By MONTE DUTTON

What is the anatomy of an upset? What is the anatomy of two?

How has Presbyterian College, which doesn’t award football scholarships, managed to begin the season with consecutive victories over Mercer and Furman, both of which do?

Steve Englehart says he’s just an old-fashioned kind of football coach. Old-fashioned isn’t fashionable. Most college coaches are “making the transition” to payments and portals.

“I think once again, two weeks in a row, it really came down to players making plays in critical moments and situations,” Englehart said. The Blue Hose encored a 15-10 upset of 11^th-ranked Mercer with a 39-38, overtime verdict over Furman.

The Blue Hose collect a little NIL money to pass around. No one’s tooling around campus in a new Silverado. A few pizzas might get ordered. PC definitely isn’t buying players. Players are buying PC.

Englehart believes in finding players, developing them and retaining them. Not too long ago, that was the rule. Now it’s an anomaly. Many athletes’ creed is “show me the money.”

The man who hasn’t lost still isn’t getting as much attention as the man who didn’t punt.

What goes down must come up, apparently. What Englehart has done in his fourth year with the Blue isn’t some pop fly down the right-field line. It’s a moon shot.

Englehart arrived to inherit barely enough players to field a team. He and his staff brought in every kid they could find who could get in school and wanted a shot.

Kevin Kelley, his predecessor, was Professor Harold Hill in “The Music Man.” Englehart is Will Kane in “High Noon.”

The first team was 1-10. Next was 4-7 with an upset of Wofford. Last year was 6-6 with four straight wins at the end of the season. Now that winning streak is six.

Englehart compared his PC career to a marriage.

“It’s just growing up and growing through the challenges of life,” he said. “Early on, a marriage isn’t always rosy. Over time, it develops. I’m proud of our guys for going through a lot and holding true to a standard.”

The next two games, at home on Saturday at 7 p.m. versus Erskine (0-1) and on Sept. 20 at 1 p.m. against Bluefield (Va.) (1-1), look like victories. Then again, that’s what Mercer and Furman thought. Presbyterian begins unlocking the keys to the Pioneer Football League on Sept. 27 at home against Morehead (Ky.) State, also at 1. Four of the next five games are at Bailey Memorial Stadium.

“Bad teams are led by nobody,” Englehart said. “Good teams are led by coaches. Great teams are led by players. I didn’t have to say a lot at halftime (when PC trailed Furman, 28-14). The players took over. Whoever controls the locker room controls the team.

“Those guys took over and came out for the second half with their hair on fire.”

They got great support from their assistant coaches, who came up with tactics that dominated the second half in both games. The offense, led by Jayson Martin, and the defense, coordinated by Dan Owen, flipped the statistics against the Bears and Paladins.

Will miracles never cease?

Barry Atkinson, who served Laurens District High School as athletics trainer for 36 years, received the honor of having the area where he helped heal Raider athletes named in his honor.

A native of Mount Croghan (near Pageland), Atkinson is a Furman graduate who grew up with Paladin lineman and legendary Clemson offensive-line coach Robbie Caldwell. He went on to graduate school at East Tennessee State University.

The Barry Atkinson Athletic Training Room serves the medical needs of all LDHS athletes.

It was the highlight of the weekend at LDHS, where its Raiders (0-3) fell to Belton-Honea Path, 43-10. Freshman quarterback Logan Bragg completed 17/26 passes for 150 yards in a losing cause.

The only unbeaten high school in the county so far is Laurens Academy, which improved to 3-0 after its eight-man team demolished Myrtle Beach Christian Academy, 42-16, last week on the road.

Caleb Hardy had an outstanding night as the junior had eight catches for 192 yards and four touchdowns. Hardy also had five rushes for 43 yards. Defensively, he had 10 tackles, four tackles for loss and a sack. He also handled all punts and kickoffs.

Head coach Jolly Doolittle stated, “Caleb Hardy is our Swiss Army knife.  He blocks well, runs well, our best receiver.  He can play inside or outside linebacker or cover the other teams’ best receiver. … He is a really good football player but an even better teammate.  He is tough, a hard worker, and he is comfortable being uncomfortable.” 

Richard Winn (1-2), which defeated the Crusaders for the SCISA state championship last season, visits LA this Friday.

Hardy, the Laurens County Touchdown Club’s third Player of the Week, is to be honored at the next meeting on Sept. 18, when Laurens native Shell Dula, who won high-school state titles at Ninety Six, Union and Greenwood, is the guest speaker.

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