The third round of the NCHSAA HS football playoffs kicks off Friday. Here are previews
(Observer’s Sweet 16 rankings are included)
Mecklenburg County
No. 13 Mallard Creek (6-4) at No. 1 Hough (12-0), 4A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – A little more than a month ago, Hough trounced Mallard Creek 31-7. But the Mavericks appear to be a different team. They’ve used defense and special teams play (a punt return for the winning score last week against Asheville) to reach the third round of the playoffs. Hough forced three turnovers in the first game against Mallard Creek, and the Mavericks can’t afford errors in this game.
No. 9 Porter Ridge (8-2) at No. 2 Chambers (11-1), 4A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – The visiting Pirates finished only third in their conference but stunned second-seeded Grimsley last week. Porter Ridge piled up 302 rushing yards and 41 points against a powerful Grimsley defense. They’ll need more of that this week against Chambers, which got a big game last week from Daylan Smothers, who ran for three touchdowns. Grimsley was the defending 4A state champ. Chambers is the defending 4AA state champ.
Rabun Gap (8-2) at No. 12 Providence Day (7-3), NCISAA Division 1 championship, 7 p.m. – The host Chargers snapped Rabun Gap’s six-game winning streak last month, beating the Eagles 25-14 at home. Now they’ve got to do it again, with a state championship on the line. Rabun Gap has four seniors who are FBS commits and several juniors who are being heavily recruited. In the October game, Providence Day overcame early mistakes and scored 25 straight points.
Outside Mecklenburg
Cabarrus Warriors (9-2) at Harrells Christian (11-1), NCISAA Division 2 championship, 7 p.m. – These teams met Oct. 1, with Harrells Christian winning at home 21-14. It’s a battle of the Warriors’ passing game against the Crusaders’ ground attack. In the Oct. 1 game, Warriors QB Tyler Green threw for 269 yards and two touchdowns. But Harrells Christian RBs Devin Gardner (245 yards, two touchdowns) and Xavier Arrington (165 yards) dominated.
Cuthbertson (6-6) at No. 3 Weddington (11-1), 4A playoffs, 7 p.m. – Rematches are a big theme in this week’s games. These teams met Oct. 22, with host Weddington winning 28-13. The Warriors managed to shut down Cavaliers’ sophomore QB Parker Burke, holding him to 144 yards in the air. Cuthbertson has advanced with two playoff upset victories but faces a fast-improving Weddington offense led by RB Kyle Parsons (260 rushing yards last week).
No. 16 East Gaston (8-4) at No. 5 Shelby (11-1), 2A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – And here’s another rematch. Shelby piled up 55 first-half points and rolled to a 62-28 victory on Oct. 22 at East Gaston. Shelby junior QB Daylin Lee has passed for nearly 2,800 yards. East Gaston RBs Justin Hill and Markel McKinney have combined for more than 3,000 rushing yards. A high-scoring game is almost a certainty.
No. 8 Monroe (8-1) at East Surry (11-0), 2A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – After a strange regular season in which canceled games hurt Monroe’s momentum, the Red Hawks are on a roll. They have scored 117 points in two lopsided playoff victories, and junior QB Khamoni Robinson has thrown for 2,114 yards this season. East Surry is a scoring machine, averaging 47 points a game. Junior QB Folger Boaz has thrown for nearly 3,000 yards and has rushed for another 800 yards.
No. 15 Forestview (7-5) at No. 14 South Point (9-3), 3A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – These teams played a regular-season thriller, with South Point winning 17-14 in overtime last month. Defense is the name of the game for Forestview, and LB Jaycob Neely is the leader, with 19 tackles for loss, five sacks, three interceptions and a fumble recovery this season. South Point is powered by the running of A.J. Riley (2,163 yards, 30 touchdowns).
No. 10 Kings Mountain (10-2) at Dudley (11-1), 3A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – The visiting Mountaineers have a strong ground game, but they scored on a 52-yard Lamont Littlejohn pass last week in their 27-17 victory over West Charlotte. They’ll need the diverse offense against a Dudley team that has outscored opponents 588-71 this season.
