The Greenville News from Greenville, South Carolina • Page 168

Page 18 The Greenville News and PIEDMONT Sunday, Aug. 26, 1984 -REGION 5-AAAA- Hartsville is state's unheralded dynasty By Tom Layton The Greenville News Quick, now, name the only football team in Class AAAA which has won at least 10 games each of the last four years. Summerville? Irmo? Spartanburg? Gaffney? None of the above. Instead, the answer can be found in the heart of the Pee Dee, near the top of Re- gion 5-AAAA, in the thick of the playoffs, or in the headline above. Hartsville.

Since 1980, the Red Foxes have finished 10-2, 11-3, 10-2 and 10-3. Among the state's 50 largest schools, only Summerville, with three 13-1 seasons in the last four, can top Hartsville in terms of victories overall (48 to 41) or in playoffs (14 to 8). Yet in that span, Hartsville was never been ranked higher than sixth in the final UPI coaches' rankings. The 1981 team which won the AAAA Division II championship actually was unranked. Last year's team was No.

13, and in the playoffs beat two members of the Top 10. So it figured that when The News polled Region 5-AAAA coaches for their predictions on this year's standings, not one of them would list Hartsville first. Hartsville has nine starters and 20 lettermen, but the votes went to Dillon, whose coach insists he has nothing but trouble. Lewis Lineberger, who inherited the Hartsville team when coach Johnny Roscoe moved to Wofford College, doesn't dispute the judgment of his peers. "It will be very hard for this year's team to be better than last year's," he said.

He mentioned the graduation of Shrine Bowl fullback Tim James and all-star tackle Jerome Slater. But the offense would appear to be fairly sound. Back is Darryl Dingle (5- foot-10, 180 pounds), who gained almost 1,000 yards in his sophomore season. He retains the blocking of third-year starters Tripp Jeffords and Tony Stephenson (each 5-11, 195). Jeffords, Stephenson, and ends Ricky Wilson (6-1, 195) and Craig Thompson (5-11, 195) are expected to play offense and defense.

DILLON upgraded its schedule after last year's headache, when its Wildcats were 10-0 but had to play off at Hartsville because they had not accumulated enough points during the season. Dillon still will play its Class A neighbor, Lake View, but the other two opponents are Northwestern (AAAA) and Marion (AAA). A loss to either of those schools probably will be worth no less than last year's non-conference victories over Wilson and Kingstree. "If we can hold on till the middle of the season, we'll be okay," coach Paul Chapman said. "I think our offense will be pretty good.

The defense it's potentially there, just a matter of experience." Chapman counts four starters on offense and three on defense. One of his best athletes is Otis Washington (5-11, 175), a veer quarterback who last year ran for more than 800 yards in 11 games. He has swift alternatives in halfbacks Bernard Carmichael and Dwight Lampley, and good blocking from John Hug- Dillon Hartsville West Florence Wilson South Florence Conway Lake City Region 5-AAAA' Coaches' poll The News asked each region coach to rank his opponents. The consensus: '83 w-1 Enrollment 1-Dillon 10-1 1,348 (40th) 2-Hartsville 10-3 1,640 (22nd) 3-Conway 5-5 1,755 (14th) 4-South Florence 1,428 (26th) 5-West Florence 1,360 (37th) 6-Lake City 8-3 1,288 (48th) 7-Socastee 2-8 1,428 (33rd) 8-Wilson 1,358 (38th) gins (6-1, 220), Marty McIntyre (6-3, 198) and Tim Moultrie. Huggins, a junior, has been a starter since his freshman year.

The defense will depend heavily on John Leggett and Wayne McCray in the line and Willie Daniels at linebacker. Daniels will double as a fullback. Sidney Samuel (6-2, 190) will play defensive back and offensive end. CONWAY, the region's only Big 16 member, will qualify for the playoffs automatically, but the Tigers have the athletes and rising tradition to make it on their own. They qualified in 1980, '81, and '82, and barely missed last year, in Chuck Jordan's first season as a coach.

