Here are the latest updates from how NC State’s football commitments are doing this fall.
Three-star defensive end Joe Babros assisted on three tackles, including a sack and an additional tackle for loss, and registered a quarterback hurry for Saddlebrook College in a 33-21 playoff loss at Fullerton College in Whittier, Calif. Saddlebrook finished the year 8-3.
Babros played 10 games and had 28 tackles (10 solo), 4.5 sacks, 7.5 tackles for loss, six quarterback hurries, a pass breakup and a 46-yard fumble return for a touchdown.
Three-star defensive end Joseph Boletepeli had six tackles (two solo) and a sack to help Wake Forest (N.C.) Heritage roll on the road 34-6 over Raleigh Cardinal Gibbons to advance to the quarterfinals of the NCHSAA 4A playoffs. Four-star running back Ricky Person added 15 runs for 79 yards and a score and caught a four-yard pass in the win.
For the season, Boletepeli has 60 tackles (20 solo), 3.5 sacks, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries and a pass breakup. Person has rushed 244 times for 2,163 yards and 37 touchdowns, and caught 17 passes for 234 yards and three more scores while playing in 12 of the team's 13 games.
Person is one of four high school football players from the state of North Carolina that have been nominated for the U.S. Army Player of the Year Award.
Heritage, the sixth seed in the East, is 12-1 and will play at second-seeded Wilmington (N.C.) Hoggard next Friday.
Related link: Heritage levels Cardinal Gibbons, 34-6
Three-star receiver Devin Carter’s streak of 10 straight games with a touchdown catch for Clayton (N.C.) High was snapped after he was held to just a single 10-yard reception, but the Comets still beat visiting crosstown rival Cleveland High 40-35 in the second round of the NCHSAA 3AA state playoffs.
Clayton, 13-0, is the top seed in the East Region and will host fourth-seeded Eastern Guilford High from Gibsonville, N.C., in the quarterfinals. On the season, Carter has 46 receptions for 897 yards and 16 touchdowns and has rushed for two more scores.
Related link: Clayton fends Cleveland, 40-35
Three-star safety Malik Dunlap and top-seeded Charlotte Harding High are onto the third round of the NCHSAA 4A playoffs by virtue of a 17-10 win over Indian Trail (N.C.) Porter Ridge High. Harding (11-1) will host Kernersville (N.C.) East Forsyth High in the quarterfinals.
Related link: Rugged ground game leads Harding over Porter Ridge
Kicker Christopher Dunn successfully made a school-record 57-yard field goal for Lexington (N.C.) North Davidson High during a 17-10 home win over Thomasville (N.C.) Ledford High in the second round of the NCHSAA 2AA playoffs.
North Davidson (12-1) is the second seed in the East Region and will host third-seeded Creedmoor (N.C.) South Granville High in the quarterfinals.
Related link: Dunn boots school-record field goal in North Davidson’s win against Ledford
Mebane (N.C.) Eastern Alamance High, featuring three-star offensive tackle Gabriel Gonzalez, had its season end with a 62-20 loss at third-seeded Bailey (N.C.) Southern Nash High in the second round of the NCHSAA 3A playoffs. Eastern Alamance finished the year 10-3
Three-star corner prospect De’Von Graves caught three passes for 110 yards, including touchdowns of 51 and 38 yards, to help Appomattox (Va.) County High roll past visiting Pearisburg (Va.) Giles County High, 45-14. The second-seeded Raiders (11-1) move to the semifinals of Region 2C and will play at top-seeded Salem (Va.) Glenvar High.
Related link: Appomattox showcases its athleticism in win over Giles County
Undefeated Plantation (Fla.) American Heritage High moved on to the third round of the class 5A playoffs by rolling past visiting Orlando (Fla.) Bishop Moore High, 56-27. Two-star linebacker Calvin Hart Jr. had seven tackles (four solo) in the victory.
American Heritage is 11-0 and ranked No. 3 nationally by MaxPreps.com. It will host sixth-seeded Ft. Lauderdale (Fla.) Cardinal Gibbons in the quarterfinals. Hart has played in 10 games and accumulated 67 tackles (26 solo), including eight for loss and three sacks.
