The 2023 season was an excellent one for the Rebels who finally got over the hump and defeated Rosewood to claim a share of the Carolina 1A Conference Title for the first time since 2017. This year they aim to reclaim that title.
Reclaiming a conference title is never easy though, and North Duplin is going to have to attempt to do so without their star running back Dujuan Armwood who ran the ball 163 times for 1,785 yards and 27 touchdowns in 12 games last season.
North Duplin head coach Hugh Martin said that he thinks it will be possible to at least make up for some of the loss in production though with junior running back Carell Philips who rushed the ball 74 times for 687 yards in 12 games and junior Vance Carter who played much less varsity football earning only three carries for 20 yards in four games.
“Our top returning rusher is Carell Philips. He came on in the season last year. He got a lot of really good carries, especially later in the year. He’s going to have to carry more of the load this year. Vance Carter has got an opportunity to step up at running back now,” Martin said.
The Rebels will also have to look to replace center Colby Holtz who anchored the offensive line; versatile two-way stars Oscar Romero-Hernandez and Jacob Kelly who played on both the offensive and defensive line; outside linebacker and backup running back Khamari Leak; and kicker, rotation back, and cornerback Branden Reyna.
However, with some returners along with some new starters, Martin said he believes the team will be able to fill in those missing holes.
“Our whole defensive line is back. Ethan Turnage is a linebacker that’s back. Austin Wolfe is a linebacker that’s back. Anthony Kornegay is our corner that’s back. Our fullback Bryan Zambrano is back … Caden Dail is a tight end and played a fair amount of outside linebacker last year, and we’ll ask more out of him defensively this year.”
“We’ve got some young guys that have played before who are going to have to step up for us too, and we moved some people around position wise trying to fill some voids.”
North Duplin also has quarterback Luke Kelly returning whose primary role will essentially be to act as a coach on the field by calling out the plays and making sure his teammates are in the right position as the Rebels primarily run the ball. Last season Kelly attempted just 13 passes with seven of his attempts being completed for 202 yards and five touchdowns.
Regardless of who lines up on the field for the Rebels this season though, Martin said he expects his players to play with discipline, joy, and passion.
“I expect us to play hard, to play with a lot of discipline, (and) to play with a lot of joy and passion. That’s the expectation for them every year.”
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