1a. The scrimmages were nice but it was great to have some real football being played Thursday in Charlotte.
Thursday was the start of watching six prep games over three days, with prospects running the gamut. The binge will include NC State senior commits such as wide receiver Terrell Anderson of Greensboro (N.C.) Grimsley tonight, and safety Brody Barnhardt of Charlotte Providence Day on Saturday night.
It also includes seeing some past NC State ghosts of recruiting past, some new targets and then discovering who could be future targets.
For this section, we’ll start with seeing four intertwined recruits on Thursday.
Matthews (N.C.) Weddington has three sophomores that NC State has already offered — athlete Thomas Davis Jr. and Aiden Harris and his twin brother Andrew Harris, who goes by Drew. The Harris twins are cousins with Davis, who is the son of former star Carolina Panther outside linebacker Thomas Davis Sr.
The three sophomores were part of a well-oiled Weddington machine that obliterated Concord (N.C.) Cox Mill 54-3, with running clock in the second half.
Davis will likely end up a college outside linebacker, but probably could be a heck of a high school strong safety too. Because of the blowout, he didn’t play as much, but it will be good to break his video down and see what he’s comfortable doing. He has a good frame and he can make some things happen.
The Wolfpack Central’s Friday Night Lights package has been terrific to put together over the years, and it shows why seeing the top recruits is essential in covering the recruits. It’s impossible to see them all in a spread out state like North Carolina, where the talent is concentrated, but having three 2026 prospects as teammates makes it easy to get a feel for them the next few years. That is important because after watching Aiden Harris, he looks like he could one day be that 270-pound defensive end one day that NC State looks for.
On the other hand, Andrew Harris looks like he could be more of a good-sized outside linebacker prospect, who intrigues as a potential flex tight end. The energy the twins bring is contagious and it’s easy to see why a handful of regional colleges have already offered them.
The fourth player viewed Thursday that is also connected to Davis and the Harris twins is Dallas Brannon of Charlotte Independence, who is a 2026 middle linebacker. He’s still learning the position after playing defensive end last year, but his frame looks like making the move to linebacker makes sense.
Davis and the Harris twins view Brannon as their cousin. After Brannon broke it down for me, he’s not a blood relative, but his dad Robert Brannon was a tight end for Independence, who played at Georgia and was Thomas Davis Sr.’s roommate in college. Davis Sr. is Dallas Brannon’s Godfather, so that is the relationship. Brannon has some pretty impressive offers, but is just starting the process with NC State. He has attended camp in the past, but hasn’t been offered yet, but being a linebacker will be good for colleges to see.
Independence has some good pieces, but fell 28-14 to Charlotte Mallard Creek, which features a tough, fast defense that made things happen on a consistent basis. Mallard Creek had a smart game plan.
1b. The weekend is loaded with action, with Greensboro Grimsley up next at Winston-Salem (N.C.) Mount Tabor on Friday.
Mount Tabor has a pair of high major prospects in junior athlete Shamarius Peterkin and junior outside linebacker JaDon Blair. NC State has offered Peterkin but not Blair, so Friday will be good to see why.
Peterkin is a four-star gifted receiver, who is a good enough basketball prospect that he could walk-on in college and be a two-sport athlete. I expect to see Peterkin guarding either Anderson or North Carolina senior wide receiver commit Alex Taylor, plus be a factor at receiver and in the return game.
Grimsley has Anderson, Taylor, junior defensive end Bryce Davis and sophomore quarterback Faison Brandon. NC State has offered Davis and Brandon, but the former has eliminated the Wolfpack due to the 3-man defensive lineman scheme.
Brandon is an exciting quarterback prospect, and could be soon drawing comparison to another Greensboro quarterback — Hendon Hooker of the Detroit Lions. I got to see Brandon essentially in about 2 1/2 quarters of action last year, when he sparked Grimsley to a win over Pfafftown (N.C.) Reagan. The excitement over how good Brandon has been building this offseason. He was just at Alpha Wolf on July 28.
2. The Saturday slate includes Charlotte Christian vs. Charlotte Myers Park, followed by West Charlotte vs. Charlotte Palisades and two night time options, including Charlotte Providence Day against Rock Hill (S.C.) Northwestern at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. The other 7 p.m. option is Cornelius (N.C.) Hough vs. Duncan Byrnes.
Charlotte Christian and NC State have had an interesting relationship over the years, but the Knights have sophomore safety/athlete L.J. Porter, who I have long thought will be a good college player. Now, it’s his time to shine this season.
Another interesting prospect for Charlotte Christian is senior kicker Tripp Woody, who is one of the better kicking prospects in the country, but most kickers, it takes time for scholarship offers, and the transfer portal has led to even more of a delay. Woody has kicked at NC State’s camps this past summer.
Myers Park has had five coaches in five years if my math is correct. New sophomore wide receiver Brody Keefe arrived from Waxhaw (N.C.) Marvin Ridge and his recruitment is kind of similar in many ways to current junior commit Gus Ritchey of Pittsboro (N.C.) Northwood, who flipped from North Carolina to NC State last Saturday.
