The Herald releases its 2021 All-Area high school football first and second teams
It’s time to bestow The Herald’s All-Area awards upon those who made the 2021 high school football season special.
And these characters need no introduction.
You’ve read most of these names on All-State lists. You’ve watched several of them play in this year’s North-South All-Star game. You’ve seen many be honored by making the Shrine Bowl roster or by being voted a Tri-County Coaches Association Player or Coach of the Year — or even, of course, by winning a state championship.
Like his fellow award-winners, The Herald’s All-Area Player of the Year was someone who just about did everything. Northwestern senior quarterback Will Mattison (6-foot-4, 190 pounds) finished the year completing 225 of 349 passes for 3,085 yards, 41 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. He also added 378 yards rushing and a team-leading nine rushing touchdowns — all while leading his offense to a remarkable 38.6 points per game average. The Trojans under his command finished with an 11-2 overall record and a Region 4-5A championship.
And after the season? Mattison wasn’t done. After all, he still had to play in the North-South All-Star game and collect his All-State and Region 4-5A Player of the Year honors. The Rock Hill native even picked up an offer and committed to play football at Gardner-Webb University in late November.
The Herald’s All-Area Coach of the Year was just as busy. South Pointe head coach DeVonte Holloman, who at 30 years old is only in his third season at the helm of his alma mater, won his first state championship earlier this month. The story of his path home — and his willingness to share his story and mentor his players — proved to be as impactful as his play-calling was this season. It always will be.
Find below a full listing of this year’s All-Area teams, all of which were selected by The Herald’s sports department. The Herald released its volleyball All-Area teams and its golf, tennis, swim and cross country teams earlier this month, too.
End of year awards
Player of the Year: Will Mattison, Northwestern
Coach of the Year: DeVonte Holloman, South Pointe
First team offense
QB: Will Mattison, Northwestern.
RB: Turbo Richard, Northwestern. He’s a sophomore in age, yes, but Richard played older than he was all year for the talented Trojans. The 5-foot-9, 190-pound running back finished with 1,075 yards and eight touchdowns on 174 carries in 2021. He played in 12 of the team’s 13 games — averaging 87.8 rushing yards a contest — and was a worthy rushing threat that helped make Northwestern’s offense so balanced and subsequently so dangerous. (Richard also added 16 catches for 183 yards and another touchdown.)
RB: Ja’Quan Thompson, South Pointe. Thompson was far from a one-man-show in South Pointe’s state-championship-winning offense, but he was a huge part of it. The senior finished with 133 carries for 768 yards and nine touchdowns — two scores of which came in the final game of his career. His head coach regularly credited Thompson and his backfield-mate, Caleb Sims, for their unselfishness. They gladly split carries in pursuit of the program’s seventh state title, which came to fruition earlier this month.
WR: Waymond Jenerette, South Pointe. Saying Jenerette was invaluable to the Stallion offense would be an understatement. Jenerette finished the season as South Pointe’s record-holder for most receiving yards (1,360) and most receiving touchdowns (15) in a single season. The All-State selection also ran for 86 yards and a touchdown and threw for 75 yards and three touchdowns. And let’s not forget what he did in one of his few snaps on defense: On the game’s last meaningful play in an intense road win over Catawba Ridge, Jenerette intercepted a pass and took it about 70 yards to the end zone to seal the game — proving the senior could truly do it all.
WR: Elijah Caldwell, Northwestern. Part of what helped Northwestern’s QB shine so brightly in 2021 was his talented receiving corps, and Caldwell was one of those guys. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound junior led the team with 77 catches for 1,247 yards and 15 touchdowns. He furnished a reliable deep threat — oftentimes calling for Mattison to just throw the ball up while he was in single coverage (and it would work). Caldwell will be a centerpiece in Northwestern’s offense in 2022.
WR: Jacobie Henderson, Catawba Ridge. The Marshall football signee returned kicks and returned punts — but he was most known around the state for what he did as a receiver and as a defensive back in his senior year. Henderson finished the year with 51 catches for 656 yards and four touchdowns, leading an offense that averaged 22.2 points per game and a team that made it to the second round of the 4A state playoffs. The Shrine Bowl selection and All-State selection also notched 35 tackles, two tackles for loss, two interceptions, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries in 2021.
