s a new era for the Volunteers following the graduations of quarterback Brady Williams (1,967 yards passing, 23 touchdowns), running back Trey Thompson (2,107 yards rushing, 24 touchdowns) and receiver Isaac Blackmon (605 yards receiving, nine touchdowns). Head coach Jeremy Smith’s second year will lean on senior quarterback Dallas Vick and receiver Jy’Kevius Johnson as Andrew Jackson aims for a third-straight undefeated region championship.

No. 2-1A Bamberg-Ehrhardt (1-0) at Buford (1-0)

Buford beat South Carolina Spartans 27-0 to match last season’s win total. The Yellow Jackets have another home contest for Week 1, this one against a Bamberg-Ehrhardt team coming off a 41-10 victory over Edisto.

Junior quarterback Noah Crump had 203 yards passing and rushing with two touchdowns in Buford’s season-opening win, while junior Cole Carnes had two interceptions.

Great Falls (0-1) at Chesterfield (1-0)

Great Falls suffered a 56-14 season-opening loss to North Central last week and goes on the road again this week. The Red Devils will take on Chesterfield, which beat Johnsonville 34-6 last week. Great Falls starting quarterback Tremaine Caldwell left last week’s loss in the first half with an injury and did not return. No word yet on whether he will be available for Friday night’s contest.

No. 3-1A Lewisville (1-0) at No. 6-1A Hunter-Kinard-Tyler (1-0)

Lewisville beat Central 20-0 last Thursday at Buford High School and the Lions head on the road this week to take on Hunter-Kinard-Tyler in a showdown between top-10 Class A programs. This is the third meeting overall — and the first in the regular season — between these two programs in the last 20 seasons.

Lewisville won the latest contest 51-8 in the first round of the 2022 playoffs. Zac Rogers threw two touchdowns and ran for another score in Lewisville’s season-opening victory.