With a month to go before the North Carolina high school football season kicks off, recruiting decisions are moving faster than ever. According to 247Sports rankings, 44 of the top 50 high school football players in North Carolina’s Class of 2026 have already announced their college commitments.
That’s an eye-popping figure for July — and a sign that the recruiting calendar continues to accelerate.
🔽 Just want to see the full list? Click here to jump to 247Sports’ full Top 50 rankings.
📌 Only Six Uncommitted Prospects Remain
Out of the 50 players ranked by 247Sports (as of July 27, 2025), there are only six who remain undecided:
- Ben Boulware (DL, Oak Grove – #18)
- Damaad Lewis (DL, Myers Park – #19)
- Andrew Rogers (EDGE, Grimsley – #22)
- Marcus Monroe (ATH, North Raleigh Christian – #40)
- Jackson Debe (QB, Providence – #41)
- Braylon Peebles (CB, Cardinal Gibbons – #48)
All six players are considered three-star prospects, according to 247Sports and all six have multiple Division I offers.
🚨 Big Wins for Out-of-State Powers
Elite out-of-state programs, especially those from the SEC and Big Ten (as well as Notre Dame) continue to dominate North Carolina’s recruiting landscape — especially three schools with this cycle:
- Notre Dame: 4 commits
- South Carolina: 4 commits
- Clemson: 3 commits
In fact, among the top 20 prospects in 247Sports rankings, those three programs have combined to land nine of the top 20 players in the state:
- Notre Dame (Coach Marcus Freeman): Rodney Dunham (#2), Thomas Davis Jr. (#11), Ebenezer Ewetade (#15)
- South Carolina (Coach Shane Beamer): Aiden Harris (#5), Noah Clark (#8), Andrew Harris (#20)
- Clemson (Coach Dabo Swinney): Leo Delaney (#6), Keshawn Stancil (#13), Gordon Sellars (#17)
South Carolina picked up its fourth pledge from the Old North State over the weekend when Kosci Barnes (Grimsley, #30) announced for the Gamecocks.
🏠 North Carolina Programs Struggling to Land Top 2026 Prospects
Only two of the top 20 players in North Carolina are staying in-state, and both are headed to Chapel Hill:
- Trashawn Ruffin (#12) – North Carolina
- Zavion Griffin-Hayes (#16) – North Carolina
Add in NC State, Duke, Wake Forest, East Carolina and Appalachian State, and North Carolina’s FBS programs account for just 14 of the top 50 commits (28 percent).
That’s not nothing — but it underscores how competitive the national recruiting landscape has become in the Old North State when nearly two-thirds of the top rising seniors have eyes elsewhere.
📍 Charlotte, Triad, Triangle All Have Strong Footprint
While Charlotte has an edge in volume, all three major metro regions in our state – Queen City, Triad, Triangle, feature elite-level talent.
- Myers Park (Charlotte) and Grimsley (Greensboro) lead the state with four top-50 players each.
- Rolesville, a one stoplight town in Wake County with no high school a generation ago, features three top-50 players. All three commits have pledged to the ACC: two to UNC and one to Louisville.
- Weddington (Matthews) also has three top-50 prospects.
🏛️ Colleges with Multiple NC Commitments (Class of 2026 Top 50)
| 🏈 School | 🎯 Total Commits | 🔢 Top 50 Rankings (NC) |
|---|---|---|
| Notre Dame | 4 | #2, #11, #15, #28 |
| South Carolina | 4 | #5, #8, #20, #30 |
| Clemson | 3 | #6, #13, #17 |
| North Carolina | 3 | #12, #16, #36 |
| NC State | 3 | #27, #42, #44 |
| Duke | 3 | #31, #38, #47 |
| East Carolina | 3 | #24, #43, #45 |
| Miami | 2 | #10, #32 |
| Tennessee | 2 | #1, #26 |
| Rutgers | 2 | #33, #37 |
| Virginia Tech | 2 | #35, #46 |
⏳ Final Thoughts
North Carolina’s top talent from the Class of 2026 has been flying off recruiting boards this spring and summer — and in-state programs are facing stiff competition to keep elite players close to home.
