8A Midseason Check-In: What Do We Know So Far?

As some teams enter conference play and others finish up the non-conference, a lot has changed from the preseason, but not everything. Here, I'm looking back at our preseason 8A All-State Team and predictions to see what we've gotten right and what we've gotten wrong. Plus, I'm looking ahead to conference play, giving fans an idea of who they should pay attention to down the stretch.   Here's our 8A Midseason Check-In.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">8A Midseason Check-In</h2>   Rather than using MaxPreps' rankings or other preseason rankings, I'm going to use my own, as outlined in my <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/08/prep-redzone-8a-preseason-all-state-team/">Preseason 8A All-State Team</a> piece.   *Note: When I wrote that piece, I somehow included a very good 7A team in the 8A rankings. I'm still not sure why I did that, but I left it for transparency's sake*   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Stock Up</h3>   Hough Huskies: I listed Hough as the fifth-best team in 8A to start the season, and knew we'd find out early if that ranking was justified. The Huskies are 4-0 against four strong teams, two from out of state. The Huskies have shown the rare ability to win different types of games, but have relied mainly on the dual-threat abilities of [player_tooltip player_id='254550' first='Ethan' last='Royal'] and a strong defense.   Linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='950969' first='Ryan' last='Peterson'] has always been a high-upside player in our eyes, but he's played closer to that upside than we expected. [player_tooltip player_id='974827' first='LJ' last='Porter'] has combined to give the Huskies one of the best linebacker duos in the state.   Even more, the established parts of the Hough offense haven't really gotten going yet. [player_tooltip player_id='945238' first='Tyran' last='Evans'] only had nine catches in his first three games, but he's still that big-play threat. They've also won without their traditionally strong running game. That should get going as the Huskies get into conference play. The computers love the Huskies, suggesting a high seeding come playoff time.   Defenses: Mallard Creek's defense, aside from a road game at nationally-ranked Grayson, has been tremendous. The same could be said for Millbrook and Hoggard. Millbrook's opening win against Garner looks even better now, and the Wildcats have done it without absurd sack production from [player_tooltip player_id='1553113' first='Rashad' last='Streets'], who is facing plenty of double-teams and contributing more as a run defender. [player_tooltip player_id='651173' first='Quinton' last='Cypher'] has flown around the field, while edge [player_tooltip player_id='1782184' first='Chase' last='Sizer'] is showing plenty of upside.   Mallard Creek was supposed to be a promising young team. Instead, the Mavericks are a flat-out good team. Veterans like two-way player [player_tooltip player_id='892288' first='Perry' last='Justice'] have led the charge, and the younger players have stepped up.   C.E. Jordan has gotten in on the fun, led by [player_tooltip player_id='321266' first='Noah' last='Clark'] on the interior of the defense and [player_tooltip player_id='1607844' first='Xavier' last='Perkins'] off the edge. Some 2027s like [player_tooltip player_id='1607793' first='Evan' last='Harewood'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1667014' first='Jaleel' last='Griffin'] are contributing as well, giving the Falcons strong second and third levels.   In the last few years, we've seen a lot of the best teams rely on scoring a bunch of points. This year, we're seeing more defensive prowess at the top.   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Things To Watch</h3>   How good is Enloe? The Enloe Eagles entered the season confident, but an opening-week loss to Southeast Raleigh quieted some of the outside excitement. Since then, the Eagles have put together two double-digit wins.   They'll be tested against a talented Broughton team on Friday, but I stand by my early-season prediction that if Enloe could play well in the non-conference, I like their chances in conference play. This team can get to seven or eight wins this season, behind a strong running game led by [player_tooltip player_id='1680041' first='Ziyeir' last='Leach'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1658601' first='Chase' last='White']. Healthy again, [player_tooltip player_id='1646740' first='Leo' last='Gorga'] has been excellent, protecting the ball and showing rushing prowess near the goalline.   How has scheduling affected our perception? This is a question I've asked in a couple of articles here and out loud elsewhere. Given the new playoff seeding rules and the creation of new classes, teams took different approaches to non-conference scheduling. Some, like Hough and West Charlotte, created challenging schedules. The Lions scheduled two state champions and a South Carolina 4A quarterfinalist in the non-conference, going 2-2 but proving they'll be back in the thick of it at the end of the season.   In fact, [player_tooltip player_id='1321007' first='Jamouri' last='Nichols'] took a step forward, and the West Charlotte offense is humming, even against some of the top defenses in the state.   Elsewhere, Rolesville scheduled Mallard Creek and Providence Day, losing two out of the gate before getting in a groove against Richmond and looking more like the team I'd ranked first in the class.   Other teams eased into the season, playing teams from lower classifications and cruising to victory while working out any growing pains in the process.   It means we could have some .500 or worse teams fly through conference play and some undefeated teams struggle. However, it's not obvious which teams will fall into either category.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Top 10 8A Teams</h2>   There are a few changes to the top 10 as I've reassessed my preseason rankings. Here's my current top 10 as we approach the midway point of the season.   1. Hough   2. West Charlotte   3. Mallard Creek   4. Millbrook   5. Myers Park   6. Rolesville   7. Hoggard   8. C.E. Jordan   9. West Forsyth   10. Leesville Road   We'll have in-depth coverage of the 8A classification this season. To cover the entire state, we need your help. Send me stats, film, and updates on Twitter (<a href="https://x.com/whelms21">@whelms21</a>).

As some teams enter conference play and others finish up the non-conference, a lot has changed from the preseason, but not everything. Here, I'm looking back at our preseason 8A All-State Team and predictions to see what we've gotten right and what we've gotten wrong. Plus, I'm looking ahead to conference play, giving fans an idea of who they should pay attention to down the stretch.