September gave us five weekends of college football and more highlights involving North Carolina schools than we can recount in one sitting.
But we sifted through our memories, stories, highlights and box scores the best we could and came up with these September Superlatives:
Best Team: Western Carolina
Coach Kerwin Bell said during summer conference media days he saw “championship DNA” in his squad. His Catamounts certainly have been on a championship mission during the first month, winning four straight in impressive fashion. WCU sits in prime position entering October to challenge for the SoCon title.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: North Carolina
- FCS: North Carolina Central
- D2: Lenoir-Rhyne
- D3: Brevard
- We also considered: Duke … Barton … Johnson C. Smith … Mars Hill
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Best Game: North Carolina Central 49, Campbell 48 (OT)
The Eagles trailed 35-14 in the second quarter on their home field but roared back to force overtime. Quarterback Davius Richard put the team on his back, scoring four rushing touchdowns and throwing for another score (breaking the school career rushing record in the process). Both teams scored TDs in overtime. NC Central made its PAT (Adrian Olivo). The Eagles blocked Campbell’s PAT attempt. The game made ESPN Sports Central highlights – and ours.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: North Carolina 40, Appalachian State 34 (2 OT)
- FCS: Elon 14, William & Mary 6
- D2: Fayetteville State 20, Lincoln (Pa.) 17
- D3: Brevard 37, Maryvale 35 (3 OT)
- We also considered Duke 28, Clemson 7 … Lenoir-Rhyne 62, Erskine 0 … Wake Forest 27, Old Dominion 24 … Western Carolina 77, Charleston Southern 21 … Appalachian State 41, UL Monroe 40 … UNC Pembroke 19, Fayetteville State 17 … Mars Hill 16, Barton 14 … Notre Dame 21, Duke 14.
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Biggest Upset: Elon 14, William & Mary 6
The Tribe came to Rhodes Stadium with a No. 4 national ranking in one FCS poll and a No. 5 ranking in another – and one of the top defenses in all of football. But it was Elon playing elite defense, holding William & Mary out of the end zone and stuffing the Tribe’s last drive short of a first down inside the red zone.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Duke 28, Clemson 7
- FCS: Western Carolina 30, Samford 7
- D2: Livingstone 31, Bowie State 18
- D3: Brevard 37, Maryvale 35 (3 OT)
- We also considered: Barton 33, Davidson 31
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Best Coach: Mike Elko (Duke)
The second-year chief of the Blue Devils program has already proven that last year’s nine-win season was no fluke or one-off. There is a reason that Elko’s name is already being mentioned for openings at places like Michigan State and Northwestern. He can flat out coach, win the locker room and get the most out of his lineup. He will be tested in October, though, especially if his star quarterback takes awhile to return from injury.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Mack Brown (North Carolina)
- FCS: Kerwin Bell (Western Carolina)
- D2: Mike Jacobs (Lenoir-Rhyne)
- D3: Bill Khayat (Brevard)
- We also considered: Chip Hester (Barton) … Trei Oliver (NC Central) … Tony Trisciani (Elon) … Maurice Flowers (Johnson C. Smith) … Tim Clifton (Mars Hill)
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Best Quarterback: Cole Gonzales (Western Carolina)
One of the big reasons for WCU’s surge up the national rankings and into the SoCon title talk after being picked fifth in the league in the preseason: their signal caller. Gonzales has thrown for 1,256 yards and 11 touchdowns in five games, against only two interceptions. He had a five TD game against Charleston Southern.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Joey Aguilar (Appalachian State)
- FCS: Hajj-Malik Williams (Campbell)
- D2: Preston Brown (Catawba)
- D3: Ethan Beamish (Brevard)
- We also considered: Davius Richard (North Carolina Central) … Drake Maye (North Carolina) … Riley Leonard (Duke).
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Best Running Back: Jordan Terrell (Barton)
Even with one sluggish game (under 50 yards against Mars Hill), Terrell still ranks second in all of Division II in rushing yards. A few weeks ago, Terrell had the highest yards-per-game average across all divisions of NCAA play. He leads all of North Carolina with 776 rushing yards in five games (155.2 yards per game).
