RAEFORD, N.C. – The Sandhills Athletic Conference, which entails eight high schools around the region, held its annual football media day Sunday in the pavilion at Bayonet Golf Club at Puppy Creek.
And by the event’s end, the Richmond Senior High School football team was selected as the SAC’s preseason winner in the coaches poll, as well as second place in the media poll.
The Raiders nabbed four of the eight possible first-place votes in the coaches poll, with seven-time reigning conference winner Scotland High School taking second place with three votes. The official coaches poll is as follows:
1) Richmond (4)
2) Scotland (3)
3) Seventy-First (1)
T4) Jack Britt
T4) Pinecrest
6) Lumberton
7) Purnell Swett
8) Hoke County
In the media poll, voted on by 10 journalists from the surrounding counties who cover various teams, Scotland leapfrogged Richmond to take the top spot with six first-place votes. The full media poll is listed below:
1) Scotland (6)
2) Richmond (3)
3) Seventy-First (1)
4) Jack Britt
5) Pinecrest
6) Lumberton
7) Hoke County
8) Purnell Swett
With over 50 people in attendance, every one of the eight SAC schools was present and was represented by head coaches, coordinators, players and media personnel. Representing Richmond was head coach Bryan Till, athletic director Ricky Young and rising senior center Jake Ransom.
SAC secretary Gary Brigman, who is also the athletic director at Hoke County, opened the media day by welcoming everyone and allowing Neil Buie, regional supervisor of the Southeastern Athletic Officials Association, to discuss new rule changes for the upcoming season.
As noted in a previous ROSports article, there are only a few major rule changes that affect players this season. The first is an equipment rule change, that changes any type of misuse of improper equipment from a yardage penalty to a player’s removal from the game until the issue is resolved.
Buie also added that any use of illegal equipment, such as banned cleats or tinted visors, will result in a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty charged to the head coach, since at the beginning of each game he has to report that all of his players are safely and properly equipped. Two of these types of penalties in the same game will result in the head coach being ejected.
As the national attention of safety regarding football continues to grow, Buie added that SAOA officials will place a strong “emphasis” on eliminating blindside hits and illegal blocks, especially against quarterbacks once they’ve released the football.
Also new this year, penalties occuring during a kicking play (kickoffs and punts) will have the appropriate yardage tacked on at the end of the play, an option afforded to the team that the penalty was committed against. In previous seasons, the yardage was added at the end of the play at the spot of the foul. Buie gave an example for this season that if a team returns the ball to the 35-yard line, and a 15-yard penalty was committed, the drive would then start at the 50-yard line.
Another area that was addressed was the needed donations for a referee ministry that was started last year that provides towels, washcloths, soap, shampoo and bibles at no cost to the referees after games.
Players and media were then released for photo and interview opportunities, while the coaches help a brief meeting.
Richmond head coach Bryan Till (second from right) with the seven other SAC head football coaches.
“This (media day) does a couple of things for us as far as getting coaches together, meeting the new coaches and getting contact info,” Till explained. “It’s good to refresh everybody what the expectations of the conference are, and it’s good to get Jake out here to get this experience with the other guys. He’s a leader for us and he gets to be in that role here.”
Ransom, who has been an all-conference selection the past two seasons, looks to take over a younger offensive line with the departure of now graduated players Chase Coulthard and Daryn Mason. He’s also one of the 11 members on the Raider football leadership council.
“I’m looking forward to the chance to compete against the same guys who I’ve competed against the last two years,” Ransom said as opposing players interviewed and took photos around him on the putting green. “It’d be great to win the conference, especially for the guys who have been there the whole time.
“I expect the conference to be a lot of the same (as last year), and we just want to do our best,” he continued. “In Richmond, all we hear is that it’s an ‘eight year,’ but I try not to focus on it — I feel like every year is a year that we can win (a state championship).”
Ransom has set the personal goals of being named to his third All-SAC team, as well as hoping to make the 4A All-State team. And as expected, he said he and his Raider teammates have set the bar no lower than winning a state title in 2018.
And all of it officially begins on Friday, Aug. 17, at home against Ronald Reagan High School. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
