Ayers to bring his passionate message to TD Club

By MONTE DUTTON

Mike Ayers (Monte Dutton photo) Click here.

If you’ve never seen Mike Ayers speak to the Laurens County Touchdown Club – and there’s an opportunity every year – it’s time to experience the longtime Wofford College head coach from close range.

It’s a lot like having Mike Ditka at The Ridge, though both Ayers and Ditka are nothing if not originals.

Wofford won five Southern Conference championships – 2003, 2007, 2010, 2012 and 2017 – at the helm of the Terriers.

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Even now, at age 77, Ayers is a man of great inspirational qualities. He was 207-139-1 in 30 seasons at Wofford. Since Ayers retired, resigned, whatever, after the 2017 season, the Terriers are 30-51. They haven’t enjoyed a winning season since 2019.

Based on his energy level, Ayers could coach the Terriers again on Saturday.

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During his career at Wofford – Ayers also spent three seasons as head coach at East Tennessee State – he won the Eddie Robinson Award as the FCS Coach of the Year. He was inducted in 2022 into the S.C. Football Hall of Fame.

Coach Ayers won the Eddie Robinson Award, given to the most outstanding FCS head coach in the country, during his tenure as well.  Additionally, Ayers is a member of the South Carolina Football Hall of Fame as a 2022 inductee. A native of Georgetown, Ky., Ayers served assistant stints at his alma mater, Georgetown College, as well as Newberry, Richmond, Wofford and ETSU.Thursday’s meeting begins at noon. Tickets are available for $15 at the door. The food line – Big Air is catering – opens at 11:45.Also to be honored at the TD Club is Logan Bragg, freshman quarterback of the Laurens Raiders, as Player of the Week. Logan Bragg (TD Club photo)The Raiders won their first game of the season and did it with gusto. Laurens overran Greenville’s Southside High School on the road, 58-0.Bragg completed 14/19 passes for 294 yards, throwing four touchdown passes. “Logan has been the standard for the program,” said his head coach, Greg Porter. “It’s not often that a ninth grader is leading a football program, but this young man shows up every day prepared and ready to give his best in practices and games.”Clinton (5-3, 2-0 Region 1-2A) rose to No. 2 in this week’s Class 2A S.C. Media Poll rankings.The Red Devils have won three games in a row by a combined score of 159-35. Next up is a visit to Wilder Stadium from Landrum (3-4, 0-1). Click here.Last week, in a 50-29 victory at Chesnee, three running backs – Javen Cook, K.J. Vance and Angelo Cromer – are produced more than 100 yards on the ground. Cook rushed for 182 yards in 15 carries, scoring four touchdowns. Vance ripped off 177 yards in only seven attempts. Cromer needed just four carries to put up 106.Altogether, Clinton rushed for 508 yards, averaging 15.4 per carry.Defending a state championship, the Red Devils have netted at least 219 rushing yards in their last 17 games, among them a 56-22 victory at Landrum last year. Click here.Blacksburg (1-7, 1-1) upset Landrum, 14-6, last week. The Cardinals have dropped their last three games.In the state rankings, Clinton trails only Central (6-0) of Pageland in the poll. Strom Thurmond (6-1), coached by Clinton native Andrew Webb, is third, followed in order by Timberland, Hampton County, Philip Simmons, Fairfield Central, Saluda, Batesburg-Leesville and Chester.Clinton closes the regular season at Blacksburg on Oct. 24. Click here.Odds do not favor Laurens (1-6, 1-1 Region 1-4A), which visits Piedmont to face Wren (5-2, 2-0).Last week the Golden Hurricanes defeated Fountain Inn, 45-34. The Fury (4-3, 1-1) defeated Laurens, 26-7, on Oct. 3.The prolific Laurens Academy Crusaders (7-1, 2-0 SCISA 8-man Region 1) are off on Friday but travel to Winnsboro to face Richard Winn (3-4, 2-0) on Oct. 24.  LA faces its region foes twice, meaning that its 36-22 win over Winn on Sept. 12, doesn’t count in the region standings. Click here.The region title likely comes down to the Crusaders’ home game against King Academy (8-0, 2-0) on Oct. 31. The Knights defeated LA, 60-34, on Sept. 19.Stetson University (3-4, 2-1 PFL) of Deland, Fla., visits Presbyterian (6-0, 2-0) at Bailey Memorial Stadium on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Blue Hose have won 10 straight games over two seasons. Click here.The Blue Hose defeated the Hatters, 42-14, last season.
PC's Jonah Pierce was voted to the Big South preseason all-conference team in men's basketball.
The 6-10 senior from Sanford, Fla., averaged 13.1 points and 7.0 rebounds in a 2024-25 season curtailed early by injury, made the second team.

The Blue Hose were picked to finish sixth in the nine-team conference, behind High Point, UNC Asheville, Longwood, Radford and Winthrop, and ahead of Charleston Southern, Gardner-Webb and USC Upstate.

Presbyterian finished fifth in the Big South last season, going 14-19 overall and 7-9 in the conference. The Blue Hose take on Clemson on Friday night in an exhibition game at Littlejohn Coliseum, beginning at 6 p.m. Click here.

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