Discover the best NC high school football players under the radar
Friday night will mark the beginning of the eighth week of the prep football season around the Carolinas, and as we advance further into the autumn season, the temperatures may be falling slightly on the thermometer, but the action on the gridiron is starting to sizzle.
The chase for the playoffs is really starting to heat up and take shape. While some teams are realizing the dreams of winning a conference title, and making a run toward a state championship is a real possibility, the fate of others seems to hang in the balance of every missed third-down conversion or scoring opportunity.
It seems that we’ve talked all season about some of the front-runners. Whether in my weekly column or on our show “Talking Preps,” the successes of players like Daylan Smothers or Omarion Hampton have been well documented.
As two of the top running backs in the state, and both considered bona fide, can’t-miss college talents, they’ll both most likely need a duffel bag to carry home the post-season awards that they’ll receive in a couple of months.
Smothers is the reigning Mr. Football, and with Hampton putting together a season for the ages, the two seem to be in the headlines each week.
However, while they’ve both earned the praise and publicity that one would expect from being prep superstars, I’ve decided to dig deeper and scour the state for some other worthy newsmakers and Friday night heroes.
Finding the next standout athletes
Every year, and in every town across the state, the high school football season produces new stars for us to talk about. In some communities, these young athletes become legends and are talked about for many decades to come.
In football-hungry communities like Shelby, Reidsville or Rockingham, young gridiron stars become instant folk heroes. Especially those who help guide their teams to a deep playoff run or state championship.
This week I decided to leave no rock unturned. I dug deep into stats, talked to some college football coaches and watched film on teams from the highlands to the coast. The search was exhausting, but I found a few athletes who are deserving of some high praise and recognition.
A star in Hendersonville
Starting in the west, Hendersonville has been on an amazing run of late. Head football coach Jim Sosebee and his Bearcats came up short, allowing Mountain Heritage to score on 4th-and-5 in overtime, then on a 2-point conversion attempt, missing the 2A state championship game by mere inches in the spring.
Using the spring season’s near-miss as motivation to take it one step further, Sosebee’s squad is 6-1 and looking to be among the favorites in the 2A West bracket.
Leading the way for the team is a young man with Hollywood good looks, impeccable academic credentials in the classroom and a fierce run-you-over demeanor on the football field.
Gavin Gosnell is among the statistical passing leaders in the state, but, built more like a linebacker, he’s not your prototypical quarterback.
“He’s Sunshine (from the movie ‘Remember the Titans’),” Sosebee says. “He’s the nicest kid you’ll meet; you wouldn’t know that he’s going to run over someone that night.”
With a 6-foot-2, 210-pound frame, he’s a field general and a bruiser all in one. The senior signal-caller hasn’t received any collegiate scholarship offers yet, though he does have a few preferred walk-on offers, and he’s working out weekly with former NFL quarterback Jonathan Crompton to improve his play.
“He’s a physical player, and probably the best weight-lifter we have; he sets a good example for all of our team to follow,” Sosebee adds.
Company in Elizabeth City
Moving on to Elizabeth City, Northeastern head football coach Antonio Moore has put countless players into college and knows Division I talent when he sees it. Watching the film, I must agree as he’s got about four or five young men with a chance to move on and play major college football.
Just about everyone knows about Kaveon Freshwater — he’s been firmly planted on our Mr. Football watch-list since the beginning of the season — but let me introduce you to a couple of other head-turners that could be moving up the list.
When you watch film, junior receiver Shamar Sutton just jumps out of the screen at you. His catlike quickness and lightning-fast speed is a head-turner.
“No one can single cover him, he’s just special,” exclaims Moore. “He reminds me of Josh Downs (at the University of North Carolina); both of them are shifty and both of them find a way to get open.”
With a 3.5 GPA in the classroom and coming from a family of incredible athletes, including four uncles who were state championship wrestlers at Northeastern, he has all the intangibles you look for in a top athlete.
On the defensive side for the Eagles, outside linebacker Jamison Fletcher is a freakish talent with a wild side. He’s like a bolt of energy on the field, playing with vigor and enthusiasm, and he’s a run-stopping machine.
“He’s the hardest working player I’ve ever seen in my life,” says Moore. “In his four years at Northeastern, I’ve never seen him give less than 100 percent in anything he does, including the classroom, where he has a 3.8 GPA.”
Defensive stalwarts
Two other defensive players who have been giving quarterbacks a bad day are Bryan Brewington at South View and Brandon Perry at Smithfield-Selma.
Perry, who plays at running back and linebacker for Smithfield-Selma, is an old-school-like player who has a knack for making big plays.
“He’s a pretty good leader, a no-nonsense kid with a maturity level beyond his years,” says head coach Deron Donald. “He flies around the football, he’s got such a high motor for getting to the football, and he’s a dog at linebacker.”
Perry missed his junior season due to injury, so he’s been making up for it by punishing opposing quarterbacks and running backs.
(For this up-and-coming Spartan program, Donald also has a sophomore receiver in Isiah Dawson who may be a can’t-miss talent, but we’ll talk about him another time.)
Brewington is another guy that ends up in the nightmares of quarterbacks in Cumberland County.
“He’s terrorizing the quarterbacks right now and causing double-teams against him,” says head football coach Rodney Brewington, Bryan’s father. “It’s one of the reasons why our defense is playing so well, because he’s allowing our linebackers to run free.”
On the offensive side, however, Bryan Brewington’s teammate Cedavion Wimbley is quietly having a big-time career and moving up the recruiting charts.
Wimbley has passed for 1,672 yards so far in his career and rushed for 809 yards and 11 touchdowns in the shortened spring season and is a big reason why South View is 4-1 right now.
“He’s a dual-threat star,” Rodney Brewington says. “He’s electric when he throws the ball and he’s really developed his craft as a quarterback over the last few years.”
Growing into it
Another young quarterback in Fayetteville to take notice of is Westover’s Joshua Jones, who’s grown a lot since his freshman year, and I mean literally.
“He’s really bought into the weight room,” says head football coach Ernest King. “He went from being 5-foot-6 and 150 pounds as a ninth grader to a 6-foot-1, 180-pounder in two years, and he’s still growing.”
He’s also putting up some really big offensive numbers for the 4-0 Wolverines and is quickly ascending the recruiting ladder for colleges across the Southeast.
Coming attractions
As if last weekend’s prep football action wasn’t good enough, fans will be treated to some incredible games this Friday.
One of the top-billed games will be a rescheduled non-conference affair from a few weeks ago, but regardless of when these two old foes line up to play, it’s always a newsworthy event. Fresh off a last-minute victory against South Point, Crest will travel across town to face archrival Shelby at George Blanton Memorial Stadium. This game never disappoints fans, so be certain to arrive early and get a good seat. I’m sure the stadium will be packed in this contest.
In Raleigh, Leesville Road takes their undefeated record to Cardinal Gibbons in what could be the battle for the CAP-6 championship. These two teams have been among the strongest so far this season in what could turn out to be a loaded 4A East bracket, come November.
Sam Greiner and his West Charlotte Lions will travel to Cornelius to take on Hough in a pivotal Queen City Conference showdown. West has already wrapped up the 3A crown, but they’ve got their eyes set on a bigger prize before the playoffs begin.
In the Southeastern part of the state, Jacksonville travels to Havelock in what should be an incredible contest this Friday. Senior quarterback Josh Benton has been fun to watch for the Cardinals, and his team will need him at full speed to have a shot at beating the Rams.
Of course, I say this every week, but make sure you get out and support your local teams this week. These schools need your support, and these young athletes give it their all for the schools and communities.