Top Five 3A & 4A 🏈Down To Only 2 More Fridays

[TD-Friday-Night-Lights]

Pick your Top Five 3A & 4A listed in separate posts. Perhaps something will be added here if we all try.
Additionally, perhaps more people should start a thread for their team, conference, or any other relevant topic that comes to mind.
This is a list of all the conferences if it will help.
Conference list >>>Realignment Information - NCHSAA

 

[beamer24]

3A Shelby, Walkertown, Kinston, Mount Airy, East Rutherford
Honorable Mention WRH, Linconton, Eastern Randolph, East Surry

4A Reidsville, Brevard, Maiden, West Stokes, East Duplin
Honorable Mention Bandys, Hibriten, West Craven, Mount Pleasant, Pisgah

 

[NCFB73]

I would put Mount Pleasant in this list but for some reason 3 starters have left this week. They were looking at their best season in many years also. Hate to see this.

 

[beamer24]

I would put Mount Pleasant in this list but for some reason 3 starters have left this week. They were looking at their best season in many years also. Hate to see this.

I saw where a kid just left for Providence Day to reclass.

 

[NCFB73]

I saw where a kid just left for Providence Day to reclass.

Also their QB and another player went or are trying to go to Concord.

 

[Maiden Creek]

3a…Northeastern, Whiteville

4a…Salisbury, Burns

They’ll be in thick of it when playoffs start. 🫵

 

[BuckSweepSports910]

3A I would include James Kenan they return a solid group and their JV team was very good aswell.

 

[beamer24]

3a…Northeastern, Whiteville

4a…Salisbury, Burns

They’ll be in thick of it when playoffs start. 🫵

Forgot about Northeastern and Salisbury. I think Burns is going to struggle some just based on what some of there fans have said. Don't know much about Whiteville.

 

[Vik-Val 86]

I think Maiden n Salisbury would be a good matchup.

 

[amaidendevil]

3A Shelby, Walkertown, Kinston, Mount Airy, East Rutherford
Honorable Mention WRH, Linconton, Eastern Randolph, East Surry

4A Reidsville, Brevard, Maiden, West Stokes, East Duplin
Honorable Mention Bandys, Hibriten, West Craven, Mount Pleasant, Pisgah

Lincolnton is a sleeper bunch of athletes and fast just don't know if they will have to big guys up front on either side of the ball.

 

[beamer24]

I think Maiden n Salisbury would be a good matchup.

They've got history

 

[amaidendevil]

They've got history

Not the friendliest either

 

[Kingbluedevil]

Forgot about Northeastern and Salisbury. I think Burns is going to struggle some just based on what some of there fans have said. Don't know much about Whiteville.

Burns OC is now head coach at Randleman

 

[Tiger910]

3A Shelby, Walkertown, Kinston, Mount Airy, East Rutherford
Honorable Mention WRH, Linconton, Eastern Randolph, East Surry

4A Reidsville, Brevard, Maiden, West Stokes, East Duplin
Honorable Mention Bandys, Hibriten, West Craven, Mount Pleasant, Pisgah

3A - Have to include James Kenan

 

[TD-Friday-Night-Lights]

3A - Have to include James Kenan

Maybe I should have said list the top 10 3A & 4A listed in separate posts, with more being mentioned.

3A Shelby, Walkertown, Kinston, Mount Airy, East Rutherford
Honorable Mention WRH, Linconton, Eastern Randolph, East Surry

4A Reidsville, Brevard, Maiden, West Stokes, East Duplin
Honorable Mention Bandys, Hibriten, West Craven, Mount Pleasant, Pisgah

 

[Vik-Val 86]

I know this is a football site but just want bring out what I read about a rising 9th grader that will be playing basketball for Salisbury. That he had some dazzling dunks as an 8th grader. It was said that it best they seen in a long time. Looking forward to seeing this player coming up.

 

[Jamesporan]

Great

 

[tardog08]

WRH is tough to call for me right now, Coach Mot will be calling the offensive plays this year and he is a defensive guy. We did bring in a new Defensive Co-ordinator from James Kenan. We should know pretty quick if we are contenders or pretenders.

 

[Shelby Lion]

3A

West
1.Shelby
2.Shelby
3.Shelby
4.Shelby
5. Mt Airy and Maiden

East

1. Northeastern
2-5 who cares


4a

Reidsville IF they leave Neal at QB, if they move him to receiver the entire staff should be fired on the spot, he needs to touch the ball every single snap offensively bottom line.....

PS dont play 0 on defense its obvious hed rather stare into the stars than play a single snap on defense, keep him fresh and get him the ball 20 times a game somehow..... they dont do above they get beat again around round 4,,,, Yeah I said it and you all know its true, even Mule....

 

[GrizzlyDevil]

3A

West
1.Shelby
2.Shelby
3.Shelby
4.Shelby
5. Mt Airy and Maiden

East

1. Northeastern
2-5 who cares


4a

Reidsville IF they leave Neal at QB, if they move him to receiver the entire staff should be fired on the spot, he needs to touch the ball every single snap offensively bottom line.....