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Nate Noel (Appalachian State)
- FCS: Desmond Reid (Western Carolina)
- D2: Dwayne McGee (Lenoir-Rhyne)
- D3: Chancellor Lee-Parker (Brevard)
- We also considered: Jalen Hampton (Elon) … Omarion Hampton (North Carolina) … Mari Adams (Davidson) … Jordan Waters (Duke).
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Best Wide Receiver: Bo Pryor (Catawba)
Known more for his kick-return skills in 2022, Pryor has emerged as a top-flight pass-catcher this season. He leads the state (all divisions) in receiving yards with 496, receiving yards-per-game with 99.2 and receiving touchdowns with seven.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Jahmal Banks (Wake Forest)
- FCS: Jalen Kelsey (Campbell)
- D2: Trey Dixon (UNC Pembroke)
- D3: Zackary Orr (Brevard)
- We also considered: Malik Laurent (Mars Hill) … Censere Lee (Western Carolina) … Jordan Moore (Duke) … JJ Jones (North Carolina) … RJ Mobley (Winston-Salem State) … Jordan Mitchell (Catawba)
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Best All-Purpose: VJ Wilkins (Campbell)
The freshman has already been named the CAA’s Rookie of the Week twice. He has 269 receiving yards and another 226 in return yardage. His 10-catch, 115-yard, one-touchdown performance against Elon helped keep the Camels in contention until the end.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Riley Leonard (Duke)
- FCS: Davius Richard (NC Central)
- D2: DeAree Rogers (Lenoir-Rhyne)
- D3: Keyshaun Pete (Methodist)
- We also considered: Drake Maye (North Carolina) … Jaquan Lynch (Barton) … Kameron Johnson (Barton) … Desmond Reid (Western Carolina) … Narii Gaither (Gardner-Webb) … Jalen Hampton (Elon)
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Best Defensive Player: Payton Wilson (NC State)
It’s hard to ignore Wilson’s September resume: He’s averaging 11.2 tackles per game and has double-digit tackle numbers in four of the Wolfpack’s five contests. He disrupts in a number of ways: 4.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, four quarterback hurries, three pass breakups, one interception and one fumble recovery. On Wednesday, Wilson was named the Butkus National Linebacker of the Month.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Kaimon Rucker (North Carolina)
- FCS: BJ Turner (NC A&T)
- D2: Marquise Fleming (Wingate)
- D3: Nick Iannone (Guilford)
- We also considered: Jon Ross Maye (Lenoir-Rhyne) … Andre Jefferson (Lenoir-Rhyne) … Ty French (Gardner-Webb) … Benari Black (Johnson C. Smith) … Camar Kyle (Winston-Salem State) … Jaden Echols (Livingstone) … Eyabi Okie-Anoma (Charlotte) … Ronechie Carter (NC Wesleyan)
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Best Placekicker: Michael Hughes (Appalachian State)
He saved his best play for the last play of the month for the Mountaineers: booting a 54-yard game-winning field goal to beat Louisiana-Monroe on the road. Hughes has accounted for 50 points thus far, making 10 field goals and 20 extra points. He’s tied for 10th in the FBS in total points scored.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Matthew Dennis (Wake Forest)
- FCS: Richard McCollum (Western Carolina)
- D2: Jacob Meneses (Fayetteville State)
- D3: Hugo Taylor (Brevard)
- We also considered: Adrian Olivo (NC Central) … Ty Woods (UNC Pembroke) … Bear Huggins (Barton) … Alejandro Morillon-Garcia (Johnson C. Smith)
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Best Punter: Grant Gonya (Charlotte)
The senior has the top punting average in the state, 46.1 yards on 22 kicks. He became Charlotte’s first American Athletic Conference player of the week after a stellar game against Florida. For the season, he’s boomed six punts of 50-plus yards, including a 60-yarder.
Honorable Mention
- FBS: Caden Noonkester (NC State)
- FCS: Kyle Romenick (Elon)
- D2: Bear Huggins (Barton)
- D3: Burke Nettles (Guilford)
- We also considered: Caden Noonkester (NC State) … Juan Velarde (NC Central)
