Personal Injury Attorney in Greenwood, SC

A virtual time capsule at J.W. Babb Stadium lasted deep into the night, almost unwilling to come to a conclusion.

Greenwood and Spartanburg — two rivals of old, playing a brand of football near forgotten — fought through over two hours of weather delays, momentum swings and a vicious war in the trenches over the course of a game that was shortened to eight-minute quarters.

But it ended with a painful blast back to the modern era — with a final Spartanburg dagger, a 45-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Aryan Desai, that was enough to give the Vikings a 21-14 win over the Eagles.

“Hats off Spartanburg for finding a way to win,” Greenwood coach Chris Liner said. “Spartanburg came out the winner tonight, and it sucks because we had every opportunity to win the football game. But that’s football.”

Greenwood won the war at the line early, holding Spartanburg to three straight three-and-outs to start the game and driving deep into Spartanburg territory on their lone possession before the weather delay.

“We played really well defensively, especially to start with and were able to keep their dominant back in check,” Liner said. “We kind of kept them in check there for a while.”

But coming out of the break, Spartanburg began to build momentum. Rutgers running back commit Trenton Lynch took a short pass 35 yards for a first down on third-and-24 to kickstart the drive, and an incredible catch from Spartanburg receiver Skyler Douglas gave the Vikings their first trip to the redzone in the game.

An unbelievable stand by the Eagles on fourth-and-inches, however, would keep the game scoreless in the second quarter.

On the ensuing possession, Spartanburg returned a punt to the Greenwood 4-yard line, and Lynch punched it in for a touchdown to give the Vikings a 7-0 lead. The Vikings would hold their lead into the half.

The Eagles continued to have the same struggles in the second half, moving the ball on the ground but struggling to score near the redzone.

It was Greenwood defensive back Jamere Jackson who provided the spark the Eagles needed, recovering a fumble from a Spartanburg receiver to set up his team with a short field.

Tay Hamilton would pay off the turnover, scoring from four yards out to tie the game at 7.

The tie would be short-lived. With Lynch out dealing with cramps, freshman Mayson Whiteside helped lead a strong drive down the field for the Vikings and punched in a touchdown from inside the 10-yard line to help his team regain the lead. A blocked extra point would make the score 13-7.

Cassidy Lee would return the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown, but the play would be called back for holding at midfield.

With momentum against them, junior quarterback Zatavion White entered the game and led a brilliant drive, finding Ry’Keem Robinson in the corner of the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown to give his team a 14-13 lead with less than five minutes to play.

But as it had several times in the game, third-and-long came back to bite the Eagles. With less than a minute in the game, Spartanburg faced a third-and-16 from midfield and looked to be out of time. Desai then found receiver Tregan Mickler wide open over the middle for a long touchdown pass, and a successful 2-point conversion pass gave the Vikings a 21-14 lead with 0:32 to play.

Greenwood’s final drive for a comeback win would come up short at midfield.

“We’ll watch film, and people will see the mistakes that were made and the things we got to fix,” Liner said. “But ultimately that responsibility lies with me, and I’ve got to make sure that we got the right people on the field that understand exactly what we expect.”

Hamilton led the Greenwood offense with 87 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. Quay Justesen and White rotated at quarterback in the second half, and Justesen finished 4-of-12 for 11 yards along with 14 rushing yards while White finished 4-of-5 for 22 yards along with 26 rushing yards.

Greenwood held Spartanburg's rushing attack, which went for 298 yards a week ago against Gaffney, to just 75 yards and 3.4 yards per carry. Spartanburg possessed the ball for just 16:45 to Greenwood's 27:15.

The Eagles travel to take on North Augusta next Friday.

GREENWOOD — A small Upstate city that has long supported its locally owned burger joints such as the Dixie Drive-In, Garden Grille and Cheeseburger House has seen yet another chain burger place come and go.

Whataburger is closing its Greenwood location less than a year after opening it.

It is the second Upstate spot to shut down in recent months. In May, the company shuttered one of its five Greenville County locations, all built in the past two years.

In a statement, Whataburger said it was closing the Greenwood location “as part of our routine business reviews.” It did not elaborate further.

