Jace McCallum Jace McCallum 6'4" | 230 lbs | EDGE Mooresville | 2026 State NC has one of the fastest get-offs you’ll see on film. The 6’4”, 225-pound Vanderbilt commit from Hickory Ridge is a nightmare for offensive lines, consistently crashing the pocket with power and speed. Despite his team playing from behind for much of last season, McCallum still racked up 12 sacks, including a dominant 3-sack performance in the season opener. This year, expect him to come out just as hot, with a real chance to be near the top of the state in sack totals. He’s a true SEC-caliber athlete and one of the most disruptive defenders in North Carolina.

McCallum’s recruitment got off to a late start. The Group of Five offers began trickling in early last season before Duke and Virginia stepped in with offers in late October. Since our January rankings update though, he’s received dozens of major offers, setting official visits to five ACC schools. His 12 sacks are a testament to his pass-rushing upside and he took down some of the state’s best quarterbacks, often playing his best against the toughest competition.

Jace has been one of my favorite guys to cover over the last couple of years. Even though his team had a tough year last year, Jace showed his leadership traits and continuously went out and was the best player on the field for his defense. As a result of that and his impressive talents on the field, Jace has received over 20 offers to play college football from a wide range of Division 1 college football programs. Jace has an excellent first step as a pass-rusher, and tackles really have to get out quickly to respect that threat, which gives Jace a chance to work his counter move to come back inside when offensive linemen over-compensate for his speed. Jace’s recruitment continues to grow, and it will be fun to see ultimately where he decides to play going into his senior season.

Jace has long been one of my favorite players because he is relentless no matter what the score is or the situation for his team overall. Jace played for a team that had a tough season, but you would never tell watching his highlights or watching him live. Jace is an elite pass rusher who has a great first step off the edge. His motor always runs hot and he has some strong leadership traits as well. Jace has over 60 tackles and 14 sacks being the only threat defensively last season for his team. Players like that are special. With offers from Georgia Tech, Appalachian State, and Georgia State just in the new year so far, colleges think so too. Definitely a spot on this Junior Bowl team.

Jace did all he could to keep the Ragin Bulls in the game overall. He came up with a fumble recovery on the Chambers first offensive possession. Jace also recorded a sack and a couple of tackles for loss in the game. I think his presence forced Chambers to run a gameplan where they got the ball out fast a lot on a mix of screens in the passing game. That’s a testament to how dominate of a pass rusher Jace has become as a player. Jace was fast off the football at the snap and did a good job of slowing down the running game to his side.