Saturday, November 14, 2026
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Sparta, NC (WNN) - The number 12 seed, Cherryville Ironmen, upset the number 5 seed, Alleghany Trojans, in the second round of the NCHSAA 2A State Football Playoffs in Sparta, NC, on November 13, 2026, 35-28. Trailing most of the game after an early 2-0 lead, it appeared Friday the 13th might be unlucky for the Ironmen. The windy, cold conditions forced Cherryville to abandon their normal pass-first strategy and rely more on the ground game. They used the legs of Jackson Heavner and some outstanding defense from Naveon Bush, Jordan Gill, and JJ McElhaney to outscore Alleghany 20-0 in the fourth quarter. The victory ties a modern-era record for the deepest advance into the playoffs; next week’s appearance will be round three, and the 2006 team also advanced to the third round. The Ironmen also captured their first 8-win season in the modern era. The all-time record is 11 wins set in 1951.
Cherryville vs Alleghany - Round 2 NCHSAA Football 2A Playoff - Sparta, NC - November 13th, 2026
Rusty Wise (WNN)
Allegheny did their homework and had a great game plan for slowing down the explosive Ironmen offense. The Trojans pounded the ball on the ground, using up the clock and keeping the Cherryville offense off the field. The Ironmen had trouble early figuring out how to stop the misdirection plays Alleghany was running. Cherryville had to rely more on their ground game thanks in part to the Trojans’ defense, cold weather, and windy conditions. This opened the door for a big night, especially in the second half, for Jackson Heavner. The senior running back finished with 146 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns and added 42 receiving yards and caught a touchdown. JJ McElhaney added 70 yards rushing and a touchdown along with 66 yards receiving, and he also made an acrobatic one-handed interception to end any hopes of an Alleghany comeback. Defensively, Naveon Bush was a beast in the middle, forcing the Trojan running backs to run outside as he shut down the middle all night. He also had 8 tackles. Maddox Carrigan had a blocked punt and 7 tackles, and Elijah Proctor added an interception. Once again, the Ironmen played well enough in all three phases to pull out a win.
#0 JJ McElhaney catching game-ending interception - Cherryville vs Alleghany - Round 2 NCHSAA Football 2A Playoff - Sparta, NC - November 13th, 2026
Rusty Wise (WNN)
Cherryville received the opening kickoff and used a heavy dose of Jackson Heavner on the first several plays. The drive stalled when Alleghany intercepted a Jayden Adams pass. The Ironmen defense held and forced a punt. The kick was blocked by Maddox Carrigan and rolled out of the endzone for a safety and a 2-0 Cherryville lead. It appeared Jackson Heavner had returned the free kick 57 yards for a touchdown, but a holding penalty during the return erased the score, and they began the drive on their own 32 as a result. A few plays later, Alleghany intercepted a Jayden Adams pass and returned it to the Cherryville 15. Connor Ramirez punched it in from the 1 after four plays and a 7-2 Trojan lead. Lance Shatley put the Trojans ahead 14-2 after a 10-yard touchdown reception to begin the second quarter. Cherryville had a good kickoff return and began their drive from the 46. JJ McElhaney would score from inside the 2 for a 14-8 Alleghany lead.
#0 JJ McElhaney scoring - Cherryville vs Alleghany - Round 2 NCHSAA Football 2A Playoff - Sparta, NC - November 13th, 2026
Rusty Wise (WNN)
There was an unsportsmanlike conduct call on the Ironmen sideline to end the first half, so Cole Kelly had to kick from the 25 to open the second half. Allegheny executed a very time-consuming 11-play drive that used almost 7 minutes off the clock. The drive was capped by an 18-yard touchdown reception by Lance Shatley, and the Trojans looked as if they were going to put this one away, now leading 21-8. In true Ironmen fashion, Cherryville continued to fight and claw. They used a huge 30-yard reception by JJ McElhaney and several runs by Jackson Heavner to close to within 21-15 after Heavner scored from the one. Alleghany answered with a 5-play, 69-yard drive that took 2 minutes, with Connor Ramirez running in from the 5. The score was now 28-15, and momentum seemed to shift back to the Trojans.
#5 Jackson Heavner - Cherryville vs Alleghany - Round 2 NCHSAA Football 2A Playoff - Sparta, NC - November 13th, 2026
Rusty Wise (WNN)
The Ironmen took the kickoff near the end of the 3rd quarter. They wasted no time scoring on the first play of the 4th quarter on a 42-yard bomb from Adams to Heavner. Now trailing 28-22, Elijah Proctor intercepted a Ramirez pass at the Alleghany 26. Adams fed the ball to Jackson Heavner on every play, and he scored from the 4-yard line to give Cherryville their first lead since early in the first quarter, 29-28. Cherryville came up big on defense on the Trojans’ next possession. Naveon Bush and Jordan Gill teamed up for a huge stop on third down, and on fourth down, Elijah Proctor made a crucial stop to force a turnover on downs. Jackson Heavner would score his third rushing touchdown of the night from 13 yards out. The kick was no good, leaving the score 35-28 in favor of Cherryville with 43 seconds left on the clock. Allegheny had a good return to their 42. With no timeouts left, they tried a deep pass that McElhaney picked off to seal the game. Cherryville only needed to kneel once to run out the clock and move on to round three: final score Cherryville 35, Alleghany 28.
After the game, a half-frozen Rusty Wise caught up with some very excited but cold players and coach. He interviewed a few of them for WNN to get their thoughts on the game and the weather.
Head Coach Patrick Bowman: He expressed his thoughts on the game and it being a nail-biter. “It is, you know, very proud of our guys. They faced some adversity, especially in the first half. We came out in the second half and executed; the defense stepped up late right there for us, a total team effort. Couldn’t be prouder of our guys. Any time you come up the mountain, it’s a little bit of an adjustment, especially when the temperature drops like this. I thought our guys, for the most part, handled it very well; we just had to clean up some of the penalties we made early. We put it together in the second half and ended up getting out of here with a win. Anytime you go on the road in the playoffs and get a win, it’s a big deal.”
Ironmen Coach Patrick Bowman after the win - Cherryville vs Alleghany - Round 2 NCHSAA Football 2A Playoff - Sparta, NC - November 13th, 2026
Rusty Wise (WNN)
Aiden Jenks: He was asked about how it felt to win and the cold weather. “It’s very emotional, but we love it; this is what we do. It was affecting us hard in the first half, but we strived through it the second half and showed what we could really do.”
#56 Aiden Jenks - Cherryville vs Alleghany - Round 2 NCHSAA Football 2A Playoff - Sparta, NC - November 13th, 2026
Rusty Wise (WNN)
Elijah Proctor: “First we had to get used to it (the cold), the atmosphere, and the temperature. We don’t normally play in the cold like this. It took us a minute to adjust and get used to it. The second half, we came out, we had already gotten used to it and were ready. We all came back together in the locker room; we all came back together and made a great game plan to come and secure the win.” His thoughts on preparation for the next round: “Same way as we always do: come to practice, go hard, don’t slack, and come Friday put it all together, win the game, and go to the fourth round.
#3 Elijah Proctor making a 4th Down Tackle - Cherryville vs Alleghany - Round 2 NCHSAA Football 2A Playoff - Sparta, NC - November 13th, 2026
Rusty Wise (WNN)
The Ironmen will now travel to play the number 4 seed, Community School of Davidson, on November 20. The kickoff should be at 7:30 pm. The third round is the halfway point of the six-round playoff format, which concludes with the Championship games played December 10-12th. All the remaining games for Cherryville will be on the road.
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