BALTIMORE — West Cabarrus head football coach Brian Hinson practiced his team early, so he had time to savor Vance Honeycutt’s success story on a quiet Friday afternoon.

Honeycutt received a $4 million signing bonus from the Baltimore Orioles to play pro baseball on Thursday. As Salisbury’s head football coach during their recent glory days, Hinson was an eyewitness to both Honeycutt’s natural gifts and to the work ethic that made him a very wealthy 21-year-old. Honeycutt was the quarterback for Hinson’s state-champion Hornets.

“Vance had great God-given ability, and that’s coming both from his mom (Leah Ann Miller Honeycutt) and his dad (Bobby Honeycutt),” Hinson said. “We also had (current Georgia linebacker) Jalon Walker on those football teams. People would ask me all the time if I thought Vance and Jalon could play at the highest level, and I said both of them had the God-given ability to do that. But two more things have to go into it. You’ve got to have the work ethic and you’ve got to stay healthy. Both have the work ethic, no question about that. Now they just have to stay healthy. If they stay healthy, Vance will play Major League Baseball and Jalon will play in the NFL.”

Looking back on Salisbury’s state championship football season (officially the 2020 season, although COVID delayed it until 2021), the Hornets didn’t secure their 2AA state title until the first week of May.

We think of football championship seasons as marathons, but Salisbury only played seven regular-season games that year and finished third in the Central Carolina Conference with a 4-2 record. Then the Hornets went 4-0 in the playoffs, with two of those wins achieved on late field goals by Wade Robins.

The other two playoff games were one-sided and included major rushing performances by Honeycutt. In the 52-12 win against Maiden, he rushed 20 times for 214 yards and three touchdowns. In the state championship game against St. Paul’s, Honeycutt ran 17 times for 110 yards and four TDs. He also threw a touchdown pass and was voted MVP.

Honeycutt produced 460 of his 889 rushing yards in the playoffs. He rushed for 19 touchdowns in that 11-game season. He threw for 1,042 yards and 11 touchdowns. He was also the punter, on the rare occasions when the Hornets had to punt, and at crunch time in close games, he’d play safety on defense.

“I think what people may not have seen with Vance was the time he was putting in outside of practice,” Hinson said. “I’d see him down on the baseball field with his dad all the time, hitting, throwing, taking ground balls, always working. Talent is great, but talent will only take you so far. He put the time in.”

Hinson recalls watching Honeycutt’s baseball games his senior year. He was a serious prospect by then for head coach Mike Herndon, with his unique combination of arm, speed and size. He played shortstop for the Hornets because he was their best option to play the position.

“By then, scouts were circling around Vance like vultures out of the sky,” Hinson said. “At the baseball games, they somehow found out I’d coached him in football, so they’d ask me about him. I told him he was one of our best football players and one of our best baseball players, and if he played basketball, he’d be one of our best basketball players. He would have been one of our best chess players. He’s just so competitive in everything he does, he was going to be one of the best. I had a chance to see Vance up close, had a chance to see how hard he worked for this opportunity he’s gotten from the Orioles. When someone enjoys competing as much as he does, it’s just a very cool thing, and I get a lot of joy out of watching them.”

The Giants took a shot at signing Honeycutt in the summer of 2021 with a 20th-round pick. There are no slot values that far down in the draft, it’s all negotiable, and the Giants offered him a substantial amount, reportedly $700,000. He turned it down because he had a scholarship to UNC, his dream school.

Physically, Honeycutt grew late. He’s 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, now, but the strapping right-handed hitter stood 5-foot-7 and weighed 115 pounds when he started high school. Once he began to grow as a sophomore, he attracted attention playing for the South Charlotte Panthers, a high-powered showcase program. He went to a tryout camp at UNC, one of two camps he attended, and the Tar Heels really liked him. They offered him not long after that, and he committed.

It’s a UNC family. His parents, who met back in the day on a baseball field, competed for the Tar Heels; Vance’s father in baseball (the 1989 Tar Heels made it to Omaha), and his mother in track and field. Vance’s mother always will have the distinction of being North Rowan’s first NCHSAA state champion in girls track and field in 1984 (800 meters). She was Rowan County Female Athlete of the Year for the 1983-84 school year.

Not surprisingly, Vance’s older sisters were very good athletes for Salisbury. Kayla was a Rowan County Tennis Player of the Year and a 2014 state champion. Julia starred in tennis and soccer for Salisbury and was a Rowan County Soccer Player of the Year and Central Carolina Conference Offensive Player of the Year.

After a few errant practice throws, Honeycutt quickly transitioned from shortstop to center field in Chapel Hill. In the first game Honeycutt played for the Tar Heels as a freshman in February 2022, he launched two home runs against Seton Hall.

A few days later, leading off for the Tar Heels, he hit a home run against East Carolina. That baseball exited Boshamer Stadium at a velocity of 108 mph, and Honeycutt was on the radar of every MLB team. There was a game when he scored from second base on a wild pitch. He added amazing leaping catches to 25 homers and 29 steals, and by the end of a Freshman All-America season, he was viewed as a potential first pick in the entire 2024 MLB draft.

He dropped from incredible to good as a sophomore, as opponents made adjustments. He led the ACC in walks and was third in steals, but a back injury shortened his season and diminished his stats.

His junior year was his best, as he seemed to break a school or conference record every time he walked on the field. He broke the season record for the Tar Heels with 28 homers. He had 70 RBIs (in 62 games) and 28 steals as a senior, while batting .318.

He didn’t do much wrong. He was a first team All-American. He won his second ACC Defensive Player of the Year Award and a national Gold Glove Award from Rawlings. He was an Academic All-American.

Besides the obvious power, Honeycutt has a strong arm and exceptional speed. He has been timed at going from home to first (that’s 30 yards) in 3.63 seconds, which is superhero level for a right-handed hitter. He became “Honeyclutch” to Tar Heel fans because he delivered not just a lot of  hits, but meaningful hits, especially on the ride to Omaha in 2024. He socked a memorable walk-off homer against West Virginia.

“He’s that generational, electric player,” UNC head coach Scott Forbes said late in the season. “He’s the total package, that’s for sure.”

Honeycutt struck out too much to suit a lot of the scouts, which explains why a player with unmatched tools fell to the 22nd pick in the draft to the Orioles, but time reveals all in baseball. Honeycutt will have his chance to prove himself.

Baseball America likes Honeycutt, who totaled 65 homers and 76 steals in his three college seasons, and rated him as the 13th best player in the draft. After the Orioles finally signed him — just six hours before the deadline — Baseball America immediately installed Honeycutt as Baltimore’s No. 8 prospect.