High school football is set to enter its final quieter week before region play begins for the majority of the Horry County area Oct. 4.
But before the calendar turns over, one more September Friday night is left for local teams to make final preparations for region ball.
The schedule around the county is a bit thinner than it usually is as just five matchups make up the slate of games this Friday. Four area teams have open dates: Aynor, Carolina Forest, Conway and North Myrtle Beach.
Ben Hampton, Socastee’s head coach, will take part in the only game between two Horry County teams here in Week 5 when his team hosts red-hot Loris on Friday. Both Socastee and Loris had open dates in Week 4, giving the programs plenty of time to both rest and prepare as the gauntlet of region competition begins in a matter of days.
Hampton says that the extra week of time to prepare for an undefeated Loris team was an advantage he certainly didn’t mind having.
“Going into it, we knew we were going to have two weeks to prepare for these guys,” Hampton said of getting ready to play Loris. “And judging by the film, we need every bit of time that we can get to get ready for a team like them.”
Playing a strong team like undefeated Loris presents plenty of challenges, Hampton says, but he’s looking forward to the Lions providing a tough non-region test ahead of Beach Region play.
Loris, without a doubt, has been nearly flawless in 2024. They have outscored opponents 199-20 overall and boast a defense that is allowing less than 160 total yards per game thus far.
Hampton understands the challenge, but he says his team embraces it as another week to become battle-tested before crunch time begins in October.
“Our schedule is no easy walk in the park,” the coach said. “It hasn’t been easy for the past two years with who we have played. This year has been a fight… We know our guys are going to have their hands full with [the Loris] offense. They run a unique offense. It’s similar to ours, even though they have some different dudes they’re running it with… We’ll see what happens.”
Below, you can read a preview for all of the football action taking place around Horry County for Week 5.
Potential weekend weather is causing several adjustments to football schedules across the state. Check in with MyHorryNews.com for updates.
Week 5 Horry County high school football schedule and preview
Atlantic Collegiate Academy (0-4, 0-1 region) at Oceanside (2-3)
- Atlantic Collegiate Academy last week: Loss to Mullins, 44-18
- Oceanside last week: Loss to Dutch Fork, 51-0
Atlantic Collegiate, in its first year playing a full schedule of varsity ball, is still looking for its first win of the season after falling to Mullins last Friday to open up region competition.
The Armada has struggled on defense to begin the season, allowing more than 40 points in three of the first four games of the year. The team will stay on the road for the next five games, as ACA does not yet have a dedicated home football facility ready. Region play will continue for the team on Oct. 4 when the Armada travels to Marion.
Oceanside has faced a difficult stretch to begin its season, a schedule that has included games against Irmo, Dutch Fork and a couple of out-of-state opponents. The team picked up a win against Ashley Ridge on Sept. 13, 42-29.
Green Sea Floyds (0-4, 0-1 region) vs. Carvers Bay (1-4, 0-1 region)
- Green Sea Floyds last week: Loss to Latta, 47-8
- Carvers Bay last week: Loss to Hannah-Pamplico, 40-14
This game was moved to Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 7:30 p.m. Check MyHorryNews.com for updates throughout the week.
Class 1A-Region VI is packed. It is piled high with seven teams competing in it, which means region play is already rolling for both Green Sea Floyds and Carvers Bay.
The Trojans struggled from the starting whistle last week as the group failed to get much of anything moving in a positive direction in the region-opener. The defense allowed 415 yards of rushing over 29 carries, almost 15 yards per play on the ground. Head coach Patrick Martin understands that will need to change quickly for his young defense to have any shot of keeping this team in games this season.
Green Sea Floyds had just 148 yards of total offense last week, throwing three interceptions along the way in the loss to Latta.
Carvers Bay’s lone win this season came against Kingstree, a 20-0 win back on Aug. 30.
