High school football rankings: New Bern finishes No. 1 in final North Carolina MaxPreps Top 25

By Jordan Divens Dec 13, 2022, 11:00am

Bears take top spot after knocking off Grimsley 40-28 in the Class 4A state championship game.

The high school football season in North Carolina came to a close over the weekend. New Bern was among the victors, knocking off No. 3 Grimsley (Greensboro) 40-28 in the Class 4A state championship game. That victory helped propel the Bears to the No. 1 ranking in the final state MaxPreps Top 25.

New Bern (16-0) capped an undefeated season by rushing for 394 yards on 54 attempts in a game they never attempted a pass. Aronne Herring carried 16 times for 161 yards and two touchdowns while Damaree Tucker rushed 12 times for 105 yards and a pair of scores in the 4A state title game. Running the triple option, the Bears finished the year with 6,219 yards on the ground, which was good for one of the top five single-season rushing totals in NCHSAA history.

Coming in at No. 2 was NCISAA Division 1 state champion Providence Day (Charlotte), which finished 12-1 after defeating No. 14 Charlotte Christian (Charlotte) 55-13 in the title game. Providence Day was led by North Carolina MaxPreps Player of the Year Jadyn Davis who connected on 18 of 28 pass attempts for 350 yards and six touchdowns. The victory avenged the Chargers' only loss of the season which came approximately one month prior in a 38-37 heart-breaker to the Cougars.

East Lincoln (Denver) (16-0) finished the season ranked No. 7 in the Tar Heel State after capturing the Class 3A state title with a 30-15 victory over No. 22 Northern Nash (Rocky Mount) and East Duplin (Beulaville) (15-1) ended the year ranked No. 22 in the state after slipping past No. 25 Reidsville 24-21 in the Class 2A state title game.

Read on for a complete look at the final North Carolina MaxPreps Top 25.

2022 NORTH CAROLINA STATE CHAMPIONS

NCHSAA
Class 4A – New Bern
Class 1A – Mount Airy

NCISAA

FINAL NORTH CAROLINA MAXPREPS TOP 25



# School Rec. Str. +/-
1New Bern16-019.7+2
2PDHS (Charlotte)12-118.6--
3Grimsley (Greensboro)15-125.6-2
4Hough (Cornelius)11-329.3--
5Weddington (Matthews)13-223.8--
6EFHS (Kernersville)12-116.2--
7East Lincoln (Denver)16-09.0+3
8Millbrook (Raleigh)13-219.4+1
9A.C. Reynolds (Asheville)12-216.8-2
10Chambers (Charlotte)9-326.2-2
11Mallard Creek (Charlotte)8-430.0+1
12Independence (Charlotte)11-216.7-1
13Hillside (Durham)13-115.7+1
14CCHS (Charlotte)9-318.0-1
15Butler (Matthews)10-318.6--
16CGHS (Raleigh)9-319.7+3
17RGNHS (Rabun Gap)8-426.2--
18CCHS (Charlotte)10-320.5--
19Kings Mountain13-112.4+3
20Wake Forest10-318.8+3
21East Duplin (Beulaville)15-13.1+10
22NNHS (Rocky Mount)15-19.4-2
23NGHS (Greensboro)10-317.9-2
24Rolesville10-423.6+1
25Reidsville14-25.9-9