Woodruff at Palmetto, 1st round

[Wolverine_Legend]

Man! Back in the day on Palmetto Football Talk I used to post really detailed game previews for my Woodruff Wolverines. I used to really love doing that and really put a lot of time into it. In recent years I have been doing the same previews but for Woodruff Football social media platforms. So, I decided to rekindle an old love and post a Woodruff/Palmetto preview for this game! I will add my thoughts and that is if Woodruff plays well we should handle Palmetto. They cruised through the Sisters of the Poor in Region 2 then got utterly embarrassed by Wren and a one-win BHP team. Woodruff, on the other hand, is very young but very talented. It took a few games for the Wolverines to find their footing, but once they did, look out! Led by sophomore QB Carson Tucker, the Wolverines have been lighting it up lately. Senior Woodruff WR Zy Scott has put up unbelievable numbers with 28 catches for 685 yards and 8 TD in just SIX games. Woodruff senior tailback Shamare Dendy is having another exemplary season and has four straight games of at least 130 yards rushing. He has rushed for 750 yards in six games. The Wolverines have two studs on the DL, one a sophomore and the other a truly outstanding freshman who simply could not be kept off of the varsity team this year. In all, I just don't think Palmetto has the horses across the board on either side of the line to hold Woodruff down for an entire game. That said, here is the complete breakdown of Friday's game between the Wolverines and Mustangs!


Woodruff at Palmetto:

In a year, and a season, filled with adversity and uncertainty, the Wolverines finished second in Region III-3A and locked up a play-off spot in the 3A upper-state bracket. Woodruff will face an old foe from years past in the first round as the Wolverines will travel to Williamston to take on the Palmetto Mustangs, a team that once was a fixture on the Woodruff schedule. It is the rekindling of an old but once intense region rivalry, this time with a season on the line.

Woodruff at Palmetto:
Coaches: Woodruff- Bradley Adams (3rd season), Palmetto- Doug Shaw
Records: Woodruff- 4-2 (3-2), Palmetto- 5-2 (5-0)
Last week: Woodruff beat 2A #4 Chesnee 49-28, Palmetto lost to Belton-Honea Path 52-18

Series History:
Woodruff leads the all-time series 13-10
First meeting- Woodruff and Palmetto tied 6-6 in 1965 play-offs (Woodruff won via penetration rule in upperstate championship)
Last meeting- Woodruff won 55-28 in 2009
*This will be the 24th match-up between Woodruff and Palmetto and the first in 11 years *

By the numbers:
Points scored- Woodruff 182 (30.3), Palmetto 258 (36.9)
Points allowed- Woodruff 193 (32.2), Palmetto 214 (30.6)

About the teams:

Woodruff-
The Wolverines had to work for every point and every stop, but came up clutch when it mattered the most to capture the second and final play-off spot from Region III-3A. Woodruff has been here before in recent times, advancing to the third round of the 3A play-offs last season. Experience returns from that postseason push a season ago, especially in the presence of seniors Shamare Dendy, the Wolverines’ electric running back, and wide receiver Zy Scott who has, most games, been simply unguardable in 2020. Scott put up huge numbers once again in last Friday’s season finale at Chesnee with four catches for 143 yards and two scores. Woodruff will need big time performances from their upperclassmen and sophomore quarterback Carson Tucker who has gotten more and more comfortable with each passing game. Defensively, to combat the Mustangs’ spread attack, Woodruff will need good push from their defensive front led by Capone Jackson, Rashad Reid, and Jonathan Sexton as well as a secondary led by Scott, Jailen Tribble, and Nemo Cochran. Dendy has also moved to linebacker on defense and provides Coach Bradley Adams with another reliable defender.

