Football player goes back in the game following seizures

Whoever said you can't keep a "Goodman" down must have been watching a Myrtle Beach High football game.

And whoever said a "Goodman" is hard to find must have played on the Carolina Forest defense.
Myrtle Beach tailback Joe Goodman ran for one touchdown, caught a pass for another, had two more called back on penalities and tallied 117 yards in total offense in the Seahawks' 31-12 victory over Carolina Forest on Friday night at Doug Shaw Stadium.

But more impressive than the numbers he put up was the fact that he played at all. After suffering a bout with seizures earlier this season, Goodman sustained bruised ribs early in the second half but returned to help lead his team to victory.

"[The] dude just sideswiped me real hard and it started swelling up and throbbing," Goodman said, "but I wasn't going to let it keep me out. I had to come back.

"I just love the way my team thrives on it. When somebody does something big, it's like the whole team gets motivated."

The 5-foot-6, 150-pound Goodman already has his teammates' respect after he began experiencing seizures in preseason practice. On the ride back from Conway earlier this month, he had another one that seemed to spell a premature end to his senior season.

"It was something I had when I was younger that just came back up all of a sudden," Goodman said. "I didn't take medication for it when I was young, but now that I'm taking medication for it it's no problem."

Goodman was a serious problem for the Panthers, breaking a 10-yard touchdown run and hauling in a 27-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Andrew Ellis to cap a 21-unanswered-point explosion in a six-minute span during the second period.

After having two more scores erased by penalties, one on a 75-yard touchdown strike from Ellis, Goodman was drilled in the ribs and fumbled deep in Seahawks' territory to give the Panthers a ray of hope. But the Myrtle Beach defense held the Panthers to a field goal with back-to-back goal-line stands.

"We had our backs against the wall down there a few times and they came away with [three points]," said Myrtle Beach coach Scott Earley. "Just a tremendous job on defense."

Meanwhile, Goodman lay prone on the sidelines before strapping on a flak jacket and returning to the game. He carried the ball five straight times to set up the Seahawks' final, game-clinching score.

"It scared us because he took a big hit," Earley said. "We thought, 'Oh Lord, here we go again.' We tried to play Dillon without him [due to the seizures]. They cleared him of all that, but he took a lick tonight.

"But I've had him for four years. When he comes up and says, 'I'm ready,' he's ready. He's just a tough, tough kid."

The victory over their rival was sweet revenge for the Seahawks, who lost last year at Carolina Forest on a field that can best be described as pig slop. Mr. Football quarterback J.D. Melton had a hard time passing in the slop and the Panthers prevailed 21-14.

One sign at Friday's game read, "Got Mud?" And Earley quipped after the game, "There ain't no mud at the beach."

Despite the fact that Hurricane Ophelia dumped five inches of rain earlier this week, the Seahawks had no trouble with footing on a dry field Friday night, especially with the hard running and determination of one Goodman.

"I never say die," Goodman said. "I never let anybody think they put me out of the game."