By: Garrett Mitchell, Staff Writer | garrett@thewoodrufftimes.com
The Woodruff Wolverines’ football season ended sooner than was expected as Woodruff fell to Powdersville in the second round of the 3A playoffs. But beneath the disappointment, there is much to be proud of by the Wolverines, with exciting moments and accomplishments abounding.
As it is said, every ending is a new beginning. For the Wolverines’ 16 seniors, their high school careers have ended. For the multitude of talented players who return, they have another opportunity to continue building a legacy of success that grew by leaps and bounds in 2024.
Here is a look back on some of the highlights from the season that was.
Vast improvements
Woodruff football in 2024 was a case study on how experience leads to results. Following a 2023 campaign that saw the Wolverines finish 4-7, the majority of the team’s starters returned for this season and the impact was immediate. Woodruff finished with an impressive 9-2 record and spent the entire season ranked mostly within the top five in the Class 3A media polls. Led by experienced seniors and extremely talented underclassmen, the Wolverines proved doubters wrong and showed the program once again belongs in the upper-echelon of high school football in South Carolina. That should continue to be the case with so much returning talent slated to take yet another step up in 2025.
Super Sophomore
When looking back through the history of Woodruff football, the Wolverines have a long and storied lineage of great running backs. After rushing for 771 yards as a freshman in 2023, there were high expectations for sophomore running back Aiden Gibson, and he smashed those and then some with one of the best seasons from a Woodruff ball carrier in the program’s history. Gibson reeled off 1,555 yards rushing in just 11 games and scored 27 total touchdowns. He rushed for 24 scores and caught three more. In one game against rival Chesnee, Aiden scored five times. Gibson is a bona fide college prospect who received his first Division 1 offer from Coastal Carolina during the season. With two more years of high school left, it is quite possible that Aiden will go down as one of the greatest Wolverines of all time.
All-Purpose Parade
One of the hallmarks of the 2024 Woodruff football team was the rampant pace in which is racked up yardage. Two players, Gibson, and junior wide receiver Kori Moates, were all-purpose yards machines, and every Friday night, they made life miserable for opponents in myriad ways. Gibson, between rushing, receiving, and kick-off returns, racked up 1,942 total yards, top-five for a single season in school history. Moates, meanwhile, put up 1,500 total yards and is already second all-time in kick-off return yards in school history. In 2024, Moates finished with 762 receiving yards, 244 rushing yards, 454 kick-off return yards, and 40 more yards on two punt returns. As a team, Woodruff finished with 5,467 all-purpose yards, an amazing number. Gibson and Moates combined for 3,442 of them.
Cardiac Wolverines
Woodruff football in 2024 had a nerve-wracking penchant for winning close games and always seemed to come through when everything was on the line. It all started in the season’s first game against arch-rival Clinton when the Wolverines won a back-and-forth thriller on the road, 40-36, and claimed their first win over Clinton in five years. The very next week against upstart Fountain Inn, junior kicker Josh Ruiz connected on a 34-yard field goal as time expired to give Woodruff a 30-27 win. Against Chesnee, the Wolverines had to rally from a third-quarter deficit before pulling away. In the first round of the playoffs against Pendleton, clinging to a 28-21 lead in the final 90 seconds, safety Jackson McCarley sealed yet another instant classic with an interception in the end-zone as the Bulldogs were driving to potentially win the game.
The Leaders
All the exciting moments of the 2024 season were made possible by players who worked hard every day to represent the tradition of Woodruff football. Their efforts and exploits delighted the town under the Friday night lights every week. Senior quarterback T.J. Morris finished with 2,377 passing yards and 23 touchdowns and finished his career sixth all-time in passing yards in school history. Other stars at receiver, including senior Hunter West and gigantic junior Kam Taylor also made tremendous impacts. Taylor led the team in receiving touchdowns with eight. The offensive line helped pave the way all year and was led by four seniors including Cohen Lyda, Brandon Ruiz, Kaden Morris, and Zachary Mashburn. And on defense, the linebacker trio of Shaun Graybill, Jordan Hood, and Tre Rodgers put on a tackling clinic. Graybill finished with 123 tackles and 22 tackles for loss. His tackle total is the highest for a Woodruff player since Tae Mack in 2011. These players, and so many more, are the heartbeat of Woodruff football.
Author: Tracy Sanders
