In the month of April, HSOT Insiders will receive daily articles to preview the 2025 high school football season in North Carolina.

Today, we’re going to take a look at the defending N.C. High School Athletic Association eastern regional runners-up and the players who they are set to return next season.

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Last year’s eastern regional runners-up were Cardinal Gibbons in 4A, Jacksonville in 3A, Whiteville in 2A, and Wilson Prep in 1A.

Cardinal Gibbons, defending 4A East runner-up

Gibbons has one of North Carolina’s best returning quarterbacks: Gannon Jones.

As a junior, Jones completed 68.4% of hi spasses for 3,194 yards, 35 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He also rushed for 539 yards and nine touchdowns on 108 carries. He will be one of the state’s best players at any position.

Jones’ top receiving target Brayden Karras is also returning. Karras caught 78 of Jones’ passes for 1,091 yards and 11 touchdowns. Another starting receiver, Connor McGeehan, is also back. McGeehan made 21 receptions for 417 yards and three touchdowns in 2024. Sam Dodd is a going to be a tough player to replace in the receiving corps. Dodd had 915 yards and 11 touchdowns as a senior. Hudson VanDyke is a player who could see a bigger role on offense as a senior. He is also a quality defensive back and special teamer.

At running back, top rusher Kendall Scotton is graduating. Scotton had 916 yards and nine touchdowns. Rising senior Noah Terry is returning. Terry had 350 yards and nine touchdowns as a junior. He figures to be the most utilized rusher this year.

The Crusaders’ offensive line is losing three starters including the standout Jack Sheehan, who will be playing at Old Dominion University in the fall. Aidan Kranick is a quality returner on the interior and should be one of the best linemen in the Triangle as a senior. Jackson Monsees is another returning starter on the offensive line.

There is a lot to feel good about when it comes to the Crusaders’ defense. Braylon Peebles, arguably the defense’s best player and team’s leading tackler, is back to lead the defensive backfield. Peebles is an FBS prospect. Additionally, rising junior corner Xavier Hasan has ascended into a 4-star prospect with a littany of Power 4 offers. In 2024, Peebles posted 88 stops, three tackles for a loss, and an interception. Hasan had 31 tackles, seven interceptions, and eight pass breakups. Hudson VanDyke is another returning defensive back.

Corban McDaniel and Matthew Greene are two of the quality players from the back end of the defense that are moving on to college.

On the defensive line, Gibbons is graduating disruptive interior force Chris Pinder, but the team is returning standout edge defender Griffin Cockerham, who will be a junior. Cockerham posted 75 total stops, eight tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and a blocked punt. Gibbons also has to replace a couple of good linemen in Jack Schneider and Conway Kelly.

At linebacker, Christopher Shelton, the team’s second-leading tackler, is graduating. Rising senior linebacker Billy Turner is set to lead the unit after he was fifth on the team in tackles last season. Rising sophomore Skylar Alston got some varsity snaps as a freshman and finished with 15 tackles. He is projected for a bigger role as a sophomore in the fall.

Cardinal Gibbons’ outstanding kicker/punter Evan Windley is returning for his senior season. Windley averaged a remarkable 52.5 yards per punt attempt and connected on 45 of 47 extra points and nine of ten field goal attempts. Importantly, Gibbons’ long snapper Will Fields is also returning.

The Crusaders’ JV team finished 7-2 last fall. The losses came to Ashley and Richmond, each by five points or less.

Jacksonville defending 3A East runner-up

The Cardinals of Jacksonville will look quite a bit different in 2025.

Star running back Demon June is now playing for Bill Belichick at UNC. As a senior, June had 167 carries for 1,743 yards, an average over over 10 yards per attempts, and 28 rushing touchdowns.

It’s not just June who is gone from the backfield: Eric Griffin would have been RB1 on most high school teams. Griffin had 1,277 yards and 17 touchdowns on 140 carries during his senior campaign.

2024 starting quarterback Amare Dorsey is also graduating. Dorsey threw for 1,159 yards, 11 touchdowns, and five interceptions as a senior. Dorsey made a big impact as a runner as well. He had 63 carries for 616 yards and eight touchdowns.

Replacing the over 3,600 yards and 53 touchdowns of rushing production between those three players is going to be very hard to do. Attenion turns to Amari Pearson, who averaged 7.2 yards and had two touchdowns over 27 carries as a sophomore.

Most of the receiving threats are gone, too. The best receiver returning is rising junior Saronn Thompson, who caught eight passes for 212 yards and a touchdown.

On the offensive line, the Cardinals have to replace standout Cameron Hill, who will be playing with Sheehan at Old Dominion on Saturdays. Rising junior right guard Tanner Jones will be back up front, as will rising senior center Anderson Tant.

The defense has some pieces to be excited about. Jackson Henry, the team’s second-leading tackler at 90 stops, will be a senior. Henry was also tied for the team lead with four interceptions. The Cards’ top tackler was senior Emmanuel Lovett with 116. Rising senior linebackers Avery Apicella and Blake Moses had over 50 tackles each as juniors.

