High school football: Saturday’s state championship matchups
SATURDAY’S MATCHUPS
4AA: Mallard Creek (14-0) vs. Wake Forest (14-0), 4 p.m., BB&T Field, Winston-Salem: Mallard Creek beat Wake Forest in the 2013 and 2014 4AA title games, but Wake Forest is the reigning 4AA champion and has a 30-game winning streak. The Cougars’ closest game this season was 24 points, while Mallard Creek has won three straight by 10 points or less. Wake Forest quarterback Chris James has thrown 22 touchdown passes and only five interceptions this season.
4A: Harding (13-1) vs. Scotland County (12-1), 7 p.m., BB&T Field, Winston-Salem: Harding returns to a state title game for the first time in 30 years, and running back Quavaris Crouch (3,200-plus rushing yards this season) will be the Rams’ main weapon against a Scotland team with an explosive offense but an erratic defense. ...Scots star running back Zamir White is injured, but Syheam McQueen rushed for 1,317 yards last season when White missed several games with an injury.
3A: Charlotte Catholic (15-0) vs. Havelock (14-1), 3 p.m., Wallace Wade Stadium, Durham: This is the ninth state title appearance for Catholic, and with seven sophomores starting, the Cougars could be a regular in the championship game. ...Sophomore running back Lamagea McDowell has become a strong inside threat to complement speedy Milan Howard. ...Havelock has a variety of weapons, and added one with the return of safety-halfback Anthony Harris from injury. A junior, he has at least 10 Division I scholarship offers.
2AA: Lenoir Hibriten (15-0) vs. East Duplin (15-0), 3 p.m., Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill: Hibriten’s superb defense has allowed only two opponents to score more than seven points this season, and the leader is linebacker Charles Tasinari, who has 127 tackles, 20 of those for lost yardage. ...East Duplin averages nearly 400 rushing yards a game, but its offense has been held in check by its last two playoff opponents.
Steve Lyttle
This story was originally published December 8, 2017 at 4:58 PM with the headline "High school football: Saturday’s state championship matchups."