South Charleston offensive coordinator Donnie Mays must feel like a kid at Christmas at the start of every season. He gets a bunch of new toys to fill out his game plans.

Some teams are lucky to have one or two game-breaking players in their lineup. The Black Eagles can throw about a half-dozen at unsuspecting opponents. That helps explain how they can average 39.7 points and 394 yards per game.

Bridgeport coach Bruce Carey realizes the task in front of his defense for Saturday's 1:30 p.m. Class AAA semifinal at Laidley Field - slow down SC's potent offense without knowing from which direction it will strike. It's like a batting order full of home-run hitters.

"I know. I can see that,'' Carey said. "We hardly ever do that - key on one guy. We try to cover the field and try to contain, but it's going to be tough this week. They can get hot, then cool off a little bit, then hit one of those hot streaks and maybe score 28.''

South Charleston rolled up a 28-0 halftime lead on Martinsburg in last week's quarterfinals before pulling out a 38-28 win. The man of the hour that night could have been receiver Tevin Spurlock, who had been relatively quiet the two previous games, grabbing just one pass for 11 yards.

However, before the first half was out against Martinsburg, Spurlock had a 41-yard touchdown reception from Tyler Harris for the game's first score, another 27-yard catch and a 50-yard interception return from his own 4 to thwart a Bulldogs' drive and set up a scoring possession for his own offense.

"You don't know from week to week who that guy's going to be,'' said SC coach John Messinger. "This week, I hope it's three, four of them.''

That wouldn't be unusual for the Black Eagles. Receivers Perry Henry, Moe Makhene and Spurlock took turns as playmakers during most of the regular season, and senior Eddie Gordon has become a reliable fourth option catching the ball down the stretch.

All 11 of Gordon's receptions have come over the last five games, none of them bigger than his 37-yard catch to beat double coverage late in the game and set up the tie-breaking field goal against Martinsburg.

And that doesn't even count George Streater, another big-play option early in the season who's just returned after a bout of mononucleosis. Combined with 1,000-yard rusher Raymond Coleman and Kennedy Award candidate and quarterback Tyler Harris, SC's offense can be overwhelming.

"Their quarterback makes things happen,'' Carey said, "and there's the size of their offensive line. It's an athletic group of guys, and when [the running backs] get behind them, you can't even see them. Then all at once, Ray's popping through there or the quarterback's through there, or he's throwing to any of those kids and they catch it, and they expect to score. My God, every play it looks like they're trying to get a touchdown.

"They're playing like a defending state champion - that's for sure, and we're going to have to go down and play a great game.''

Reach Rick Ryan at 304-348-5175 or rickr...@wvgazette.com.

A look at some of South Charleston's top skill-position players:

RUSHING

Player    Att    Yds    TD

South Charleston offensive coordinator Donnie Mays must feel like a kid at Christmas at the start of every season. He gets a bunch of new toys to fill out his game plans.

Some teams are lucky to have one or two game-breaking players in their lineup. The Black Eagles can throw about a half-dozen at unsuspecting opponents. That helps explain how they can average 39.7 points and 394 yards per game.

Bridgeport coach Bruce Carey realizes the task in front of his defense for Saturday's 1:30 p.m. Class AAA semifinal at Laidley Field - slow down SC's potent offense without knowing from which direction it will strike. It's like a batting order full of home-run hitters.

"I know. I can see that,'' Carey said. "We hardly ever do that - key on one guy. We try to cover the field and try to contain, but it's going to be tough this week. They can get hot, then cool off a little bit, then hit one of those hot streaks and maybe score 28.''

South Charleston rolled up a 28-0 halftime lead on Martinsburg in last week's quarterfinals before pulling out a 38-28 win. The man of the hour that night could have been receiver Tevin Spurlock, who had been relatively quiet the two previous games, grabbing just one pass for 11 yards.

However, before the first half was out against Martinsburg, Spurlock had a 41-yard touchdown reception from Tyler Harris for the game's first score, another 27-yard catch and a 50-yard interception return from his own 4 to thwart a Bulldogs' drive and set up a scoring possession for his own offense.

"You don't know from week to week who that guy's going to be,'' said SC coach John Messinger. "This week, I hope it's three, four of them.''

That wouldn't be unusual for the Black Eagles. Receivers Perry Henry, Moe Makhene and Spurlock took turns as playmakers during most of the regular season, and senior Eddie Gordon has become a reliable fourth option catching the ball down the stretch.

All 11 of Gordon's receptions have come over the last five games, none of them bigger than his 37-yard catch to beat double coverage late in the game and set up the tie-breaking field goal against Martinsburg.

And that doesn't even count George Streater, another big-play option early in the season who's just returned after a bout of mononucleosis. Combined with 1,000-yard rusher Raymond Coleman and Kennedy Award candidate and quarterback Tyler Harris, SC's offense can be overwhelming.

"Their quarterback makes things happen,'' Carey said, "and there's the size of their offensive line. It's an athletic group of guys, and when [the running backs] get behind them, you can't even see them. Then all at once, Ray's popping through there or the quarterback's through there, or he's throwing to any of those kids and they catch it, and they expect to score. My God, every play it looks like they're trying to get a touchdown.

"They're playing like a defending state champion - that's for sure, and we're going to have to go down and play a great game.''

Reach Rick Ryan at 304-348-5175 or rickr...@wvgazette.com.

A look at some of South Charleston's top skill-position players:

RUSHING

Player    Att    Yds    TD

Ray Coleman    133    1,282    12

Tyler Harris    160    799    13

Walter Obey    42    288    4

Moe Makhene    5    91    2

Perry Henry    5    69    1

PASSING

Player    Att-Comp    Yds    TD

Tyler Harris    105-179    1,968    23

RECEIVING

Player    Rec    Yds    TD

Tevin Spurlock    21    535    5

Perry Henry    28    463    6

Moe Makhene    24    411    6

Eddie Gordon    11    251    4