Strong safety Sammie Rogers was impressive as a sophomore. He racked up 58 tackles, had an intercpetion, made three pass breakups, and forced a fumble. Two defensive backs who made two interceptions are returning: rising seniors Krystian Henderson and Yondez Baker.

On the defensive line, the Cards’ top two sack artists are graduating. Aarmon Randolph had eight sacks as a senior and Kumar Liddell had four sacks as a senior. Jacksonville should be excited to have back rising senior nose guard Kapono Tuiasosopo-Seiuli. The stout defender had 45 stops, four tackles for a loss, and three sacks while making an impact beyond the box score.

Jacksonville’s JV team finished 7-2 with losses to J.H. Rose and D.H. Conley.

Whiteville, defending 2A East runner-up

The Wolfpack have positions groups to be excited about, as well as some that need reinforcements.

At the 2A level and below, when you lose your best players, it often affects both sides of the ball due to the type of depth available at that level. A prime example of this will be the graduation of running back/linebacker Cam McKvian, who put up over 900 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns on offense and 78 tackles with eight tackles for a loss on defense.

Another example of Whiteville losing a key two-for-one player is Will Fisher. Fisher had 32 tackles with five interceptions as a defensive back and 700 yards with eight touchdowns as a wide receiver.

The defensive backfield is taking another hit with the loss of Caleb Johnson, whose four interceptions returned for a touchdown tied an NCHSAA season record. He had nine interceptions overall. Overall, there will be no starters returning in the secondary.

The offensive line is a big area of excitement with four of the five starters back. Left tackle Topher Callihan will be a junior, center Camden Butler will be a junior, right guard Eli Hill will be a senior, and right tackle Nate Robinson will be a senior. This is the type of continuity up front that would get any coach pumped for a season.

On the defensive line, Camden Butler is a returning starter on that side of the ball as well. Whiteville also returns starter in rising senior Sam McBride. However, the graduation of Donte Faulk is a big loss. As a senior, Faulk made 117 tackles, 26 of which were for a loss and three of which were sacks.

The defense has four starters back.

Quarerback Layton McLean will be back for his senior season, but his starting receivers and running backs are gone.

Whiteville’s JV team finished 3-4 with losses to West Brunswick, James Kenan, Clinton, and St. Pauls.

Wilson Prep, defending 1A East runner-up

Wilson Prep finally got its shot at Tarboro last season, but the Tigers came up short. The good news for Wilson Prep moving forward is that the Tigers will stay down in the lightly populated 1A classification while Tarboro is moving up to 2A with the new realignment.

Offensviely, Travon Usher is a big time returner at quarterback. Usher threw for over 2,000 yards, 18 touchdowns, and six interceptions while rushing for over 1,000 yards and 14 touchdowns. For his senior year, those numbers could get even bigger.

Ethan Nelson is another player that people need to know about. As a junior, the running back finished with 82 carries for 920 yards with six touchdowns and 271 receiving yards with two touchdowns despite missing a big portion of last season. Nelson also had 65 tackles as a defensive back with two interceptions and a forced fumble to go with them. The rising senior also had a kickoff return touchdown.

Wilson Prep’s third key returning contributor on offense is Nazir Vines, who had 77 carries for 774 yards and 11 touchdowns to go with his 17 receptions for 460 yards and seven receiving touchdowns. As a defensive back, Vines posted 40 tackles, three interceptions, and 14 pass breakups. He also had 427 return yards and a return touchdown as a specialist.

Including Vines, all six of Wilson Prep’s most productive receivers are returning next year. Watch for senior Manny Dickens, who posted 509 yards and four touchdowns on just 16 receptions. Rising junior Tyquan Whitaker had 18 receptions for 393 yards and five touchdowns. Whitaker also had 318 rushing yards and two touchdowns. On defense, Whitaker is another big contributor on the back end with Vines and Nelson.

Up front, the Tigers return three starters: Reginald Holmes, Kameron Best, and Christian Perry. Holmes, a rising senior, is a gigantic high school football player at 6-foot-4 and 367 pounds. Best, a rising junior, is 6-foot-1 and 275 pounds. Perry, who will be a senior, is 6-foot-6 and 253 pounds.

Holmes is a force as a defensive lineman as well. He had 68 tackles, 19 tackles for a loss, four sacks, and four quarterback hurries.

The Tigers’ best returning player is edge defender Jordan Hamm. The rising junior will be a significant college prospect. He posted 123 total tackles, 24 tackles for a loss, 23 sacks, 29 quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles and a fumble returned for a touchdown during his sophomore season. Hamm is also a major problem at tight end on offense. He had 19 receptions for 464 yards and a touchdown last year.

Graduating defensive end Xavier Williams is a player that Wilson Prep will have to work to replace. Williams had 75 tackles, nine tackles for a loss, and seven sacks as a senior. Wilson Prep was set to return Julian Newkirk on the defensive line, but he transferred to Hunt High School in Wilson. He had 67 total tackles, 11 tackles for a loss, three sacks, and 13 quarterback hurries.

Rising junior Julias Kenely will be an important returner at linebacker after the graduation of Jeremiah Williams at middle linebacker.

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HSOT Insiders should stay tuned to the site throughout the spring and summer months for more football preview articles.