Iron Horse football playoff run ends, legacy continues to grow

The Philip Simmons High School football team achieved two of its major goals during the 2024 season but came up short in its bid for the top prize.

 

Manning High School topped the visiting Iron Horses 34-21 victory in a Class AA Lower State semifinal game. 

 

While coach Eric Bendig and his squad wanted to extend the season two more weeks, they can find solace in being only one of 40 teams out of more than 200 in the Palmetto State that played on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

 

“We were tested early in the season,” Bendig said. “We had a couple of early season losses and other things that went wrong, but we regrouped, kept the team together and did some positive things. 

 

“To be able to play after Thanksgiving is a sign of success,” Bendig added. “That’s something that not many teams experience.”  

 

The Iron Horses went 10-3 in 2024, marking the third time in four years they recorded at least 10 victories. Bendig, the only coach in the program’s seven-year history, won only two games in the first season in 2018, and had just nine victories after three seasons. 

 

But Bendig laid a solid foundation despite the lumps. The Iron Horses will enter the 2025 season with 38 victories in their last 49 games. 

 

The third-round playoff game was one of momentum as Manning jumped to a two-touchdown lead, but the Iron Horses rallied to tie the game at 21-21. Then the winners returned the kickoff for a score to take a 28-21 lead that broke the Iron Horses’ collective backs. 

 

The Monarchs lost their season opener to Crestwood but rebounded to win 11 consecutive games with the decision over the Iron Horses. The Monarchs will play in the Lower State final for the first time since 2010. They will face Barwell, which enters the showdown with a nine-game winning streak and 12-1 record. 

 

The Iron Horses will lose 16 seniors from the team, including five on defense and 11 on offense. But, the offense had backups with many underclassmen getting significant playing time. The offense should be ahead of the defense when spring practice convenes in May. 

 

“We had eight, nine or 10 guys who started or played a significant amount of time on offense,” Bendig said. “We will celebrate the seniors but have to formulate a plan for next year. We have some key players to replace.” 

 

That includes quarterback Tavien Orellana, who set single-season and career records and his top receiver Kolton Kellermann, who had a big season despite missing four games with an injury. The defense has limited experience.

 

But the returners have big numbers. Freshman linebacker Trevor Tonon set a school record with 28 tackles during a recent playoff game while his brother, Brody, a junior, logged 25 stops in the same game while junior Ethan Chisum had 18 tackles.