2026 Coastal Plains Quarterbacks to Watch

After writing over 25 quarterback scouting reports for signal-callers across many of the major areas of the state, we've finally reached the Coast. From Fayetteville to the Outer Banks, the eastern part of North Carolina is criminally under-recruited, and there's some dynamic passers in that part of the state. Here are a few 2026 quarterbacks from the easternmost region of the state to watch.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2026 Scouting Reports: Coastal Plains Quarterbacks</h2>    Shepherd is poised and calm in the pocket, and he doesn't need top move his feet often when scanning the field. That allows him to uncork big throws without much extra movement in his lower body. He is a bit of an "arm" passer and could improve his hip rotation and lower body mechanics in his throwing motion. That being said, he has a big arm for his size. His numbers as a sophomore at Rose took a step back from his nearly 3000 passing yards as a freshman at Riverside Martin, but as he continues to master the offense, he could be in for a huge junior season.     Davis is -- above all else -- a playmaker. One of the most electric runners from the quarterback position in the state, he's a homerun threat every time he touches the ball. He's continuing to develop as a passer, but does a great job of keeping his eyes downfield and picking out the open receiver. He doesn't throw a huge variety of routes, but the throws he does make are accurate and there's little question about his arm strength. He throws a really accurate deep ball and has the talent to develop into a really good college quarterback.     Smith is electric in the open field but still looks to throw before he looks to run. He's accurate, but also wasn't asked to throw that often as a sophomore, attempting only 102 passes in 11 games. Still, he was productive, throwing for over 1000 yards and adding another 700 on the ground. He does a good job of squaring his shoulders and getting into a proper throwing position when moving, and displays the arm strength to get the ball down the field on deep balls and in between defenders across the middle.     Payne has great size and a great arm at the quarterback position. His speed isn't great, but he navigates the pocket well and can get outside the tackles to throw on the run when needed or asked. He throws a great ball, especially outside the numbers, and can make throws that other high school quarterbacks struggle to complete. He doesn't have much varsity experience, so we'll be watching closely during his junior year.

After writing over 25 quarterback scouting reports for signal-callers across many of the major areas of the state, we've finally reached the Coast. From Fayetteville to the Outer Banks, the eastern part of North Carolina is criminally under-recruited, and there's some dynamic passers in that part of the state. Here are a few 2026 quarterbacks from the easternmost region of the state to watch.