Chiefs lose home opener 14-7 to Darlington

By John Smithson

The North Myrtle Beach Chiefs followed up their first win over Goose Creek with a tough 14-7 home opener loss to Darlington last Friday night at The Hank.

The Chiefs had a good crowd, great weather and opportunities for a win, but couldn’t make the plays late against the visiting Falcons.

The Chiefs kicked off to the Darlington 27 yard line where the Falcons began a long drive for a touchdown. Meleak Duncan ran the ball for a first down at the Darlington 40, then a first down at the Chiefs 48. A fourth down conversion got the Falcons a first down at the Chiefs 37 and 27, and finally at the NMB 15-yard line.

Quarterback Jaylen Augustus faked a run, and  threw a fifteen yard pass in the left flat that Josephy McLean took in for a  7-0 Falcons lead with 6:28 on the first quarter clock.

The Chiefs began their first offensive series after the TD at their 30 yard line, and Will McNeely and Jayden Wilson moved the ball into Darlington territory before an illegal procedure penalty forced a Chiefs punt. The Falcons and Chiefs traded punts and the game moved into the second quarter.

A Falcons punt return ended in a loss to their six-yard line, and after seven plays they punted back to the Chiefs. McNeely hit Wilson with a first down pass to the Darlington 45 but the Chiefs fumbled at the 41 and the Falcons had the ball. The Falcons offense stalled, and the Chiefs got the ball back with 2:02 left in the half at their 22-yard line.

McNeely passed for 21 yards to Wilson, but the Chiefs ended up trying a fourth down pass play. It was intercepted, and McNeely went from passer to defensive back, finally tackling the Falcons runner near the twelve-yard line and the half ended with Darlington ahead 7-0.

The Chiefs had a short drive after receiving the second half kickoff and turned the ball over to the Falcons on their 39. Darlington used another long drive down field, scoring once but a holding penalty negated the score. Augustus hit Jarius Brooks for a first down at the Chiefs six-yard line. Two plays later Augustus scored, and the Falcons led 14-0 with 1:14 left in the third quarter.

Reo Stephenson’s kickoff return and a long, tackle-breaking run by McNeely gave the Chiefs a first down at the Darlington 15 as the third quarter ended. Five plays later the Chiefs scored from four yards out and trailed 14-7.

The Chiefs had their chance after kicking off. The Falcons moved to their 36, but a bad snap and Chiefs sack set up a Falcons fourth down punt from the 20. The kick was blocked, and the Chiefs had a first down at the Darlington 20. McNeely ran twice  to the 16 yard line and an incomplete pass in the end zone was followed by a heavy Falcons rush and an interception that turned the ball back to Darlington with four minutes left in the game.

The Falcons tried to run out the clock, but the Chiefs got the ball back with 1:33 left in the game. Two incomplete passes and a final McNeeley run ended up short of the first down sticks and Darlington ran out the clock. Both teams ended the game with 1-1 records.

The Chiefs are home again Friday with West Brunswick visiting. They travel to Loris on September 12th to take on a very good Loris team.