A weekly article by Brady Henderson, ‘The Voice of the Tigers!’

Wednesday September 30th, 2026

We have returned from the 1940s feeling broadcast last week, which was audio-only, and are back with audio and visuals this coming Friday night at Airport. Obviously, the two mascots of each school facing off this Friday night for the 15th time in history inspired this week’s title of my weekly article. The Eagles rule the Air while the Tigers are usually dominant on land, specifically in jungles. But so far, neither program has dominated its opponents, with the Tigers at 2-4 and 0-1 in region play, and Airport at 2-3 after their bye week. Swansea is 2-4 for the 18th time in school history, and Airport is 2-3 for the 9th time (most recently in 2022). Before we do a deep dive in the sky on the Eagles, let’s briefly look at last week’s game at Camden.

Last week was senior night at Historic Zempf Stadium, and it was the first region matchup in the newly established Region 4-AAA. The new region consists of Gilbert, Lower Richland, Camden, Brookland-Cayce, Airport, and Swansea. Of all of those teams, the only team that wasn’t in the 4A Classification a year ago? The Swansea Tigers. Still, the Tigers look to control their own destiny after a tough 62-14 loss to the Bulldogs this past Friday night. It was only the third matchup between the two schools. While the Tigers haven’t given up 62 or more points to an opponent since September 22nd, 2023, when Midland Valley beat Swansea 77-0, the Tigers did have some success Friday night, totaling 257 yards of offense. While still a season low, the Tigers ran for 198 yards, with Deandre Caldwell carrying the ball 11 times for 72 yards and a touchdown, Trace Selfridge carrying the ball 11 times for 66 yards, and Tarez James carrying the ball 11 times for 43 yards. The other Touchdown came from Tarez James, who went 6/11 with 59 passing yards, to Zy’Shawn Jamison in the back of the endzone. An incredible catch by #3. For the first time in this series, the Tigers scored. Not once, but twice. In the previous two meetings between these schools, in 1931 and 1932, Swansea went scoreless. Camden was near perfect on the night, aside from a few penalties and a missed extra point by Sanches in the 1st quarter. Greyson Rimpf went 10/15 for 218 yards, and Camden's running backs totaled 211 rushing yards for 429 total yards of offense.

Someone may be wondering where the positives are for the Tigers. Well, they were on the field and on the rest of the remaining schedule. Just three years ago, Camden was in the 3A Upper State Championship. They came into this game ranked #1 in 3A football according to Max Preps Rankings and, according to many media organizations, were a favorite to win the 3A Championship and their new region. All of that is yet to be seen. We’ve just had one region game so far. And that’s just it, just one region game. The Tiger defense had some bright spots: Deandre Caldwell had a team-high 6 tackles, and Xi’Yelle Wright had 4 tackles, 1 sack, 1 PBU, and 1 QB hurry. Carder Young led the Linebackers with 4 tackles. Kevin Sightler and Nick Riley led the Defensive line with 3 tackles each. Now that the game is over, Swansea knows what it has to do to control its destiny in the playoffs. Another positive, as mentioned, is that the offense moved the ball for over 200 yards of total offense (257). Many of these positives won’t show up until the Tigers get on Les Evans Field this Friday night and learn from past mistakes.

Now that the first region game is over, the Tigers still control their own destiny. This year, it's more true than ever because, for the first time in High School football, the RPI rankings will determine who gets in the playoffs outside the top two finishers in each region, which get automatic bids. 2nd place, or even first place if Camden trips up down the road, is still on the table for Swansea. But they’ve got to take it week by week. Day by day. Practice by practice. The goals this team had for the season are still in front of them as the Tigers will play their 7th contest of the 2026 season. But this week, they’ve got to take care of the Eagles of Airport High School.

