After 10 football games, everyone’s record resets now to 0-0.
The 2026 football playoffs will open on Friday, Nov. 6 with both Fort Mill and Catawba Ridge hosting home playoff games in the first round.
For the Yellow Jackets, which finished 8-2 and third in Region 2-5A, they will be home at Bob Jones Stadium against the Lexington Wildcats. This is the first home playoff game Fort Mill has hosted since 2014 when they hosted Dorman, resulting in a 48-17 loss. Fort Mill will be a No. 7 seed in the playoffs with Lexington being a No. 10 seed.
A win for Fort Mill in the playoffs goes back a lot further. The last time Fort Mill won in the opening round of the playoffs was in 1998 against Seneca 34-6 when the Jackets were 3A. However, this year’s team for Fort Mill, the best team since that 9-3 2014 team, has stopped several streaks this season, and Nov. 6 against Lexington could be another one.
The Wildcats come into the game at 6-4 overall and finished third in Region 3-5A. Lexington brings a pretty balanced offensive attack with them having passed for nearly 1,400 yards and rushed for nearly 1,300 yards. However, the majority of their touchdowns have come by their ground attack with 22 rushing scores compared to just 12 through the air.
Lexington scored 288 points, while giving up 237 points. Like Fort Mill, Lexington has played better on the road this season. Both of Fort Mill’s losses on the year have come at Bob Jones Stadium against Dorman and Northwestern.
Fort Mill is putting up more rushing and passing yards per game than Lexington. The Jackets are averaging about 34 points a game, while the Wildcats are putting up close to 29 points a game.
The winner of the Fort Mill-Lexington game will travel to Irmo to face No. 1 seed Dutch Fork in the second round on Nov. 13.
Catawba Ridge
The Copperheads finished the regular season 6-4 and will host the Fountain Inn Fury, who is also 6-4 on the season. The Fury, located in Greenville County, is a fairly new high school that broke off from Hillcrest High School when it was formed.
This is the third year in a row that Catawba Ridge will host a home playoff game and the fourth time in the last five seasons. Last season, Catawba Ridge opened the playoffs by beating Fort Mill at home, before falling on the road in the second round to Northwestern.
Fountain Inn leans more towards running the ball and has rushed for nearly 1,700 yards. Their passing game isn’t too far behind as they have passed for nearly 1,600 yards. The majority of their touchdowns have come on the ground with 18 coming from the rushing attack.
The game should be a close one. The Fury is averaging 29 points per game and has scored 289 points this season. They have given up 247 points this season. Catawba Ridge is averaging 32 points a game and has a stronger passing game than the Fury.
The winner of the game will face No. 1 seed Gaffney on the road in the second round on Nov. 13.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
