A pair of Cleveland High School rising football seniors announced their college commitment decisions over the Fourth of July weekend.
Defensive back Ronalon Renwick has committed to Air Force, while quarterback Jackson Byrd pledged for East Tennessee State. Both players posted their commitments on Twitter/X.
Renwick (6-3, 180) from Clayton reported offers from all three service academies: Air Force, Navy and Army. Air Force plays football at the FBS level and competes in the Mountain West Conference.
Renwick also drew interest from West Virginia, and his performance at a recent WVU recruiting camp impressed Mountaineers coaches – especially his speed. Renwick, who was featured in a 247Sports story following the camp, has run the 40-yard dash in the neighborhood of 4.5 seconds.
Byrd quarterbacked the Rams to their best season in school history a year ago (13-1) and was voted conference offensive player of the year. He has thrown for 76 touchdowns in his varsity career, including six in a third-round playoff victory a year ago over New Bern. He also had rushed for 26 TDs.
The dual-threat quarterback (6-0, 190) reported offers from in-state schools Gardner-Webb, North Carolina A&T, Johnson C. Smith and Lenoir-Rhyne, and multiple out-of-state colleges.
East Tennessee State, which competes in the FCS Southern Conference, is now coached by Tre Lamb, who guided Gardner-Webb to the FCS playoffs the past two seasons before taking the ETSU job in December.
Both Renwick and Byrd have solid academic credentials to go with their outstanding work on the football field. The two players both report 4.1 GPAs.
Cleveland finished ninth in the final MaxPreps statewide rankings a year ago. The Rams are set to open the 2024 season at home on Aug. 23 against Hoggard. Cleveland averaged 43.1 points per game a year ago and outscored foes by an average of nearly 30 ppg.
North Carolina Class of 2025 Verbal Commitments
(Sources: Twitter/X, 247Sports, On3, Rivals, HighSchoolOT)
| NAME | POS | NC HOMETOWN | SCHOOL | COMMITTED |
| Ronalon Renwick | S | Clayton | Cleveland HS | Air Force |
| Max Guest | RB | Asheville | Reynolds HS | Appalachian State |
| Tai Buster | IOL | Kannapolis | AL Brown HS | Auburn |
| Jadyn Farmer | DL | Matthews | Butler HS | Charlotte |
| Nare Means | WR/ATH | Cary | Panther Creek HS | Charlotte |
| Fonzy Smith | WR | Fayetteville | Trinity Christian | Charlotte |
| Isaiah Campbell | DL | Durham | Southern HS | Clemson |
| Kareem Williams | DB | Asheville | Asheville HS | Coastal Carolina |
| Kavon Simmons | QB | Wake Forest | Wake Forest HS | Duke |
| Dan Mahan | QB | Burlington | Williams HS | Duke |
| Kaleb Morrow | TE | Apex | Apex HS | East Carolina |
| Jonathan Williams | WR | Havelock | Havelock HS | East Carolina |
| Kendric Davis | LB | Charlotte | Palisades HS | East Carolina |
| Jonathan Stokes | OL | Randleman | Randleman HS | East Carolina |
| Jackson Byrd | QB | Clayton | Cleveland HS | East Tennessee State |
| Ben Kirsch | WR | Charlotte | Ardrey Kell HS | Elon |
| Chaz Knox | DT | Charlotte | Mallard Creek HS | Elon |
| Nolan Irwin | OT | Concord | Northwest Cabarrus HS | Elon |
| Jaedon Alford | WR | Rolesville | Rolesville HS | Elon |
| Jamari Farmer | LB | Mooresville | Mooresville HS | Indiana |
| Cole Webster | DL | Waxhaw | Cuthbertson HS | James Madison |
| Brandon Albert | ATH | Davidson | Comm. School of Davidson | Lafayette |
| Zachary Lawrence | QB | Matthews | Butler HS | Massachusetts |
| Jerel Bolder | WR | Marshville | Forest Hills HS | NC State |
| Michael Gibbs | OL | Wilmington | Hoggard HS | NC State |
| Arrion Concepcion | WR | Charlotte | Julius Chambers HS | NC State |
| Gus Ritchey | ATH | Pittsboro | Northwood HS | NC State |
| Trey Blue | IOL | Cary | Cary HS | North Carolina |
| Bryce Baker | QB | Kernersville | East Forsyth HS | North Carolina |
| JaDon Blair | DB | Winston-Salem | Mount Tabor HS | Notre Dame |
| Trajen Odom | DL | Matthews | Weddington | Ohio State |
| Cameron Hill | OL | Jacksonville | Jacksonville HS | Old Dominion |
| Jackson Forrest | LB | Concord | Northwest Cabarrus HS | Old Dominion |
| Steven Murray | ATH | Gibsonville | Eastern Guilford HS | Rutgers |
| Isaiah Deloatch | LB | Durham | Hillside HS | Rutgers |
| Brady Stober | QB | Hickory | Hickory HS | Samford |
| Brian Rowe | WR | Concord | Robinson HS | South Carolina |
| Taeshawn Alston | EDGE | Henderson | Vance County HS | South Carolina |
| Charles House | DL | Huntersville | North Mecklenburg HS | Tennessee |
| Kordell Bartley | WR | Greensboro | Dudley HS | USF |
| Jayden Fry | EDGE | Rolesville | Rolesville HS | USF |
| Sherrod Henderson | DE | Rocky Point | Trask | Virginia Tech |
| Jamien Little | WR | Hickory | Hickory HS | Wake Forest |
| Braxton Winston | CB | Charlotte | Providence Day | Wake Forest |
If we are missing a name, please contact us (eric@ncfootballnews.com) or tag us on Twitter/X (@NCFootballNews)
