Former Mount Airy coach JK Adkins selected to lead East-West All-Stars in 2025

The N.C. Coaches Association (NCCA) recently announced the coaches for the 2025 East-West All-Star games.

JK Adkins, who spent the last six years leading Mount Airy’s football program before moving to Freedom High School, was named head coach of the West, while Rocky Mount’s Jason Battle was selected to coach the East.

Adkins took over as Mount Airy head coach in 2018 and amassed a 68-10 overall record in six seasons. During his tenure, the Granite Bears won four conference championships (2018, 2021-23), two 1A West Regional Championships (2022-23) and two 1A State Championships (2022-23). He is the first coach in Mount Airy school history to win back-to-back state titles.

Mount Airy posted a combined record of 31-1 across Adkins’ final two years with the program. This includes a 30-game active win streak — which is the longest such streak in the state.

The 2023 Granite Bears won the 1A State Title with a 16-0 record. The Bears led the state in both points scored (809) and yards rushing (5,873).

Adkins will be assisted in next year’s all-star game by: Joe Rigsbee (Grimsley), Jonathan Oliphant (Lake Norman), Sherman Holt (Swain County), Ryan Habich (Watauga) and Brian Hinson (West Cabarrus).

Before Adkins leads the West in December 2025, Surry Central’s Monty Southern will serve as an assistant coach for the West in the 2024 all-star football game. Two more Surry County coaches have already led all-star games in 2024; Mount Airy’s Angela Mayfield coached the West in the East-West All-Star Women’s Basketball game, while North Surry’s Shane Slate led Team North Carolina in the Women’s Basketball Carolinas Classic.