By Mike London
mike.london@salisburypost.com

SPENCER — How good is North Rowan football?

Everyone will know the answer to that question soon because the Cavaliers travel to West Rowan next week.

What we do know for certain right now is that North Rowan has started 3-0 for the first time since 2016 and is a lot better than it was in 2021 when it won eight games and made a strong run in the 1A state playoffs.

South Rowan and North Stanly pushed the Cavaliers to the wire in 2021. This season, those two teams had no chance.

The Cavaliers beat South Rowan 57-0 in Week 2. The Cavaliers blew out North Stanly 49-0 on Friday at Eagle Stadium.

“It’s not like we’re there yet, but we’re closer to getting where we want to be,” North head coach Nygel Pearson said. “I don’t want to jinx anything, but we are so much better on defense than we were a year ago. We were outscoring some people last year, but now we’re getting the stops. We’re getting turnovers. A lot of our defensive guys have matured  and they’re showing they’ve got a knack for going after the football.”

Pearson gives a lot of credit to defensive coordinator Marcus Hamilton.

“He’s simplified some things and guys have responded and worked very hard,” Pearson said. “He’s giving them a chance to go out there and be athletes, to react and make plays.”

Pearson said veterans such as Kh’oron Miller, Khalil Davis and Bryson Crisco are playing at a high level. Robert Caldwell, who plays non-stop, has been a force on both lines. Sophomore defensive end Jordan Bailey has been a huge surprise.

North got some attention for an improved defense by creating eight turnovers opening night against East Rowan.

Tsion Kelly got noticed for picking off four passes in North’s first two outings.

The Cavaliers’ defense not only shut out North Stanly (1-2) on Friday, it contributed points when Isaiah Montgomery intercepted a pass near midfield and returned it for the second-quarter touchdown that made it 34-0.

As far as offense, most fans know the Cavaliers have special skill players in quarterback Jeremiah Alford, running back Jaemias Morrow and receiver Amari McArthur. They led the charge last season. They’re still around.

McArthur, the only senior in the trio, will break several school records this season, but he’s been relatively quiet so far. He did have a touchdown catch in the South Rowan game.

“He is getting a lot of defensive attention, but he’s still getting his touches,” Pearson said. “We tried to force it to him last year, but we’ve learned from that. He’ll get his catches in the flow of the game, and if teams do contain him, we’ve got other guys who can make a play.”

North Rowan scored less than two minutes into Friday’s game when Alford threw a 57-yard touchdown pass to Kemon O’Kelly.

A rushing touchdown by Morrow and Alford’s short TD flip to Xavier Suber made it 20-0 before the end of the first quarter.

The second quarter included Montgomery’s interception return and two rushing TDs by Alford. Alford’s 2-point conversion run for a 42-0 lead late in the second quarter made certain the entire second half would be played with a running clock.

North Rowan added one score  after the break when Morrow got his second touchdown of the night on a short burst.

“We had a good crowd, a good student section for our first home game,” Pearson said. “I’m hoping we’ll take some people over to West next week.”