With another exciting high school football season in the rearview mirror, let’s take a look at some of the more memorable performances of the year:
North Rowan’s Jareke Chambers vs. Providence Grove
Chambers could be on here a dozen or so times. The junior brought back six touchdowns from a long trip to Providence Grove, so we’ll go with this one. The last time a Rowan kid scored six times was K.P. Parks.
Chambers ran for 232 yards on just 12 carries for a 19.3 yard per carry average.
North Rowan’s Alexis Archie vs. West Davidson
The North Rowan quarterback threw for 361 yards and was part of four touchdowns in a 53-12 win. Archie produced five scores in the playoff win against C.D. Owen, with four on passes and one on a run.
West Rowan’s Harrison Baucom vs. South Rowan
The quarterback/punter hybrid threw four touchdowns in the first quarter. A pretty good ratio when you consider Baucom completed six passes for the game.
South Rowan’s Derrick Blackwell vs. Cox Mill
Blackwell, a senior, tied a South Rowan record with five touchdowns in the Raiders’ most productive offensive night. Blackwell carried it 37 times for 190 yards and scored on runs of 17, 10, 1 and 5 yards.

Defense
North Rowan’s Cecil McCauley vs. Davie County
McCauley, one of the best defensive linemen in the county, had six tackles for loss and two sacks against 4A Davie.
Salisbury’s Clint Comadoll vs. Lexington
Comadoll sacked Lexington quarterback Raekwon Byrd five times and had six tackles for loss. On one sack, Comadoll ripped a hole in Byrd’s jersey and the game had to be stopped.
Carson’s Tre Williams vs. West Rowan
Williams’ interception return for touchdown went for 44 yards and put the Cougars ahead 21-14 in a huge win against West. Williams also returned a momentum-changing interception in the East Rowan game. Against Gastonia Forestview, he scooped up a blocked punt for a touchdown.
West Rowan’s Nick Collins vs. Northwest Cabarrus
Collins, an all-county pick, had eight tackles, one for a loss, and recovered a fumble as the Falcons routed a decent Northwest team.

Special Teams
Carson’s Max Lear vs. Gastonia Forestview
Blocking one kick requires speed, coordination and precision to the point where blocking one is hard enough. In a playoff game, Lear blocked three, two punts and an extra point that kept Carson ahead.
North Rowan’s Mike Robinson vs. Davie County
Robinson blocked a county-high six kicks and had a crucial blocked punt against Davie.
West Rowan’s Tyler Kennedy vs. Davie County
Kennedy piled up over 200 return yards, including a 70-yard punt return for a touchdown to start the scoring in an emotional win.
East Rowan’s Shiheem Saunders vs. Cox Mill
Cox Mill had scored with just over three minutes left to pull within 21-20 of East in the Southern Piedmont Conference opener. Saunders got his big left hand up and interrupted an extra point kick to preserve the victory. Had he not made the block, the Mustangs may not have made the playoffs.
North Rowan’s Najee Tucker vs. Northwest Cabarrus
Tucker, a Charlotte commit, blocked a pair of punts in the Falcons’ rout of NWC at home.

The unusual
West Rowan fell to Concord for its first home loss to a in-state team since 2007, and then lost under extenuating circumstances to Cox Mill in Mount Ulla a week later.
Cox Mill lined up for a field goal trailing the Falcons 29-27 with 11 seconds left. The kick was well short, hitting a Cox Mill offensive lineman in the back. A West player picked up the ball and subsequently left it on the ground with the whistle not having been blown. Chargers quarterback Hunter Longmire picked the ball up and ran it into the end zone with 5.6 seconds left for the win.
North Rowan’s Dylan Auten vs. Surry Central
For the first time in 100 games, North Rowan converted a field goal on a 25-yard boot from Auten in a 42-0 win against Surry Central. It was the Cavaliers’ first field goal since the 2005 season.
East Rowan’s Seth Wyrick vs. Northwest Cabarrus
Wyrick broke the school record for receiving yards in a season this year. Something else he did you don’t see everyday was catching touchdown passes from three different players. Max Wall, Samuel Wyrick and Noah Drye all threw TDs to Seth.
West ‘wins for the Ronz’
West Rowan beat Davie on Aug. 30., the day former Post sports editor Ronnie Gallagher passed away suddenly. The Falcons, and several other teams in the county, paid tribute with ‘Ronz’ stickers on their helmets and a pre-game ceremony. West came-from-behind to top its backyard rival for its first win of the year.