High school football continues with one last game for one Gaston County senior Saturday.
Ashbrook wide receiver Demetrius Oliver will suit up for the North Carolina team in the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas in Spartanburg, S.C.
The 76th annual event kicks off at 1 p.m. at Gibbs Stadium on the campus of Wofford College.
The two-county area will have another participant in East Lincoln head coach Mike Byus, who is coaching North Carolina�s quarterbacks and receivers. Garner�s Nelson Smith is head coach of the North Carolina team.
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Oliver was an integral part of Ashbrook�s spread offense this season, catching 39 passes for 645 yards and five touchdowns. Oliver turned in three 100-yard games as Ashbrook went 6-5 overall and 4-2 in the Big South 3A Conference.
Oliver has received an offer from North Carolina A&T and is also drawing interest from Limestone, the University of Charleston in West Virginia and Gardner-Webb.
Oliver becomes the second Ashbrook player to participate in the Shrine Bowl in as many years. Nortavius Otis, now at Wingate, played nearly every snap at safety last year and made the game�s only interception while recording a team-high seven tackles (one for loss) and forcing a fumble to help North Carolina win 26-19.
Byus jumped to Shrine Bowl week soon after coaching East Lincoln to its first state championship. The Mustangs beat Tarboro for the 2A state title on Dec. 1 to polish off a 16-0 season.
Byus, the teacher of the Mustangs� high-octane spread offense, has coached at East Lincoln eight seasons, compiling an 84-28 record while winning four conference championships and reaching the state final twice. The West Virginia native previously coached five seasons at Robbinsville and nine at Raleigh Athens Drive.
Cleveland County has three player participants Saturday: Crest defensive lineman Dane Rogers, Crest linebacker Quinton Patterson and Shelby offensive lineman Eric McCauley.