North Davidson (8-3) at No. 11 Crest (9-2), 3A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – Crest will need to put the brakes on North Davidson RB Xavion Hayes, who has seven 100-yard rushing games this season and has totaled 1,328 yards on the ground. Crest counters with RB Mari Adams, who has more than 1,600 yards rushing this season.
North Rowan (8-3) at Robbinsville (8-3), 1A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – North Rowan has played five games this season decided by a touchdown or less. The Cavaliers are 5-1 against 1A opposition, losing only to Thomasville. Robbinsville sophomore RB Cuttler Adams has rushed for more than 1,600 yards this season.
No. 4 Salisbury (11-0) at No. 6 Maiden (12-0), 2A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – This is one of the state’s top games this weekend. The visiting Hornets have most key players back from a team that won the 2AA state championship last spring. They have outscored foes 616-33. Maiden counters with a powerful offense featuring QB Ethan Rhodes (2,300 passing yards, 35 touchdowns) and RB RB Ben Gibbs (1,450 rushing yards, nine 100-yard games, 13 touchdowns).
Hibriten (8-3) at No. 7 Statesville (11-0), 3A playoffs, 7:30 p.m. – The host Greyhounds opened with three rather narrow victories but have outscored their last eight opponents 355-43. Hibriten has advanced with a pair of close victories in the playoffs. The Panthers will hope their ground game (260 yards per contest) can keep the ball away from Statesville.
-- Steve Lyttle
This week’s schedule
(all kickoffs at 7:30 p.m., unless otherwise noted)
NCHSAA Playoffs
Class 4A
Friday’s third round
West
Mallard Creek (6-4) at Hough (12-0)
East Forsyth (10-1) at Glenn (9-2)
Cuthbertson (6-6) at Weddington (11-1), 7
Porter Ridge (8-2) at Chambers (11-1)
East
Knightdale (6-5) at Leesville Road (9-2)
Rolesville (7-5) at Millbrook (11-1)
Cardinal Gibbons (10-2) at Cleveland (11-0)
Panther Creek (9-3) at Hoggard (11-1)
Class 3A
Friday’s third round
West
Forestview (7-5) at South Point (9-3)
North Davidson (8-3) at Crest (9-2)
Kings Mountain (10-2) at Dudley (11-1)
Hibriten (8-3) at Statesville (11-0)
East
Westover (10-1) at Eastern Alamance (9-1)
Jacksonville (9-2) at Lee County (9-3)
J.H. Rose (8-4) at Seventy-First (12-0)
Scotland County (7-4) at Northern Nash (11-1)
Class 2A
Friday’s third round
West
East Gaston (8-4) at Shelby (11-1)
Hendersonville (10-1) at Reidsville (11-0)
Salisbury (11-0) at Maiden (12-0)
Monroe (8-1) at East Surry (11-0)
East
Nash Central (7-5) at Princeton (11-0)
St. Pauls (10-0) at Whiteville (11-0)
Washington (11-0) at Northeastern (11-0)
Wallace-Rose Hill (10-2) at East Duplin (11-1)
Class 1A
Friday’s third round
West
Murphy (8-4) at Eastern Randolph (10-0)
North Rowan (8-3) at Robbinsville (8-3)
Thomasville (9-2) at Mitchell County (10-2)
Starmount (8-4) at Mount Airy (12-0)
East
Perquimans (8-2) at Tarboro (10-0)
Rosewood (9-2) at Northampton County (9-2)
Pender County (8-3) at North Moore (10-1)
Southside (11-1) at Pinetown Northside (10-1)
N.C. Independent Schools
Division 1
Friday’s state championship
Rabun Gap (9-2) at Providence Day (7-3), 7
Division 2
Friday’s state championship
Cabarrus Warriors (9-2) at Harrells Christian (11-1), 7