Two of the top 2027 edge rushers in North Carolina high school football have made their college commitments official. Both are going to out-of-state Power 4 programs.
Millbrook High’s Rashad Streets announced a commitment to Oregon – live during the Pat McAfee Show – in early April. Durham Jordan’s Xavier Perkins pledged to Virginia Tech on April 14, the first North Carolina recruit to commit to new Hokies coach James Franklin.
Rolesville wide receiver Anthony Roberts then became the second over the weekend, announcing his commitment to Virginia Tech on Saturday.
All three players have been heavily sought after by schools within and outside of North Carolina. All three have earned national rankings from outlets like 247Sports and Rivals.
Millbrook’s Rashad Streets lives in the opponents’ backfield
Streets (6-4, 230) ranks as the No. 4 player from North Carolina in the 247Sports Composite. Rivals ranks him the No. 63 overall prospect in the nation and the No. 9 edge rusher.
Streets logged more than 100 tackles as a junior and recorded 15 sacks and 39.5 tackles-for-loss, helping Millbrook advance to the 8A state title game. During his sophomore season, he recorded 26.5 sacks across 13 games.
Streets reported roughly 40 offers. He listed NC State, Ohio State, Alabama, South Carolina and Florida State among his other favorites.
Streets’ commitment marks the second year in a row Oregon coach Dan Lanning has plucked an elite prospect from North Carolina. Reidsville standout Kendre Harrison signed with the Ducks as part of its 2026 high school class.
“They were one of my first big offers and they stuck with me ever since,” Streets said following his commitment, as quoted by Ducks Wire. “They never steered me wrong. They always told me the truth. I never felt like they were trying to sell me something.”
One of the best days of @Rashad_Streets' life 🦆
The Millbrook High School 4-star committed to the Oregon Ducks live on The Pat McAfee Show, surrounded by his family, friends, coaches, and teachers.
More coverage of Streets' pledge on HighSchoolOT. pic.twitter.com/MqxWihVY3K — HighSchoolOT (@HighSchoolOT) April 3, 2026
Jordan’s Xavier Perkins: ‘1,000 percent’ committed to Hokies
Xavier Perkins has been on Virginia Tech’s radar since his freshman season, when Brent Pry was still the head coach. He caught James Franklin’s eye when the former Penn State head man took over in Blacksburg this winter.
“Coach Franklin does a good job of developing guys at my position, like Micah Parsons and Abdul Carter,” Perkins told 247Sports after his commitment. “He has an awesome coaching staff. The whole staff believes in what they can do for me, and I believe in what they can do for me.”
247Sports lists Perkins as the No. 11 player in North Carolina for 2027 and the No. 24 edge rusher nationally. He finished his junior season with nine tackles-for-loss, six sacks and 26 quarterback hurries. Jordan High’s only loss in 2025 came to Rashad Streets’ team – the Millbrook Wildcats – in the playoffs.
Perkins’ sophomore campaign featured 13 TFLs, 46 total tackles, six sacks and 21 QB hurries.
Perkins also won an 8A state championship in shot put during the 2025-26 indoor track and field season. Per HighSchoolOT, his winning attempt covered 53-8.5.
Perkins had roughly 18 D1 offers. He listed Miami, Duke and Louisville as his top four along with the Hokies. He told 247Sports that he almost committed to the Hurricanes after a visit to Coral Gables in early spring.
“Then I visited Virginia Tech … and I just got that right feeling with Virginia Tech,” he said. “I’m completely shut down. I’m 1,000 percent committed to Virginia Tech.”
Rolesville’s Anthony Roberts joins Hokies’ April recruiting surge
As with Perkins, a visit to Blacksburg helped seal Anthony Roberts’ commitment to James Franklin and the Hokies. The 6-1, 193-pound wideout became Virginia Tech’s sixth commit in April.
Franklin offered Roberts when he was still coach at Penn State, according to 247Sports. He visited Happy Valley twice.
Roberts, the No. 20 prospect in North Carolina according to 247Sports, held roughly 19 Division offers. He had in-state schools Duke, NC State and Wake Forest high on his list as well as Florida State, Rutgers and Virginia.
“I believe coach Franklin is building a program that will be back to beating the greats of college football,” Roberts told 247Sports. “And that he’s creating a brotherhood that will develop young guys not only into great football players but also great men.”
Roberts caught 35 passes for 656 yards and nine touchdowns in 2025. He had 914 receiving yards and 11 TDs as a sophomore. He’s also a combo guard on the Rolesville basketball team, averaging more than 15 points and five rebounds per game in 2025-26.
Recruiting board starting to take shape for North Carolina’s top 2027 prospects
247Sports lists 42 players in its “2027 Top Football Recruits in North Carolina” as of April 27, 2026. From that group, a dozen have announced college commitments, with Roberts being the most recent.
Cornerback Xavier Hasan (Raleigh | Cardinal Gibbons HS) is the highest ranked prospect from that list to commit. The No. 3 player has pledged to Notre Dame.
Millbrook linebacker Quinton Cyper, ranked No. 7, is committed to Ohio State. Rolesville running back Amir Brown (No. 17) had been committed to UNC but changed his mind and announced for Nebraska in late November.
Among in-state schools, Duke has landed the highest-ranked prospect from the 247Sports list – edge rusher King Kalama from Reagan High, No. 26 overall.
NC State received early commitments from Southeast Raleigh running back Christian Freeman (No. 32) and Cardinal Gibbons tight end Griffin Cockerham (No. 33). Wake Forest has two in-state commitments, Oak Grove offensive tackle Charlie Reece (No. 38) and Providence Day wide receiver Steele Fletcher (No. 41).
Notre Dame landed the very first high-profile 2027 commitment from our state. Long snapper Sean Kraft, ranked the No. 1 long snapper nationally by multiple outlets, announced his commitment to the Irish last summer. He’s the No. 42 overall player in North Carolina, per 247Sports.
With spring college football now in the rearview mirror – and with camp and visit season on deck – the list of top 2027 prospects from our state should grow, along with the number of players announcing college commitments. This is a talented class, though maybe not as deep as other neighboring states, but dozens of guys should get Power 4 and FBS opportunities.
Follow the latest North Carolina high school football recruiting on NC Football News:
- 2027 North Carolina high school commitment tracker: Where players from the Old North State are playing in college
- 2027 North Carolina college commitment tracker: Who’s coming to FBS and FCS schools in our state
- 2027 North Carolina player rankings: How national outlets view our state’s top prospects