OL: Jordan Knox, Northwestern. Northwestern’s offensive line was a strength in 2021, in large part thanks to its 6-foot-4, 300-pound left tackle. Knox finished his junior year with 38 knockdown blocks, no sacks allowed and an overall grade of 88%. The two-time team captain did so while leading a tough offensive line — one that paved the way for 2,093 total rushing yards and one that protected Mattison admirably. Knox finished as an All-State and All-Region 4-5A selection and has notched Division I offers from Southern Florida, Eastern Michigan and UNC Charlotte.
OL: Hagan Smith, Clover. The 6-foot-6, 310-pound offensive lineman was a North-South All-Star selection his senior year and finished with 15 pancake blocks and six bulldozer blocks in 2021.
OL: Ahmarion McLeod, Indian Land. Warrior head coach Adam Hastings, a former college lineman himself, was high on McLeod all season long. And the praise was well-deserved. The North-South All-Star selection notched 24 knockdown blocks and graded out at 88% on the year. The senior was a leader on an offense that averaged 25.9 points per game and on a team that finished 5-4 with a berth to the 2021 playoffs.
OL: Marcus Boston Brinkley, Fort Mill. The Yellow Jackets were one win away from a 5A state playoff appearance in 2021. Their run-first offense was led by Brinkley, a senior offensive lineman who finished the season grading out at 85% overall. He also only gave up one sack in 176 snaps and notched eight knockdown blocks. The three-star recruit signed to UNC Charlotte earlier this month.
OL: Jordan McVay, South Pointe. The Stallions couldn’t have reached the state’s summit without an inspired offensive line, and McVay was a leader on it. He finished the regular season grading out at 89% with 27 pancake blocks and appeared to only get stronger in the postseason.
K: Kanoah Vinesett, Northwestern. The senior and future N.C. State kicker earned practically every honor he could in 2021. The All-State, All-Region and North-South All-Star selection finished 9-of-13 on field goals. His longest of the year was from 46 yards. He also added 64 touchbacks and finished 59-of-60 on extra points — at one point breaking the state record for most consecutive extra points converted with 76.
KR: Jevon Long, York. The Cougars (7-3) were successful because of their discipline and clutchness in 2021 — often winning by one-possession margins and despite not scoring a ton. But their return teams? Those were just as explosive as anyone’s in the state. Long fielded most of the team’s kickoffs and even scored two touchdowns on kickoff returns. (He had some touchdowns called back because of penalties, too.) He furnished explosiveness elsewhere as well: The senior finished as the team’s leading receiver with 37 receptions for 429 yards and six of the team’s seven total touchdowns through the air.
ATH: Zae Brown, Great Falls. He might be the best football player in Class 1A you haven’t yet met, but trust this: Opponents of Great Falls know Zae Brown well. The 6-foot-1, 190-pound quarterback/receiver/cornerback rarely came off the field for the Red Devils (7-4) — and in doing so, he helped boost the team to a winning record for the first time since 2014. Brown’s stats reflect (but don’t necessarily fully encapsulate) his impact: He ran for 1,119 yards and 12 touchdowns on 129 carries. He completed 80 of 175 passes for 1,002 yards and 11 touchdowns. He caught 10 passes for 285 yards and four touchdowns. And on defense? He notched 39 tackles, five tackles for loss, two interceptions, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and two defensive touchdowns.
ATH: Zan Dunham, Chester. What else is there to say about this guy? Dunham is a four-year starter under Chester coach Victor Floyd at quarterback. And as a senior, he was much more than just a QB — he was also a wildcat running back, a reliable linebacker and even the team’s long-snapper on field goal tries. As a senior, Dunham completed 92 of 171 passes for 1,153 yards, 13 touchdowns and only five interceptions. He was also the team’s leading rusher with 1,231 yards — averaging 136.8 yards a game in the nine games he played — and 11 touchdowns. On defense he was also impactful: The senior linebacker and All-State selection finished with 57 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, an interception and a forced fumble. The Cyclones finished the year 9-4, falling in the Upper State title game to eventual 3A state champion Daniel.
First team defense
DL: Luke Bracey, Rock Hill. The senior captain was invaluable to the Bearcat defense in 2021, and his remarkably long stat-line reflects that. Take a look: 70 total tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, two interceptions, one safety, 12 quarterback pressures, one fumble recovery, five blocked kicks (four field goals and one punt) and more. His best asset? His versatility. The 6-foot-6, 235-pound player committed to North Carolina Central earlier this month — as a tight end.
