2022 Bear Tracks Week 1

AAAAANNNNNNDDDD HEEEERRREEE WEEEEE GOOOO!!!

We have made it to Week 1 and could not be more excited. We have seen the Bears in action in the preseason but now the games start to count. We have laid out reasons to be excited for this season and this Bear team, but now it is time to channel all of that excitement as we look to the team to perform.

Now, let’s get ready for the Rams!

Week 1 Preview

Last season's matchup against Westside culminated in a last-second field goal converted by the Bears to give them one of their four wins of the season. Hopefully, this season's game ends with a Bear win, but maybe with a little more margin.

Westside finished last season with a 6-5 record but went undefeated in their region and was named region champs. Westside then matched up with Irmo in the first round of the playoffs and lost 42-20.

This season’s schedule gets even harder for Westside. They open their season with five non-region games in this order: BHP, T.L.Hanna, Abbeville, Mauldin, Greer, and Greenville. The pre-season SC Media poll had Hanna ranked as the #10 team in 5-A, Greenville #2 in 4-A, and Abbeville #2 in 2-A. It is hard to find another team that has a tougher non-conference slate than Westside. And with that, will the Rams be looking at the BHP game as a must-win, or will they be looking ahead at rival Hanna? No matter what, I would expect they will be looking at revenge for their last-second loss from last year.

There are two interesting aspects I feel need to be watched in this opening game for BHP. First, can the offense keep up the productions they have shown in the preseason? BHP has shown the ability to gain yards and score on explosive plays so far in the preseason. Can they keep that up against a defense like Westside who only allowed 18.4 points per game in region play last season?

Second, how will the defense hold up against the Rams? This preseason, the defense has had issues allowing explosive plays. Against Washington Wilkes, the only score was an 80-yard pass after a missed tackle and bad pursuit angles. Against York, BHP allowed four plays to go over 45 yards and all but one scored a touchdown. This will be a point of contention all season for the Bears.

This will be a great first test for this Bear team and a familiar Anderson County foe nonetheless. We cannot wait for this matchup.

2020 Game Stats

Score: BHP 23 -- Westside 20

BHP Yardage:

Team Rushing: 45 rushes for 211 yards and 2 TDs
Team Passing: 7/17/1 for 110 yards and 1 TD
Team Total: 62 plays for 321 yards and 3 TD

Rushing Leader: #8 Shaheem Robbs - 13 rushes for 71 yards
Passing Leader: #7 AJ Pendleton - 7/17/1 for 110 yards and 1 TD
Receiving Leaders: #15 Nevada Billups - 4 receptions for 88 yards and 1 TD
Defensive Leader: #24 Jamias Gleen - 4 solo, 1 hurry, 1 blocked kick, 1 fumble recovery, and 27 defensive points

Westside Team Yardage:

Team Rushing: 35 rushes for 211 yards and 1 TD
Team Passing: 13/23/1 for 183 yards and 1 TD
Team Total: 58 plays for 394 yards and 2 offensive TDs

Rushing Leader: #1 Dee Robertson - 17 rushes for 102 yards and 1 TD
Passing Leader: #17 Pete Zamora - 13/23/1 for 183 yards and 1 TD
Receiving Leaders: #15 Owen Skelton - 3 receptions for 53 yards

Quick Stats

• Under Coach Blackston, BHP is 33 - 12 against Anderson County teams and has never lost a Week 1 game against an Anderson County team.
• BHP is 19 - 14 against Westside all time and 12 - 5 since 2000 (the last loss to Westside was in 2015).
• BHP is 37-19 all-time in Week 1 games.
• In Week 1 games, BHP has averaged 19.8 points per game and allowed 11.4.
• While under Coach Blackston, BHP has averaged 30.4 points per game and allowed 11.6 in Week 1 games.
• The most BHP has scored in a Week 1 matchup was 55 points against Laurens in 2006.
• The most points BHP has allowed in a Week 1 matchup was 36 against Laurens in 2008.
• Since 2010, BHP is 11 - 1 in Week 1 games (only losing in 2012 against Laurens).
• This will be only the fifth Week 1 road game since 2010 for BHP.
• BHP is 17-10 all-time in Week 1 road games.
• BHP has scored 633 points all-time against Westside while Westside has scored 559 against BHP.
• BHP has played Westside the fifth most of any other team in BHP history.
• Coach Blackston is two wins away from 100 career wins.
• BHP’s returning players accounted for 80% of the team rushing yards from last season.

Conclusion

Bear fans should be excited for this season and this team. And that excitement starts this Friday at Westside. I hope the Bears play to their potential and show how special they can be. And football is back under the lights and let’s all get ready to “Bear Rumble”.

Prediction: BHP - 31 -- Westside - 24

Remember how the wise old saying goes, “You have to win the first one to win them all” and that is exactly what BHP will be playing for this Friday against Westside.

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Go Bears!