Winning football is back at Marlboro County

By David Shelton

Senior Writer

Bennettsville – The Marlboro County football program has a history of success, winning state title in 1998 and 2001. But things slipped in recent years and the winning dried up.

Coming into the 2024 season, Marlboro County had managed only 15 wins in the last five seasons with the last winning season coming in 2018 under former coach Dean Boyd. That is changing under first-year head coach Cory Johnson, who came to Bennettsville after a successful run in North Carolina.

In addition to a new head coach and coaching staff, the football program benefitted from a solid group of transfers that have increased the talent level significantly. The results have been off the chart.

After opening region play with a win over Aynor, the Bulldogs were 6-0 on the season and steadily climbing in the statewide AAA ranking of teams. The Bulldogs have yet to be seriously challenged in a game, except for a 12-point win over Scotland County. They have scored at least 40 points in five games.

The schedule promises to get more challenging down the stretch as the Bulldogs have region games against Dillon and Loris. Both, like Marlboro County, are ranked in the AAA top 10 statewide. Marlboro County plays Dillon on Oct. 18 and takes on Loris on Oct. 25.

Offensively, the Bulldogs show solid balance. Quarterback Nydarion Blackwell, a senior, has passed for nearly 700 yards and six touchdowns. Seniors Justin Purvis (17-338, 3 TD) and Damon Short (7-180) are the leading receivers.

In the run game, senior Josiah Robinson leads the way with more than 500 yards and is averaging about 11 yards per carry with six touchdowns. Donovan Pauling-Outlaw is nearing 300 rushing yards while Purvis and freshman Tre Blakeney are nearing 200 rushing yards.

Filling in the offensive line are Dymiek Covington, Zyrell McIver-Barker, Jamari Taylor, Rayshawn James, and Dennis Turner.

On the defensive side, the Bulldogs have a balanced attack with a host of players getting into the tackle stats. Senior Jahdon Covington is among the leading tacklers, averaging about five tackles per game.

Sophomore Kaiden Walton has nearly 10 tackles for loss among his total hits while sophomore Kaiden McCoy has been an active performer for the defense.

Seniors Josiah Dwyer and Yakarrion Kenan also average about four tackles per game.