WINSTON-SALEM –John Jiles hauled in a 20-yard pass in the end zone with 5:25 left in the fourth quarter which ended up being the go-ahead score for Wake Forest, giving the Cougars their second straight 4AA state championship, 14-0, over Mallard Creek. This was the third time these two teams have matched up the state title game, but the first time Wake Forest was able to top its Charlotte foe.

Devon Lawrence led Wake Forest with 135 yards rushing but found himself bottled up for most of the first half of the game. Fellow running back Marquis Dunn broke through for a 54-yard score with 3 minutes left in the game and Lawrence added a late score to seal the scoring for the Cougars and get Wake Forest back to the type of running stats that the Wake Forest faithful are used to seeing.

Mallard Creek's Nasjzae Bryant tried to get the Maverick offense moving, but the Wake Forest defense stood tall throughout the game. Bryant's 100-plus yard day was minimized by poor snaps and other miscues that kept the Mavericks out of the end zone.

Both quarterbacks were limited in passing action, possibly as a result of the inclement weather. The Wake Forest defense was stifling and only allowed 112 yards of offense by Mallard Creek. Javon Terry played a role in this by picking off a pass and tallying a couple tackles.

With the win, Wake Forest became the first team from Wake County to win back-to-back titles since Raleigh High School won three straight in 1912 to 1915.

Championship Game Awards

West (Mallard Creek) Most Outstanding Defensive Player – Jacob Roberts
West (Mallard Creek) Most Outstanding Offensive Player – Nasjzae Bryant

East (Wake Forest) Most Outstanding Defensive Player – Javon Terry
East (Wake Forest) Most Outstanding Offensive Player – John Jiles

Championship MVP – Wake Forest – Devon Lawrence

The 3:00 game at BB&T Field in Winston-Salem features two undefeated 4AA teams in Wake Forest and Mallard Creek. These two teams have met in the title game twice before with Mallard Creek victorious both times, in 2013 and 2014, but Wake Forest broke through last year and defeated Page in the title game. The Cougars come into this matchup with the targets on their backs as the defending 4AA state champion.

BB&T Field

Wake Forest has a fairly balanced offensive attack, averaging 238 yards on the ground and 134 yards through the air. Leading the rushing attack for the Cougars is senior running back Devin Lawrence, who has found the end zone 32 times this season. Quarterback Chris James has passed for over 1800 yards and 22 touchdowns.

Coach Reggie Lucas is especially proud of his defense, which has held eight opponents to ten points or less this season and has posted three shutouts.

The Mavericks with Mallard Creek of played one of the toughest schedules in North Carolina this season with two state finalists and two regional finalists on the slate of games. And the Mavericks had to do it with almost entirely new line up. Coach Mike Palmieri wasn't sure how his team was going to be on the field this season with 19 new starters, but after 14 games it's clear to see in that they're back to playing the type of Mallard Creek football that won three straight state titles between 2013 and 2015.

The 4A state championship game features two teams with head coaches that are each seeking their first title. Richard Bailey and the Scotland Fighting Scots are looking for their second title in school history while coach Sam Griner and the Harding Rams are looking for their first title in over 60 years.

BB&T Field

Scotland rushes for an amazing 425 yards per game on average. Most that yardage had come from the nation's top-ranked running back Zamir White, but the five-star, Georgia-bound recruit suffered a torn ACL in the second round of the playoffs and will miss the title game. Stepping up in White's absence has been senior quarterback Warren Bell and junior running back Syheam McQueen who have collectively rushed for over 2000 yards to keep the chains moving for the Fighting Scots.

Scotland won an overtime thriller in the regional final against Hoggard. After Hoggard had rallied from a 25-point deficit to force overtime and scored a touchdown to pull ahead, Scotland scored on a fourth-down on its possession and had a successful 2-point conversion for the win.

Like Scotland, Harding relies on its running game to get its offense moving. Lining up in the backfield is junior Quavaris Crouch, listed by some scouting services as the nation's top junior running back. Blocking for Crouch is Shrine Bowl-bound offensive lineman JoVaughn Gwyn.

Defensively, the Harding Rams have been stingy and have not given up twenty points in a game since September. Also, like their title game counterparts, Harding had to rely on a big play at the end of the game to defeat their opponent in the regional final. An interception with no time remaining in the end zone secured the win against Vance and sent the Harding Rams back to the title game for the first time in thirty years.

One interesting feature in this game is that both teams come into the game with only one loss, but that one loss was for each team was to the same opponent, 4AA state finalist Mallard Creek. Scotland played Mallard Creek in the season opener, falling 28-21 while Harding played a tough game against Mallard Creek in week 5, losing 30-9.

Carter-Finley Stadium
NC State University, Raleigh

1A

1AA

Kenan Stadium
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

2AA

2A

Brooks Field at Wallace Wade Stadium
Duke University, Durham

3A

3AA

BB&T Field
Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem

4AA

Wake Forest 21, Mallard Creek 0

4A