DL: Isaac McLellan, Northwestern. McLellan is a state championship wrestler, and the relentlessness that has fueled his success on the mat made him almost impossible to plan for on the football field. The captain and All-State and All-Region selection finished his senior season with 83 tackles, 28 tackles for loss, seven sacks, two pass deflections, four pass breakups and two forced fumbles. He led a defense that only allowed 15.4 points and 299 yards per game — and one that was particularly staunch come the postseason, allowing a total of 23 points in the team’s three playoff games.
DL: Anquerrious Davis, South Pointe. There’s a lot to say about South Pointe’s senior defensive lineman. But let’s cut to the chase: He was a beast in 2021. Davis finished with a team-leading 100 tackles and 5.5 sacks. He shined most in the postseason. He led his team with 20 tackles to help in a come-from-behind effort in the third round of the 4A playoffs, and then he also added nine tackles and a TFL in the state championship game.
DL: Asa Johnson, Catawba Ridge. The senior All-State selection and three-time Tri-County Coaches Association 4A Defensive Lineman of the Year finished with 87 tackles, five sacks and 24 tackles for loss in 2021. He anchored a defensive line that won the Copperheads plenty of games — including in a contest against Indian Land where a goal-line stand in overtime was required to win. Johnson has notched offers from Newberry College and the University of Rochester (N.Y.).
LB: MeKayle Burris, York. If you watched Burris play at all this year, you’d know it’s hard to understate his impact. He seemed to be part of every meaningful play for the Cougar defense in 2021. The senior captain and linebacker finished with 100 total tackles, 20 tackles for loss, a team-leading six sacks, an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery — leading a defense that only gave up 15.9 points per game.
LB: Dumkele Idehen, Indian Land. Idehen was an All-State and North-South All-Star game selection who notched 166 tackles (18.4 per game), five sacks, five pass breakups and two forced fumbles in 2021. (During the North-South game, the senior represented the Warriors well with a fumble recovery for a touchdown.) The 6-foot, 215-pound linebacker has earned offers from Army and Newberry College.
LB: Jackson Sims, Nation Ford. This Falcon outside linebacker had a special senior year. The All-State honorable mention and three-year varsity player finished with 121 total tackles (13.4 average in his nine games played), nine tackles for loss, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. He led a Nation Ford team that finished 4-6 (2-2 in Region 3-5A) and a defense that gave up 27.7 points per game. The senior received his first offer from Hampden Sydney College earlier this month.
DB: Jy Martin, Clover. The senior Blue Eagle and Shrine Bowl selection finished with 43 tackles, eight tackles for loss, one sack, 18 passes defended and two fumble recoveries. But he was more than a defensive back. Late in the year, with Clover’s receiving corps ravaged by injury, he played a lot of wideout, too.
DB: Andre Hodge, Catawba Ridge. In nine games played, the Wake Forest signee finished with 19 total tackles, three pass deflections, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and a tied-for-team-high two interceptions.
DB: Quan Peterson, South Pointe. The Syracuse signee could shut down an entire half of the field. And when he was tested, he wreaked havoc: Peterson finished the season with 14 tackles (one TFL), four pass breakups and two interceptions. The All-State and Shrine Bowl selection also had a punt return for a touchdown against Indian Land this season.
DB: Chris McCullough, South Pointe. Opposing offenses faced problems in South Pointe’s defensive backfield everywhere they looked. McCullough is a reason why. The senior cornerback finished with 33 total tackles, seven pass breakups and three interceptions — a vital part of the South Pointe secondary’s self-designated “seat belt gang.” (The name was explained to The Herald after the team’s state title win: You can’t go anywhere with a seat belt on.)
P: Reed Richardson, Nation Ford. Nation Ford has had some talented kickers this decade. Think Quinn Castner who’s now at Clemson, or Skylar Delong who signed with Alabama. Richardson is cut from that same cloth: The kicker finished the season with 31 punts and averaged 41.5 yards per punt. His longest boot on the season was 66 yards. He also pinned 10 punts inside the 20. (Richardson finished the regular season averaging 49 yards a punt, breaking NaFo’s record previously held by Delong.)
PR: Gerell Watkins, Northwestern. Watkins was fast and sure-handed, and he was just about the toughest player around. The 5-foot-9, 150-pound senior was Northwestern’s designated return-guy: He fielded 21 punts for 207 total yards (9.9 yards per attempt) and also notched 266 kick return yards on 13 attempts — rarely not bouncing back up even after the most vicious of hits. He was also a key receiver for the Trojans, finishing with 60 catches for 738 yards and 15 touchdowns. (Watkins, Caldwell and Calique Cunningham — before an injury cut Cunningham’s season short — made for one of the best receiving trios in South Carolina.)