Palmetto-
The Mustangs have been a Jekyll and Hyde team this season. The Palmetto offense, led by quarterback J.B. Altman, has been solid while the defense, most nights, has struggled to match the productivity of their offensive counterparts. Palmetto, who cruised through their Region II-2A slate with a perfect record, have lost consecutive games to Wren and Belton-Honea Path by a combined score of 116-31. The Mustangs have weapons across the board on offense with senior Jalal Dean putting up major numbers. While Palmetto does not run the ball as a first option, sophomore running back Zach Edwards has been solid when called upon. Defensively, it starts up front for the Mustangs where they are led by linebacker Dawson Lesley. The Palmetto secondary is anchored by Xzorion Brown and Jayse Martin. Defensive end Grayson Fowler is an imposing presence on the edge and will give the Wolverines another defender to account for.

Key Players:

Woodruff-
QB Carson Tucker (5’10” 150)- Soph
RB/LB Shamare Dendy (5’10” 178)- Sr
WR Zy Scott (6’1” 175)- Sr
LB Jonathan Sexton (6’3” 225)- Sr
DL Rashad Reid (6’0” 260)- Fr

Palmetto-
QB J.B. Altman (6’3” 195)- Sr
WR Jalal Dean (6’1” 180)- Sr
RB Zach Edwards (5’8” 155)- Soph
LB Dawson Lesley (6’0” 195)- Sr
DE Grayson Fowler (6’6” 245)- Sr

[Wolverine_Legend]

For those whose teams have played Palmetto, am I close to the ballpark here?

[stretch]

It’s gonna be a big win for your boys this week. Daniel beat both of the teams that the Mustangs lost to. Wren is a good team and I wasn’t surprised by that loss, but losing to BHP this year is very alarming. Palmetto had the easiest region schedule in the state and there’s no debate about it. I’m thinking 49-7 Woodruff but it could be worse than that if the Wolverines don’t take their foot off the gas.

[Wolverine_Legend]

It’s gonna be a big win for your boys this week. Daniel beat both of the teams that the Mustangs lost to. Wren is a good team and I wasn’t surprised by that loss, but losing to BHP this year is very alarming. Palmetto had the easiest region schedule in the state and there’s no debate about it. I’m thinking 49-7 Woodruff but it could be worse than that if the Wolverines don’t take their foot off the gas.

Yikes! If you knew me back in the hayday of Palmetto Football Talk, I was very bold and outspoken, often making wild predictions with fierce defenses if someone didn't agree with me. With age and a few more gray hairs I learned to mellow out and see things with a bit more perspective. I certainly expect to win, but is Palmetto's offense really THAT anemic against good teams? I used to love playing there but have not been to a game in Palmetto's stadium since Woodruff beat them there in 2008. My best friend's dad lives in Williamston less than a mile from the stadium, though he played at Woodruff for Coach Varner in the 70s, so we are all going to The Smokin' Pig before the game.

On a side note, I would be thrilled if we could make it to the upper-state game to play ya'll. I have absolutely no illusions that we would win THIS YEAR but it would be a solid next step for us nonetheless. We are very young this year and are really about a year ahead of schedule. 2021 and 2022 we should be absolutely loaded and ready to compete for the whole thing.

[96fanatic]

Good luck against the Mustangs.i think Woodruff
will win but the way this season has gone who knows.
GO GET'EM WOLVERNIES !

[Deputy]

Woodruff got lucky to get matched against Palmetto. Like an above poster said, they come out of the easiest region in the state. And I don't think Woodruff is anything special. As evidenced by the beat down administered by Clinton a couple weeks ago. But Woodruff got a huge break by having Union as the first team on the schedule. Woodruff had no Covid pauses since the first day of practice. Union missed a month, and basically had two days of practice to prepare for the first game. They were gassed by the end of the first quarter. If you have both teams with the same preparation that game is a blowout. Much like the Clinton Woodruff match up. But in the end it doesn't matter. Neither team is a serious contender in the playoffs.

[stretch]

It’s gonna be a big win for your boys this week. Daniel beat both of the teams that the Mustangs lost to. Wren is a good team and I wasn’t surprised by that loss, but losing to BHP this year is very alarming. Palmetto had the easiest region schedule in the state and there’s no debate about it. I’m thinking 49-7 Woodruff but it could be worse than that if the Wolverines don’t take their foot off the gas.

