Upstate high school football Week 3 predictions, including Boiling Springs at Hillcrest
Here’s a look at Friday night’s top high school football matchups in the Upstate for Week 3. All games are at 7:30 p.m. Rankings are from our 864 Huddle Super 25 list of best teams in the area. Staff writers Sam Albuquerque and Todd Shanesy make their predictions.
Game of the week
No. 9 Boiling Springs (2-1) at No. 2 Hillcrest (3-0)
This matchup features two teams that had a lot of questions coming into this season.
Boiling Springs has entered year two of coach Matt Reel’s tenure after a two-win 2022. For Hillcrest, it was coming off a first-round playoff loss and had to replace its starting quarterback and coach.
Three weeks in and both sides have given its fans something to be excited about. Boiling Springs' offense has averaged 36.7 points per game led by QB Lincoln Huskey — who’s thrown for 653 yards with nine touchdowns — while Hillcrest's offense has averaged 40 points a game. Rams' transfer QB Kaleb Sutton has quickly developed a special connection with star receiver Avery McFadden.
Albuquerque’s prediction: Boiling Springs 34, Hillcrest 31
Shanesy's prediction: Hillcrest 35, Boiling Springs 30
Riverside (2-1) at Christ Church Episcopal (2-1)
This is an interesting matchup between a Christ Church team ranked second statewide in Class A at home against an unranked Riverside team that just might win Region 2-AAAA.
Riverside seems to have the advantage here, especially with a talent like Mikkel Skinner playing wide receiver and running back. Last week in a 37-26 win against Woodmont, he had 250 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns. The defensive line is led by Georgia Tech commit Marcus Downs.
For Christ Church, though, quarterback Tucker Hendrix has taken control of that job and settled in with potent weapons like running back Dashun Reeder and Jackson Repp.
Albuquerque’s prediction: Christ Church 27, Riverside 24
Shanesy's prediction: Riverside 28, Christ Church 27
Westside (1-1) at Abbeville (3-0)
Abbeville is the top-ranked team in Class AA, but just barely got through the past two weeks unscathed. The Panthers needed a remarkable comeback to beat Powdersville in overtime and then survived a 22-21 game last week at Southside Christian.
Westside, even without injured standout wide receiver Jimmar Boston, looks like a different level of competition. The Rams lost their opener at Belton-Honea Path but showed more of that expected high-powered offense last week in a 42-30 win against T.L. Hanna, which was No. 5 in Class AAAA. Wide receiver Josh Williams was nearly unstoppable.
Albuquerque’s prediction: Westside 40, Abbeville 27
Shanesy's prediction: Westside 28, Abbeville 24
Wren (1-1) at T.L. Hanna (2-1)
WEEK 3 SCHEDULE: Upstate high school football schedule for Week 3 of the SCHSL regular season
WEEK 2 TOP PERFORMERS: Greenville area | Spartanburg area | Anderson and Pickens area
Wren lost an out-of-state game and then scored 48 points in a win against Seneca. Safe to say this is by far the biggest test so far for the Hurricanes and quarterback Colton Bagwell, who last week accounted for five touchdowns, including a 60-yard run.
T.L. Hanna has already beaten Boiling Springs and Greenville, quite an early resume. The Yellow Jackets stumbled last week at Westside. They were led by Ke’Darrion Patterson, who had 141 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries last week in a backfield that likes to evenly distribute carries.
Albuquerque’s prediction: T.L. Hanna 34, Wren 14
Shanesy's prediction: T.L. Hanna 40, Wren 24
Byrnes (2-1) at Greer (1-2)
Byrnes, an expected power from Class AAAAA, lost two weeks ago at Chapman of Class AAA. That was puzzling. But it was on the road against a ranked team. The Rebels have shown a strong defense, not allowing more than 14 points in any game.
Greer is even tougher to figure. The Yellow Jackets have been in three blowouts, losses against Daniel and Hillcrest but a 51-0 win last week against Blue Ridge. Greer is without star running back Ladannian Martin and wide receiver Chase Byrd because of injuries, but has been able to lean on Chris Hall, who ran for 261 yards and four TDs last week,
Albuquerque’s prediction: Byrnes 45, Greer 21
Shanesy's prediction: Byrnes 27, Greer 24
Grayson, Ga. (2-1) at No. 3 Spartanburg (2-1)
Spartanburg’s defense, led by do-it-all linebacker Cam’Rich Smith and defensive back Demario Bookhart, has allowed three total offensive touchdowns and an average of 11.7 points a game this season. It’s simple to say this defense is special. But this week could be a difficult night.
The Rams, a perennial power in Georgia, have shown to be dominant compared to South Carolina’s finest. Last season Grayson beat Spartanburg 51-24 and last week it shut out defending Class AAAAA Lower State champions Fort Dorchester 41-0.
Albuquerque’s prediction: Grayson 37, Spartanburg 21
Shanesy's prediction: Grayson 34, Spartanburg 31
No. 21 Powdersville (1-2) at No. 16 Pendleton (2-0)
Defending Class AAA Upper State champions Powdersville is coming off its first win of the season and quarterback Eli Hudgins and transfer running back Jayden Pepper have begun to recreate the run game magic the Patriots had last season, averaging 194.5 rushing yards in the past two games. But the question for Powdersville is: Will it be able to keep pace with the high-flying Bulldogs’ offense?
Led by quarterback Luke Gray and his weapons — Kory Jones, Abijah Webb and LJ Maddox — Pendleton is playing like the greatest show on turf. They've thrown for 581 yards with 10 touchdowns and have averaged 50 points a game.
Albuquerque’s prediction: Pendleton 38, Powdersville 28
Shanesy's prediction: Pendleton 35, Powdersville 28
Polk County, N.C. (1-2) at Landrum (1-1)
In this traditional North Carolina-South Carolina border rivalry, Landrum will look to get revenge at home after Polk drubbed the Cardinals last season 49-7. Both sides are in similar positions from last season, so it’s hard to imagine things will play out much differently.
Landrum’s 34-6 loss to St. Joseph’s last week showed the Cardinals still have some work to do under new coach Brent Bridges and despite two straight losses for the Wolverines, they’re still going to be a tough out for Landrum.
Albuquerque’s prediction: Polk County 28, Landrum 17
Shanesy's prediction: Polk County 21, Landrum 20
Last week: Albuquerque 4-2, Shanesy 2-4
Season: Albuquerque 11-8, Shanesy 9-10
This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: SC high school football predictions for Upstate's best games in Week 3
