Behind the Scenes of the 2029 Rankings: Spring

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We're into June, but we're finishing our round of spring rankings updates by moving to the 2029 class. We've already updated the <a href="https://prepredzone.com/north-carolina/rankings/2027-rankings/">2027</a> and <a href="https://prepredzone.com/north-carolina/rankings/2028-rankings/">2028</a> class rankings, so it's time to move to an impressive group of 2029s. Here, we're going behind the scenes to show fans what went into curating the spring update of the <a href="https://prepredzone.com/north-carolina/rankings/2029-north-carolina-high-school-football-rankings/">2029 rankings</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Behind the Scenes of the Spring Rankings Update: 2029 Class</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We're always player-focused, so I'll never write a piece without including plenty of thoughts on the players themselves.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But we can still take a look at big-picture themes. Here, I've got numbers, stats, and thoughts to accompany our rankings update. I always welcome your thoughts and feedback as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Why Update the 2029 Rankings in February?</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Our general rule is that we don't rank players before seeing varsity film, but we have a few exceptions in this update, as tends to be the case in the late Spring. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>By this time, we've heard of several impressive players who are in line for extra playing time as sophomores. If we trust our contacts, we'll add them to the rankings, provided we've gotten to see them somewhere. We've also seen several impressive camp performances from guys without much film. While film is more important, camp standouts can make their way into the rankings, too.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Northside-Jacksonville's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1667876' first='Titus' last='Morris']</strong>, for example, won an <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/04/ccc-clayton-recap-award-winners/">MVP award</a> at the Carolinas Coaches' Combine in Clayton, putting himself on our radar.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Several guys without varsity film stood out at our <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/05/prep-redzone-exposure-camp-underclassman-accolades/">Prep Redzone Exposure Camp</a> last month. Receivers <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2192334' first='Coby' last='Wise-Smith']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2196432' first='David' last='Evans']</strong> each impressed, despite us having little to no information on them prior to the camp.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With three and a half months since our last update, we've also heard of talented players through coaching contacts or social media.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Eastern Guilford defensive back <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2155088' first='Samuel' last='Haith']</strong> has gotten rave reviews from multiple contacts, and he's a guy we feel comfortable ranking a bit early.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Of course, we've added players through our traditional methods, as well. I did positional deep dives on 11 counties across RDU and the Triad. Matt Morrow did countless more in Charlotte and Western North Carolina. Through film study, we added or moved several players.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wake Prep offensive lineman <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1993558' first='Gabriel' last='Hubbard']</strong> was really impressive on film, and he moved from our watchlist to 70th.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I also looked at some <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/02/3a-sleepers-in-2026/">under-the-radar teams</a> in each classification. That brought up some players, often at smaller schools. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2141080' first='Caleb' last='Thomas']</strong> at <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/03/1a-sleepers-in-2026/">Bear Grass Charter</a> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2124203' first='Kieran' last='Pooley']</strong> at <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/02/5a-sleepers-in-2026/">Seaforth</a> are two who come to mind.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While we tend to lean into <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/02/behind-the-scenes-of-the-2029-winter-rankings-update/">production over potential</a> in the updates during and immediately after the season. The spring is one of the few opportunities we get to favor potential over production. Of the seven players who rose at least 10 spots, six of them were moved based on their offseasons more than their football seasons.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Numbers</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Let's dive into some numbers around this rankings update. Last year, I started tracking stats for our rankings, giving some insight into each update. Take a look at some of the key numbers for the 2029 class:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/whelms21/status/2061479402823733280?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"x","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/whelms21/status/2061479402823733280?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Below, I'll list several accolades and the players who told the story of this update.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If you have other questions or want me to break down some of the numbers further, just reach out on Twitter (<a href="https://x.com/whelms21">@whelms21</a>).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">From Unranked to Top 65</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While we'll have full scouting reports on all 41 newly-ranked players, we want to give special recognition to the players who moved into the top half of the rankings. Here's every player who moved from unranked to the Top 65.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2210048' first='JT' last='Heath']</strong> | DB | West Charlotte</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2124734' first='Jackson' last='Williamson']</strong> | DL | Charlotte Catholic</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2220835' first='Camron' last='Coley']</strong> | Ath. | Richmond Senior</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2126984' first='Marsaun' last='Byrd-McCoy']</strong> | QB | Parkland</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1687749' first='Christopher' last='Strayhorn']</strong> | OL | Providence Day</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2160219' first='ZyMir' last='Nixon']</strong> | DL | Northside-Pinetown</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2126975' first='Josiah' last='Werts']</strong> | LB | East Forsyth</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1646355' first='Ashton' last='Gibbs']</strong> | DB | Providence Day</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Top Stock-Risers</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>You won't find as many massive jumps in the rankings in this class as we had in the <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/05/behind-the-scenes-of-the-2027-rankings-spring/">2027</a> and <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/05/behind-the-scenes-of-the-2028-rankings-spring/">2028</a> classes, simply because we only had 91 players ranked before this update. But, we still had seven players who rose at least 10 spots:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2003853' first='Kaiden' last='Okam']</strong> | DL | Mallard Creek</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2110732' first='Kameron' last='Campbell']</strong> | Edge | Hoke County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jayqurius Mcilwain</strong> | OL | Monroe</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2123450' first='Ahmad' last='Francis']</strong> | QB | East Forsyth</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1878002' first='Kevontre' last='Holder']</strong> | OL | Southeast Raleigh</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1151256' first='Levi' last='Morales']</strong> | QB | West Forsyth</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2005242' first='Jordan' last='Davis']</strong> | WR | Grimsley</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>There's plenty to come from Matt Morrow, Joshua Graham, and me on the 2029 rankings. Stay locked in with Prep Redzone for more insights, evaluations, and rankings updates. Want to share Prep Redzone with a friend? Promo code Helms30 will get them 30% off their first billing cycle for any subscription.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->