Keefe made the camp rounds this past summer and has offers from NC State, Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Charlotte and Middle Tennessee State. The 6-2, 185-pounder clocked 4.75 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the Wolfpack’s camp last June.
Has any recruiting guru or even a college coach seen him play in a real game? Maybe someone saw him play part-time with Marvin Ridge last year, but super unlikely. Doing well against a tougher opponent such as Charlotte Christian would do wonders for Keefe’s profile. The Knights feature Notre Dame senior commits Micah Gilbert, a wide receiver, and defensive end Bryce Young.
Palisades is a beautiful new school that is near the North Carolina/South Carolina border. Former NC State starting right guard Tony Adams was the wrestling coach there in the first year of existence last year.
It would be terrific if Palisades ended up of my rotation. I watched them last year in a home game against Charlotte Olympic, when the weather moved games to a Thursday night. They pretty much looked like a brand new school.
Recruiting history was made at Palisades when Virginia Tech offered freshman wide receiver Caleb Kearney this past summer. It’s clear that the class of 2026 is going to be bonkers in the state of North Carolina, and it will be good to see how gifted Kearney is and if he’ll be a no-brainer NC State target down the road.
West Charlotte’s star player is senior outside linebacker Jaden Smith, who has picked Michigan. NC State never offered Smith, but he’s a downhill force, who will need to add weight. Coach Sam Greiner also has an intriguing sophomore that bears watching in Ki’Anthony “KD” Smith, who will get recruited as an athlete. Kentucky and Middle Tennessee State have both jumped in with offers.
Providence Day is loaded and expected to be the top team in the state, regardless of private vs. public. Barnhardt is joined by fellow commits senior quarterback Jadyn Davis and wide receiver Channing Goodwin, both going to Michigan, and senior wide receiver Jordan Shipp, who is going to North Carolina.
The big prize among the uncommitted prospects is No. 2-ranked junior left tackle David Sanders, who basically has options from every power program in the country.
NC State has offered reclassed sophomore offensive lineman Leo Delaney, and it will be the first time watching the former Charlotte East Mecklenburg transfer. Junior cornerback Braxton Winston has offers from South Carolina, West Virginia, Boston College, Charlotte, Virginia Tech, Coastal Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest.
Sophomore quarterback Zaid Lott isn’t likely to play, or play much, but he’ll be another down the road prospect for PD. Sophomore lineman Miles Funderburk is another potential option, and he attended NC State’s Alpha Wolf.
Thursday was the start of watching six prep games over three days, with prospects running the gamut. The binge will include NC State senior commits such as wide receiver Terrell Anderson of Greensboro (N.C.) Grimsley tonight, and safety Brody Barnhardt of Charlotte Providence Day on Saturday night.
It also includes seeing some past NC State ghosts of recruiting past, some new targets and then discovering who could be future targets.
For this section, we’ll start with seeing four intertwined recruits on Thursday.
Matthews (N.C.) Weddington has three sophomores that NC State has already offered — athlete Thomas Davis Jr. and Aiden Harris and his twin brother Andrew Harris, who goes by Drew. The Harris twins are cousins with Davis, who is the son of former star Carolina Panther outside linebacker Thomas Davis Sr.
The three sophomores were part of a well-oiled Weddington machine that obliterated Concord (N.C.) Cox Mill 54-3, with running clock in the second half.
Davis will likely end up a college outside linebacker, but probably could be a heck of a high school strong safety too. Because of the blowout, he didn’t play as much, but it will be good to break his video down and see what he’s comfortable doing. He has a good frame and he can make some things happen.
The Wolfpack Central’s Friday Night Lights package has been terrific to put together over the years, and it shows why seeing the top recruits is essential in covering the recruits. It’s impossible to see them all in a spread out state like North Carolina, where the talent is concentrated, but having three 2026 prospects as teammates makes it easy to get a feel for them the next few years. That is important because after watching Aiden Harris, he looks like he could one day be that 270-pound defensive end one day that NC State looks for.
On the other hand, Andrew Harris looks like he could be more of a good-sized outside linebacker prospect, who intrigues as a potential flex tight end. The energy the twins bring is contagious and it’s easy to see why a handful of regional colleges have already offered them.
The fourth player viewed Thursday that is also connected to Davis and the Harris twins is Dallas Brannon of Charlotte Independence, who is a 2026 middle linebacker. He’s still learning the position after playing defensive end last year, but his frame looks like making the move to linebacker makes sense.
Davis and the Harris twins view Brannon as their cousin. After Brannon broke it down for me, he’s not a blood relative, but his dad Robert Brannon was a tight end for Independence, who played at Georgia and was Thomas Davis Sr.’s roommate in college. Davis Sr. is Dallas Brannon’s Godfather, so that is the relationship. Brannon has some pretty impressive offers, but is just starting the process with NC State. He has attended camp in the past, but hasn’t been offered yet, but being a linebacker will be good for colleges to see.