PS dont play 0 on defense its obvious hed rather stare into the stars than play a single snap on defense, keep him fresh and get him the ball 20 times a game somehow..... they dont do above they get beat again around round 4,,,, Yeah I said it and you all know its true, even Mule....

Maiden is 4A

 

[Shelby Lion]

Maiden is 4A

Dont mind me my friend, the ZZZQuils kicked in and im Old.........

Basically buffoonery at its finest at this point....

 

[GrizzlyDevil]

Dont mind me my friend, the ZZZQuils kicked in and im Old.........

Basically buffoonery at its finest at this point....

As long as you make sure @Maiden Creek uses the right dressing on his salad you'll still be okay in my book.

You coming up to the 7v7 in the morning?

 

[TD-Friday-Night-Lights]

Dont mind me my friend, the ZZZQuils kicked in and im Old.........

Basically buffoonery at its finest at this point....

I wish ZZZQuil worked for me, I am A night owl. lol

 

[TD-Friday-Night-Lights]

I wish ZZZQuil worked for me, I am A night owl. lol

 

[Maiden Creek]

3A

West
1.Shelby
2.Shelby
3.Shelby
4.Shelby
5. Mt Airy and Maiden

East

1. Northeastern
2-5 who cares


4a

Reidsville IF they leave Neal at QB, if they move him to receiver the entire staff should be fired on the spot, he needs to touch the ball every single snap offensively bottom line.....

PS dont play 0 on defense its obvious hed rather stare into the stars than play a single snap on defense, keep him fresh and get him the ball 20 times a game somehow..... they dont do above they get beat again around round 4,,,, Yeah I said it and you all know its true, even Mule....

0 never leaves the field if I’m calling the shots….but I ain’t.

However…I am calling the shots on that salad dressing…and it’s French! Grizz!

Good to see u back! Lion🫵

I’ll repost the 3a and 4a rankings again so that you know who is 4a and 3a…heck!…most of us still ain’t sure who is where.

 

[Maiden Creek]

Max Preps 3a rankings 6/7/25

1. Northeastern
2. Shelby
3. Eastern Randolph
4. Mt. Airy
5. Lincolnton
6. East Rutherford
7. WRH
8. Kinston
9. Mtn. Heritage
10. Walkertown
11. Whiteville
12. Martin County
13. East Surry
14. Hendersonville
15. James Kenan
16. Farmville Central
17. Ayden Grifton
18. Greene Central
19. North Stanly
20. Pender County
21. South Columbus
22. Princeton
23. Pasquotank
24. Bessemer City
25. Union Academy

 

[Maiden Creek]

Max Preps 4a rankings 6/7/25

1. Brevard
2. Reidsville
3. Maiden
4. West Craven
5. West Stokes
6. Pisgah
7. Salisbury
8. Central Davidson
9. Burns
10. Anson
11. Bunker Hill
12. East Duplin
13. Tuscola
14. Bandys
15. North Surry
16. Randleman
17. Mt. Pleasant
18. Hibriten
19. Eastern Wayne
20. SW Edgecombe
21. RS Central
22. Washington
23. North Pitt
24. Stuart Cramer
25. Lake Norman Charter

 

[It's Frank]

3A

West
1.Shelby
2.Shelby
3.Shelby
4.Shelby
5. Mt Airy and Maiden

East

1. Northeastern
2-5 who cares


4a

Reidsville IF they leave Neal at QB, if they move him to receiver the entire staff should be fired on the spot, he needs to touch the ball every single snap offensively bottom line.....

PS dont play 0 on defense its obvious hed rather stare into the stars than play a single snap on defense, keep him fresh and get him the ball 20 times a game somehow..... they dont do above they get beat again around round 4,,,, Yeah I said it and you all know its true, even Mule....

They're doing the two things you say they shouldn't. Let's just hope they make sure paperwork is correct this year

 

[RamDad]

They're doing the two things you say they shouldn't. Let's just hope they make sure paperwork is correct this year

Rams need a NEW defensive coordinator bad!!!!!

 

[Kingbluedevil]

Rams need a NEW defensive coordinator bad!!!!!

Better fix run defense

 

[TD-Friday-Night-Lights]

Max Preps 3a rankings 6/7/25

1. Northeastern
2. Shelby
3. Eastern Randolph
4. Mt. Airy
5. Lincolnton
6. East Rutherford
7. WRH
8. Kinston
9. Mtn. Heritage
10. Walkertown
11. Whiteville
12. Martin County
13. East Surry
14. Hendersonville
15. James Kenan
16. Farmville Central
17. Ayden Grifton
18. Greene Central
19. North Stanly
20. Pender County
21. South Columbus
22. Princeton
23. Pasquotank
24. Bessemer City
25. Union Academy

With the new 1A through 8A and new conferences, it is going to be a very interesting 2025 football season.
Only 5 more Fridays after tomorrow ! ! !

