I
“rushed for over
CURT PRESSLEY
ressley, Joh
Senior tailback Curt Pressley
and junior fullback Tracy
Johnson were about as closely
talented as two players can be
for Kings Mountain’s Moun-
taineers on the gridiron this fall.
The pair of running backs
1,000 yards
each, marking the first time in 62
years of football at KMHS that
two backs have rushed for over
1,000 yards during the same
season.
Final statistics showed
Pressley as the top ground-gainer
and Johnson as the leading
scorer and top rusher on a per-
carry basis.
Pressley, who is being
recruited by several major col-
leges, finished with 1,185 yards
in 165 carries and a 7.18 rushing
average. Johnson finished with
1,142 yards in 158 carries;and a
7.23 rushing average.
Johnson led the scoring with
11 touchdowns and a two-point
conversion for 68 points.
Pressley finished with 10
touchdowns, five extra points
and 65 points.
Both players were named
Thursday to the Charlotte
Observer’s All-Piedmont football
team. Pressley was selected as
the second team tailback and
Johnson was a second team
linebacker. 2
Johnson, who should be one
of the most highly recruited
players in the state next year, is
well within reach of several
school records.
His 1,142 yard effort this year
gives him a career total of 1,982
yards. He will need 1,044 yards
next year to break Ken Baity’s
career rushing record of 3,025
yards, which has stood since
1957.
Johnson gained 840 yards in
149 carries last year for an
average of 5.7 yards per carry,
the exact same rushing average
Baity had during his sophomore
season of 1955. Baity had 665
yards in 117 carries his soph
season, 1,071 yards in 163 car-
ries his junior year (6.6 per carry)
and 1,289 yards in 173 carries
(7.5 average) his senior year. For
his career, he had 3,025 yards in
»
TRACY JOHNSON
THOMAS PUTNAM
nson Lead
SHAWN RAINEY
BRAD REYNOLDS
Rushing
Final KMHS Grid Statistics
MOUTAINEER RUSHING
DEFENSIVE STATISTICS
Player Carries Yards Avg.
Curt Pressley 165 1,185 7.18
Tracy Johnson 158 1,142 723 Player T FR INT CF. S BP
Eric Odem 43 219 35. Rainey 104 7 0 3 2 0
Tim Elder 10 67 6.7 Reynolds 78 1 1 4 0 0
David Parker 15 43 29 Falls 56 2 0 5
Zack Roseboro 1 2 2.0 Parker 55 1 0 0 1 0
Brad Reynolds 1 0 0 Pressley 50 0 5 0 0 0
Roderick Boyce 11 -18 1.6 Johnson 43 0 0 0 00
Todd Cloninger nd 25 09 Odems 38 2 0 1 0 1
Lutz 38 0 0 1 0 0
MOUNTAINEER SCORING Stokes 41 0 0 1 1 0
Player TD PAT TOT. Elder : 32 0 0 1 0:0
Tracy Johnson 11 2 68 Putnam 27, 0 1 0 0 0
Curt Pressley 10 5 65 Danny Moore 26 0 oh 0 0 0
Jarvis Young 0 py ; gratis Boyce, 25 $02 0 0 0 0
Thomas Putnam 1 0 ; 6 ' 'Roseboro 11 1 0 0 0 0
Eric Odem 1 0 6 Gladden 9 0 0 0 0 0
Pettus 6 0 0 0 0 0
MOUNTAINEER PASSING Rikard 6 0 0 0 0. 0
Player At. Comp. Int. Yds. TD Dale Moore 6 0 0 0 0 0
Cloninger 45 11 3 166 1 Appling 3 0 0 0 0 0
Boyce 1 0 1 0 0 Burton 2 0 0 0 0 0
Pressley 1 0 0 0 0 Young 2 0 0 0 0 0
MOUNTAINEER RECEIVING CODE: T-Tackles; FR-Fumble Recoveries; INT-Interceptions; CF-
Player Catches Yards TD Caused Fumbles; S-Sacks; BP-Blocked Punts.
