GREENSBORO — Two players and one coach donned the Raider diamond to represent Richmond Senior High School for one final football game of the season Sunday.
Senior linebackers K’Mauri Morgan and Joe Parsons, along with athletic director James Johnson, participated in the North Carolina Coaches Association East-West All-Star Game.
The senior showcase event was played at Jamieson Stadium at Grimsley High School, the home of the NCHSAA 4A state champion Whirlies, who took the title Friday night over Rolesville High School.
Facing some trouble being able to maintain possession on the offensive side, the East team suffered a 23-7 loss.
Helping the West to the win was Weddington High School quarterback Gregory Fee, who threw two touchdowns in the first half to give the West a 17-0 lead at halftime.
At the awards dinner Saturday, Morgan and Parsons were both recognized as academic all-stars for their efforts in the classroom. Both players have been recognized as The Richmond Observer’s Official Richmond County Male Student-Athlete of the Week multiple times in their careers.
Morgan and Parsons may have worn different numbers on their jerseys than their usual Nos. 7 and 44, but the one constant was the Raider diamond on their helmet, a special reminder of their high school careers.
“It meant a lot to me to wear that helmet one more time,” Morgan said. “It just comes with so many memories and ups and downs from the last four years. So it felt good to be able to wear it during the game and be a Raider one final time.”
“It was great to be able to wear the Richmond helmet one last time,” Parsons reflected. “It meant a lot to know that an all-star game like that was the way I would end the dream of being a Richmond Raider football player I’ve had since I learned what football was.”
Johnson, who took over as Richmond’s athletic director in September, was still the defensive coordinator at Pinecrest High School when the coaching staff was announced. Putting on the headset one more time, he said he was proud of the East team for fighting through the adversity.
“It’s always fun to be on the sidelines,” Johnson said. “Even though the game didn’t go exactly like we wanted, to be able to see the kids and just the emotion and passion they had for the game as the game played out was amazing.”
Playing in a variety of positions, Morgan finished the game as the overall leading tackler with 14 tackles. He had eight solo tackles and six assists, making him the only double-digit tackler for either team. Morgan recorded the game’s only quarterback sack on Fee and also had one tackle for loss.
Prior to kickoff, Parsons found himself in a familiar spot as a team captain to represent the East team for the coin toss. During his senior season at Richmond, Parsons was one of four players voted on by the Raider players to serve as a season-long team captain.
Lined up in the middle of the linebacking corps, Parsons recorded six total tackles (three solo, three assists), which was third-most for the East team.
“Joe and K3 were great all week,” Johnson shared. “Both of them established the sales of leaders within a group pretty quickly. Our coaches and the West coaches were both impressed by their play during the game and with the way they carried themselves all week.
“I thought Joe did a great job attacking blockers and trying to get off the competition level was definitely a little bit higher across the board than what you see in the average game. He was able to take on those blocks with strong force, and even though the score doesn’t look like it defensively, we battled against five turnovers, and that really kind of helped keep us in the game.
“K’Mauri showed a lot of versatility, essentially lined up at three different positions,” Johnson added. “He played the outside back-and-forth, he lined up at defensive tackle in our pass rush package and at inside backer. He plays with a high motor, which was evident all week. He provided a spark to us as a pass rusher and his ability to get to the ball on some outside developing plays really helped us as well.”
As varsity teammates since their sophomore seasons, Morgan and Parsons have seen highs and lows during their high school playing careers.
Through a pair of tough underclassman seasons, all the way to a conference championship as seniors, the two have been icons in the middle of the defense for Richmond.
Both said Sunday’s East-West All-Star Game was the perfect way to see their time together and brotherhood on the gridiron come to an end.
“The best part was we got to play together one last time in high school,” Morgan shared. “And having Coach Johnson coach us was great. Me and Joe also made a lot of friends during the week, so that was good, too.”
“The best part of the experience was getting to do everything with my partner K’mauri Morgan one final time,” Parsons said. “This was special to me because we have done so much together over the years from lifting to practice to conditioning sessions and it all came together in a prestigious all-star game to end our high school careers together.”
Johnson echoed those sentiments, adding that the bond of football brotherhood can cross boundaries of programs and rivalries, which is the true definition of the sport’s purpose.
“The best part of the week was developing relationships with great coaches from different parts of the state that I may not have met otherwise,” Johnson closed. “Watching the players develop similar relationships was also great to see.
“We had a really good group of kids on the East team and they kept the laughs coming nonstop. While you always compete and want to win, in a game like this, the relationships and overall experience is what will create lasting memories for coaches and players.”
