This was a big weekend for kickers. And for kick returners. Players who occupied these two vital positions headline our All-North Carolina College Football Week 13 Stat Champions list.
We didn’t have quite as many games this week, with the season already concluded for many of our D2 and all of our D3 and NAIA teams. But highlights still abounded on offense, defense and especially special teams.
NCCU Kicker Juan Velarde Sets School Record
North Carolina Central had a field day in its season finale, booting Delaware State 52-10. In the process, Juan Velarde kicked the longest field goal in Eagles’ program history, covering 53 yards.
The lengthy kick represents the second-longest made FG in our state this season, trailing Charlotte’s Stephen Rusnak by one yard. NCCU kept Velarde busy on Saturday. He also hit seven extra point tries without a miss, though he was not called on to punt in the game.
Charlotte’s Stephen Rusnak Named AAC Special Teams Player of the Week
Speaking of Rusnak, Charlotte picked up a big road win Saturday with help from the redshirt junior. Rusnak kicked four field goals on the day, including a 50-yarder, and also proved true on all three PATs. He has now hit three field goals of at least 50 yards this season, including his 54 yarder in a win over Gardner-Webb.
Rusnak finished with 15 kicker points Saturday, one point shy of the top mark by a North Carolina collegiate kicker this season.
Wingate’s Caleb Bonesteel, the kicker who recorded 16 points in a game earlier this month against Carson-Newman, added 11 more to his season ledger in a playoff loss to Virginia Union on Saturday. He made three field goals, including a 48-yarder right before the half, and a pair of extra points.
He DID Go All The Way
Wake Forest’s fleetfoot running back Demond Claiborne became the third player from the Old North State this season to record a 100-yard scoring play. Claiborne took a kickoff back the full distance of the field against Miami, at the time cutting the Hurricanes’ advantage to 17-14 in the first half.
Claiborne joins North Carolina A&T’s Aaron Harris (100-yard kickoff return) and Louisburg’s Tycorien Gist (100-yard interception return) for longest scoring plays of the 2024 season.
NC A&T had another lengthy kick return Saturday, getting a 97-yard TD return from Cortez Lane. Chris Culliver of North Carolina had a 95-yard kick-return touchdown at Boston College in what otherwise was a forgettable day for the Heels.
Week 13 Stat Champions | NC College Football
Team Scoring | Most Points
- 52 – North Carolina Central 52, Delaware State 10
- 47 – Western Carolina 47, Samford 42
- 40 – East Carolina 40, North Texas 28
Team Scoring | Fewest Points Allowed
- 10 – North Carolina Central 52, Delaware State
- 18 – Valparaiso 18, Davidson 17 (L)
- 20 – Appalachian State 34, James Madison 20
Most Passing Yards
- 411 – Jalen Ferguston (Lenoir-Rhyne): 22 of 40, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, longest completion 78 yards, in a 37-34 playoff win at West Alabama
- 408 – Taron Dickens (Western Carolina): 36 of 46, 3 TDs, 1 INT, longest completion of 48 yards, at Samford
- 396 – Deshawn Purdie (Charlotte): 16 of 30, 3 TDs, 1 INT, longest completion of 75 yards, at Florida Atlantic
Most Rushing Yards
- 128 – Rahjai Harris (East Carolina): 24 carries, 3 TDs, 5.3 yards per carry, longest rush of 39 yards, at North Texas
- 110 – Mason Sheron (Davidson): 15 carries, 0 TDs, 7.3 yards per carry, longest rush of 45 yards, at Valparaiso
- 108 – Ahmani Marshall (Appalachian State): 24 carries, 1 TD, 4.5 yards per carry, longest rush of 23 yards, vs. James Madison
Most Receiving Yards
- 205 – O’Mega Blake (Charlotte): 5 catches, 3 TDs, 41.0 yards per catch, longest reception of 75 yards, at Florida Atlantic
- 202 – Adonis McDaniel (Lenoir-Rhyne): 7 catches, 2 TDs, 28.9 yards per catch, longest reception of 78 yards, at West Alabama
- 188 – Eli Pancol (Duke): 5 catches, 3 TDs, 37.6 yards per catch, longest reception of 86 yards, vs. Virginia Tech
