It didn’t come with the overtime drama as last year’s Gamble Bowl, but Dixie and Crescent provided some thrilling theatre.

Crescent held on for a 39-28 despite three second-half touchdowns from Dixie, highlighted by quarterback Jamaal Byers’ 7-for-9 passing performance after halftime for 102 yards.

Crescent’s 25-point halftime lead proved to be enough of a cushion, and the Tigers moved back above .500 to 2-1 with Ninety Six on deck this week. Dixie fell to 1-3 and travels to Landrum this week.

Crescent fullback Anthony Wykle is turning into a scoring machine. He had three more scores against Dixie, including a 41-yarder, and chewed up 159 yards on 18 carries. His seven TDs lead the area.

The win gives Crescent coach Troy Gamble two wins over his older brother Brian, Dixie’s coach.

APPLE DEFENSE

First-year West-Oak coach Jay Brannon was not the least bit worried about his pass defense leading up to the Apple Bowl matchup with Walhalla’s vaunted passing attack.

Turns out, Brannon was dead on.

Long known as the strength of his team, the Warriors’ defensive backfield, led by Dillon McKinney and Ethan Partee, held the Hogs to 115 passing yards in a 33-13 victory. It could have helped that versatile Walhalla running back Meeshon Thompson was injured in the first half, but West-Oak’s clock-draining ground game (49 running plays) was also a key factor.

After losing three straight in the series, the Warriors have won two in a row.

SHRINE BOWL TAPES

Westside coach Ted Luckadoo, who is head coach for the Sandlappers in the Shrine Bowl this season, is looking for more coaches to send film of their players. Luckadoo said his coaching staff has a pretty good idea of the top tier players, but a player who may be on the bubble would not get as close a look without film. The coaching staff meets every Wednesday in Columbia. Coaches, send game or highlight film to Luckadoo at Westside, 806 Pearman Dairy Road, Anderson, SC, 29625.

WEEK 3 GAME BALL

With four one-point games in Anderson County alone, you might think a kicker might be worthy of the game ball. But giving it to anyone but Daniel junior safety DeAndre Hopkins would be highway robbery. Hopkins had three interceptions, a go-ahead touchdown catch, and the game-deciding blocked extra point to beat Westside 21-20.

WEEK 3 PICKS

Had my toughest week of the season with an 8-5 mark. My losses were Hanna-Mauldin, Palmetto-B-HP, Wren-Woodmont, Walhalla-West-Oak, Stephens County-LaGrange. Give me some advice on Week 4 at gofridayfootball.com.

WEEK 4 LOOKAHEAD

We’ve got another alumnus playing his high school team when Pendleton coach Paul Sutherland welcomes Palmetto and the upset-minded Mustangs to the shiny new digs of Cunningham Stadium. Look for a tight game if history is any indication. Three of the last four meetings, all Pendleton wins, have been decided by three points or less.

Belton-Honea Path hasn’t started 0-3 since 1995 when the Bears began 0-8. The Bears get a visit from Wren this week hoping to stop that skid. The Bears have only scored 27 points this season, but they’ll play a Wren team that’s yielded 164 points in four games.

AROUND THE STATE

The Upstate got some national publicity when the Riverside-Berea game was featured as No. 1 on the top 10 plays of the day on ESPN’s SportsCenter Friday night. Berea running back Davion Gambrell dumptrucked a Riverside defender, then scampered for a score. … Byrnes led 29-0 after a quarter and 42-0 at halftime in a 63-0 victory over Greer. The Yellow Jackets had five first-half turnovers. … Dorman handed Greenwood its second straight loss, this time 28-10. The Cavaliers had 399 rushing yards. … South Pointe beat Clover 35-7 in a game where one player was ejected, there were 17 penalties, and the coaches barked at each other at the end of the game. The teams also didn’t shake hands after the buzzer. … Three touchdown passes from Jalen Perry led Ridge View to a 22-7 win over Dutch Fork. The Silver Foxes final six drives of the first half collected only 42 yards. … Beaufort scored three fourth-quarter touchdowns to beat Fort Dorchester 28-14. After an injuries to their top two quarterbacks, the Patriots put in a freshman, who fumbled twice in the second half.