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A.J. Green (WR Cincinnati Bengals)

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A.J. GREEN

If McKissick is a coaching legend, his star wide receiver A.J. Green is becoming a legend in the making. Born Adriel Jasmear Green, the 6-4, 180 pound phenom has earned All-State honors twice and was named by EA Sports the nation's top sophomore player after catching 75 passes for 1,422 yards and 16 touchdowns last season.

In July, the 16-year-old Green was profiled by Sports Illustrated as part of its "Where Will They Be" stories on potential future professional greats. Several prep football websites have also ranked Green as the nation's top junior and his size, 4.5 speed and 34-inch vertical leap have drawn comparisons with NFL All-Pro Randy Moss.

SCVarsity.com founder Jim Baxter goes one step further in putting Green in elite company with other past prep football greats.

"The best three high school football players I've ever seen play in the years I've been doing this were (former Dallas Cowboys and NFL all-time rushing leader) Emmitt Smith when he was at Escambia (High School), Demetris Summers when he was at Lexington (High School) and this kid from Summerville," Baxter said. "Those are probably the three best prep players I've ever seen. And I'm not talking from a prospect status. I'm talking about their caliber as a high school athlete."

For all the attention, Call said Green remains a quiet, respectful, hard-working young man who's driven to become "the greatest that ever was".

"We don't have to keep him from getting a big head because he's got the work ethic that keeps himself from getting a big head," he said. "He's never satisfied. He might go out and catch three touchdowns in a game, but to him, he's always thinking about how he could have run a certain route better, maybe a route he should have caught but he didn't catch. He's real quiet. He doesn't walk in or show up to practice saying 'I'm the number one junior in the nation. I don't have to practice.' He shows up and looks to the coaches to push him."

Through three games, Green has 14 catches for 271 yards and two TDs as he's had to contend with double and even triple coverage. In last week's 12-7 win over Wando, Summerville had to contend with constant blitzes by the Warriors which resulted in three interceptions thrown by junior Reid McCollum and limited Green to just two catches for 10 yards.

Look for O-W to employ a similar strategy this Friday, led by linebacker Derrick Frasier (46 tackles, four sacks) and Jody Balaam (27 tackles, 4.5 sacks).

"Pressure is kind of the name of our game," Baker said. "We like to bring a lot of pressure. At the same time, our linebackers are good enough where they can sit and read and attack. So, we're going to really mix it up and just kind of play basic, fundamental football."

The coaching staff is also mindful of other weapons on the Green Wave receiving corps like 6-3, 187-pound senior Edward Gilliard (13 catches, 149 yards, one TD) and fellow upperclassman 5-11, 155-pound Chris Burnham (10 catches, 132 yards).

There's also fullback Michael Blevins who's rushed for a team-high four touchdowns this season and on defense, linebacker Justin Ball-Collins (21 tackles).

"A.J.'s a great football player, but they've got more besides A.J. I can promise you that," Kennedy said. "So I don't want to get caught up on A.J. and then the other guys beat us. To be honest with you, I think they've got some more weapons who are just as good as A.J. on the edges."

"I think if we play fundamentally sound and great technique at defensive back, I think we'll be okay," O-W defensive backs' coach Terrell Roach said. "We can't just focus on one person because it's just like in basketball. A lot of people Michael Jordan was the man when actually it was Scottie Pippen that was the guy for the Chicago Bulls.

"But back to football. A.J. Green, he's known nationwide and our kids aren't buying into the hype. We're just going to play Summerville like they were any other team."
 
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Green Wave pounds O-W 41-19

By THOMAS GRANT JR., T&D Senior Sports Writer
Friday, September 15, 2006
Friday night provided a true reality check for the Orangeburg-Wilkinson football team.

Facing a nationally-ranked team in Summerville with the legendary John McKissick and the number-one junior recruit in the country in wide receiver A.J. Green before a festive audience at Bruin Stadium would help determine where the Bruins stand in their progress under first-year head coach Reggie Kennedy.

What O-W learned in the 41-19 loss to the Green Wave was the distance they still need to reach in order to become an elite team. In handing the Bruins (3-1) their first loss of the season and McKissick his 535th career win, Summerville (4-0) used a balanced attack mixed in with spectacular plays by Green, who scored two touchdowns, and its big game experience to avoid the costly penalties which finally proved critical for the Bruins.

The Bruins did out-gain Summerville 296-260, the bulk of the offense coming in the fourth quarter when quarterback Devin Frederick completed two touchdown passes of 90 and 30 yards. Frederick did toss three touchdowns for the fourth consecutive game, two to Kendall Lockard who had five catches for 120 yards, and finished with 192 passing yards. He was also sacked four times and threw two interceptions to defensive back Josh Gaddish.

Afterwards, Kennedy said Friday's game will benefit his team in the long run.

"This game is going to make us a better football team and what I mean by that is it helped identify some of our weaknesses personnel-wise and also some of our weaknesses in our schemes. They (Summerville) had a good scheme and we saw a couple of loopholes which will help us as a staff."