In 2024, Whataburger began opening a flurry of South Carolina locations. There now are 18 across the state, most of which are in the Upstate, according to the company’s website.

The restaurants opened to much fanfare. When the first South Carolina spot opened in Boiling Springs, loyal fans waited overnight to get free Whataburger for a year. Hours before food was served, the drive-thru line wound around the parking lot at the adjacent Target.

In a 2023 interview with The Post and Courier, company officials said they planned to open about 10 new restaurants a year.

“We’re gonna earn that right to be called ‘your hometown Whataburger,’” President and CEO Ed Nelson — a Simpsonville native — said at the time.

In a statement, Whataburger said its commitment to South Carolina “remains strong,” pointing to new locations in Pendleton and Rock Hill that opened this year.

Asked whether the restaurant plans to close any additional locations, it said, “We don't have any additional South Carolina restaurant closures to announce.”

The Texas-based burger chain has been expanding aggressively since a Chicago investment firm bought it in 2019. There are now 1,100 restaurants across 17 states, according to the website.

The company is known for its 24/7 operating hours, fresh beef burgers, patty melts and spicy ketchup, among other offerings.

On social media, people reacted to the news without surprise. While some mourned the closure in Greenwood, which is about 50 miles south of Greenville, many offered up other restaurants they’d like to see instead.

Whataburger closed its Greenwood restaurant Thursday after less than a year in business.

It is the second South Carolina location to close after several years of rapid expansion by the Texas-based company.

The Greenville restaurant at 1466 Woodruff Road, not far from the interchange at Interstate 385, closed in May.

“While we’re sad to close this chapter in Greenwood, our commitment to serving South Carolina remains as strong as ever,” a company spokesman said in a news release. “As Whataburger continues to grow across the Southeast, we’re proud to serve guests at 16 other restaurants across South Carolina.”

The Greenwood restaurant was located at 262 Bypass 72 NW and opened last September.

The company suggested customers could find Whataburgers in Simpsonville and Anderson. Both are about 40 miles from Greenwood.

The company said in its statement the closing was a result of regular business reviews it conducts of all of its locations.

The Houston Chronicle reported late last year that Whataburger typically closes “underperforming restaurants during, or after, rapid expansion phases.”

When the Greenville store closed, the company said closings help “focus our efforts where we can make the biggest impact.”

The spokesman did not respond Thursday to questions regarding whether other closings in South Carolina were anticipated.

Whataburger, based in Texas and not associated with the locally owned What-A-Burger, opened its first South Carolina in 2024. Founded in 1950, the chain has more than 1,030 locations.

Whataburger President and CEO Ed Nelson, a South Carolina native and Clemson graduate, said having a Whataburger in South Carolina is a dream come true.

“As a native son, I’ve always known that our state’s rich culture and warm hospitality would be the perfect match for Whataburger’s tradition of bold flavors and extraordinary service,” he said in a news release.

Whataburger locations are open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except Christmas Day.

There are two locations in Columbia and two in Lexington.

GREENWOOD COUNTY, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - Greenwood County residents are watching two competing measures ahead of a county council meeting Tuesday night that could determine whether data centers are allowed in the community.

Two measures, opposite outcomes

The first measure would change zoning guidelines to allow data centers as a conditional use in Greenwood County, meaning they could be approved under certain conditions. Tuesday marks that measure’s third and final reading.

At the same time, three council members are sponsoring a second reading of a one-year moratorium that would block all data center approvals in the county.

Resident raises loophole concern

One neighbor said he is concerned that if the first ordinance passes before the second, council members would leave a loophole allowing data centers into the community.

“The thought that this would happen here is heart-wrenching because the cool thing about Greenwood — it’s under the radar in many ways and that’s a good thing,” said Russ Fitzgerald, a Greenwood County resident.

“There are beautiful places to live, beautiful terrain, it’s green and lush and beautiful. All that goes out the window if data centers come in,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s like something out of Star Wars. It’s the Death Star practically.”

Council members to speak at meeting

All seven council members were contacted for comment. Only two responded, Johanna Bishop and Dayne Pruitt. Both council members said they’ll make statements at Tuesday’s meeting.

Due to the expected crowd, the meeting will be held at District 50’s Performing Arts Center at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.

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