WINNSBORO – “There are only 7% of high school athletes in all sports that get an opportunity to go and play on the next level,” Fairfield Central football coach Demetrius Davis said to open last week’s athletic signing ceremony, “so kudos to these guys for doing what they needed to do.”
Davis was joined by Principal Dr. Tracie Swilley, and Athetic Director Terrell Roach in praising the five Griffin football players who signed their letters of intent and recognizing those who helped them along the way.
Two of the five players have plans to continue their careers at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina. Seniors Tydarion Grier and Chancery Turner Jr. will turn in their Griffin gold for Bronco blue.
Grier anchored the Griffin running game in the 2024-2025 season. In his senior season, he tallied 2184 yards and 37 touchdowns on 225 carries for an average of 9.7 yards per carry. He also had nine receptions for 208 yards and two touchdowns. Grier amassed 55 touchdowns in his junior and senior seasons. Grier was named the 2A Offensive Player of the Year in 2024.
Turner made his impact as a Griffin on defense. In his senior season, Turner had 25 solo tackles and 95 assisted tackles in 12 games played. He averaged 10 tackles per game, totaled 15 tackles for loss, and had six sacks, two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. Turner was named the 2A Defensive Player of the Year in 2024.
Tymorius Weldon signed his letter of intent to continue his career at Allen University in Columbia. Weldon helped stabilize the Griffin team as a lineman. Seeing time as both an offensive tackle and a defensive lineman, Weldon’s tallied three years of varsity experience under his belt. In his sophomore to senior seasons, the Weldon and the Griffins had a 30-8 record.
Christopher Pearson will continue his football career at Limestone University. The cornerback and free safety played only four games in his senior season due to a season-ending ACL injury. In the four games played, Pearson had seven solo tackles and nine assists. As a junior, Pearson averaged 2.1 tackles per game and had an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Antario James will continue his football career at Newberry College. In 13 games played in his senior season, James averaged 7.0 tackles per game. The free safety and cornerback had 16 solo tackles – 91 total tackles – three tackles for loss, three interceptions and one sack. As a junior, he averaged 5.6 tackles per game and also saw some time as a wide receiver. Offensively, he had three receptions for 21 yards.
Grier, Turner, Weldon, Pearson, James and the Griffins made it deep into the SCHSL 2A state playoffs in the 2024 season before falling short an Upper State Championship with a 32-21 loss to eventual state champion Clinton High School. They finished the season first in Region 3 and with a 12-2 overall record.
Statistic information was retrieved from Maxpreps.com.
