Willie Jeffries touched the lives of several players during his tenure at South Carolina State University.

This weekend, a few of those players will have the chance to honor their former coach once more when they bring their teams to Orangeburg-Wilkinson High to take part in the Willie Jeffries Classic.

“Coach Willie Jeffries has coached a lot of coaches in this area and all over South Carolina,” O-W head coach Tommy Brown said. “We just felt like this was our opportunity to give back to him for what he’s given to us and what he’s given to high school football.”

Many high school coaches that have played under Jeffries have had the opportunity to bring their teams to compete in the Willie Jeffries Classic. For them, being able to participate in this jamboree is an opportunity that they enjoy.

“When you talk about the opportunity to play in something that honors Coach Jeffries,” Calhoun County head coach Walt Wilson said, “that’s a big deal. When he spoke to our faculty, I told them that the man I was about to introduce was like a role model, a mentor and a father to me. So, it’s a big deal when to show someone that you respect so much how they’re basically the cause of where you are today.”

Wilson and Brown will have the chance to showcase their teams when the Saints take on the homestanding Bruins in the featured game of the night. Brown, having ties with Calhoun County after coaching there for two years, knows that this scrimmage will be somewhat of a challenge.

“These kids do know my system,” Brown said of his upcoming opposition, “but the thing is football is football and there’s no real secret to systems. You just got to go out and practice hard enough to execute.”

These two teams met earlier this summer in O-W’s “Thursday Night Live” passing league championship where the Bruins came out on top. This may be just a scrimmage, but both coaches agree that the O-W and Calhoun County will grab some attention in this area.

“When you say O-W vs. Calhoun County in the same sentence,” Wilson said, “that’s excitement. It doesn’t matter what sport it is. It’s excitement. The 7-on-7 is just a little fuel to the fire, but the fire was always there. The kids are just excited at the thought.”

Lake Marion, under SCSU alum and former player Corey Wright, will face Darlington in the third game of the evening. Before that, Allendale-Fairfax will battle North.

The Willie Jeffries Classic will begin at 6 p.m. when Andrae Rice leads the Denmark-Olar Vikings against Scott’s Branch.

Willie Jeffries Classic Lineup

Game 1 -- Denmark-Olar vs. Scott’s Branch

Game 2 -- Allendale-Fairfax vs. North

Game 3 -- Lake Marion vs. Darlington

Game 4 -- Orangeburg-Wilkinson vs. Calhoun County

Action gets underway at 6 p.m.

T&D Sports Writer Emery Glover can be reached by e-mail at eglover@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5532. Check out his blog, Cover 2, at www.TheTandD.com.

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