ATH: Omari Davis, Clover. Davis was a key for a Clover defense that showed flashes of greatness in 2021. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound junior finished the year with 73 tackles, 25 tackles for loss, eight sacks, two quarterback pressures, a pass breakup, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble.
ATH: Miller Shouse, Fort Mill. Brinkley was Fort Mill’s anchor on offense, and Shouse was Fort Mill’s anchor on defense. The senior linebacker and team captain finished with a solid stat-line in 2021: 69 total tackles, six tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, three sacks and one interception.
Second team offense
QB: Zay McCrorey, South Pointe. The South Pointe senior starting quarterback took full advantage of his first and only full year as a starter for the Stallions: He ran for 413 yards and eight touchdowns. He completed 225 of 357 passes for 2,988 yards and 25 touchdowns. And of course, he delivered the Stallions their eighth straight region championship and their seventh state championship since the school opened in 2005. His leadership, along with other 2021 seniors, couldn’t be understated in 2021.
RB: Shydem McCullough, Chester. The Cyclones’ four-year starting quarterback got a lot of deserved attention this season, but their junior running back put in work in 2021. McCullough finished the year with 1,306 yards of total offense — 1,001 yards rushing and 305 yards receiving — and that comes while splitting the backfield with another 1,000-yard rusher (QB Dunham) and three other capable running backs (Darius Head, Sherard Feaster and Antonio Hopkins).
RB: Tyler Jones, Catawba Ridge. The junior running back midway through the season took up the starting job admirably. He finished with 209 carries for 1,081 yards — an average of 98.3 yards a game — and six touchdowns. He also notched three receptions for 53 yards and two touchdowns.
WR: Darius Bowser, Clover. The senior wide receiver only played in six games in 2021, but he made the most of them. The North-South All-Star and Shrine Bowl selection finished with 38 receptions for 597 yards and four touchdowns. He’s notched multiple offers to play college football, including from Army and Navy.
WR: Brooks Johnson, Nation Ford. The senior North-South All-Star selection finished with 36 receptions, 485 yards and a touchdown in 2021.
WR: Drew Hardin, Indian Land. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound defensive back was huge in 2021: Hardin finished with 40 receptions for 807 yards and nine touchdowns on offense; 40 tackles, one fumble recovery and one interception on defense; and he even ran back two punts for scores. The senior was an All-State and All-Region selection.
OL: Marcus Macon, Northwestern. Macon helped fill out a talented Northwestern offensive line this season — and, like the aforementioned Knox, he still has one year to go. The two-year starter graded out at 83% overall, notched 25 knockdowns and gave up only one sack in his junior season.
OL: Marcus Romec, Nation Ford. Romec graded over 90% every game, allowed zero sacks and notched 12 pancake blocks in his senior year. He also played some defensive snaps in 2021.
OL: Cade Purgason, Catawba Ridge. Purgason graded out at 88% on the year with 14 pancake blocks and 11 knockdowns, helping pave the way for Catawba Ridge’s first-ever 1,000-yard rusher (Tyler Jones).
OL: Da’Marrious Thompson, Chester. Thompson, like Dunham, was a four-year starter for the Cyclones in his high school football career. And his senior year was solid: The All-Region offensive lineman finished grading out at 85% overall with 38 pancakes on the season. He helped pave the way for an offense that accumulated over 3,300 rushing yards on the season.
OL: Zach Moss, York. The All-State selection finished the regular season graded out at 78% in eight games (450 plays). The junior left tackle also notched 23 knockdown blocks.
K: Joe Schepler, Fort Mill. The Yellow Jacket senior finished with 41 punts for a 35.1-yard average. He also nailed five field goals in 2021 — the second-leading point-scorer on the team this season.
KR: Jerrick Foster, Nation Ford. Foster was among Nation Ford’s most explosive players — as a receiver, a defensive back and a returner. As a returner, specifically, the North-South All-Star selection finished with 11 kickoff returns for 187 yards and nine punt returns for 240 yards.
ATH: Foxx Moore, Great Falls. Seniors Zae Brown and Foxx Moore made quite the formidable pairing at Great Falls this year. Moore’s stat-line, like Brown’s, was ridiculous: 106 carries for 771 yards and 11 touchdowns; 29 catches for 458 yards and nine touchdowns; and 49 tackles, five tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries.
