How a Clayton tight end found his way to NC Central, and to a regional final

College football fans often hear chatter about the transfer portal dramatically shifting high school recruiting. But what changed? And who is paying the price?

To grasp the minutiae, Clayton High tight end River Fiore personifies a case study.

Traditionally, college coaches build their rosters by pursuing highly rated prospects and identifying overlooked talent to develop. Nothing has changed for the highly recruited prospects, but the advent of the transfer portal led to coaches adding players with college experience. The quick fix has been at the expense of the lightly recruited athlete.

Fiore, a 6-foot-3, 240-pound tight end, falls into the lightly recruited category, even though Clayton coach Scott Chadwick considers his third-year varsity team leader invaluable to the Comets with his play on the field and his intangibles.

“River had interest from Group of Five schools,” Chadwick said. “But they were telling him they wanted to wait on offering him until after they see what’s available to them in the transfer portal.”

Conflicting dates for letter-of-intent day and the transfer portal created the problem. The Class of 2026 signing date was Wednesday, Dec. 3, but the transfer portal doesn’t open until January 2-16. Fiore — and other prospects like him — are essentially left in no man’s land.

“This is a weird time,” said Chadwick, who knows the recruiting game both then and now as a high school coach with 209 career wins, and a recruiting coordinator at the University of Maryland in 2021.

Fiore decided he wasn’t letting others make his choice. He committed on Nov. 1 to NC Central, a Football Championship Subdivision member, instead of waiting on coaches at schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision. He signed his letter of intent Wednesday with the Eagles.

“I wasn’t hearing from Group of Five coaches anymore, but I wasn’t going to let that (a Group of Five scholarship) define me,” Fiore said. “I feel I can develop at Central as well as anywhere else. The culture of their program, the family atmosphere, is unmatched.”

An unsung MVP

First, though, Fiore has unfinished high school business.

The Comets, who won the Greater Neuse River Conference title, have advanced to the East Region final of the N.C. High School Athletic Association 7A playoffs. Third-seeded Clayton (11-2) travels to No. 1 seed Cardinal Gibbons (12-1), with the game moved to 7 p.m. Thursday due to rain and cold forecast for Friday.

In Clayton’s ground-oriented option offense, Fiore’s versatility allows the Comets to move him around. With his hand in the dirt, he can block on the line. He can block as a power fullback. Or he can line up in the slot as an H-back to clear the way. Clayton quarterback Aiden Smalls leads the team with 1,135 yards rushing and 20 touchdowns, and running back Noah Smith is on the verge of the century mark with 923 yards and 15 touchdowns.

“Other than Aiden, River might be our most valuable guy on offense,” Chadwick said. “He can do so many things blocking in our option run game. If we were in a pass-first offense, he’d have a lot more opportunities to catch the ball.”

Fiore has only five catches for 83 yards and one touchdown, but in addition to the scheme limiting him, a late-season injury contributed to the lack of targets. After Clayton’s first-round bye, he missed the second round and saw limited snaps in the third round. But he was back to full strength for the fourth-round win last week over Southeast Raleigh.

A River Runs Through Clayton’s Offense.

Work ethic, and teamwork

Fiore’s behind-the-scenes play this year was boosted by his work ethic. He improved his speed in track season and lived in the weight room. But sports to him means more than on-field results. He also focused on taking his preternatural leadership to another level.

Chadwick, whose first year rebuilding the Comets was a 6-5 record in 2022, instituted a leadership council as part of the program. He spotted Fiore’s leadership persona and placed him as the only sophomore on the council for the 2023 season. The Comets’ 10-3 record was the first in their three-year streak of double-digit victories.

“I think the senior leadership was really good my sophomore year,” Fiore said. “They set the foundation for our 10-win seasons. I learned how much a leader can impact a team.”

Although the Comets followed with a 10-2 record in 2024, Fiore sensed the teamwork wasn’t at the 2023 level. He felt the younger players didn’t respect the 2024 leadership council as much as they did in 2023.

“I don’t want the younger players to see me and the captains as just bossing them around. I want them to see we’re trying to get the best out of everybody. I spent a lot of time sitting down with guys and doing those little things with them. After practice, I tried to give at least one guy a ride home. I want these guys to know we’re brothers — this is a family.”

A River Runs Through Clayton’s Locker Room.

Building community, giving back

Fiore also sensed a family atmosphere on his NC Central recruiting trip. He feels assistant coach Tony Spencer, the tight ends coach, will push him to his best.

“They knew me as a player, but he didn’t offer me until he came out here and sat down with me,” Fiore said. “He didn’t ask me how fast I was or how much I can bench press. He was asking me about things off the field. He asked me what kind of leader I am. That was massive for me. He’s going to push me and that’s what I want.”

Something else that didn’t come up was race, even though Fiore is an Italian American and NC Central is an HBCU — Historically Black College or University — in Durham. White athletes have been playing at HBCUs for years. Among NC Central football players to make the All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference team, four are white. It shouldn’t be an issue in America, but too many Americans can’t see past race.

“Coach Spencer didn’t bring it up, and I didn’t bring it up,” Fiore said. “It was never an issue. If I have to explain it to someone I can but most people understand, ‘This kid isn’t fazed by it.’ It probably started for me in elementary school. I went to Cooper (Academy) down the street from here. Cooper is mostly Black and Hispanic kids. I grew up with them.”

The website “Public School Review” lists Cooper Academy with a 76 percent minority enrollment. NC Central’s student body is 82 percent Black.

To reach letter-of-intent day, Fiore’s plans for college have been time-consuming, but he remained connected to his elementary school experiences. He has participated in a mentor program at two Clayton elementary schools, Cooper and Riverwood.

“A few of the kids have something going on at home, or they’re acting up in class,” Fiore said. “They need someone they can count on who is going to see them every week. I enjoy doing it. I saw a big difference in one kid I mentored last year. He saw someone who cared about him.

“It’s something I’d like to keep doing. I talked about it with my mom and my teachers. NC Central has told me it has a community hours program.”

A River Runs Through Fiore’s Life.

State finals notes

The 7A East Region winner meets the West Region champion for the 7A state title next week on a day and time to be determined. The 7A West Region final matches No. 2 seed Weddington (12-1) of Matthews, near Charlotte, against No. 1 Grimsley (13-0) of Greensboro.

In the 6A Division East Region final, No. 3 seed Middle Creek (10-2) of Apex travels to No. 1 seed Jacksonville (12-0). The West Region matches No. 2 Northern Guilford (12-1) of Greensboro at No. 1 Watauga (13-0) of Boone.

The 8A regionals were played last week. East champ Millbrook (13-0) faces West champ Cornelius Hough (13-0) next week.

The dates, times and locations for the Dec. 11, 12 and 13 games will be announced when the regionals conclude.