WINNSBORO/BLYTHEWOOD – With high school football playoffs upon us, five local players were recently named as an all-star for either the North/South All Star game or the Shrine Bowl.
The North/South All-Star game pits the best players from South Carolina against one another. Shadarius Hopkins (Fairfield Central), Dunstan Padgett Jr. (Fairfield Central), Adonus Lee (Westwood) and Stephen Timmons (Westwood) made the North roster.
Fairfield Central head coach Demetrius Davis said his entire program is taking pride from Padgett’s and Hopkins’ selections.
“Both of these young men have had an outstanding senior season,” Davis said earlier this week.
Davis told The Voice that it is Padgett’s physical prowess that set him apart in the voter’s minds.
“Dunstan just had a good year at the linebacker position and whenever you can get a true middle linebacker, those guys are few and far between,” he said. “His size, his stature and the way he moves around and plays, I think they just had to take him.”
According to Maxpreps.com, Padgett leads the Griffins in tackling with 90 takedowns this season. Hopkins earned his selection because of his athleticism and his ability to be a team’s “Swiss Army Knife.”
“You have to take Shadarius because you can play him at defensive back, safety, wide receiver, kick returner or punt returner,” Davis said. “There are just so many things that you can do with Shadarius.”
Hopkins has had highlight reel style returns this year with four going for a touchdown.
Westwood’s Adonus Lee, for a predominately run-oriented Redhawk offense, has caught 26 passes for 583 yards and five touchdowns this season, all of which are team highs. Stephen Timmons has recorded a staggering 105 tackles for a Westwood defense that is only giving up 9.9 points per game.
The 2014 North-South All-Star Football Game will be played at Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium at Myrtle Beach High School on Dec. 13.
The week after the North/South All-Star game, Blythewood’s Hassan Belton will participate in the Shrine Bowl game. Belton has notched a team high 107 tackles to go along with 7.5 tackles for a loss, 2.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 1 interception and 1 fumble recovery.
“(Belton) is a pretty good athlete,” Blythewood head coach Dan Morgan told The Voice after an Oct. 10 win over Spring Valley. “He just loves to play football and as a coach you wish you could have more of those. He goes out there and gets after it every single snap.”
The Shrine Bowl will be played at Gibbs Stadium in Spartanburg on Dec. 20.