Opened in 1958, Airport High School has played football since 1964. The first time that the Tigers and the Eagles faced off was in Airport’s inaugural season under Coach Bob Mooneyham, and the Eagles lost that season in Swansea, 19-6. For some strange reason. Airport leads the series 8-6, with Swansea’s last win coming in 2022 when the Tigers, under Coach Brent Wilder, won 19-6. That was the first time that Swansea had ever beaten a 4A High School. The second came earlier this season when Swansea beat 4A Fox Creek, 63-21. The Eagles are 2-3 this season, with a season-opener win against Pelion, 34-7, and an away victory at Columbia High School, 37-14. Airport has returned to the 3A classification for the first time since 2015. These two schools are closely connected, separated by only 18 miles. An interesting fact is that about 40% of the town of Gaston is zoned for Airport High School, and about 60% is zoned for Swansea. So, many of these players, coaches, students, and fans know one another across opposing sides. In fact, here at the Swansea Tiger Sports Network, we know the Airport Broadcasting crew at Palmetto State Sports Network and the great work that they do. These two schools have many connections, and the 2026 Swansea Coaching staff is no exception. Marty Mack is in his 28th year of teaching and Coaching at Swansea High School and is an Airport alum. Assistant Offensive Line Coach Thayle Singleton is the Grandson of Bob Mooneyham, after whom the Airport Athletic Complex is named. Swansea Defensive Coordinator Brad Coleman was the Principal at Airport from 2016-2018. Preston Deaver, the Swansea Athletic Director, Head Baseball Coach, and Offensive Lineman, coached at Airport for 6 seasons on the Football and Baseball staff before serving as head football coach at Edisto from 2019-2023.

Airport’s all-time record is 326-371-6 (.469), led by 2nd-year Head Coach Chris Napier (2-13). Originally from the hills of West Virginia, Coach Napier’s resume stretches across the Southeast. Coach Napier has worked as a Head Coach, WR Coach, Offensive Coordinator, RB Coach, QB Coach, and offensive analyst at 5 different schools in West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, North Carolina, and Georgia. He has coached at the high school and college levels and served as an offensive coordinator in the Arena Football League. Before coming to Airport, he was on the coaching staff at Newberry High School and worked under Jason Bush, current Swansea running backs coach, at Columbia High School. On offense, the Eagles run an Air Raid offense. Notably, the Air Raid system Coach Napier runs was taught to him by the Mike Leach coaching Tree. Chris Napier served on the Coaching staff at LaGrange College in Georgia, a Division 3 Football Program. While he was there, Napier played under Head Coach Matt Mumme. Matt’s Dad? Hal Mumme, who was head coach at Valdosta State in the 90s when he and Mike Leach (his offensive coordinator) created the Air Raid offense that is so popular today. Coach Napier also met Mike Leach and asked him questions when Leach was at Mississippi State, before Leach passed away in 2022.

In 62 seasons of Airport football, they have had winning seasons 31% of the time, but this team has already made history as Coach Napier, the 9th Head Coach in school history, is seeking to build a program. When Airport beat Pelion 34-7 to open the season, they broke a 17-game losing streak. This team practices each morning before school, beginning at 6 AM. They are working on discipline and throwing the ball all across the yard. And with Napier’s resume and pedigree, they look to be on the right track under his steadfast leadership. History shows Airport is 157-212 in region play overall but is 33-28 in their first region game of the season. Swansea is 222-171 overall in region play but is 43-53 in their 2nd Region game of each season.

The Tigers, who are averaging 31.2 points per game, look to continue their offensive identity of running the ball. Something they’ve done all season successfully. But don’t sleep on the passing game either, as QB Tarez James has thrown for 526 yards and 7 TDs this season (47.5% of the team’s total yards have come from #12). The 18th-ranked Tigers and 24th-ranked Eagles will face off for the 15th time in history. You can watch the action live on the Swansea Tiger Sports Network (Audio and Visual) beginning at 6:50 PM with the Swansea High School Booster Club Pregame show!

Go Tigers! 

Sincerely, 

The Voice of the Tigers, 

Brady Henderson 

2026 Swansea Tiger Football Schedule

For the first time in school history, the Swansea Tiger Sports Network will broadcast all 10 regular-season football games (audio & visual)! This season, you don’t have to miss a tackle, catch, or touchdown! Each Friday night, whether the Tigers are on the road or at home, you can begin tuning in at 6:50 PM on our YouTube channel for the Accurate Manufacturing and Pound Automotive Pregame Show! Brady (play-by-play) and Matt (color) will be calling the action, live! We can’t wait for the season to officially begin on August 21st at the Historic Doug Bennett Stadium. Go Tigers!