Yikes! If you knew me back in the hayday of Palmetto Football Talk, I was very bold and outspoken, often making wild predictions with fierce defenses if someone didn't agree with me. With age and a few more gray hairs I learned to mellow out and see things with a bit more perspective. I certainly expect to win, but is Palmetto's offense really THAT anemic against good teams? I used to love playing there but have not been to a game in Palmetto's stadium since Woodruff beat them there in 2008. My best friend's dad lives in Williamston less than a mile from the stadium, though he played at Woodruff for Coach Varner in the 70s, so we are all going to The Smokin' Pig before the game.

On a side note, I would be thrilled if we could make it to the upper-state game to play ya'll. I have absolutely no illusions that we would win THIS YEAR but it would be a solid next step for us nonetheless. We are very young this year and are really about a year ahead of schedule. 2021 and 2022 we should be absolutely loaded and ready to compete for the whole thing.

I hope we make it there to play y’all. But both our teams have tough second round opponents to make it there. In the coming years we have a solid group of junior and sophomore kids that can continue being leaders so 3A upperstate can just be between Daniel and Woodruff.

But back to Palmetto I really just don’t know how to explain what goes wrong for them. We played against this team last season and they stayed in the game and the final score was 49-42. This year lousy OL play down the stretch was a factor. I watched a little bit of film of them against BHP and on some plays it was like the sea parted and they had free rushes. Their QB has a decent arm and he has good weapons to throw to but if he has no time to throw then he chucks it up for whoever to grab. Their defense does the bare minimum in games. Carolina scored the most points all season in their game against Palmetto and you shouldn’t let them score at all if you are a #1 seed in the playoffs.

[Wolverine_Legend]

Woodruff got lucky to get matched against Palmetto. Like an above poster said, they come out of the easiest region in the state. And I don't think Woodruff is anything special. As evidenced by the beat down administered by Clinton a couple weeks ago. But Woodruff got a huge break by having Union as the first team on the schedule. Woodruff had no Covid pauses since the first day of practice. Union missed a month, and basically had two days of practice to prepare for the first game. They were gassed by the end of the first quarter. If you have both teams with the same preparation that game is a blowout. Much like the Clinton Woodruff match up. But in the end it doesn't matter. Neither team is a serious contender in the playoffs.

Don't flatter yourself. Woodruff is far superior to Clinton in every facet. You should know full well the scoreboard doesn't tell the entire story. Woodruff outgained Clinton by a wide margin. Clinton couldn't mash a grape on defense. Heck, Woodruff has one of the best running backs in the state and he rushed for 212 freaking yards against Clinton! We had three unfortunate turnovers inside the Clinton 20 that decided the game, but those are just unfortunate breaks and nothing Clinton did to win. It's football and it happens.

[DeCav]

Man! Back in the day on Palmetto Football Talk I used to post really detailed game previews for my Woodruff Wolverines. I used to really love doing that and really put a lot of time into it. In recent years I have been doing the same previews but for Woodruff Football social media platforms. So, I decided to rekindle an old love and post a Woodruff/Palmetto preview for this game! I will add my thoughts and that is if Woodruff plays well we should handle Palmetto. They cruised through the Sisters of the Poor in Region 2 then got utterly embarrassed by Wren and a one-win BHP team. Woodruff, on the other hand, is very young but very talented. It took a few games for the Wolverines to find their footing, but once they did, look out! Led by sophomore QB Carson Tucker, the Wolverines have been lighting it up lately. Senior Woodruff WR Zy Scott has put up unbelievable numbers with 28 catches for 685 yards and 8 TD in just SIX games. Woodruff senior tailback Shamare Dendy is having another exemplary season and has four straight games of at least 130 yards rushing. He has rushed for 750 yards in six games. The Wolverines have two studs on the DL, one a sophomore and the other a truly outstanding freshman who simply could not be kept off of the varsity team this year. In all, I just don't think Palmetto has the horses across the board on either side of the line to hold Woodruff down for an entire game. That said, here is the complete breakdown of Friday's game between the Wolverines and Mustangs!


