North Carolina awards football titles

Butler (Matthews), West Rowan (Mt. Ulla), Tarboro and Wallace-Rose Hill (Teachey) all repeated as champions Saturday in the NCHSAA football finals. And then there was Northern Guilford (Greensboro), which won in its third year as a varsity program — and only fourth year in the school's existence — in the most exciting final of the day.

After being stuffed twice inside the 5-yard line in the fourth quarter, Crest finally scored the potential tying touchdown on its final chance when Rhaheim Ledbetter (23 carries, 124 yards) scored on fourth-and-goal from the 8 with 15 seconds left. But Crest missed the extra point wide left, giving Northern Guilford a 21-20 win and the 3-AA title at N.C. State.

California commitment Maurice Harris had two receiving touchdowns and an interception to earn MVP honors, while East Carolina-bound quarterback Rocco Scarfone was a perfect 10-for-10 passing for 128 yards and three touchdowns. Scarfone hit Harris for the winning touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.

"That first year we didn't have locker rooms so we had rented trailers — with no bathrooms — to dress in," coach Johnny Roscoe told the Shelby Star. "Most of our kids rode bikes to practice. We had no tradition to speak of. One of the things we talked about with them as freshmen was setting a standard."

Nationally-ranked Butler (Matthews) dominated its 4AA title game, and West Rowan (Mt. Ulla) extended the nation's longest active winning streak to 46 games in 3A.

MaxPreps' North Carolina football playoff brackets

Here's a roundup of the other five championship games from the weekend:

4A
Hillside (Durham) left no doubt whether it would complete an undefeated season. The Hornets scored three times in the first six minutes and ran up 40 first-half points before cruising to a 40-0 win over Davie (Mocksville).

On the opening possession, Vad Lee hit Aquez Willis for a 40-yard touchdown. On the next drive, Lee found Shawn Malloy for a 57-yard score. Four plays later, Ronald Thompson scored on a 30-yard interception return.

The Georgia Tech-bound Lee was named MVP after completing 14 of 25 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns.

"It shocked our kids how far [Lee] could really throw it," Davie coach Doug Illing told the Raleigh News & Observer.

Hillside had a 335-48 edge in yardage during the first half.

Davie entered the playoffs 5-6 before making a surprise run into the final, which captured the attention of the community. Thousands of residents made the 30-mile drive to Wake Forest for the game, which had a total attendance of 10,902.

"You talk about goosebumps. I know that gave every one of our kids goosebumps," Illing told the Winston-Salem Journal. "I just hope nobody got robbed in Davie County today, because everyone was here. It was an awesome sight."

2AA
After starting 3-3, Salisbury won its first state since 1957 with a 30-0 shutout of Northeastern (Elizabeth City).

UNC commit Romar Morris had 97 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries to earn the MVP award.

Dominique Dismuke opened the scoring with a 6-yard run in the first quarter, and then the Eagles fumbled the ensuing kickoff. B.J. Woods got the first of two fumble recoveries for the Hornets, and Dismuke caught a scoring pass from John Knox to make it 14-0.

Northeastern had won four playoff games to reach the final after winning just six playoff games in the past 40 years. Its best scoring chance came at the end of the first half, but Darien Rankin blocked a 25-yard field goal attempt.

According to the Salisbury Post, the Eagles ran 15 more plays but allowed six sacks and had four turnovers.

2A
Tarboro stopped Carver (Winston-Salem) quarterback Madison Mills at the 1 on a fourth-down play with three minutes left, and then ran out the clock to win 21-13 at Wake Forest.

Tarboro took the lead with 1:55 left in the third quarter when Jamias Williams threw a 7-yard scoring pass to Todd Gurley II on third and goal, and Armando Gonzalez made the extra point. Gurley II, who also ran for a 39-yard touchdown in the first half, was named MVP.

The Vikings added to the lead later in the third quarter when Markell Howell intercepted his second pass of the day and returned it 36 yards for a score.

This was Tarboro's third straight trip to the finals — the Vikings won in '09 and lost in '08.

"I rank this team No. 1 in the history of Tarboro High School," Tarboro coach Jeff Craddock told the Rocky Mount Telegram. "I'm not putting down any past accomplishments, because we've had some great football teams, but these guys are the only ones to go undefeated."

1AA
Pender (Burgaw) opened the game with a 91-yard, 16-play drive that took 7 minutes, 19 seconds and ended on a touchdown run by Josh Johnson. After that the Patriots gained 91 more yards — total.

Albemarle won its fifth state title in 10 years with a 21-7 win Friday night at UNC.

"Our kids were fighting, scratching and clawing, but Albemarle was just a better team," Pender coach Tom Eanes told the Wilmington Star-News.

MVP Nat Dunlap had three touchdown passes in 10 attempts, including two in the final three minutes of the first half — a 40-yarder to Dillon Taylor and a 38-yarder to Desi Dockery — that put the Bulldogs on top. Dunlap threw a 21-yard touchdown to Dockery midway through the fourth quarter to ice the game.

1A
Extra points also made a difference in Wallace-Rose Hill's 22-21 win over Murphy. Murphy had its first extra-point attempt blocked, and then failed on the next two 2-point conversions.

"Extra points were the key, and it's very disappointing because I thought our kids really played hard," Murphy coach David Gentry told the Asheville Citizen-Times. "But sometimes this game is like that, it teaches you about life. I've been (to a state championship game) six times now, and I know one thing. Win or lose, the sun is going to come out tomorrow."

W-RH quarterback Dawan McKinzie scored on a keeper from 2 yards out to make it 21-19 with 10:42 remaining, and then Jose Flores hit a career-long 45-yard field goal with 6:57 left to put the Bulldogs ahead.

Flores made a 38-yarder to send last year's championship game to overtime, where the Bulldogs eventually won 38-37.

"I thought our guys had been there and done that, and that was the difference in the game,'' Wallace-Rose Hill coach Joey Price said in the Wilmington Star-News. "You know what we say in Wallace, 'Hip, hip, Jose.'''

Murphy outgained the champs 413-297 and had a 36:08-11:52 edge in time of possession. It reached the 18 on the final drive but quarterback Seth Curtis — who accounted for 270 yards — slipped on the wet field at UNC on fourth down with 48 seconds left.

Omar Carr had 152 yards on 18 carries in the win, earning MVP honors for the second straight year.