WILMINGTON- With exactly one week to go before the start of the 2016 high school football season in the state of North Carolina, 10 local teams from across the Wilmington area hit the field at Legion Stadium on Friday night as part of the 30th BB&T Jamboree.
Held annually to help raise money for student scholarships and the general operating budget of the 10 athletic programs involved in the jamboree, there were five scrimmages consisting of two 12-minute halves. Friday night’s competition served as the final game-action tune up for area football programs after several scrimmages over the past few days ahead of week one on August 19.
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South Columbus 7 North Brunswick 0
North Brunswick faced off against Wallace-Rose Hill during a scrimmage on Thursday before tackling South Columbus at the jamboree.
Sophomore Jaheim Robbins played a big role in stuffing the run on the defensive front for North Brunswick, while Bison Hibbert and Isaac Zsidein contributed with tackles for loss.
South Columbus ran nearly every play on the offensive end, including a Robbie Spencer touchdown as time expired in the second half to give the Stallions a 7-0 win.
Jathan Deberry took the snaps at quarterback for the Scorpions and used his legs for a first down scramble during North Brunswick’s second possession. Deberry also completed a pass to Dakota Desfonds on a short hitch for positive yardage on the same drive after a turnover during the opening series.
Click here for video highlights from North Brunswick versus South Columbus.
Wallace-Rose Hill 7 New Hanover 0
New Hanover and Wallace-Rose Hill was expected to be the featured matchup on Friday’s docket. However, both teams are looking to fill certain key positions after losing players to graduation.
The Wildcats are coming off a 4A East Regional appearance and over 5,000 yards of total offense, but still looking to find the answer at quarterback as junior Francis Meehan and sophomore Blake Walston rotated possession against Wallace-Rose.
Keegan Santos got a brunt of the carries to pace the New Hanover running game. Meehan completed a pass to Malcolm Hill on the second drive and senior wide out Lamont Howard added a pair of catches before a turnover. Wiz Vaughn also took reps at running back, but the Wildcats struggled to get any real momentum on the offensive side of the ball against a Wallace-Rose Hill defense that returns eight of 11 starters from last year’s 1A State Championship squad.
Defensively, Nas Brown and Jahann Simmons gave a strong effort at linebacker. Junior Troy McCaskill recorded a sack and defensive back Shyion Jennings broke up a pass down field late in the game.
The only touchdown of the scrimmage came with 7:44 to go in the first half when Desmond Newkirk put the Bulldogs in front on a four-yard run.
New Hanover heads to Raleigh on Saturday for the HighSchoolOT showcase as the Wildcats take on Southern Durham in their final scrimmage before opening the 2016 schedule at home against Hoke Country.
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Laney 20 Whiteville 6
Laney may have had the best overall performance of Friday’s jamboree. The Bucs used contributions on both sides of the ball to grab a 20-6 victory over Whiteville.
Senior Imeek Watkins got involved early and often, scoring an 11-yard touchdown to cap Laney’s opening drive. After a pair of punts on the ensuring possessions, quarterback Sherod Sidbury scampered in from 10 yards out to make it 12-0 with 5:15 to play in the opening half. Sidbury hit Watkins during the drive on a 34-yard pass to move the chains.
The Bucs’ defense forced three turnovers on the night, with a 25-yard interception return for a touchdown by senior linebacker Tyler Moore. Classmate Ryan Daborowski forced a fumble on the first place from scrimmage and Cayman Czesak made a tackle for loss late in the game. Whiteville had three fumbles overall.
@LaneyFootball in action v @WhitevilleHigh…@imeek_watkins w/ an 11yd TD run! #fridaynightlights @PortCityDaily.com pic.twitter.com/LunQ8QQ1zG
— Joe Catenacci (@JoeCats19) August 12, 2016
Ashley 16 South Brunswick 0
Senior Jacob Reed has taken over at quarterback for Ashley and guided the Screaming Eagles to a 16-0 win against South Brunswick. Reed hit Freddie Thamas for a first down on the first possession and used his legs to scramble for 15 yards early in the second half to help set up a one-yard touchdown by Bradley Plyler. Alex Brooks made it first and goal on his only reception before Plyler used his forceful running style to punch it in at the 9:17 mark.
Reid also completed a deep play to Corey Whaley, who made the catch of the night along the near sideline. He later scored a touchdown on the ground and found Thamas for the two-point conversion.
Josh Carter will once again serve as a key asset for South Brunswick. The junior running back had several big plays on the ground, with sophomore Mason Phillips at quarterback.
Ashley will host South Brunswick in conference play on Friday, Oct. 14.
Click here for highlights from Ashley versus South Brunswick.
Hoggard 21 West Brunswick 14
Josh Jones hit Patrick Morrison on a short yardage pop pass over the middle with less than a minute to play in the second half to give Hoggard a 21-14 triumph against West Brunswick during the fifth and final scrimmage on Friday night.
Morrison had a couple of catches at tight end for the Vikings, but Tony Allen and Rashod Wallace lived up to the expectations set from last year as the one, two punch at running back. The senior tandem split most of the carries on Friday. Hoggard used the screen game to move the chains early as quarterback Bryant Sasser found Wallace to convert a third and long. Allen also picked up a first down on a short yardage fourth down play later in the game and scored a touchdown to break a 7-7 contest. Hoggard senior wide out Collin Hairr added a couple of catches in the win.
West Brunswick struck first on a 35-yard run by Bubba McCray, who looked to be in midseason form after dealing with injuries for most of his junior year. McCray finished with a pair of touchdowns, including a 60-yard sprint up the middle to tie the score 14-all with 2:58 remaining.
Tariq Thomas also picked up a few carries for the Trojans, with Owen McDowell at quarterback. LeGarrick Jeffries recorded a sack for West Brunswick.
Hoggard will play at home against West Brunswick (10/21) late in the season. Click here to watch video highlights from Hoggard versus West Brunswick.
@WBHS_Trojans use a 60yd TD by Bubba McCray..his second of the night. It's 14-14 w @JTH_Vikings @PortCityDaily.com pic.twitter.com/0Rl5sp3GMX
— Joe Catenacci (@JoeCats19) August 13, 2016
