Starmount senior signs to play football at Lenoir-Rhyne University

Starmount High School senior AJ Pardue has committed to Lenoir-Rhyne University’s football program.

Pardue signed his letter of intent on Wednesday, Feb. 7 — National Signing Day for Division I and II Football. He was recruited as a linebacker (LB)/defensive lineman (DL) and joins 30 other recruits for the Bears’ 2024 signing class.

A company of more than 45 people, made up of Pardue’s family, friends, coaches and teachers, came to support him at the event.

Pardue is set to begin his collegiate career at Lenoir-Rhyne this fall. Located in Hickory, Lenoir-Rhyne is a Division II member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

Currently, Pardue is a tri-sport varsity athlete at Starmont, a school in the Northwest 1A NCHSAA conference. He plays football and basketball, as well as throwing discus on the track and field team.

Pardue, who started playing football in sixth grade, finished off his pre-collegiate football career strong — scoring 19 touchdowns during his 2023 senior season. He took on a myriad of roles for the Rams, rotating between running back, tight end, linebacker, defensive end, and even wildcat quarterback, he said.

Over the winter months, Pardue plays forward on Starmount’s basketball team. Then, since his sophomore year, he does track & field in the spring. He used to play baseball, but he ultimately made the switch to throwing discus — and it didn’t take him long to build up the new skill set. He placed second in conference for men’s discus that very first season, then he got second again the next year.

Throughout his college search, Pardue posted updates on his X (formerly Twitter) account. While he officially put pen to paper on Feb. 7, Pardue verbally committed to Lenoir-Rhyne on Jan. 21 with a tweet — complete with a simple message that has become Pardue’s mantra:

“Let’s work.”

Editor’s Note: AJ Pardue is the brother of this article’s author Alli Pardue.