Keenan Jackson makes most of Weddington season with Class 4-A title

Warriors down Hoggard 56-21 to win their fourth state championship in the last eight years.

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA – Keenan Jackson was in a hurry during the offseason to connect with his new Weddington teammates.

Those connections carried all the way through to a Class 4-A state championship,

Jackson, who’ll play next season for the University of North Carolina, scored on two catches and a rushing play as part of an impactful performance as the Warriors trounced Wilmington Hoggard 56-21 in the title game Saturday night at Carter-Finley Stadium.

Jackson transferred from Waxhaw Cuthbertson and he was anxious to bond with quarterback Tyler Budge.

“We knew we had a short clock and we had a big goal in mind,” Jackson said of his one-year stopover at Weddington. “We worked through all the wrinkles, built great relationships.”

He turned in his share of highlights on the final night of the season and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Class 4-A game. Jackson remembered what he was told leading into the weekend.

“Big time players make big time plays in big time games,” he said.

Weddington (14-2) won its fourth title in eight years. though this is the first in Class 4-A. Hoggard (14-2), making its second appearance in a final, lost for the first time since the season opener.

The Warriors took turns registering special moments.

“They put on a show tonight,” coach Andy Capone said of his players. “I’m just blessed to be a part of it.”

A running clock was in place after the margin reached 42 points with 2:23 left in the third quarter.

While it didn’t start smoothly for the Warriors, they strung together 42 consecutive points.

Nick Diamond rushed for 105 yards and two touchdowns – one covering 47 yards – on nine carries, Budge threw for two TDs and 243 yards and Jackson rolled up 136 receiving yards.

Hoggard had just 232 yards of total offense compared to Weddington’s 453. Quarterback Hudson Wilharm of the Vikings threw for two touchdowns and ran for another on a 65-yard burst.

Hoggard had the first set of positive moments. The Vikings, who were supported by a large turnout of fans, scored one play after Trey Nixon’s interception return to the Weddington 4-yard line. Wilharm threw to Charlie Kilbourne for the points slightly more than two minutes into the game.

“You can’t let that bother you,” Budge said.

Capone revealed after the game that Budge had been coping with a shoulder sprain sustained in the second round of the six-round state playoffs. As a result, Budge will skip next weekend’s Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas.

But he achieved plenty this year. That includes an on-field bonding with Jackson.

“I kind of assume he’s coming down with it,” Budge said.

That was the case late in the first half. Weddington, without a timeout, moved 49 yards in 31 seconds. That series concluded with Jackson making a difficult catch under good coverage near the side of the end zone for a 21-yard touchdown.

Trailing 14-7, Hoggard threatened midway through the second quarter, but Wilharm’s tipped pass was picked off by Aiden Harris.

“Probably shouldn’t have thrown that ball,” Wilharm said. “Great play by them.”

Harris wasn’t finished. He blocked a Hoggard punt less than a minute into the second half, with T.J. Davis recovering in the end zone for a touchdown. That pushed the margin to 35-7.

“Not the way we drew it up,” Hoggard coach Craig Underwood said.

It wasn’t totally without glitches for Weddington, but the Warriors made the most of most situations. Late in the third quarter, Anthony Barrino caught a short pass from Budge and turned it into about a 50-yard game despite running most of that distance with just one shoe.

It all rounded into form for the Warriors, who finished 2023 in style. It was their seventh victory by 35 or more points.