Two Midlands high school football teams to play in Cam Newton Classic
Dutch Fork and Spring Valley football teams are heading out of state early in their non-conference schedule.
The two teams will take part in the Cam Newton Classic on Sept. 5 at Lakewood Stadium, a 10,000-seat facility located in Atlanta. Dutch Fork plays IMG Academy in a matchup of nationally-ranked teams while Spring Valley faces the Carver Tigers out of Columbus, Ga.
The Columbus Ledger Enquirer (Ga.) was the first to report the Spring Valley-Carver matchup.
SV’s game is set for 2 p.m. while Dutch Fork kicks off at 8 p.m. Godby (Fla.) plays Carver High out of Atlanta in the other game at 5 p.m., according to Godby’s Twitter page. An official announcement of the matchups is expected to come at a later date.
“We aren’t scared to challenge ourselves by playing IMG Academy,” Knotts said on the podcast. “That is where we are going to challenge ourselves.”
Dutch Fork plays another Georgia team later this season when it travels to Brookwood High School on Sept. 25.
It is Dutch Fork’s first game outside the Carolinas since 2014 when it faced Allen High School in Texas. Allen, which featured future No. 1 pick Kyler Murray, defeated Dutch Fork, 58-53.
Dutch Fork is coming off its fourth straight Class 5A state championship and enters the season with a 40-game unbeaten streak. The Silver Foxes defeated Dorman 34-31 In overtime at Williams-Brice Stadium on Dec. 7.
Dutch Fork (14-0-1) finished the season ranked No. 9 in MaxPreps Top 25 and 15th in USA Today’s Super 25 poll. Knotts was named Coach of the Year by the National High School Football Coaches Association.
The Silver Foxes are trying to become the first team in state history to win five titles in a row.
IMG Academy, located in Bradenton, Fla., finished this season at No. 7 USA Today’s Super 25 poll and No. 8 in MaxPreps poll. The Islanders are 45-2 since 2015.
IMG Academy is a hotbed for talent and its roster is loaded with several four-and-five-star prospects. They have five players ranked on 247Sports Top 247 Composite Rankings for Class of 2021 including receiver Agiye Hall, tackle JC Latham and former South Carolina commit Lovesea Carroll. IMG also has five-star rising junior quarterback Chad Mascoe.
Spring Valley went 6-6 last season and made it to the second round of the Class 5A playoffs before losing to Dorman.The Vikings return a majority of their offense, including quarterback DQ Smith who threw for almost 2,500 yards and 30 touchdowns in his first year as a starter.
Spring Valley switched from the run-oriented flexbone to the spread offense last year. The Vikings have won at least six games or more in eight straight seasons.
“Such an exciting time for our football program, fans, school and community. I want to thank Mr. Newton, Cam Newton and all the people who are a part of the Cam Newton Foundation for allowing us to be part of such an amazing event,” Spring Valley coach Robin Bacon posted on Twitter on Friday.
Carver went 10-2 and won region 1-4A for the first time since 2015. The Tigers scored 40 or more points in seven games.
Carver has produced high quality talent over the years, including Jasper Sanks and Jarvis Jones. It is the alma mater of Georgia linebacker Tae Crowder and former Bulldogs running back Isaiah Crowell.
The Cam Newton Classic is in its third year and sponsored by the Carolina Panthers’ quarteback’s foundation. This is the first year that teams from outside of Georgia and Alabama will be taking part and will run over three days with games on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Columbus Ledger Enquirer (Ga.) writer Joshua Mixon contributed to this story.
This story was originally published February 7, 2020 at 12:22 PM.
