Bulldogs Shut Out South Aiken in Emphatic Opening Win
SILVER BLUFF 40, SOUTH AIKEN 0
De’Angelo Bryant got to experience one of a coach’s best feelings toward the end of his Silver Bluff Bulldogs’ season opener against South Aiken.
He got to stand back and watch his football team work.
He didn’t have to say much - they executed the way they were supposed to, carried out all of the objectives they’ve talked about for longer than just this offseason, and they played with the type of attitude and composure that were hallmarks of Silver Bluff’s past championship teams.
Bryant addressed his team Saturday afternoon following a 40-0 win that started Friday night and resumed in the morning due to lightning delays, and he was congratulated on the field afterward by Al Lown - his former coach whose standard at Silver Bluff is what the Bulldogs have tried to regain since his retirement in 2015.
That seal of approval carries more weight than most when it comes to high school football in South Carolina, and it was well earned after the Bulldogs followed through on all of the excitement they carried with them after ending last season on a hot streak.
“It just comes with maturity,” Bryant said. “Two years ago, if we would’ve been in a situation like this, I can’t promise you what would’ve come out of this. Our guys have had to learn along the way. It didn’t just happen overnight.
“Again, when you’re talking about expectation and the standard, those guys want to be somewhere at the end of the season. We also understand if we want to be somewhere at the end of the season, that we have to do things the right way. Not just the right way, but the Silver Bluff way.”
The teams returned to the field at South Aiken just before 10 a.m. Saturday to pick back up where they left off Friday night before electricity in the sky intervened, with Silver Bluff holding a 13-0 lead with 8:26 remaining in the first half.
The Bulldogs (1-0) showed no signs of slowing down after resting for the night, scoring three third-quarter touchdowns to put the game out of reach.
Not long after, it simply became a matter of whether the defense could preserve the shutout. They did, holding South Aiken (0-1) short of the end zone as time ran out. It wasn’t until that final drive that the T-Breds surpassed 100 yards of total offense for the game despite a big, experienced offensive line and a solid rushing attack next to Terrence Smith Jr., a dynamic playmaker who got the nod at quarterback.
“What you’re dealing with up front, you’re talking about our three down linemen and our two inside linebackers,” Bryant said. “Those are all senior guys. It’s a lot of pride. Those guys have taken a lot of bumps and bruises. They played as early as their 10th-grade year, then obviously their junior year and now they’re seniors, so it’s a lot more pride there. You’re talking about a group of guys that absolutely lived in the weight room in the offseason, and they built camaraderie with each other.”
Read the full Aiken Standard article .