We are in the midst of the first weekend of the 2023 high school football season nationally and in the Charlotte area and it concluded on Saturday night. In the first ever Keep Pounding High School Classic, Tar Heels' 2024 3✮ WR commit Jordan Shipp and the Providence Day Chargers took on the Northwestern Trojans in Bank of America Stadium, home of the Carolina Panthers. The Chargers would take home the 42-35 victory and Shipp would put together a career performance in the process.
Shipp set the tone right of the bat with his first catch of the evening. He would slip coming out of his break on an out route to the left sideline after creating some separation. His quarterback, Jadyn Davis, would drive the ball into him, though, and from his back, Shipp was able to hang on to the ball for an 11-yard gain.
His best catch of the night came in early in the second quarter. Davis found a way to stay alive in the pocket after some immediate pressure and was able to heave one up to him down the field. Despite being in double coverage, Shipp was able to outjump both defensive backs and rip down the amazing grab for a 35-yard gain. That catch would set up the first touchdown of the night for Providence Day and get the offense rolling.
Shipp would haul in two touchdowns on the night. The first was a 17-yard score on a slant route where he beat the corner across his face and outran him to the endzone after the catch. The second was another outstanding jump ball catch where he was able to haul in the 24-yard pass through contact to put his team up three scores.
He would finish the night with 13 catches on 17 targets for 234 yards and two touchdowns. The catches and yards were a career-high for him. As expected, he earn the MVP of the game award, which was handed out during the postgame presser.
Shipp showed in this game just how complete of a receiver the Tar Heels are getting when he arrives to campus next year. His strong route running and ability to create separation in a variety of different ways was on display the entire night and every ball that was catchable, even the 50/50 balls, was caught. His speed was on display all night both before and after the catch and he proved that he is capable of winning consistently in the deep passing game. When he committed, we talked about how he could affect the passing game at all three levels and we saw on display the entire night on Saturday.
The Tar Heels have brought in a loaded wide receiver class in the 2024 cycle and Shipp might just be the most complete of the group. The staff needs to continue to recruit him hard, especially after this performance because he showed that he has the chance to be the next great receiver to play under Lonnie Galloway.