Most Total Tackles | 12+ Tackles
- 13 – Jalen Brooks (Campbell): 6 solos, 7 assists, 1.0 tackles-for-loss (1 negative yard), 1 fumble recovery, vs. Towson
- 13 – Omar Rogers (East Carolina): 5 solos, 8 assists, 1.5 tackles-for-loss (2 negative yards), at North Texas
Most Tackles-For-Loss | 3+
- 3.5 – Henry Daniel (North Carolina A&T): 17 negative yards vs Elon
- 3.0 – Kai Russell (Wingate): 10 negative yards vs. Virginia Union
- 2.5 – Kendy Charles (Duke): 11 negative yards vs. Virginia Tech
- 2.5 – Santana Hopper (Appalachian State): 9 negative yards vs. James Madison
Kicker Points | 10+
- 15 – Stephen Rusnak (Charlotte): 4 of 4 FGs, long field goal of 50 yards, 3 of 3 PATs, at Florida Atlantic
- 13 – Jake Brown (Lenoir-Rhyne): 3 of 3 FGs, long field goal of 38 yards, 4 of 4 PATs, at West Alabama
- 11 – Caleb Bonesteel (Wingate): 3 of 3 FGs, long field goal of 48 yards, 2 of 2 PATs, vs. Virginia Union
- 11 – Christian Lowery (Western Carolina): 2 of 2 FG, long field goal of 37 yards, 5 of 6 PATs, at Samford
- 11 – Connor Lytton (Campbell): 3 of 5 FGs, long field goal of 47 yards, 2 of 2 PATs, vs. Towson
Longest Offensive Scoring Plays | 60+ Yards
- 86 – Eli Pancol (Duke): 86-yard TD pass from Maalik Murphy, vs. Virginia Tech
- 78 – Adonis McDaniel (Lenoir-Rhyne): 78-yard TD pass from Jalen Ferguson, at West Alabama
- 77 – Eli Pancol (Duke): 77-yard TD pass from Maalik Murphy, vs. Virginia Tech
Longest Defensive Touchdowns
- 92 – Jordy Lowery (Western Carolina): 92-yard interception return TD, at Samford
- 63 – Eric Adams (North Carolina Central): 63-yard interception return TD, at Delaware State
- 37 – Isaiah Norris (North Carolina Central): 37-yard interception return TD, at Delaware State
Longest Special Teams Touchdowns
- 100 – Demond Claiborne (Wake Forest): 100-yard kickoff return, at Miami
- 97 – Cortez Lane (North Carolina A&T): 97-yard kickoff return, vs. Elon
- 95 – Chris Culliver (North Carolina): 95-yard kickoff return, at Boston College
Ties the longest play in program history 📚
Keep on running, @ClaiborneDemond 💨 https://t.co/bRjmDebXhs pic.twitter.com/xugLBTDfU5 — Wake Forest Football (@WakeFB) November 23, 2024
Longest Field Goal | 50+ Yards
- 53 – Juan Velarde (North Carolina Central): at Delaware State
- 50 – Stephen Rusnak (Charlotte): at Florida Atlantic
Team Rushing | 250+ Yards
- 255 – East Carolina: 57 carries, 3 TDs, 4.5 yards per carry, at North Texas
- 253 – NC State: 29 carries, 4 TDs, 8.7 yards per carry, at Georgia Tech
Team Passing | 300+ Yards
- 411 – Lenoir-Rhyne: 22 of 40, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, at West Alabama
- 408 – Western Carolina: 36 of 46, 3 TDs, 1 INT, at Samford
- 396 – Charlotte: 16 of 30, 3 TDs, 1 INT, at Florida Atlantic
Total Yards | 500+ Yards
- 553 – East Carolina: 255 rush, 298 pass, 81 plays, 6.8 yards per play, at North Texas
Rushing Defense | Less Than 100 Yards Allowed
- 56 – Elon: 28 carries, 1 TD, 2.0 yards per carry allowed, at North Carolina A&T
- 81 – Gardner-Webb: 33 carries, 3 TDs, 2.5 yards per carry allowed, at Western Illinois
Passing Defense | Less Than 100 Yards Allowed
- n/a
Total Defense | Less than 225 Yards Allowed
- n/a
Other Notable Players/Teams/Performances
- Duke’s defense recorded 14 tackles-for-loss, eight sacks and an interception in a 31-28 win over Virginia Tech
- Campbell’s Jalen Brooks tallied his fourth game with 10 or more tackles, finishing with 13 in the loss to Towson. The redshirt senior, a transfer from North Carolina, set the Campbell single-season record for tackles with 118. He surpassed Justice Galloway-Velasquez’ previous mark of 111 set during the 2019 campaign. Only three players in Campbell history have reached 100 tackles. The third was Jack Ryan (103) in 2017.
- Campbell’s Sincere Brown didn’t make our Stat Champions list for this week, but he has had an outstanding season. Brown finished with 12 touchdown receptions on the season, setting a new Camels record. He broke the school mark in Saturday’s game against Towson.
