There's still time to donate to Wreaths Across America Beaufort before Saturday's event

Beaufort County This Week

STORY 1

It’s safe to say Irv Mulligan is already a star at home in Seabrook, but now his name is etched where an all-time legend’s used to reside.

The former Whale Branch star had another big game for Jackson State in Saturday’s 41-13 rout of Southern University for the SWAC title, and in the process surpassed the great Walter Payton’s top single-season rushing total during his tenure with the Tigers.

Mulligan rushed for 116 yards on 23 carries, including a 2-yard touchdown run that gave the Tigers the lead for good at 17-10 early in the third quarter. Mulligan’s sixth game this season with 100-plus rushing yards pushed his season total to 1,174, surpassing Sweetness for seventh on the school’s all-time list.

Mulligan was named the SWAC Offensive Player of the Year last week, and his name is on the short list for a number of other honors, including the Urban Edge Network’s inaugural HBCU+ National Player of the Year award, which will be presented to the outstanding player from 21 Historically Black Colleges and Universities in FCS college football.

Mulligan and the Tigers (11-2), including freshman defensive back KJ Chisholm, a fellow Whale Branch alum, will face South Carolina State (9-2) in the Cricket Celebration Bowl at noon Saturday on ABC.

STORY 2

The rising depth and level of competition among the Lowcountry’s growing number of wrestling programs was on display at the second annual Lowcountry Wrestling Championships at Hilton Head Island High School, but the May River Sharks showed they’re still the biggest fish in the pond.

Coach Ashley Powell’s team rolled up a lineup filled with new names, but the Sharks still racked up 222 points to comfortably retain the team crown with May River wrestlers reaching the finals in nine of the 14 weight classes and six claiming individual titles.

The Bluffton Bobcats finished second with 125.5 points, with Beaufort High (118), Hilton Head High (117), Bridges Prep (115.5), and Battery Creek (97) tightly packed behind them, indicative of the sport’s growing popularity in the area and strong parity in Region 6-4A.

STORY 3

With just a few days before Saturday’s Wreaths Across America Day, Beaufort Coordinator David Edwards confirmed Monday, Dec. 9, that his organization is still several thousand remembrance wreaths short of being able to cover the headstones of all the 28,000 veteran heroes interred at Beaufort National Cemetery, a feat Edwards and many volunteers have made happen several years running.

To sponsor a Remembrance Wreath, which costs $17, click on the QR code on Wreaths Across America Beaufort’s Facebook page or visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/GA0175P. That code at the end of the web address guarantees the wreaths purchased make their way to Beaufort.

Beaufort County Veterans Affairs joins Wreaths Across America Beaufort again this year as a partner.

The trucks and motorcycle escort will arrive at 11:30 a.m., with the brief ceremony beginning at noon.

To sponsor a Remembrance Wreath, click on the QR code on Wreaths Across America Beaufort’s Facebook page or visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/GA0175P. That code at the end of the web address guarantees the wreaths purchased make their way to Beaufort.
This year, National Wreaths Across America Day will be held on Saturday, Dec. 14. This is a free event open to all, and the organization encourages community members to participate by volunteering locally or sponsoring a wreath for an American hero.