Four-star quarterback Devin Leary and Sicklerville (N.J.) Timber Creek High were upset in the semifinals of the South Group 3 playoffs by visiting Franklinville (N.J.) Delsea High, 41-30. Leary completed 18 of 25 passes for 229 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions in the loss.
Timber Creek is 9-1 and will still play its annual game against Atco (N.J.) Winslow Township High on Thanksgiving. Leary has completed 140 of 227 passes (61.7 percent) for 2,587 yards and 28 touchdowns with seven interceptions, and rushed 35 times for 338 yards and four more scores.
Related link: Delsea stuns No. 4 Timber Creek, ends Chargers' 25-game winning streak
Miami (Fla.) Northwestern High, featuring three-star NC State defensive tackle commit Davontae McCrae, has moved on to the quarterfinals of the 6A playoffs with a 24-18 home win over city-rival Central High. Top seeded Northwestern improved to 10-2 with the win and will host sixth-seeded Carol City High from Miami next. McCrae plays left tackle for Northwestern, which is ranked No. 13 nationally by MaxPreps.com.
Related link: Northwestern hangs on for dramatic win over rival Central
Three-star running Trent Pennix had his best game of the season for Raleigh Sanderson high to help the Spartans advance to the quarterfinals of the NCHSAA 4AA playoffs with a 40-20 home victory over Apex (N.C.) Middle Creek High. Pennix rushed 20 times for 235 yards and three touchdowns, and caught three passes for 10 yards in the win.
His teammate, three-star defensive line prospect Alim McNeill, added five tackles (three solo) and forced a fumble on defense. McNeill also returned a kickoff for 50 yards.
McNeill has 58 tackles (47) solo, including 16 for loss and five sacks, three forced fumbles, a safety, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup on defense this season. He has also rushed 18 times for 134 yards and seven scores on offense.
Pennix has 185 carries for 1,184 yards and 17 touchdowns, and 27 receptions for 298 yards and three more scores. He’s added 13 tackles, two interceptions and two pass breakups on defense.
Sanderson (9-3) will face top-seeded and defending state champion Wake Forest (N.C.) High this Friday in Wake Forest.
Related link: Sanderson outlasts Middle Creek, 40-20
Three-star receiver Jasiah Provillon’s season is over after Irvington (N.J.) High lost 21-20 at Phillipsburg (N.J.) High in the North 2 Section 4 semifinals. Provillon had four receptions for 48 yards and a score in the defeat.
Irvington closed the year 8-3, and Provillon had 57 receptions for 687 yards and eight touchdowns.
Related link: Phillipsburg edges Irvington in North 2, Group 4 semifinals
Three-star tight end Daevon Robinson caught seven passes for 66 yards to help fourth-seeded Medford (N.J.) Shawnee High rout Moorestown (N.J.) High 40-7 on the road to advance to the finals of the South Group 4 playoffs, where it will battle sixth-seeded Hammonton (N.J.) High. Before then though, Shawnee will play a Thanksgiving game against city-rival Lenape High.
Shawnee is 8-3 on the season, and Robinson has caught 42 passes for 562 yards and five touchdowns, and rushed for three more scores.
Three-star corner Teshaun Smith had three tackles to help Davie (Fla.) Western High win 14-12 at Wellington (Fla.) Palm Beach Central High, advancing sixth-seeded Western to the quarterfinals of the Class 8A playoffs. Western (10-2) will face fourth-seeded Delray Beach (Fla.) Atlantic High next.
Three-star offensive tackle Jalynn Strickland and Waycross (Ga.) Ware County High saw their season end with a 5-6 record after falling 10-7 in the second round of the AAAAA state playoff to Stockbridge (Ga.) High.
Junior long snapper Drew Little and third-seeded New London (N.C.) North Stanly High were upset by sixth-seeded Murphy (N.C.) High at home, 49-35, in the second round of the West Region of the NCHSAA 1AA playoffs. North Stanly’s season is over at 10-2.
Jacksonville (Fla.) Trinity Christian, featuring NCSU sophomore corner commit Jahquez Robinson, won at Tallahassee (Fla.) Godby High, 33-21. Trinity Christian, the third seed in Region 1 of Class 5A, improved to 8-3 with the win and will travel to top-seeded Pensacola (Fla.) West Florida High for the quarterfinals.
Related link: Trinity defense stands tall, tops Tallahassee Godby
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