2026 Rankings: Catawba River Region Legacy

The Class of 2026 in the Catawba River Region was a special class, helping five of our local teams make it to the third round or better of the playoffs. Two of them hoisted state championship trophies in Orangeburg during the Weekend of Champions.   As we close the book on a memorable group, here's a look at 10 players who will not only be remembered for what they did during the 2025 season, but how they could serve as a model for the future of the program as well.   [player_tooltip player_id='1594865' first='Brysen' last='Ginn'] | LB | South Pointe   Ginn is instinctive and is as aggressive of a linebacker that you will see. We had a feeling that his future was bright after seeing him at the Carolinas Coaches Combine a few years ago. He attacks the line of scrimmage with quickness and takes great angles to the ball. He can jump the snap and overpower an opposing blocker to get into the backfield quickly to affect plays. Oftentimes, opposing quarterbacks are forced to step up into the pocket or try to scramble around, which is where Ginn's motor gets going and he doesn't stop until he gets there. He had 11.5 sacks in 2024.    [player_tooltip player_id='1394996' first='Damias' last='Seegars'] | ATH | Andrew Jackson   Seegars kept the Volunteers' offense on schedule with his power running style in 2025. He has good vision in the open field to be able to find the open grass and then get to where he needs to go as quickly as he can. Against Chesterfield in 2025, they used him on a hook and ladder and he showed a good burst of speed for a touchdown. And don't discount his ability to jump on the defensive side of the ball and make plays there, as he nabbed an interception against the Rams as well.    [player_tooltip player_id='1267211' first='Gray' last='Patterson'] | LB | Fort Mill   The UNC Charlotte signee was an impact player for the Yellow Jackets' defense, as they raced out to a 4-0 start to begin the 2025 season. He has a motor that is always running and he doesn't stop until he gets to the quarterback. He takes great angles to the ball and you can tell that he's a student of the game once he recognizes the route and can make a play on it. One of the most memorable plays from his senior season was when he jumped a quick route against Northwestern for a pick six.    [player_tooltip player_id='1819627' first='J'Zavien' last='Currence'] | ATH | South Pointe   The No. 1 player in our final Prep Redzone SC rankings for 2026 and the <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/12/2025-player-of-the-year-south-pointes-jzavien-currence/">2025 player of the year</a> capped off his senior season in dominating fashion, with a 35-14 win over <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/12/currence-brown-and-ol-power-south-pointe-to-4a-title/">South Florence in the state championship</a>. He was the do-everything weapon for the Stallions in 2025, whether it be at quarterback with 2782 yards passing and 1621 yards rushing, or on defense, where he had close to 80 total tackles on the season. The Stallions were on a mission to get to Orangeburg, and they faced a difficult non-region schedule to get there with games against North Carolina state champion Hough, West Charlotte and Northwestern. It was against the Trojans where the South Carolina signee made possibly the play of the year, getting it to his running back as he was going down for a potential sack, only to toss a game-winning touchdown.   [player_tooltip player_id='1267330' first='Jacorreun' last='Howze'] | ATH | Lewisville   You want another two-way impact player in the Catawba River Region? Let's head to Richburg to meet Howze. He was dynamic at receiver with his speed and ability to make plays out in the open field as he finished with over 500 yards receiving and over 600 yards rushing in 2025. He could line up from his safety spot and lock down his side of the field with excellent coverage as opposing offenses couldn't beat him deep. That ability to make plays both ways came up in the clutch as the Lions pulled off the upset of the year, <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/11/howze-lewisville-stun-defending-class-a-champ-abbeville/">defeating Abbeville on a 2-point conversion in the second round of the playoffs.</a>   [player_tooltip player_id='1394975' first='Joseph' last='Duey'] | LB | Fort Mill   Duey is another linebacker who is scrappy and is not afraid to take the fight to the opposing offense. He excelled in 2025 out in coverage in being able to read the quarterback's eyes and react to the ball when it was in the air, like he did against Rock Hill in 2025. You can tell he studies the opposing offense, because he can know within a few seconds of what they are trying to do, which shows high football IQ. He showed an ability to jump the snap count and get into the backfield, sometimes before the ball carrier could really get going and build momentum.     [player_tooltip player_id='618765' first='Katarius' last='Gill'] | DB | Rock Hill   Gill was a solid safety for the Bearcats. He could come up in run support and make tackles to limit the play to a short gain once he recognized the play. He patrols the middle of the field well and gets into his backpedal well once the ball is snapped. His most impactful game of the season can likely be pointed back to the Nation Ford game, where he forced two key turnovers as <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/10/turnovers-run-game-key-for-rock-hill-over-nation-ford/">the Bearcats pulled away from the Falcons back in October.</a>    [player_tooltip player_id='284136' first='Miles' last='Wilson'] | DL | South Pointe   Wilson may have been one of the more dominant defensive linemen we saw in the Catawba River Region in 2025. He finished with over 40 tackles on the season, and was tough to block on the inside. You couldn't run inside of him because of his ability to use his hands to get into the backfield and make plays on a consistent, play-by-play basis. It's why the Stallions pitched five shutouts defensively on their way to their first state title since 2021.    [player_tooltip player_id='1165128' first='RJ' last='Brown'] | ATH | South Pointe   Brown transferred from Lancaster over to the Stallions in 2025, and he made his presence felt immediately at the running back position with his speed and ability to make plays in the open field. He rushed for over 1200 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2025 and was an electric playmaker once with the ball in his hands. The way he would take a zone read handoff when he was with the Bruins was fun to watch.    [player_tooltip player_id='1267200' first='Tamarion' last='Watkins'] | LB | Northwestern   The 2025 Mr. Football Award winner in South Carolina and Texas A&M signee finished his senior season <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2025/12/means-northwestern-make-quick-work-of-irmo-5a-dii-title-game/">with a rout over Irmo</a>, helping capture back-to-back state championships for the first time in school history. Watkins was the leader at linebacker, as he couldn't be blocked. He finished with 58.5 total tackles on the season and played well in the box for his linebacker position. He had the length and range to move around and be disruptive to whatever the opposing offense threw their way. One example of this was in this year's state championship where he plucked the ball right out of the air for a pick six.

The Class of 2026 in the Catawba River Region was a special class, helping five of our local teams make it to the third round or better of the playoffs. Two of them hoisted state championship trophies in Orangeburg during the Weekend of Champions.