UNC, NC State football are final choices for 3-star Charlotte high school recruit
The recruiting battle for one of the top unsigned seniors in the class of 2023 will come down to a pair of ACC rivals.
Kevin Concepcion, a wide receiver out of Julius L. Chambers High School in Charlotte, has narrowed his final two choices down to N.C. State and UNC. He will make his announcement Saturday, when the Cougars take on Cardinal Gibbons of Raleigh in Rock Hill, S.C., in a rematch of the 2021 4A title game.
Concepcion posted on Instagram that he will either announce before the game or at halftime. The game will be televised on WCCB (Channel 18) in Charlotte and streamed on Bahakelsports.com.
Concepcion (5-11, 173) is the No. 13-ranked player in the Charlotte Observer/News & Observer Top 25. Only two players ranked above Concepcion haven’t committed to a school. Concepcion is the last uncommitted offensive player in the top 15.
As a junior, Concepcion caught 36 passes for 458 yards and eight touchdowns a year ago. He also returned three punts for touchdowns.
Time at UNC and N.C. State
A three-star prospect, Concepcion had 20 Division I offers. However, he’s spent most of the summer bouncing between Raleigh and Chapel Hill.
He took an official visit to N.C. State on June 16, and an official visit to UNC on June 24.
At the ‘Alpha Wolf’ event at Carter-Finley Stadium on Aug. 5, Concepcion told the News & Observer what his decision would ultimately come down to.
“Relationships, for sure,” Concepcion said.
He’s had time to build plenty of those. Aside from his official visits, Concepcion attended camps at N.C. State and UNC this summer. He’s also taken multiple unofficial visits to both schools. With so many in-state players committed to both the Wolfkack and Tar Heels already, they’ve started recruiting Concepcion to join them.
“A lot, a lot,” Concepcion said when he was asked about his classmates trying to sway him. “I like it though, for sure.”
Does the Charlotte connection matter?
In North Carolina’s past three recruiting classes, the Heels have received commitments from three Charlotte-area wideouts, a fact that could sway Concepcion to join them in the pipeline to Chapel Hill.
In the same span, just one wide receiver from the Charlotte area has committed to N.C. State.
In the class of 2021, UNC signed Myers Park quarterback Drake Maye, and it appeared a bevy of top-flight of Charlotte receivers followed him to Chapel Hill. Concepcion, though, has been close with Heritage High School quarterback Lex Thomas, who has committed to the Wolfpack.
If Concepcion picks the Heels, he would be the fourth wide receiver in their class of 2023, joining Christian Hamilton (Hickory Ridge) and Chris Culliver (Maiden). He told the News & Observer that UNC has been on his radar for a while.
“Ever since my freshman year, I fell in love with it and I got the offer,” Concepcion said.
Concepcion would be a major haul for the Wolfpack.
At one point, N.C. State seemed to be in the hunt for three of the best wide receivers in the state. Rolesville wideout Noah Rogers, the top player in North Carolina, committed to Ohio State. Millbrook’s Nathan Leacock committed to Tennessee.
Dave Doeren doesn’t currently have one pure wide receiver in the class of 2023. When Tamarcus Cooley (Rolesville) committed, he was listed as an athlete, expected to play defensive back. On N.C. State’s 247Sports recruiting page, Cooley is now listed as a wide receiver.
Havelock’s Javonte Vereen has the build of a wide receiver (6-4, 209), but currently plays tight end in high school.
This story was originally published August 19, 2022 at 12:00 PM.