Independence has some good pieces, but fell 28-14 to Charlotte Mallard Creek, which features a tough, fast defense that made things happen on a consistent basis. Mallard Creek had a smart game plan.
1b. The weekend is loaded with action, with Greensboro Grimsley up next at Winston-Salem (N.C.) Mount Tabor on Friday.
Mount Tabor has a pair of high major prospects in junior athlete Shamarius Peterkin and junior outside linebacker JaDon Blair. NC State has offered Peterkin but not Blair, so Friday will be good to see why.
Peterkin is a four-star gifted receiver, who is a good enough basketball prospect that he could walk-on in college and be a two-sport athlete. I expect to see Peterkin guarding either Anderson or North Carolina senior wide receiver commit Alex Taylor, plus be a factor at receiver and in the return game.
Grimsley has Anderson, Taylor, junior defensive end Bryce Davis and sophomore quarterback Faison Brandon. NC State has offered Davis and Brandon, but the former has eliminated the Wolfpack due to the 3-man defensive lineman scheme.
Brandon is an exciting quarterback prospect, and could be soon drawing comparison to another Greensboro quarterback — Hendon Hooker of the Detroit Lions. I got to see Brandon essentially in about 2 1/2 quarters of action last year, when he sparked Grimsley to a win over Pfafftown (N.C.) Reagan. The excitement over how good Brandon has been building this offseason. He was just at Alpha Wolf on July 28.
2. The Saturday slate includes Charlotte Christian vs. Charlotte Myers Park, followed by West Charlotte vs. Charlotte Palisades and two night time options, including Charlotte Providence Day against Rock Hill (S.C.) Northwestern at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. The other 7 p.m. option is Cornelius (N.C.) Hough vs. Duncan Byrnes.
Charlotte Christian and NC State have had an interesting relationship over the years, but the Knights have sophomore safety/athlete L.J. Porter, who I have long thought will be a good college player. Now, it’s his time to shine this season.
Another interesting prospect for Charlotte Christian is senior kicker Tripp Woody, who is one of the better kicking prospects in the country, but most kickers, it takes time for scholarship offers, and the transfer portal has led to even more of a delay. Woody has kicked at NC State’s camps this past summer.
Myers Park has had five coaches in five years if my math is correct. New sophomore wide receiver Brody Keefe arrived from Waxhaw (N.C.) Marvin Ridge and his recruitment is kind of similar in many ways to current junior commit Gus Ritchey of Pittsboro (N.C.) Northwood, who flipped from North Carolina to NC State last Saturday.
Keefe made the camp rounds this past summer and has offers from NC State, Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Charlotte and Middle Tennessee State. The 6-2, 185-pounder clocked 4.75 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the Wolfpack’s camp last June.
Has any recruiting guru or even a college coach seen him play in a real game? Maybe someone saw him play part-time with Marvin Ridge last year, but super unlikely. Doing well against a tougher opponent such as Charlotte Christian would do wonders for Keefe’s profile. The Knights feature Notre Dame senior commits Micah Gilbert, a wide receiver, and defensive end Bryce Young.
Palisades is a beautiful new school that is near the North Carolina/South Carolina border. Former NC State starting right guard Tony Adams was the wrestling coach there in the first year of existence last year.
It would be terrific if Palisades ended up of my rotation. I watched them last year in a home game against Charlotte Olympic, when the weather moved games to a Thursday night. They pretty much looked like a brand new school.
Recruiting history was made at Palisades when Virginia Tech offered freshman wide receiver Caleb Kearney this past summer. It’s clear that the class of 2026 is going to be bonkers in the state of North Carolina, and it will be good to see how gifted Kearney is and if he’ll be a no-brainer NC State target down the road.
West Charlotte’s star player is senior outside linebacker Jaden Smith, who has picked Michigan. NC State never offered Smith, but he’s a downhill force, who will need to add weight. Coach Sam Greiner also has an intriguing sophomore that bears watching in Ki’Anthony “KD” Smith, who will get recruited as an athlete. Kentucky and Middle Tennessee State have both jumped in with offers.
Providence Day is loaded and expected to be the top team in the state, regardless of private vs. public. Barnhardt is joined by fellow commits senior quarterback Jadyn Davis and wide receiver Channing Goodwin, both going to Michigan, and senior wide receiver Jordan Shipp, who is going to North Carolina.
The big prize among the uncommitted prospects is No. 2-ranked junior left tackle David Sanders, who basically has options from every power program in the country.
NC State has offered reclassed sophomore offensive lineman Leo Delaney, and it will be the first time watching the former Charlotte East Mecklenburg transfer. Junior cornerback Braxton Winston has offers from South Carolina, West Virginia, Boston College, Charlotte, Virginia Tech, Coastal Carolina, Duke and Wake Forest.
Sophomore quarterback Zaid Lott isn’t likely to play, or play much, but he’ll be another down the road prospect for PD. Sophomore lineman Miles Funderburk is another potential option, and he attended NC State’s Alpha Wolf.