 

[TD-Friday-Night-Lights]

I am not sure Eastern Randolph should be #3.

Max Preps 3a rankings 6/7/25

1. Northeastern
2. Shelby
3. Eastern Randolph
4. Mt. Airy
5. Lincolnton
6. East Rutherford
7. WRH
8. Kinston
9. Mtn. Heritage
10. Walkertown
11. Whiteville
12. Martin County
13. East Surry
14. Hendersonville
15. James Kenan
16. Farmville Central
17. Ayden Grifton
18. Greene Central
19. North Stanly
20. Pender County
21. South Columbus
22. Princeton
23. Pasquotank
24. Bessemer City
25. Union Academy

 

[Maiden Creek]

I am not sure Eastern Randolph should be #3.

I don’t know…TD.

We’ll find out early though…they play at 6a Southern Alamance, Randleman, and at 6a Union Pines to start the season. That’s 3 TOUGH! games.

However, they’re a shoe-in to win their conference…I’d almost bet the house on that. Of course…conference finish has no bearing on seeding this year…at least that’s how I understand it.

We’ll see.

 

[Sportsnut17]

I don’t know…TD.

We’ll find out early though…they play at 6a Southern Alamance, Randleman, and at 6a Union Pines to start the season. That’s 3 TOUGH! games.

However, they’re a shoe-in to win their conference…I’d almost bet the house on that. Of course…conference finish has no bearing on seeding this year…at least that’s how I understand it.

We’ll see.

They seem to always play a tough schedule.

 

[RexReally]

Eastern Randolph has been a strong team the past decade for the most part. I can't say I know anything about their team this year, but it doesn't really strike me as odd to see them at the 3 spot in a preseason poll.

I am kind of interested to see East Rutherford this year. I enjoyed watching their playoff run last year. The game against North Surry was fun to watch.

 

[TD-Friday-Night-Lights]

Click Here & Massey Rating Score Predictions >> Eastern Randolph Football Schedule 2025

 

[BuckSweepSports910]

Question about Eastern Randolph. Will they be considered East or West? I know when they dropped down to 1A they were Western just remember they use to be in the east when they were 2A.

 

[GrizzlyDevil]

Question about Eastern Randolph. Will they be considered East or West? I know when they dropped down to 1A they were Western just remember they use to be in the east when they were 2A.

Just looking at the classifications I believe 3A and 4A will be heavy with western schools. ER and Reidsville will most likely be East.

 

[GrizzlyDevil]

How I understand it, teams will first be ranked in each classification by RPI, then they'll take the top 48 schools and divide them east/west per longitude, then they'll seed them by highest RPI (with the 1-8 seeds getting a 1st round bye).

Using last years RPI in the new (old) format, the playoffs last year would have looked like this for the top 8 schools in each side of the bracket:

3A

West	RPI	Seed	East	RPI
Mount Airy	0.67419	1​	Eastern Randolph	0.63994
Mountain Heritage	0.65209	2​	Northeastern	0.62581
Shelby	0.62766	3​	James Kenan	0.62237
Walkertown	0.59089	4​	Whiteville	0.60346
East Surry	0.58950	5​	Wallace-Rose Hill	0.58810
Lincolnton	0.55877	6​	Martin County	0.58022
East Rutherford	0.54605	7​	Ayden - Grifton	0.55531
North Stanly	0.53919	8​	South Columbus	0.55490

4A

West	RPI	Seed	East	RPI
West Stokes	0.62429	1	Reidsville	0.66900
Pisgah	0.61431	2	Randleman	0.61383
Salisbury	0.59082	3	Central Davidson	0.56025
Mount Pleasant	0.58769	4	Cummings	0.55644
Bunker Hill	0.58528	5	Eastern Wayne	0.55225
Brevard	0.57711	6	North Pitt	0.53379
Burns	0.56569	7	SW Edgecombe	0.53326
North Surry	0.55556	8	Roanoke Rapids	0.53141

Running the matchups through Massey Ratings we could have potentially had:
3A Western Finals - #3 Shelby @ #1 Mount Airy
3A Eastern Finals - #2 Northeastern @ #1 Eastern Randolph
4A Western Finals - #9 Maiden @ #6 Brevard
4A Eastern Finals - #2 Randleman @ #1 Reidsville

 

[whitleyre]

What I am hearing is that Walkertown in open enrollment Forsyth County has "not recruited" 10 to 12 new players and are ready to let that Wolfpack loose.

Mt Airy might be the beneficiary of 4 transfers, one of which is a freshman that looks great at QB. Otherwise, they do not look like the typical high school team in size and strength. If anyone beats them at the line, either oline or dline, I would suggest that team is an upper level state championship type team. And the linebacker group is on the same level as the line.

East Surry has looked really good in two 7 on 7's I have seen and suggest they are on the verge of being a lot better than I previously thought.

Given that Shelby is Shelby, I am also hearing that East Rutherford is fast as lighting and skilled.