By Mike London
mike.london@salisburypost.com

SPENCER — Even after four seasons as a varsity starting quarterback, North Rowan senior Jeremiah Alford averages about two ‘Yes, sirs” per minute.

Alford is respectful, he is tough, he is durable, he is consistent, he is a winner, and he is a record-breaker.

Because of all of those attributes, he is the Post’s Offensive Player of the Year.

“It’s been a blessing to coach Jeremiah the last two years,” North’s Josh Sophia said. “He’s been surrounded by great coaches and great teammates for his four years, but he’s always been the straw that stirs the drink.”

Brian Flynn, the East Rowan head coach who played every team in the county, endorsed Alford. The Central Carolina Conference coaches also chose Alford as the league’s Offensive Player of the Year.

Still, it wasn’t an easy call.

You can make a good case for Salisbury’s Hank Webb, who turned in spectacular numbers — including 32 touchdown passes — in his first and only season as QB1. You also can make a good case for Evan Kennedy, the West Rowan athlete who put up prolific rushing/receiving stats while competing against a 3A schedule. Kennedy went in the record books as a 2,000-yard man as both a rusher and a pass-catcher.

But Alford is almost unique in Rowan County football history, a 10,000-yard man for his career. He produced 10,092 yards to be exact, when you add his very significant rushing total — almost 2,900 yards — to his passing yards. Let that milestone sink in for a moment. He is the first Rowan quarterback to achieve that plateau. The only other 10,000-yard man in the history of Rowan football was West’s legendary running back KP Parks, who didn’t throw passes, but rushed for nearly 11,000 yards.

Besides shattering North’s career total offense record, Alford threw for a county-record 7,220 yards and fired a county-record 82 TD passes. He ran for 47 touchdowns, which is an extreme number for a quarterback. He accounted for 129 career touchdowns. Parks, if you’re wondering, scored 158.

“When I look back on the stats years from now, the passing yards might be the thing I’ll be most surprised by,” Alford said. “That’s a lot of passing yards.”

Indeed it is.

Alford had a Central Carolina Conference game in which he threw a county-record seven touchdown passes. He had a playoff game in which he threw five.

As far as his senior season, Alford, despite elbow and ankle injuries, did what he normally does — 1,916 passing yards, plus 495 rushing yards. He threw 22 touchdown passes and ran for 10.

Webb, who ran for five touchdowns, actually accounted for five more TDs than Alford did in 2024. Webb played one more game. He also had 125 more passing attempts. Webb was fantastic, but the difference between his numbers and Alford’s aren’t as significant as they might appear just by looking at the passing yards column.

Webb also kicked and punted at a sensational level. He was recognized last week as the Rowan County Special Teams Player of the Year.

Alford also held a second job besides quarterback – inside linebacker on defense. He was one of the county’s best at that physically demanding position. That may be the most impressive thing of all when you examine Alford’s offensive numbers. He did what he did on offense, while playing linebacker.

“Honestly, I never thought about playing both ways as that big of a thing,” Alford said. “All my life I’ve played on both sides of the ball, so it was just expected of me. It was natural. It would have felt strange not to be playing both ways.”

When his elbow was banged up, North rested him on defense in the game against High Point’s TW Andrews. Concerned only with offense, Alford was terrific. He threw for 350 yards and four touchdowns.

“My best offensive game of the year,” Alford said.

North won 33 games in Alford’s four seasons, as he directed a 1A team that played in a mostly 2A split league. Eight of those 33 victories came in playoff games.

“My favorite game I ever played for North was the Mountain Heritage game in the third round of the playoffs last season,” Alford said. “My best all-round game. That’s a game I’m going to always remember because we beat a really good team.”

North won that one 48-39. Alford did most of his offensive damage that night on the ground with 95 rushing yards and three touchdowns.

Alford says his hobby when he’s not playing football and basketball is lifting weights. Lifting not only builds up his body it keeps his mind clear and focused.

He’s also been learning to cook and cater at a high level. That’s what his father does.

Alford’s father, Brian, was a strong, two-way player for North a generation ago during Roger Secreast’s coaching era. Alford’s younger brother, Michael, was an all-county player this season as a linebacker/receiver and backup quarterback. Alford’s mother, Kami, coaches North’s volleyball team.

It’s a family that provides a good chunk of the heart and soul of  North Rowan.

“We’re really proud of not only what Jeremiah has done on the field, but of who he is,” Sophia said. “He not only has accomplished great things, he has always represented North Rowan with nothing but class. His longevity, his toughness and his versatility match any player that I’ve ever had a chance to coach. Any college program will be lucky to have him.”