Woodruff at Palmetto:

In a year, and a season, filled with adversity and uncertainty, the Wolverines finished second in Region III-3A and locked up a play-off spot in the 3A upper-state bracket. Woodruff will face an old foe from years past in the first round as the Wolverines will travel to Williamston to take on the Palmetto Mustangs, a team that once was a fixture on the Woodruff schedule. It is the rekindling of an old but once intense region rivalry, this time with a season on the line.

Woodruff at Palmetto:
Coaches: Woodruff- Bradley Adams (3rd season), Palmetto- Doug Shaw
Records: Woodruff- 4-2 (3-2), Palmetto- 5-2 (5-0)
Last week: Woodruff beat 2A #4 Chesnee 49-28, Palmetto lost to Belton-Honea Path 52-18

Series History:
Woodruff leads the all-time series 13-10
First meeting- Woodruff and Palmetto tied 6-6 in 1965 play-offs (Woodruff won via penetration rule in upperstate championship)
Last meeting- Woodruff won 55-28 in 2009
*This will be the 24th match-up between Woodruff and Palmetto and the first in 11 years *

By the numbers:
Points scored- Woodruff 182 (30.3), Palmetto 258 (36.9)
Points allowed- Woodruff 193 (32.2), Palmetto 214 (30.6)

About the teams:

Woodruff-
The Wolverines had to work for every point and every stop, but came up clutch when it mattered the most to capture the second and final play-off spot from Region III-3A. Woodruff has been here before in recent times, advancing to the third round of the 3A play-offs last season. Experience returns from that postseason push a season ago, especially in the presence of seniors Shamare Dendy, the Wolverines’ electric running back, and wide receiver Zy Scott who has, most games, been simply unguardable in 2020. Scott put up huge numbers once again in last Friday’s season finale at Chesnee with four catches for 143 yards and two scores. Woodruff will need big time performances from their upperclassmen and sophomore quarterback Carson Tucker who has gotten more and more comfortable with each passing game. Defensively, to combat the Mustangs’ spread attack, Woodruff will need good push from their defensive front led by Capone Jackson, Rashad Reid, and Jonathan Sexton as well as a secondary led by Scott, Jailen Tribble, and Nemo Cochran. Dendy has also moved to linebacker on defense and provides Coach Bradley Adams with another reliable defender.

Palmetto-
The Mustangs have been a Jekyll and Hyde team this season. The Palmetto offense, led by quarterback J.B. Altman, has been solid while the defense, most nights, has struggled to match the productivity of their offensive counterparts. Palmetto, who cruised through their Region II-2A slate with a perfect record, have lost consecutive games to Wren and Belton-Honea Path by a combined score of 116-31. The Mustangs have weapons across the board on offense with senior Jalal Dean putting up major numbers. While Palmetto does not run the ball as a first option, sophomore running back Zach Edwards has been solid when called upon. Defensively, it starts up front for the Mustangs where they are led by linebacker Dawson Lesley. The Palmetto secondary is anchored by Xzorion Brown and Jayse Martin. Defensive end Grayson Fowler is an imposing presence on the edge and will give the Wolverines another defender to account for.

Key Players:

Woodruff-
QB Carson Tucker (5’10” 150)- Soph
RB/LB Shamare Dendy (5’10” 178)- Sr
WR Zy Scott (6’1” 175)- Sr
LB Jonathan Sexton (6’3” 225)- Sr
DL Rashad Reid (6’0” 260)- Fr

Palmetto-
QB J.B. Altman (6’3” 195)- Sr
WR Jalal Dean (6’1” 180)- Sr
RB Zach Edwards (5’8” 155)- Soph
LB Dawson Lesley (6’0” 195)- Sr
DE Grayson Fowler (6’6” 245)- Sr

Do both brother. Post the pregame one day early on preptalk. then link to here on your social platforms. Then the following day post them there too. Everybody wins.