"We wanted to work on the ground game a little bit," McKissick said. "We wanted to use up a little clock and see how they were going to play us when we were spread out. Kennedy's does a good job with these boys. They play hard."

Summerville jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter with two distinct scoring drives. The Green Wave controlled the first five minutes of the game with a time-consuming, 11-play drive which relied strictly on running the football and ended with Jereme Green's touchdown scamper from three yards.

"I felt like they were going to come right at us," Kennedy said. "With their size and our size upfront, that was a concern of mine all week. They're probably one of the biggest teams we'll face all week. They're probably one of the biggest teams we'll face this year."

A short punt by Phillip Dukes set up the Green Wave's next score from 26 yards. Summerville would unleash its air attack as quarterback Reid McCollum completed two passes to A.J. Green, the latter caught in the end zone from 10 yards as he stretched out to make the low catch for his third touchdown of the season.

Just before the end of the first quarter, the Bruins embarked on its only scoring drive of the first half. A 35-yard run by Antonio Haynes and a 7-yard catch by Romar Barlow brought O-W into the "Red Zone" and gave its home faithful some hope entering the second quarter.

The first play of the second quarter opened with Frederick rolling to his left and hitting an open Lockard in the end zone for a 10-yard touchdown.

Phillip Dukes added the PAT to cut the deficit to 14-7.

Summerville's A.J. Green quickly regained the momentum by turning a short slant and using his 4.5 speed to elude several Bruin defenders and dive right in front of the goalline for a 40-yard reception. The eye-catching play set up a 1-yard touchdown by Michael Blevins and Summerville extended its lead to 21-7 with 9:47 left in the first half.

"He's a phenomenal player," said McKissick about Green, who had four catches for 66 yards. O-W finally forced Summerville to punt, only to find themselves backed at their own 1-yard-line. Unable to move the football and forced to punt, kick returner Brandon Millhouse was eager to capitalize on another short kick. He caught Dukes' punt from his own 32 and found an opening outside a Green Wave wall of blockers toward the end zone to put the Green Wave up 28-7 at halftime.

An interception and 30-yard-return by Summerville's Gaddish on the second play of the second half sent a lethal blow to the Bruins' hopes of turning the tide against the Green Wave. A personal foul during the interception return on O-W moved the football to their own 10 and McCollum found a wide open Brad Hurley on third down for a seven-yard touchdown reception to give Summerville a commanding 34-7 advantage.

After being held to 23 yards in the third quarter, the Bruins erupted for two fourth-quarter touchdowns in 22 seconds. It started with 5:38 remaining when Fredrick connecting on a long pass to Lockard who outran two Summerville defenders for a season-long 90-yard touchdown reception.

Dukes' PAT was blocked, leaving the score at 34-13. However, the Green Wave muffed the kickoff and the Bruins made the recovery at the Summerville 30. Two plays later, Frederick lofted a touchdown pass to Romar Barlow who made an over-the-shoulder catch in the end zone to cut the deficit to 34-19 with 5:19 remaining after the failed two-point conversion.

O-W would recover yet another misplayed kickoff at the Green Wave 48, but were unable to capitalize. A personal foul penalty move the Bruins back to their own 35 and were forced to turn the ball over on downs at their own 32.

With 4:29 remaining, A.J. Green provided one more highlight as he took the reverse handoff and as he sprinted toward the end zone, he managed to spin away from an O-W defender for his second touchdown of the night.

Despite the loss, Kennedy was proud of his team's resiliency and now wants to see how strong their character is going into preparation for next week's home game against Fort Dorchester.

"We'll have a good practice this week," he said. "We'll help the kids put this behind us. We know going into the season this would be the meat portion of our schedule and we've got to be able to survive this. These two ballgames will make us a better ball team, but at the same time, we've got to put this behind us."
 
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Summerville hands O-W its first defeat
Summerville 41, Orangeburg-Wilkinson 19
Saturday, September 16, 2006

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ORANGEBURG - Summerville used a balanced attack, mixed in spectacular plays by receiver A.J. Green, who scored two touchdowns, and used its big-game experience to avoid costly penalties as the Green Wave remained unbeaten in a 41-19 victory over Orangeburg-Wilkinson at Bruin Stadium.
In handing the Bruins (3-1) their first loss of the season, Summerville got coach John McKissick his 535th career victory and set up a home showdown with unbeaten Stratford (4-0) next Friday.
The Bruins did manage to outgain Summerville 296-260, with the bulk of the offense coming in the fourth quarter when quarterback Devin Frederick completed two touchdown passes of 90 and 30 yards.
Summerville jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter.
The Green Wave controlled the first five minutes of the game with a time-consuming, 11-play drive which relied strictly on running the football and ended with Jereme Green's touchdown scamper from 3 yards out.
A short punt by Phillip Dukes set up the Green Wave's next score from 26 yards out. Summerville would unleash its air attack as quarterback Reid McCollum completed two passes to Green, the second one into the endzone from 10 yards out. Green caught four balls for 66 yards.
After O-W made it 14-7, Green helped the Wave regain the momentum by running a short slant and eluding several defenders and got the ball down to the 1-yard line where Michael Blevins went in to make it 21-7 with 9:47 left in the first half.
Wave kick returner Brandon Millhouse capitalized on a short kick, taking a punt from his own 32 and following a wave of blockers into the end zone to make it 28-7 at halftime.
 