ATH: Frank Thompson, York. The Cougars played a run-first game, and when athletic sophomore quarterback Ayden Davis didn’t take it himself, he often handed it off to Thompson. The senior All-State honorable mention took 91 carries for 406 yards and four touchdowns.
Second team defense
DL: AJ Miller, South Pointe. The Stallions historically have been blessed with defensive line talent. This year was no different. One of their leaders turned out to be Miller, a junior All-State and All-Region selection who finished with 54 tackles and a team-high 12.5 sacks and seven tackles for loss. (He also plays for South Pointe’s reigning state championship basketball team.)
DL: JT Knight, Indian Land. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound defensive end was an All-State selection in 2021 and finished his senior regular season with 72 tackles, nine sacks, one fumble recovery and four forced fumbles.
DL: Tennarious Rhinehart, South Pointe. Yes, another Stallion junior makes the list — and for good reason again. Rhinehart finished the season with 54 tackles, 14 quarterback pressures and a team-second-best 11 sacks.
DL/LB: Maurice Bonneau, Rock Hill. The 6-foot-2, 235-pound defensive end and outside linebacker did a ton for his Rock Hill team in 2021: The senior finished with 77 total tackles, 26 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks, 13 pressures, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. The All-Region 4-5A selection notched an offer from The Citadel earlier this month.
LB: Ashton Latta, Northwestern. The senior and All-State honorable mention finished second on the team with 61 total tackles (behind senior defensive lineman Isaac McLellan) and also had nine tackles for loss, one sack, two forced fumbles, one blocked kick and one interception (which he returned for a touchdown against Chester).
LB: Ashton Edington, York: Between Burris and Edington, York’s linebacking corps could go pound-for-pound with pretty much anyone in York, Chester and Lancaster counties. Edington finished 2021 as the team’s leading tackler with 116 tackles and added three tackles for loss, one interception and two forced fumbles. (He was also the team’s punter.)
LB: Cooper Zohner, Clover. Zohner was another guy who did just about anything head coach Brian Lane asked him to do in 2021. Most important, the 6-foot, 200-pound player was a fantastic linebacker: He finished with 97 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, two sacks, two interceptions, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble (that led to a crucial “scoop and score” in Clover’s big season-opening upset victory over Dorman). He played special teams and was a receiver, too, at head coach Brian Lane’s request.
DB: DJ Barksdale, South Pointe. Barksdale will no doubt be among the best defensive backs in the state next season. In 2021, the junior team captain and All-State honorable mention finished with 54 tackles, four pass breakups and a team-high four interceptions — two of which came in the state championship game earlier this month.
DB: Tay McCroey, Northwestern. McCroey was a lockdown corner in 2021 — and because of that, he didn’t get tested much. But he still had a season to remember. The senior defensive back finished with 25 tackles, one tackle for loss and an interception that made even the normally level-headed head coach Page Wofford jump in surprise. McCroey committed to North Greenville University earlier this month.
DB: Jecari Bryson, Northwestern. The 6-foot-3, 185-pound athlete was a lockdown Northwestern cornerback in 2021. Bryson finished with 35.5 tackles, one tackle for loss, seven pass deflections, one fumble recovery and one interception in his senior football season. He’s also a standout basketball player.
DB: Amarion Huskey-Thompson, York. The All-State honorable mention defensive back finished with 53 total tackles and four tackles for loss in his senior year. He was an important leader on a sophomore-laden team that, by most accounts, overachieved in 2021.
P: Chip DiStasio, South Pointe. The Stallions didn’t punt a ton in 2021, but when they did, DiStasio was reliable. He averaged 41.3 yards a punt. He also went 51-for-55 on extra points, 4-of-5 on field goals and booted 38 touchbacks on kickoffs.
PR: Zy Brown, York. Brown helped fill out York’s aforementioned explosive return team, splitting kick and punt return reps with Long. He even notched two touchdowns on kickoff returns in 2021, averaging 83 yards on those scores.
ATH: Austin Wilkes, Northwestern. The senior linebacker was another name District Three Stadium heard a lot of: Wilkes finished with 51 tackles, six tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two interceptions.
ATH: Ty Chambers, South Pointe. His coach called him the “heartbeat of the team.” The senior linebacker, who plays much bigger than his 5-foot-11 frame, was the leading tackler for the Stallions heading into the state championship game: He finished the season with 98 tackles, three quarterback pressures and 3.5 sacks. His most memorable play? A fumble recovery for a touchdown in the Upper State championship against Greenville that all but sealed the game.
This story was originally published December 30, 2021 at 9:00 AM.
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