The 2024 Hammond Skyhawks added the program’s eighth straight state championship following a 28-21 win over Porter-Gaud.
The 2024 season ended the same the previous seven had, with the Hammond Skyhawks winning the SCISA 4A State Championship. This last championship came with a thrilling 28-21 win over the Porter-Gaud Cyclones and capped off a 13-0 season.
“I thought it went pretty well,” Hammond head coach Jon Wheeler said. “I’m happy to pull another one off.”
Hammond has been the dominant force in SCISA football winning 16 titles since 2006. During this latest run of eight-straight titles, the Skyhawks won the first six by an average margin of just under 35 points. However, Hammond took the latest two with late touchdowns.
“We’re facing good teams, well coached teams,” Wheeler said. “It’s only going to get more difficult to try and compete for any kind of championship.”
That difficulty is compounded by a young 2025 team that lost a large amount of seniors to graduation, and some others transferred.
Only three players return on an offense that averaged 45.1 points and 405.5 yards per game. All three returners are offensive linemen Jaliyl Jaminson, Jauris Shaw, and Walker Cason. That will undoubtedly be the strength of the Skyhawk offense.
With Daylin Haltiwanger’s transfer to Orangeburg-Wilkinson, the Skyhawks won’t return a single skill position starter.
A trio of quarterbacks will vie for the position. While not a returning starter at quarterback, Ben Kiser does have experience taking snaps for Hammond. He will compete with freshman Cade Amell and former JV quarterback Bryson Patterson for the starting job.
“I just want them to do better each day, each week,” Wheeler said. “I don’t want them to try and be Tom Brady. They just need to do their job, listen to the coaching, and get better.”
Hammond’s small number of returners carries over to the defense with only five players with any starting experience. John Stokes will anchor the defensive line. Ben Winkler started one game last year and will compete for playing time along the line.
Bubba Alexander and Jackson Ross highlight the linebacker corps.
Jordan Boston will man one of the four positions in the Hammond secondary.
So much youth lends itself to more opportunities for the coaches to teach.
“We have to make sure to take advantage of each day to get better as far as mentally and obviously physically in the weight room,” Wheeler said. “Conditioning is important to be the best we can be when we roll into fall camp. In fall camp we have to take advantage of each day. We have to approach each practice knowing we are going to be young, inexperienced or both at multiple positions. We have to continue to get better and utilize those scrimmages to the best of our abilities to put guys in the right position. We have to get the right pieces in the puzzle the best we can.”
While the teams on the schedule are the same as in 2024, they pose a different challenge. Last year most of Hammond’s toughest games were at home and most of the Skyhawks’ away games were still in the Columbia area. This year, Hammond has to travel to Christ Church, Porter-Gaud, and Hilton Head Christian all in the first five weeks. Trips to Laurence Manning and Augusta Christian wait for the Skyhawks to begin October. The regular season ends with home games against Ben Lippen and Cardinal Newman.
The Skyhawks definitely have many questions entering the 2025 season. For most programs facing this amount of turnover and uncertainty, there would be serious concern about their ability to compete for a state championship. However, the Skyhawks have faced all this before and they just keep on winning.
While there may be a lack of experience on the roster, there isn’t on the coaching staff. Jeff Barnes has annually produced top notch offensive line units. Defensive coordinator Hamp Smith fielded a unit that gave up an average of 208.3 yards and 13.9 points per game last year. Offensive coordinator
Rick Reetz returns. Wheeler has guided Hammond to state championships in all his seasons at the helm. Until November 21 rolls around, it’s hard to count Hammond out.
“It’s about how the young, inexperienced guys handle the adversity,” Wheeler said. “It’s how they handle being on a bus in a different place. We will see.”
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