For now, it’s the bluebloods of the SEC, ACC and Big Ten, as well as Notre Dame, making the most noise. But with a long road ahead before National Signing Day, there’s still time for home-state schools to make their pitch to the top remaining talent as well as the deeper pool of D1-level prospects in our state.
📊 North Carolina Top 50 High School Football Recruits | 2026
(247Sports rankings | July 27, 2025)
| RANK | NAME | POS | HT | WT | HOMETOWN | SCHOOL | HARD COMMIT |
| 1 | Faizon Brandon | QB | 6-3 | 197 | Greensboro | Grimsley HS | Tennessee 8/3/24 |
| 2 | Rodney Dunham | EDGE | 6-4 | 227 | Charlotte | Myers Park HS | Notre Dame 4/10/2025 |
| 3 | Ekene Ogboko | IOL | 6-6 | 280 | Garner | South Garner HS | Georgia 6/18/2025 |
| 4 | Kendre Harrison | TE | 6-7 | 243 | Reidsville | Reidsville HS | Oregon 11/30/2024 |
| 5 | Aiden Harris | DL | 6-3 | 240 | Matthews | Weddington HS | South Carolina 6/8/2025 |
| 6 | Leo Delaney | IOL | 6-6 | 280 | Charlotte | Providence Day | Clemson 6/3/2025 |
| 7 | Samari Matthews | CB | 6-0 | 180 | Cornelius | Hough HS | Texas 7/11/2025 |
| 8 | Noah Clark | DL | 6-3 | 318 | Durham | Jordan HS | South Carolina 7/2/2025 |
| 9 | Pierre “PJ” Dean | IOL | 6-5 | 305 | Clemmons | West Forsyth HS | Georgia 6/30/2025 |
| 10 | Camdin Portis | CB | 6-0 | 165 | Charlotte | Myers Park HS | Miami 10/27/2024 |
| 11 | Thomas Davis Jr. | LB | 6-2 | 205 | Matthews | Weddington HS | Notre Dame 11/12/2024 |
| 12 | Trashawn Ruffin | DL | 6-3 | 307 | Mount Olive | North Duplin HS | North Carolina 3/27/2024 |
| 13 | Keshawn Stancil | DL | 6-3 | 260 | Clayton | Clayton HS | Clemson 6/28/2025 |
| 14 | Elijah Littlejohn | EDGE | 6-2 | 205 | Charlotte | West Charlotte HS | Penn State 6/16/2025 |
| 15 | Ebenezer Ewetade | EDGE | 6-4 | 221 | Garner | South Garner HS | Notre Dame 4/5/2025 |
| 16 | Zavion Griffin-Hayes | EDGE | 6-6 | 235 | Rolesville | Rolesville HS | North Carolina 6/5/2025 |
| 17 | Gordon Sellars | WR | 6-2 | 180 | Charlotte | Providence Day | Clemson 4/18/2025 |
| 18 | Ben Boulware | DL | 6-5 | 305 | Winston-Salem | Oak Grove HS | |
| 19 | Damaad Lewis | DL | 6-4 | 245 | Charlotte | Myers Park HS | |
| 20 | Andrew Harris | LB | 6-2 | 235 | Matthews | Weddington HS | South Carolina 6/8/2025 |
| 21 | Jace McCallum | EDGE | 6-4 | 220 | Harrisburg | Hickory RIdge HS | Vanderbilt 6/11/2025 |
| 22 | Andrew Rogers | EDGE | 6-6 | 240 | Greensboro | Grimsley HS | |
| 23 | Manny Lewis | EDGE | 6-2 | 250 | Waxhaw | Marvin Ridge HS | Appalachian State 6/1/2025 |
| 24 | Terande Spencer | EDGE | 6-3 | 235 | Rockingham | Richmond Senior HS | East Carolina 6/14/2025 |