Putnam 2 95 1
iin 2 a2 9 GRADING AVERAGES FOR OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
Jot nson > 4 0 Thomas Putnam 80.19, Kale Bagwell 74, Doug Ramsey 73.88, Dale
Ramsey 1 4 0 Moore 71.02, Brad Jones 63.66, Therndon Brown 61.84, Quinton
Oden 1 10 0 Rikard 60.18, Shane Burton 54.44.
435 carries, a 6.7 rushing Pressley had a pair of 200-plus bably rank as one of the top til he was injured and Moore
average.
Johnson is also well within
reach of Baity’s career scoring
record. Baity had 144 points in
three season and Johnson cur-
rently has 104 points. Baity’s big-
gest scoring year was his junior
year when he scored 78.
Johnson had a near-record
breaking rushing game against
Chase in the Mountaineers’ 20-0
~ homecoming victory. His 283
yards rushing that night were
only four yards shy of Kevin
Mack’s single game record of
287 set in 1979 against R-S Cen-
tral.
games, gaining 228 in a season-
opening 29-6 victory over Burns
and 224 in an early-season 32-14
victory over East Rutherford.
* kk
While Johnson and Pressley
were rolling up the impressive of-
fensive stats this fall, the Moun-
taineers also had their share of
players who stood out on
defense.
Shawn Rainey, a senior, led
the team in tackles with 104 and
fumble recoveries with seven.
Although no officials records
have been kept on defense dur-
ing the years, his 104 tackles pro-
defensive efforts of all-time.
Brad Reynolds trailed Rainey
with 78 tackles. Pressley led in
interceptions with five and Steve
Falls was responsible for causing
five fumbles, the highest of any
member of the team.
ballgames.
pass.
graded out with a winning effort
in nine of the 10 Mountaineer
Todd Cloninger led the pass-
ing category with 11 comple-
tions in 45 attempts for 166
yards and one touchdown. Put-
nam caught the only touchdown
8 KMHS
Athletes
All-SWC
Kings Mountain High School
placed nine players on fall sports
all-Southwestern 3-A Con-
ference teams announced this
week.
In addition, KMHS football
coach Denny Hicks was selected
as co<oach of the year along
with Jim Taylor of Shelby. Hicks
coached the Mountaineers to a
64 record and had the team in
the running for the state playoffs
in his first year as head mentor.
Mountaineers selected to the
allconference football team in-
cluded Shawn Rainey, who was
selected as an offensive guard
and defensive linebacker; Tracy
Johnson, who was named as one
of the four running backs; and
Steve Falls, who was selected as
a defensive tackle.
Johnson, a junior, was
honored for the second straight
year. He was an allconference
linebacker last season.
Thadus “Buster” Benton of
North Gaston was named the
player of the year. He led the
league in rushing, taking over
the number one position late in
the year after Kings Mountain’s
Curt Pressley was sidelined with
an ankle injury. Pressley did not
make the allconference team
despite the fact that he finished
as the number two rusher behind
Benton.
Other allconference players
on offense included centers
Ryan Millwood of East Ruther-
ford and Tommy Moore of
Shelby; guard Ron Appling of
Shelby; tackles Jeff Hojnaeki of
Shelby and Chris Hardin and
John Bray of Crest; ends Kevin
Laye of Crest and Brian Huff-
stetler of Shelby; quarterback
Billy Gamble of Shelby; and run-
ning backs Chris Poston of Crest
and Eric Starr of East Ruther-
ford.
Other all-conference defensive
players included nose guard Don
Moore of Crest; tackles Jeff Ho-
jnaeki of Shelby and Chris Har-
din of Crest; ends Kevin Laye of
Crest and Rodney Borders of
Shelby; linebackers Warren
Spikes of Crest, Tracy Keitt of
East Rutherford, Edward Clem-
mer of North Gaston, Michael
Mobley of Shelby and Steve
Thompson of South Point; and
defensive backs Chris Poston
and Leroy Spikes of Crest and
Eric Starr of East Rutherford.
