Shrine Bowl QB Evan Medders of Marvin Ridge High proves himself a fast learner

Evan Medders will quarterback the North Carolina team Saturday in the nation’s oldest high school all-star football game.

And that’s not bad for a guy who thought he’d found his place in football as a running back.

“A few years ago, I never would have seen myself as a quarterback,” said Medders, a Marvin Ridge High senior who is part of the Tar Heel squad in the 87th Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas.

Kickoff for the contest, which matches North Carolina’s top seniors against their South Carolina counterparts, is set for 1 p.m. at Spartanburg High School.

The game will be carried live by Bahakel Sports.

“I was a running back,” Medders said this week from Spartanburg, where he and other Shrine Bowl players have spent the week. “I was always a running back. But we needed a quarterback in my freshman year, and the coaches asked me.”

Four years later, Medders enters his final high school game with more than 5,000 career passing yards — a figure that would’ve been bigger if not for injuries in his junior and senior seasons. He also has 2,100 rushing yards in his career.

His dual-threat ability was attractive to a number of FBS programs. Medders committed earlier this year to the Air Force Academy.

“I’m relatively new at being a quarterback, but I had some great coaches who worked with me for several years,” said Medders, who augmented his development by attending quarterback camps in the offseason.

And obviously, Medders isn’t reluctant to run with the ball.

“I’m not afraid to take off and run,” he said. “If the secondary has my receivers covered and I’m under pressure, I’ll go.”

He has thrown for more than 200 yards 12 times in his career, but Medders also has rushed for more than 200 yards several times. He had 245 rushing yards in the Mavericks’ season-opening victory against Reagan.

He said he’ll run with the ball if necessary Saturday but added that his primary job is to “get the ball to our playmakers.”

Medders said North Carolina head coach Johnny Sowell of Monroe has landed several speedy receivers on the Tar Heel roster. They include Qeu’shyne Flippen, who set a school receiving record for 2A state champion Reidsville, and Izay Bridges of Shelby.

“These guys are outstanding receivers, and it’ll be important for me to get them the ball and let them take it from there,” Medders said.

He said the Air Force Academy appealed to him for a number of reasons.

“Obviously, there are the top-notch academics,” he said. “And the football program is really strong. But attending the Air Force Academy gives me a chance to do something beyond football.

“I want to make a difference in the world.”

Perhaps the greatest of his accomplishments this season came in Marvin Ridge’s regular-season finale, against local rival Weddington.

The Mavericks, who lost four straight games in the middle of the season when Medders was nursing an Achilles injury, entered the finale with a 5-5 record.

Weddington, which earned the No. 1 West regional seed and won the state 4A championship, led Marvin Ridge 20-17 with three minutes remaining.

Medders moved the Mavericks 92 yards in the closing minutes and threw a 10-yard touchdown pass with 30 seconds left. That gave Marvin Ridge a stunning 24-20 victory.

“That was my first game back fully healthy,” Medders said. “Our O line did a great job that night.”

Medders took over the game, throwing for 218 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for 131 yards and another score.

“Yeah, I think we really surprised them,” Medders said of the Warriors. “I grew up playing with a lot of their guys. I know them pretty well. That made it more fun.

“It’s certainly a game I won’t forget.”

87th Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas

▪ Kickoff for the game will be at 1 p.m. Saturday at Spartanburg High School.

▪ The first Shrine Bowl was played Dec. 4, 1937, at American Legion Stadium in Charlotte. The game was played annually in Charlotte until being moved to Spartanburg in 2004.

▪ Over the years, the game has raised more than $75 million to help the Shriners Children’s Hospitals.

▪ South Carolina won last year’s game 17-13. It was the first Shrine Bowl since 2019, due to the COVID pandemic.

Charlotte-area players named to the two teams

North Carolina: Benjamin Black, DB, Mallard Creek; William Brown, TE, Independence; Rondell Carter, DB, Chambers; Phillip Harris, DB, Butler.

Nolan Hauser, PK, Hough; Keenan Jackson, WR, Weddington; Evan Medders, QB, Marvin Ridge; Trent Mitchell, OL, Ashbrook.

Ross Smith, TE, Forest Hills; Deebo White, DL, Jay M. Robinson; Thomas Wilson, OL, Myers Park.

South Carolina: DeAdrian Hall, DB, York; Timir Hickman-Collins, LB, Indian Land; Zantwan Nelson, DB, South Pointe; Turbo Richard, RB, Northwestern.