| 25 | Keysaun Eleazer | EDGE | 6-5 | 190 | Raleigh | Southeast Raleigh HS | Stanford 7/1/2025 |
| 26 | J.B. Shabazz | OT | 6-7 | 295 | Kernersville | East Forsyth HS | Tennessee 7/11/2025 |
| 27 | D’Various Surratt | S | 6-0 | 185 | Shelby | Crest HS | NC State 7/1/2025 |
| 28 | Nick Reddish | S | 5-11 | 185 | Charlotte | Independence HS | Notre Dame 7/11/2025 |
| 29 | William “Tex” Vaughn | TE | 6-4 | 231 | Kings Mountain | Kings Mountain HS | Boston College 5/24/2025 |
| 30 | Kosci Barnes | CB | 6-3 | 190 | Greensboro | Grimsley HS | South Carolina 7/26/2025 |
| 31 | Lyrik Pettis | S | 6-1 | 175 | Shelby | Crest HS | Duke 7/1/2025 |
| 32 | Tyran Evans | WR | 6-3 | 185 | Charlotte | Hough HS | Miami 6/25/2025 |
| 33 | D.J. Howerton | TE | 6-4 | 220 | Greensboro | Grimsley HS | Rutgers 6/3/2025 |
| 34 | Grant Lawless | QB | 6-3 | 190 | Denver | East Lincoln HS | Wake Forest 6/5/2025 |
| 35 | Tyrell Simpson | OT | 6-7 | 310 | Leland | North Brunswick HS | Virginia Tech 6/23/2025 |
| 36 | Jayden Griffin-Haynes | WR | 6-3 | 200 | Rolesville | Rolesville HS | North Carolina 6/5/2025 |
| 37 | Donovan Johnson | DL | 6-4 | 325 | Fayetteville | Pine Forest HS | Rutgers 3/11/2025 |
| 38 | Brody Keefe | WR | 6-3 | 185 | Charlotte | Myers Park HS | Duke 6/10/2025 |
| 39 | Gavin Waddell | WR | 6-1 | 175 | Rolesville | Rolesville HS | Louisville 4/3/2025 |
| 40 | Marcus Monroe | ATH | 6-4 | 220 | Raleigh | North Raleigh Christian | |
| 41 | Jackson Debe | QB | 6-3 | 185 | Charlotte | Providence HS | |
| 42 | Aiden Smalls | ATH | 6-1 | 175 | Raleigh | Clayton HS | NC State 7/8/2025 |
| 43 | Ja’Vaughn Hargett | OT | 6-5 | 260 | Durham | Southern HS | East Carolina 6/21/2025 |
| 44 | Jaire Richburg | WR | 6-3 | 180 | Kernersville | East Forsyth HS | NC State 6/26/2025 |
| 45 | Rai’shawn Elmore | WR | 6-2 | 185 | Indian Trail | Porter Ridge HS | East Carolina 6/21/2025 |
| 46 | Kamdon Gillespie | EDGE | 6-2 | 230 | Mooresville | Mooresville HS | Virginia Tech 6/14/2025 |
| 47 | KD Cotton | ATH | 5-10 | 175 | Charlotte | West Charlotte | Duke 6/26/2025 |
| 48 | Braylon Peebles | CB | 5-10 | 175 | Raleigh | Cardinal Gibbons HS | |
| 49 | Jayson Franklin | RB | 5-11 | 205 | Fayetteville | Seventy First HS | South Florida 7/4/2025 |
| 50 | Jamal Rule | RB | 6-0 | 205 | Charlotte | Charlotte Christian | Nebraska 6/23/2025 |
📌 More 2026 Recruiting Coverage:
- 🔁 NC High School Commitment Tracker – Where top NC prospects are committing (in-state & out-of-state)
- 🎯 NC College Commitment Tracker – Who’s heading to North Carolina college programs (from NC and beyond)
