Sumter Item to host Hines Furniture Football Media Day on Aug. 10
Football season is rapidly approaching, which means it's time to sit down with the area's coaches and stars to preview the upcoming fall on the gridiron.
The Sumter Item will host its fifth-annual Football Media Day, which is presented by Hines Furniture, on Saturday, Aug. 10. The Sumter Opera House will serve as host this year. The event is open to the public and will also be livestreamed on The Item Sports Facebook page. Other partners for the event include Kona Ice and Simpson Hardware and Sports. The Item is still looking for additional partners; if interested, reach out to your Sumter Item sales representative or contact advertising@theitem.com.
This year's event will feature a slew of new coaches, though some are familiar faces. Lee Academy is now led by Will Furse, the former Laurence Manning top dog. Robbie Briggs returns to LMA in his place as changes swirl in SCISA football. Thomas Sumter is also under new leadership, as Stacy Bell takes over for the Generals this season. On the SCHSL side, former Manning assistant Patrick Flemming moves across Clarendon County to take charge at Scott's Branch.
We'll hear from all of those newcomers, as well as area staples like Sumter High's Mark Barnes, Crestwood's Roosevelt Nelson, Manning's Reggie Kennedy, Wilson Hall's Adam Jarecki and Lee Central's Justin Danner. We had a few new coaches last year who have a season under their belts in either new roles or at new schools, including Larry Cornelius at East Clarendon, Willie Offord at Lakewood and Todd Larrimer at Clarendon Hall.
Each school will bring two or three of its brightest stars and leaders to share some insight on the upcoming season.
We'll dive into the biggest position battles, new classifications and regions for several schools and so much more. If you're a football fan in Sumter, Clarendon or Lee County, you won't want to miss a full day of gridiron chats.
Sumter School District will bookend the day, as Crestwood kicks things off at 10 a.m. and Sumter High closes the afternoon at 4 p.m. If you can't join us for the event, the videos of each team will be available on The Item Sports Facebook page for future reference.
Information from The Sumter Item's Football Media Day will be used in our football preview section, Gridiron, which is set to debut in the paper that hits mailboxes on Saturday, Aug. 24. That section and the individual stories will debut online in advance of Week 1.