Ridaught: Class 1R-Region 4 football is loaded, again

Williston's Ryan Donald (12), Jamari Williams (22) and Charles Howard (5) bring down Newberry's Amarion Cason (10) on Friday. (1)
Williston's Ryan Donald (12), Jamari Williams (22) and Charles Howard (5) bring down Newberry's Amarion Cason (10) on Friday. The visiting Red Devils scored with 47 seconds to play to stay unbeaten.
Photo by C.J. Gish

This past Friday night the Newberry football team almost found a way to knock off top-ranked Williston.

The Red Devils (7-0) scored on a trick play with 47 seconds left to stun the Panthers, 24-22, to stay unbeaten.

Williston finished the game with 294 yards on the ground, led by junior Jamari Williams with 160 yards on 10 carries.

Newberry finished with 457 total yards, including 157 yards rushing on 21 carries by sophomore running back Kaleb Woods, and 242 yards passing by sophomore quarterback Keil McGriff.

Williston football head coach Robby Pruitt
Photo by Megan Winslow Robby Pruitt

“They’re (Newberry) a dangerous team,” said Williston coach Robby Pruitt, who is trying to win another football state title. “That quarterback, and they’ve got three really good wideouts. I’m telling you, they’re talented. I know Hawthorne beat them but they’re a lot better. They’ve got people in different positions and they’re better than they were at that point in the year.”

Heading into the game, Williston, Hawthorne (6-0) and Newberry were the top three Class 1R teams, respectively, in the FHSAA football rankings, which are released every Tuesday.

Hawthorne defeated Newberry, 40-10, on the road on Sept. 1, so the Panthers’ (4-2) only losses have come against the top two teams in their region.

“I think they’re the two best teams in 1R, definitely,” said Newberry coach Ed Johnson. “We’re a really good team but we’re not there yet so I think it’s motivation, something for us to learn from. If you want to be a state champion you’re going to have to beat teams like Hawthorne and Williston.”

Defense is once again setting the tone for the defending state champion Hornets, who are only allowing 9.8 points per game.

“Defensively, we have been flying around and playing physical, Hawthorne football,” said Hawthorne defensive coordinator Dustin Adkins. “It is always easy to go back and watch film and nitpick the little details, which we do on a weekly basis, but it is fun to watch 11 kids out there playing for one another and not worrying about individual stats and accomplishments.”

Stats-wise, North Marion (Citra) transfer Andrew Zock, a Navy commit, leads the team with 69 tackles. The senior is one of five players who have three or more sacks.

“When we play as a unit, line up correctly and understand our assignments for the week, I think we have one of the best defenses in the state, regardless of classifications,” Adkins said.

There are several teams in Class 1R-Region 4 who are capable of winning a football state title this year, including Pahokee.

Despite a 4-3 record, the Blue Devils’ three losses have been to higher classification teams who are either ranked or receiving votes in last week’s state rankings – Class 4M Santaluces (Lantana), 4M Palm Beach Central (Wellington), and a 2-point loss last week at Atlantic (Delray Beach), which is ranked No. 8 in Class 3M.

“Last year the two best teams in the state were in our region, Pahokee and Hawthorne, but they (Pahokee) got beat early,” Pruitt said.

In 2022, Hawthorne edged Pahokee, 21-20, in the 1R-Region 4 Final, which paved the way to its first state title in program history.

“I wish they would do like they do in Georgia,” Pruitt said. “In Georgia, you’re in a district and they put you in different quadrants so you don’t play (each other).”

In 2017, Pruitt’s Coffee (Douglas, GA) team played in the state championship against Lee County, which is in the same AAAAAA-Region 1 division but the teams were put in opposite sides of the bracket.

Dixie County (Cross City) rallied past Chiefland, 19-18, last Friday. The Bears (5-1), winners of five in a row, and the Indians (3-4) give the region two formidable teams you can’t look past in the postseason.

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Ed Johnson
Photo by Tim Rodriquez Ed Johnson

The top six teams in the region will receive a berth to the playoffs, which begins on Friday, Nov. 10. The top two teams in Region 4 will receive a first-round bye.

The Hornets (6-0), who have appeared in three straight state title games, will host Union County (Lake Butler) this Friday in a rematch of last year’s instant classic, which Hawthorne won in the final seconds.

The visiting Tigers, who are in 1R-Region 3, are 3-2 with both losses coming against unbeaten teams Walton (DeFuniak Springs), which was ranked No. 9 in last week’s 2S rankings, and 1M Orlando Christian Prep, by a combined five points.

“We’ve had two losses against two very good teams, go two overtimes on the road versus a larger school that’s undefeated and a one-point loss at home,” said Union County coach Andrew Thomas. “Both games we felt we gave away with some mistakes throughout the games, so easily we could be undefeated, but we’ve tried to use them as learning opportunities.”

Union County is currently fourth in Region 3 behind Lafayette (Mayo), Fort White, and Madison County, but that could change following Fort White’s 35-0 win at Lafayette last Friday.

“We’ve had some injuries that have set us back some and that’s tough at our level, to key guys as well, but our kids play hard and have given us chances in those games, especially with how many new starters we have this year,” Thomas said.

Following the heartbreaking defeat to Hawthorne last Oct. 14, Thomas said after the game that there was “probably one other loss in my career that hurt this bad.”

“When I was in Alabama, we lost a game similar to this and when you feel like you give it away at times too, it’s just frustrating,” Thomas said.

Hornets’ sophomore quarterback C.J. Ingram completed a 4th-and-15 pass into the end zone that was caught by senior wide receiver Darian Smith-Williams for a 35-yard touchdown with just five seconds to play in Hawthorne’s 28-21 win.

“It was a very difficult loss, changed the landscape of the 1R playoffs for both teams going into the playoffs,” Thomas said. “We are a play away in that one but they know how to find ways to win and credit to them. We understand the task we have before us and know we have to play well.”

Andrew Thomas
Photo by Tim Rodriquez Andrew Thomas

A win at Hawthorne could shake things up again in Region 4.

“We just have to play sound on both sides and eliminate mistakes, keep them from the big play which is difficult with the playmakers that they have,” Thomas said. “They thrive on others’ mistakes and it’s what cost us in our two losses, turnovers and the big play on defense.”

As a team, the visiting Tigers are averaging 7.2 yards per carry and 231.8 yards per game rushing.

“Union County has a lot of different formations where they try to out-leverage their opponents and get the alignment they are looking for,” Adkins said. “It is critical that we are able to identify formations and line up in the right place. Union also has numerous ball carriers that are threats to touch the ball on any given play, making it difficult to just key in and hone in on any one person.”

Last year, the Hornets had to rally from a 21-0 deficit last year to keep their perfect season intact.

“They play very hard and gave us fits a year ago for a half,” Adkins said. “They are a well-coached football team that plays to their strengths.”

Friday’s Union County at Hawthorne game will be broadcast on 106.9 FM “I am Country” beginning at 7 p.m. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.

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