Some people say 100 is just a number, but for a community like Belton and Honea Path, a school like BHP, and for all the players that have played under Coach Blackston, those wins mean much more.
To start we want to say a huge congratulations to Coach Blackston for what he has formed BHP into over the last 12 years. We are proud of the team and programs he has created. And now to top it off, he is the only BHP Head Football Coach to win 100 games. Once again, Congratulations Coach Blackson!
With the thought of the milestone lingering, BHP dominated from start to finish so they could put an exclamation mark on this win for Coach Blackston. From the nearly perfect first drive of the game to the outstanding defensive play to outright domination, BHP made a statement (as much as one can make in week 2) with the win.
I know he recognizes the achievement by playing for and being around Coach Blackston, but he also can see there is more ahead. And as he always says, “The best is yet to come”, and we believe it.
Week 3 Preview
BHP will be traveling to Spartanburg County this week to take on the Woodruff Wolverines. Woodruff comes into the matchup with a 2-1 record. Woodruff started the season with a 13-7 overtime win over Chapman and a 31-0 win over Fountain Inn. Last week they traveled to JL Mann and got their first loss of the season 21-3.
BHP will need to continue their success on defense. BHP has only given up three offensive touchdowns this season, but the most impressive aspect of this defense is how they get better as the game goes along. Against Laurens the feeling of this defense was of a snake, they just keep pressuring and attacking and in the end, Laurens did not have any answers for this defense.
BHP is coming off a very impressive win, but we should all know that there are much more talented teams waiting for the Bears. However, with the balance between the offense and defense, the emergence of the passing attack, and the return of the most explosive player in 3A, BHP has the ability to make a deep run in the playoffs. But, we are just two games into the season and nothing of substance has been won after two games.
With that, we hope to see Marquise Henderson back running the ball this Friday night, AJ Pendleton passing as he has shown that he can, and this defense suffocating the Wolverines.
2021 Game Stats (Last Matchup)
Score: BHP 29 -- Woodruff 21
BHP Yardage:
Team Rushing: 54 rushes for 244 yards and 3 TD
Team Passing: 6/14/0 for 88 yards
Team Total: 68 plays for 332 yards and 3 offensive TD
Rushing Leader: #7 AJ Pendleton - 17 rushes for 121 yards and 1 TD
Passing Leader: #7 AJ Pendleton - 6/14/0 for 88 yards
Receiving Leader: #4 Eli Strickland - 4 receptions for 68 yards
Defensive Leader: #24 Jamias Glenn - 7 first hits, 1 fumble recovery, and 1 defensive TD
Woodruff Team Yardage:
Team Rushing: 22 rushes for 52 yards
Team Passing:14/21/2 for 135 yards and 3 TDs
Team Total: 43 plays for 187 yards and 3 TDs
Rushing Leader: #9 Damarian Elmore - 11 rushes for 44 yards
Passing Leader: #17 Kory Scott - 6/9/1 for 59 yards and 2 TDs
Receiving Leader: #2 Nitavis Goggins - 4 receptions for 61 yards and 1 TD
Quick Stats
- BHP is 4-12 all-time against Woodruff.
- This matchup against Woodruff is only the 3rd time these teams have met since 1985, BHP has won the other two games.
- There are only 8 teams that BHP has played 5 or more times that they have a losing record against all time. Woodruff is one of the 8.
- BHP is averaging 7.4 yards per play this season, which is up from 5.7 yards per play last season.
- The 5 rushing TDs against Laurens were the 18th game since 2014 that BHP rushed for 5 or more TDs.
- The 5 team sacks by BHP against Laurens was only the 3rd time since 2018 that BHP had 5 or more sacks in a game.
- BHP has not allowed a point in the 3rd quarter this season.
- BHP has 9 rushes for over 20 yards and has given up no rushes over 20 yards.
- BHP is averaging 8.5 yards per play on 2nd downs this season.
- BHP has only allowed 3 offensive TDs this season.
- Of the 4 rushers with 10 or more rushes, 3 average over 7 yards per carry.
Coach Blackston Quick Stats
- Career record 100-39 (71.9% winning percentage).
- Has won 3 region championships.
- Coached the 2010 undefeated regular season team.
- Has had four 3rd round playoff appearances.
- Has made a playoff appearance every year except 2020 (covid shorten season).
- Has averaged 34.5 points per game and allowed 20.2 points per game over his career.
- BHP has scored 4806 total points under Coach Blackson while allowing 2820.
- Has coached against 33 different teams, and of the 33 different teams, he has never lost to 15 of them.
- Only has multiple losses to 7 teams, and a losing record against only 4 teams.
- Removing the 2 covid seasons, under Coach Blackston BHP has averaged 9.1 wins and 2.9 losses per season with the equivalent of averaging a second-round playoff appearance.
Conclusion
This is going to be a great test of resolve for BHP. How can the Bears respond to everyone praising them? Will they just expect to win, or will they come out and play up to their abilities and show how special they are? I, for one, am excited to see them back on the field.
Prediction: BHP 38 - Woodruff 17
Make sure to stay up to date and get notified when our posts are out by following us on Facebook and Twitter.
Go Bears!
Sponsored By: Tubbard Development
An online first impression is more important today than ever, but working with a designer and developer can seem daunting. Tubbard Development takes that stress out of the process and they can give you a top tier online first impression. We are proud to have them as our sponsor.
Learn More
Comments