Football championship is Mallard Creek’s to keep

The 2014 high school football season, at least in North Carolina, began with a big spotlight on Mallard Creek, the 2013 N.C. 4AA champion.

The Mavericks were nationally ranked in the preseason, and quarterback James Smith was back after earning offensive MVP honors in last year’s state championship’s 59-21 win over Wake Forest – when he threw for 180 yards and three touchdowns. But Mallard Creek lost 28-27 to Butler early, and the spotlight shifted to Independence’s unbeaten season and Lake Norman quarterback Josh Ladowski’s amazing season and to Charlotte Christian’s three-peat and dominance in the private school ranks.

Some people seemed to forget about coach Mike Palmieri’s team at Mallard Creek. But the Mavericks have kept winning. Mallard Creek has won 12 straight, scoring at least 40 points in each win, and when you start talking about state coach-of-the-year candidates, don’t forget about Palmieri. He’s done all this after losing 16 seniors from last season’s team, including a bevy of all-conference and All-Observer players.

I’ve said since July that I think these Mavericks are your 2014 N.C. 4AA state champions. They’ve done nothing since then to change my mind.

Mallard Creek’s Smith, a junior, has thrown for 2,969 yards and 31 touchdowns. He’s rushed for 1,026 yards and 21 touchdowns, a team high.

In North Carolina, three of the top four passers for yardage are all from the Observer’s coverage area: Kendall, Surratt and Ladowski. It’s nearly the same for touchdown passes with Surratt (49) first, Kendall (46) second and Ladowski (39) sixth.

This story was originally published December 4, 2014 at 6:05 PM with the headline "Football championship is Mallard Creek’s to keep."