Jonathan Stokes has been a staple on Randleman’s offensive line. (Randolph Record)
RANDLEMAN – Jonathan Stokes of Randleman is on the North Carolina roster for the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas.
It’s the offensive lineman’s last scheduled football stop before enrolling at East Carolina.
The Shrine Bowl pits top seniors from North Carolina against their counterparts from South Carolina. The game is slated for Saturday afternoon at Spartanburg (S.C.) High School.
Players and staff members reported to Spartanburg on Sunday to begin a week of practices and other activities. Stokes is one of eight offensive linemen selected for the North Carolian squad.
Earlier this month, Stokes was one of 19 signees under new East Carolina coach Blake Harrell, who had been interim coach until late in the season. That came just a few days after Stokes attended the Navy-East Carolina game to conclude the Pirates’ regular season.
“Big body, a big explosive kid that can certainly move bodies, move guys around and do some things there,” Harrell said of Stokes.
Stokes is listed at 6-foot-4 and 285 pounds. He has indicated that he’ll be a January enrollee at East Carolina, where he can participate in team activities and practices during the spring semester.
“He has played center, he can play guard, probably play tackle if we need him to,” Harrell said.
Randleman’s season ended in the second round of the Class 2A state playoffs. The Tigers had a 9-3 record.
Scotland coach Richard Bailey is the North Carolina team’s head coach for the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas.
The makeup of the North Carolina roster was in question in some areas going into last week because of players still on teams participating in the state playoffs. The results of regional finals made a few players available for the Shrine Bowl. For instance, defending Class 4A champion Weddington and defending Class 3A champion Hickory both lost, and they each had two Shrine Bowl selections.
Normally, the Shrine Bowl is contested a week after state finals. But because the North Carolina High School Athletic Association pushed back the start of the state playoffs by one week in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, the new dates are overlapping with the Shrine Bowl.
State championships
Corvian Community has reached the Class 1A state championship game a few weeks after toppling then-unbeaten Eastern Randolph in the third round.
Corvian Community meets Tarboro in the final at 3 p.m. Saturday at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh. That comes after the 11 a.m. Class 3A title game between Fayetteville Seventy-First and West Charlotte.
The Class 4A final between Greensboro Grimsley and Rolesville is set for 7 p.m. Friday at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill. The Class 2A final with Northeastern meeting Monroe is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Kenan Stadium.