East Gaston, Burns, Chase
and R-S Central failed to land a
player on the allconference
teams.
Three Kings Mountain
players made the all-conference
cross country team, based on
their finish in the annual con-
ference meet which was held in
Kings Mountain. They were
Jimmy Barrett, who placed
third; Monte Huffstetler, who
was seventh; and Todd Hughes,
who was 13th.
End Thomas Putnam had the
top blocking average for the of-
fensive linemen, compiling an
average grading percentage of
80.19. Kale Bagwell, who was in-
jured midway of the season,
graded out to 74, Doug Ramsey
73.88 and Dale Moore 71.02.
Bagwell graded out with a
winning effort in every game un-
Seventeen members of the
team will return next year, in-
cluding Roderick Boyce, Danny
Moore, Bagwell, Tim Elder,
Keith Pettus, Falls, Neil Morris,
Johnson, Jarvis Young, Robert
Appling, Eric Odems, Rocky
Lutz, Therndon Brown, John
Grant, Brad Jones, Shane
Crawford and Ramsey.
Others selected included Don
Chapman, Anthony Boykins,
Keenan Carpenter, Darryl Pat-
terson and Ronnie Boone of R-S
Central, Jeff Maddox of Burns,
Chris Jackson of Shelby, Anton
Clark and Sean Anderson of
South Point, Todd Payne and
Turn To Page 2-B
Is Blue-Gray Game Next For Mack?
There’s an excellent chance that Kings Mountain’s Kevin Mack, the
starting fullback at Clemson University, will be in at least one major
college all-star game this winter.
Mack is being mentioned as a strong possibility for the Blue-Gray
Game which is played each December in Montgomery, Ala.
Former Clemson Head Coach Frank Howard is the recruiter for the
South team for that game and has reportedly asked Mack if he’d be in-
terested in playing.
Bob Bradley, Sports Information Director at Clemson, says the
rosters have not yet been decided and would not be released to the
general public until after regular season college play is completed.
But Mack would be a good choice. Clemson is billing him as the
“best all-around back in the ACC” and is using his picture on CU
sports mailing envelopes.
Mack, who is a leading candidate for All-ACC honors, has a shot at
becoming the first fullback to lead the Tigers in rushing in 11 years.
Saturday’s 188-yard rushing effort in Clemson’s “unofficial” ACC
championship victory over Maryland gives Mack 695 yards in 130 car-
ries heading into Saturday’s season-ending game at South Carolina.
Mack’s 6.12 rushing average is one of the best in the nation for a
fullback.
A fullback leading the rushing at Clemson is almost unheard of since
Stewart’s
Slants
By
Gary Stewart
the Tigers in recent years have gone to a Power-l offense which
features the running of its tailbacks. Coach Danny Ford let Mack
carry the football 30 times last Saturday in his final home game as a
Tiger and the 197-pound former Mountaineer showed the Clemson
fans what Kings Mountain fans knew he could do all along.
Mack scored three touchdows last week to give him seven on the
year. He has the longest run from scrimmage (53 yards) of any Tiger
back this year and he’s been an excellent pass receiver coming out of
the backfield. He’s caught eight passes for 116 yards and turned one of
Mike Eppley’s short passes into a 43 yard gain.
If Mack is selected for the Blue-Gray Game, he would get the much-
needed national televison exposure he lost because of Clemson's
NCAA probation. A good allstar game could land him a good pro
contract.
If he makes the game, as far as we know, he would become the first
Kings Mountain product to play in a major college allstar game
Former KMHS quarterback Pat Murphy played in the North
Carolina East-West Shrine allstar game his senior year at A
palachian. That game is no longer played. Pp
At leat two former Mountaineers have played in ma
jo
games. Mack was the starting fullback for Citra esr bov)
on in the 198]
Turn to page 2