"I feel like we've improved," Jordan said. "We're going to be strong in the offensive line, at quarterback, and defensively up front." Lavern Reddick (6-3, 185, with 4.6 speed in the 40) is a major-college prospect at wide receiver and defensive back and may become one at quarterback, where he was moved at the middle of last season. "He's the best athlete I've ever worked with," Jordan said. Staff photographer Frank Pearce Lake City's Derrick Faison is a -touted tight end The defense is built around the linebackers: two-year veteran Keith Skinner (6-0, 210) and junior Robert Brown (5-10, 185). Up front are twin brothers Kipp and Kevin McDowell (each 6-0, 220) and Sidney Varner (6-1, 260), who started as a freshman.

Ends are Jeffrey Sherman and Timmy Busbee. On the offensive line are Jerry McClellan (5-11, 185), Edsel Edge (6-2, 190), James Grant (5-9, 230), Kevin Hawes (6-1, 170), Vincent Gowans, and first-year player Tracy Rowell (6-5, 265). SOUTH FLORENCE has rebuilt its program since losing 600 students two years ago when its district was rezoned and four starting players since last year because of various reasons. Coach Mike Watts still counts eight proven starters on offense and five on defense, and he expects considerable improvement over last year's 3-7 record. Six players have two or more years of varsity experience.

James Daniels (6-2, 248), a two-year veteran at nose guard, has moved to linebacker, where 4.7 speed makes him a major-college prospect. The other linebacker, Mark Kenyon (5- 10, 175), and safety James Myers also are beginning their third season. On offense, tight end Timmy Roberts (6-4, 210) is starting his fourth season. Senior tackles William Campbell (6-1, 205) and DeCar Brown (6-3, 215) have started since they were sophomores. Quarterback Mike Wingate (5-9, 170) is beginning his second season.

Jerome Mitchell (6-2, 195, with 4.6 speed) has played only five varsity games, but in them he gained 572 yards. LAKE CITY merged its students with those from Cades-Hebron and was forced to move up from AAA, where it made the playoffs at-large as the third-place team in Myrtle Beach's conference. Lake City is the smallest school in the region and the third smallest in AAAA, but it has more than its share of athletes. Tight end Derrick Faison (6-5, 215) is is one of the state's finest seniors in two sports. Last year he caught 24 passes for 847 yards and seven touchdowns i in football, and in basketball he averaged nearly 20 points per game.

He gets his passes from Charles McFadden (6-0, 170), a junior. Also back on offense are linemen Rodney McFadden (6-0, 230), Joey Prosser (5-9, 165), and David Brown (5-10, 175), split end Curtis Fulmore (6-1, 160) and fullback Rabian Kirkland (5-11, 180). And when they fall short, they can turn to punter Tripp Cromer, who averaged 44.7 yards during his sophomore season. The defense depends on tackle MacArthur Brown (6-1, 190), ends Alexander Graham (6-1, 175) and Todd Young (6-1, 165) and cornerbacks Tony Phillips Continued on Page 94 Date Conway Dillon Hartsville Lake City Socastee South Florence West Florence Wilson Aug. Myrtle Beach Northwestern St.John's (D) at Kingstree at Mullins at Wilson t-Hillcrest South Florence Sept.

Hoggard, N.C. Lake View at Lancaster at Hillcrest (D) N.Myr. Beach at Cheraw St.John's at Mayo at Loris at Marion at Camden Mullins at Myrtle Beach Hillcrest (D) at Kingstree t-at A.C. Flora 21 at Lake City at W.Florence Wilson Conway South Florence at Socastee Dillon at Hartsville 28 t-at So. Florence Socastee Lake City at Hartsville at Dillon t-Conway at Wilson W.Florence Oct.

5 Dillon at Conway at West Florence t-at So. Florence Wilson t-Lake City hartsville at Socastee 12 at Wilson South Florence at Socastee West Florence Hartsville at Dillon at Lake City Conway 19 at Hartsville at Lake City Conway Dillon at W.Florence t-at Wilson Socastee 1-So. Florence 26 West Florence Wilson at So. Florence at Socastee Lake City Hartsville at Conway at Dillon Nov. 2 Socastee at Hartsville Dillon Wilson at Conway I West Florence at So.

Florence at Lake City.