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Green scores 5 touchdowns in Wave win
Unstoppable
Summerville 49, Goose Creek 28

Saturday, September 30, 2006

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TYRONE WALKER/STAFF
Summerville?s A. J. Green (1) picks his way through the Goose Creek defense Friday during the Green Wave?s victory over the Gators.

BY BILL HENLEY





SUMMERVILLE - Over the past three seasons, A.J. Green has established himself as an impact player for the Summerville Green Wave. What the junior wide receiver did to Goose Creek on Friday night is the stuff of legend.
Green caught four touchdown passes and ran 83 yards on a reverse for a fifth TD to help Summerville shake off a stunning 21-0 deficit and beat the Gators 49-28 at John McKissick Field. He could fill a highlight reel with footage from this game alone as every subsequent play he made was more jaw-dropping than the previous one.
"I don't think we'll put him at offensive tackle, but he can play just about anywhere," Summerville coach John McKissick said. "He's a good team player, too. He's not selfish at all."
Green finished with seven receptions for 179 yards and three rushing attempts for 95 yards, and the Green Wave (6-0) needed every bit of it.
The Gators (4-2) took what looked like a commanding lead after running back Marsalis McCloud scored his third touchdown of the game with 9:54 left in the second quarter. McCloud scored on runs of 61, 2 and 1 yard and finished with 156 yards on 21 carries.
"Coach took us in back and told us we had to get off our back ends and get back in the
game," said Green, who said he didn't feel an urgency to take over the game on his own. "I'm a team player. I'm patient and I knew it would come to me."
His first TD was a 38-yard post pattern on which he beat two defenders. As a defensive back, he came close to getting an interception on Goose Creek's next play. Even so, the Green Wave forced a punt and went right back to the air attack on its first play. Green caught a 57-yard TD down the right sideline. The Gators turned the ball over on their next play and Summerville finished a short drive with Reid McCollum's 3-yard pass to Green in the end zone and the Wave tied it at 21 with 3:42 to go in the half.
Summerville rode the momentum with a couple of rushing touchdowns and the A.J. Green Show continued. With a 35-21 lead, Summerville called for a reverse at its own 17-yard line. Green took the ball and dodged a defender in the backfield and beat the pursuit to the right side for an 83-yard score. He capped it by eluding a defensive back at the 10-yard line, bouncing off a teammate and getting past the last Goose Creek defender on the goal line.
His final score was the best of the bunch. Driving with a 42-28 lead at the Gators' 43, McCollum overthrew Green and was about to have the pass intercepted by one of two Goose Creek defenders. Instead, Green pulled the ball out of their hands and took two steps into the end zone.
"I was waiting untill he came down with it and snatched it away from him," Green said.
Even what didn't count for him looked great. He had a 38-yard over-the-shoulder catch negated by an illegal shift penalty. On defense, he was called for pass interference when he threw his hands up in front of the face of the receiver while his back was turned to the ball. The pass hit him and stayed in the air long enough for him to turn around and catch it for an apparent interception.
McCollum finished with 297 passing yards, completing 12 of 22 attempts with one interception. Goose Creek running back C.J. Smiley had 99 yards on 13 carries.
Goose Creek-Marsalis McCloud 61 run (Karl Jackson kick)
Goose Creek-McCloud 2 run (Jackson kick)
Goose Creek-McCloud 1 run (Jackson kick)
Summerville-A.J. Green 38 pass from Reid McCollum (David Behr kick)
Summerville-Green 57 pass from McCollum (Behr kick)
Summerville-Green 3 pass from McCollum (Behr kick)
Summerville-Michael Blevins 3 run (Behr kick)
Summerville-Kendall Millhouse 4 run (Behr kick)
Summerville-Green 83 run (Behr kick)
Goose Creek-Donta Brown 1 run (Jackson kick)
Summerville-Green 43 pass from McCollum (Behr kick)
 
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The legend of A.J. grows

High school football fans in South Carolina are living in a special time right now. Byrnes is prepared to become the first South Carolina team to sit atop the USA Today Super 25 poll and the state is home to one of the truly special talents in the game right now in wide receiver A.J. Green.

Here's a recap of Green's performance in Summerville's 49-28 win Friday night over Goose Creek, a game in which the Wave trailed 21-0 in the first period: Four touchdown receptions, an 83-yard run for a fifth, seven receptions for 179 yards, three runs for 95 yards.

"I don't think we'll put him at offensive tackle, but he can play just about anywhere," Summerville coach John McKissick said.
 
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osugrad21;623117; said:
High school football fans in South Carolina are living in a special time right now. Byrnes is prepared to become the first South Carolina team to sit atop the USA Today Super 25 poll

Anyone else think that a team that struggled with the third best team in Cincinnati might not actually be the best team in the country?

Grr...I hate polls. lol
 
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