Welcome to the weekly sports roundup in the greater Charlotte area presented by The Sports Chief. Every Sunday, let The Chief be the one to catch you up on all the latest sports happenings in and around the Charlotte, NC area. We take a look at professional sports, as well as semi-professional, college, and high school. If you like what we’re doing, make sure you give us a follow on Twitter at @thesportschief where you’ll be notified of all our latest postings, and visit our website at www.thesportschief.com.

Professional

Carolina Panthers

The Panthers are currently taking on their former coach Ron Rivera and the Washington Football Team. Carolina is looking to get off of their 3-game losing streak, where they have lost to the Vikings, Broncos, and the Packers. Their last win came a month ago with a 20-0 victory against Detroit. Running back Christian McCaffrey continues to highlight the “inactives” list for the Panthers, as he probably should with nothing to play for at this point in the season. We all want Christian to be back at 100% next season so there’s no real reason to play him now to risk further injury.

Washington has won four of their last five games and believe it or not, are first in the NFC East with the losing record of 6-8. With a playoff opportunity to play for, and being the better football team as of late, you have to give them the better chance of winning today. I predict a 28-17 Washington win over Carolina.

Charlotte Hornets

After going 1-3 in the shortened pre-season, the Charlotte Hornets began regular season play on Wednesday night in Cleveland against the Cavaliers. That game resulted in a 121-114 loss for Charlotte with Terry Rozier exploding for a 42-point game. Newly acquired Gordon Hayward added 28, but the Hornets couldn’t find a solution for Collin Sexton who scored 27 for the Cavs.

Looking to rebound from their opening loss, the Hornets squared off with the Oklahoma City Thunder in Charlotte last night. A 9-point first half lead wouldn’t be enough as the Hornets needed a comeback late in the game if they wanted a shot to win. The 18-5 run they mounted late in the 4th was an impressive run, but it would leave them just short of getting the win. A last second shot to tie things up didn’t fall and Charlotte lost 109-107. Terry Rozier led the team in scoring once again, this time with 19 points, while PJ Washington scored 18.

The Hornets are back in action tonight in the Spectrum Center against Brooklyn, in a game that almost certainly won’t give Charlotte their first season win. The Nets have looked great so far this season with a healthy Kevin Durant finally back in the lineup.

Read our Week 1 Charlotte Hornets Report by Yacs by clicking here

College Football

Appalachian State

To kick off college football bowl season, App State faced off against North Texas this past Monday in the Myrtle Beach Bowl in Conway, SC. As an App grad, I wasn’t thrilled at all with the bowl matchup, considering the Mountaineers won eight games this season compared to North Texas’s four. It seemed like it was a mismatch going into the game and the results upheld that notion. The final score was 56-28 in favor of Appalachian State, keeping them undefeated in bowl games since moving up to the FBS. Quarterback Zac Thomas only had 114 passing yards and one touchdown, but running back Camerun Peoples stole the show with a ridiculous 319 rushing yards (22 attempts) and FIVE touchdowns. It was a game he’ll always remember for sure.

With Zac Thomas not deciding to use his extra year of eligibility, the Mountaineers will have another signal caller next season. And we now know who that should be. Chase Brice will be a graduate transfer and barring any unusual circumstances, should be the starter for App next season. Brice spent his first two college seasons at Clemson, before transferring in conference to become Duke’s starting quarterback this season.

College Basketball

Charlotte

The 49ers continue to roll on the court, winning their third straight game Tuesday against George Washington. Behind by four at halftime, Charlotte outscored George Washington 39-32 in the second half to capture the narrow 66-65 win. It was Jahmir Young who once again led the team in scoring with 21 points, continuing his impressive season, while Jordan Shepherd added 16. Next up on the schedule is Western Kentucky on New Year’s Day. The 49ers are now 4-3 on the season.

Davidson

Since dropping local rivalry game to Charlotte, the Wildcats have bounced back with two wins. One of them was covered in last Sunday’s 704 Report (vs. Rhode Island), and this week’s win came against the SEC’s Vanderbilt. And it wasn’t just a win. The Commodores traveled to Davidson from Nashville just to get handed a 19-point loss. Hyunjung Lee scored 23 and Carter Collins scored 22. Kellan Grady added four three pointers. The win gives Davidson a 5-3 overall record with their next game coming against Richmond this Wednesday.

Appalachian State

After a couple of big wins coming at the hands of poor competition, the Mountaineers faced the talented Auburn Tigers this past Tuesday in hopes of securing a big-time win. That, however, did not come. While the game was close at times, the final score ended up being 67-53. With a 6-3 record, conference play is next for the Mountaineers with back-to-back games against Troy on New Year’s Day and January 2nd.

High School

With public high school football scheduled to begin in February, the private school football season is behind us, having taken place in the fall as normal. Therefore there will be two versions of the 2020 All-Charlotte Observer Football Team. Here is the private school version:

Charlotte Country Day’s Russell Taborcharlotteobserver.com — Charlotte Country Day’s Russell Tabor
charlotteobserver.com

All-Observer Offense

QB: Russell Tabor (Charlotte Country Day)

RB: Nickel Fields (Providence Day)

RB: Henry Rutledge (Charlotte Christian)

WR: Thomas Flynn (Providence Day)

WR: Daniel Haughton (Charlotte Latin)

WR: Max Riley (Cabarrus Warriors)

OL: Eddie Cassells (Charlotte Country Day)

OL: Mason Diel (Charlotte Christian)

OL: Jack Flowers (Charlotte Country Day)

OL: Zach Lohavichan (Providence Day)

OL: Cameron Nichols (Providence Day)

OL: Andrew Threatt (Metrolina Christian)

ATH: Tyler Green (Cabarrus Warriors)

ATH: Jordan Erwin (Charlotte Country Day)

All-Observer Defense

DL: Connor Glosson (Providence Day)

DL: Sam Hedrick (Charlotte Country Day)

DL: Hudson Jones (Charlotte Christian)

DL: Jack Schultz (Cabarrus Warriors)

LB: Jimmy Bailey (Charlotte Christian)

LB: Jay Brandon Jones (Providence Day)

LB: Colton Fitch (Metrolina Christian)

LB: Chase Montgomery (Charlotte Latin)

LB: Kevin Sangmuah (Providence Day)

DB: James Chan (Providence Day)

DB: Carson Chow (Charlotte Christian)

DB: Will Farrell (Charlotte Christian)

DB: Cameron Ray (Charlotte Country Day)

ATH: Chip Kasay (Charlotte Christian)

All-Observer Special Teams

K: Tyler Swinehart (Charlotte Country Day)

P: Bryce McPherson (Metrolina Christian)

KR/PR: Chris Peal (Providence Day)

LS: Ben Anderson (Charlotte Latin)

Charlotte Christian’s Henry Rutledgecharlotteobserver.com — Charlotte Christian’s Henry Rutledge
charlotteobserver.com

2020 All-Observer Football Team

Offensive Player of the Year: Henry Rutledge (Charlotte Christian)

Defensive Player of the Year: Jay Brandon Jones (Providence Day)

Coach of the Year: Jason Estep (Charlotte Christian)

Garett

704 Weekly Sports Report