RALEIGH – The Weddington Warriors dominated in a 56-21 win over the Hoggard Vikings to win their fourth NCHSAA Football State Championship and first as a 4A school at Carter-Finley Stadium on the North Carolina State University campus on Saturday.
Weddington faced an early setback when Hoggard’s Trey Nixon intercepted a pass at the 41-yard line and Hudson Wilharm connected on a 4-yard pass to Charlie Kilbourne in the end zone a few plays later to give the East Champs a 7-0 lead. But that was the only setback of the night for the Warriors as they rattled off 42 unanswered points on the way to the title.
In the second quarter, Weddington put together a 12-play, 92-yard drive, capped off with a Nick Diamond 12-yard touchdown run. The Tyler Budge-Keenan Jackson duo struck for the second time with 45 seconds left in the half as Budge launched a 21-yard pass to Jackson in the deep corner of the end zone, giving Weddington a 28-7 lead heading into halftime.
In the first minute of the third quarter, Weddington’s Aiden Harris leaped over three of Hoggard’s blockers to block a punt, setting the stage for a scoop-and-score touchdown by TJ Davis. After recovering a fumble from Hoggard on the ensuing possession, Weddington propelled to a 42-7 lead after Diamond rushed for a 47-yard touchdown.
Hoggard countered with a smart play-action-run from Wilharm to break the scoring drought but still trailed 42-14.
Brady Ritter zoomed past Hoggard’s defense for an 11-yard rushing touchdown to increase their lead to 49-14 and just three minutes later, Jackson raced downfield so quickly that he left his shoe behind, sprinting 22 yards to set Budge up for a 1-yard touchdown run. Jackson’s stellar performance, amassing 136 receiving yards and three total touchdowns, earned him the title of Most Valued Player in the game.
Weddington finished the season with a 14-2 record. This was Weddington’s 5th appearance in the state finals, being runner-up in 2014, and winning the championship in 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2023.
Hoggard finished the season with a 14-2 record. This was Hoggard’s second appearance in the state finals, winning the championship in 2007.
The NCHSAA is committed to promoting good sportsmanship and has partnered with the NC Farm Bureau to recognize two athletes from each State Championship event with the NC Farm Bureau Sportsmanship Awards. The Sportsmanship Award winners for the 2023 4A Football State Championship Match were Graham Mills from Weddington and Charlie Kilbourne from Hoggard.
In tandem with the Carolina Panthers, the NCHSAA is proud to present Offensive and Defensive Most Valued Player awards to two players from each team. From Weddington, Tyler Budge won Offensive MVP, and Aiden Harris won Defensive MVP. Budge had 243 passing yards along with three touchdowns, while Harris finished the game with four tackles, one interception, and a TFL (2-10 yards). From Hoggard, Wilharm won Offensive MVP, and Kamar Fulton won Defensive MVP. Wilharm finished the game with 195 passing yards, 59 rushing yards, and all three of Hoggard’s touchdowns, while Fulton finished the game with 13 tackles.
Image courtesy of Game of Inches – HS