In last year’s meeting between these two teams, Martin picked up his first win as a head coach, a 25-12 victory. It was the breakout game for utility man Issac Hewitt, then a junior. Hewitt carried the ball 11 times for 54 yards and a touchdown.
Loris (4-0) at Socastee (1-3)
- Loris last week: Open date
- Socastee last week: Open date
This game was moved to Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 7:30 p.m. Check MyHorryNews.com for updates throughout the week.
Two fresh programs coming off of open weeks, an in-county rivalry and a home Socastee crowd — not a bad recipe for a standout matchup in Horry County.
On paper, the story of this game centers around a dominant Loris program. The Lions have made it up to No. 6 in the Class 3A state media polls, and there’s plenty of reason to think they could end up climbing a bit higher by the end of this season.
Through four games, Loris is averaging 9.6 yards per carry and 241 yards per game on the ground. Quarterback Zamire “Moon” Gerald has 11 touchdowns and just one interception, while Jacobien Lewis and Quantez Dyson have been about as good as it gets from the receiver position. Add a standout defense to that mix, and you’re looking at a serious state-wide contender.
Socastee will present a unique challenge for Loris, bringing a physical brand of football on defense. The Braves will be at home, and regardless of their opponent, head coach Ben Hampton’s team doesn’t find itself on the bad side of a lopsided result very often. The offense has been plagued with injuries, but Socastee’s defense will offer the toughest test Loris has seen thus far in 2024.
Myrtle Beach (1-3) at Cane Bay (0-4)
- Myrtle Beach last week: Loss to Irmo, 38-12
- Cane Bay last week: Loss to White Knoll, 49-13
This game was moved to Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 6:30 p.m. Check MyHorryNews.com for updates throughout the week.
At this point in the season, Myrtle Beach might just be in the “don’t judge a book by its cover” territory. The Seahawks have picked up three-straight losses, but they have been to West Florence, Sumter and Irmo. Losses are losses, but there is some silver lining tied to Myrtle Beach’s early record.
The Seahawks should have a chance this week to move the momentum in the right direction before region competition begins on Oct. 4. Cane Bay has struggled defensively at times throughout 2024, and even with a somewhat challenging non-region slate of their own, the Cobras haven’t been sharp thus far. A matchup against Cane Bay should give head coach Mickey Wilson a chance to fine-tune the playbook on offense and use Friday night as somewhat of a test run for an all-systems-go attack heading into region ball.
Ultimately though, none of that will matter if the Seahawks can’t make stops on defense. The team is allowing far too many big plays and has struggled to make stops on third down. Myrtle Beach will see good quarterbacks and big-play threats in the Beach Region. If they can’t force more negative yardage and win the attack at the line of scrimmage in October, the run in November will be much shorter than Wilson and company would like.
St. James (0-4) at Berkeley (1-3)
- St. James last week: Loss to James Island, 31-0
- Berkeley last week: Win over West Ashley, 22-0
This game was moved to Wednesday, Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. Check MyHorryNews.com for updates throughout the week.
St. James’ tough season continued last week as the group’s offense had its worst outing of the 2024 season. The Sharks have to stay on the road on this week as they try to get things back to at least neutral in the final non-region week of the year.
The previously-standout Sharks passing game went completely dry against James Island, going for just 63 yards. The offense was quite lopsided in terms of run-pass splits, with the team rushing the ball 28 times compared to just 14 passing attempts. St. James knows that the best way to support a young quarterback is a steady rushing attack, but it would be a surprise if the team doesn’t get back to trying to find success with junior QB Alex Sandt airing it out heading into region play.
The Sharks defense, which has struggled mightily for much of the last two seasons, continued that trend against James Island. St. James surrendered 288 yards and three touchdowns over 30 rushes.
Berkeley’s 1-3 record carries some deceptive elements with it. The Stags beat Ashley Ridge in Week 0, however it was later discovered they used an ineligible player in that game, which required them to forfeit the game. The team’s other losses were a one-TD loss to Winter Park (Florida) and a 41-35 loss to Summerville.