Our next review of the top prospects from the State Champs are the Maury Commodores from the Class 5 level. The Norfolk based school won their second straight Class 5 Championship, finishing the season undefeated at 15-0 overall yet again.
The title was the third for the Commodores under Head Coach Dyrri McCain, who once was a standout receiver for the program before going on to play in college at Hampton University.
2025:
Defensive end Ari Watford (6-foot-5, 234) was the highest ranked Maury prospect coming in at #4 in the state by Rivals.com. He had offers from schools such as Ohio State, Michigan, Texas and LSU before signing with Clemson.
Watford finished with 10 sacks for the Commodores in 2025 and was selected 1st Team All-State. More of his journey to Clemson can be seen here in this VaPreps profile with Video Interview from the summer of 2024 here.
Maryland commit Carlton Smith (6-foot-1, 205) had an outstanding season leading Maury with 100 tackles, 48 for loss, while adding 17 sacks, eight fumble recoveries and six forced fumbles. He was the Class 5 Defensive Player of the Year, scooping up Region 5B and Eastern District Defensive Player of the Year accolades along the way.
Smith had offers 22 offers, including Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, Michigan and Notre Dame before choosing Maryland. He was ranked the #9 player in the state by Rivals.com.
Safety Kendall Daniels (6-foot-3, 180) reminds some analysts of former Maury NFL star Kam Chancellor, who won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks.
Rangy and instinctive, Daniels was selected 1st Team All-State and he signed to play at South Carolina in the SEC. Daniels finished with six interceptions, 40 tackles and four fumble recoveries. His versatility and impact was seen on both sides of the ball for the Commodores.
Fully healthy as a senior after recovering from an injury that sidelined him at the end of his sophomore campaign and beginning of his junior season, Daniels mixed in his stellar play on defense with 635 all-purpose yards and 11 touchdowns on offense.
Quarterback Au'Tori Newkirk was the VHSL State Offensive Player of the Year. He had one of the greatest seasons ever in Virginia after passing for 3802 yards with 50 touchdown passes while adding another 603 yards on the ground with six scores.
Newkirk threw five touchdown passes in the State Championship game - a 46-0 blanking of Briar Woods at JMU - while completing14 of 20 passes for 311 yards. He won back-to-back titles in his final two High School seasons, posting a perfect 30-0 record.
After more than a dozen offers, Newkirk signed with North Carolina in the ACC, where he will play for Bill Belichick, a man that guided the New England Patriots to six Super Bowl trophies.
"I think this is a great decision for Au'Tori. I am happy for him and all that he's put in to have the opportunity to live out his dream of playing football on the next level," Maury Head Coach Dyrri McCain told VirginiaPreps.com.
"It's a great fit I think as far as the offensive staff they have there for him at UNC. Also, he gets a chance to learn from the greatest mind footblal has ever witnessed. I am glad that staff and Coach Belichick saw something in him. To me, it just shows that the kid is special. They are getting a leader and a winner, two things that can't be denied. So proud of him."
The top receiver for Newkirk was Rivals.com 3-Star Lebron Bond, who will take his talents to Indiana University in the Big Ten. There might not have been a faster player with the ball in his hands around the state this past year.
Bond was selected All-State after making 63 catches for 938 yards and 16 touchdown receptions. As a junior, Bond made All-State with 47 receptions for 1327 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Furthermore, his dynamic abilities enable him to make an impact in the return game, as seen in the form of eight kick/punt returns racking up a whopping 494 yards and 5 TD's in 2024.
Both cornerback Trevon Cannon and running back Leon Clark signed to play for Coach Mike London at William & Mary. Cannon had 26 tackles and seven pass breakups, while Clark had 607 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns.
Jayvon Wynn (6-foot-3, 302) was selected 2nd Team All-State on the offensive line. He committed to Virginia University of Lynchburg.
Playmaker Leslie Hines (6-foot-2, 220) was selected 2nd Team All-State on the defensive line. He had 63 tackles while leading the team with 23 sacks. Hines is receiving D-2 interest for outside linebacker and defensive end.
Cameryn Simmons was a two-year starter who played safety and running back. Simmons had 108 all-purpose yards on offense.
Elijah Moss-Williams is 1 of 2 ranked prospect for the Commodores. The Rivals 3-star has more than a dozen offers including Virginia Tech, Virginia, Tennessee, West Virginia, Miami and Pittsburgh. Moss was selected 2nd Team All-State and he is the leading returning receiver for Maury.
His junior stats included 40 receptions for 688 yards and 11 touchdowns, plus did damage in the return game with another 148 yards in that department. That was an uptick from 2023 when he caught 25 balls for 566 yards and 7 TD's.
Quietly kept, he was actually the leading tackler during the 45-34 State Championship win over Stone Bridge his sophomore year with six total stops.
2026:
Linebacker Isaiah Simmons was selected 1st team All-State as a junior while collecting 47 tackles, including 11 tackles for loss and four sacks. The Rivals.com 3-Star has offers from Pittsburgh, East Carolina, Temple, and Toledo, among others.
Starting each of the past three seasons, Simmons has stood out physically ever since his freshman campaign when he burst on to the scene with 87 total stops, 22 for loss and eight sacks to earn 2nd Team All-State honors. He also was a 2nd Team All-State performer as a sophomore with 43 total stops, 15 for loss, five sacks, two pass breakups and a fumble recovery.
Rising senior Jyran Evans brings a 6-foot-4 length receiving to the Commodores. He missed most of the 2024 season with an injury, but looks to rebound this season. Evans participated in a Rivals camp and his Rivals profile lists Michigan, Ole Miss, Old Dominion and Buffalo among his offers.
Rising senior Damon McDaniel Jr (5-foot-10, 175) had 35 receptions for 518 yards and three touchdowns while adding had 14 tackles, five pass breakups and three interceptions. McDaniel seemed to make his best plays when the games counted the most. He made a key interception in the State Semifinal game vs. Green Run to secure the Maury win.
Additionally, McDaniel Jr. had a touchdown reception and interception in the State Championship shutout of Briar Woods. The young man comes from good stock, too, as his dad helped star on Landstown's 2004 state title winning team before going on to play College Football at Florida State, then Hampton University.
The younger McDaniel doesn't have any offers to date, but is receiving interests from Air Force, Hampton, Navy, Campbell, Georgetown, Bucknell, and New Hampshire.
Isaiah McDaniel (5-foot-11, 165) spent his 1st two years at Fork Union before playing at Maury last season. McDaniel has offers from Offers from University of North Carolina at Pembroke and University of Pennsylvania with interest from Toledo, Campbell, Princeton, Brown university, and Dartmouth.
Inside linebacker Javonti Hughes (5-foot-10, 190) is the leading returning tackler with with 72 stops, including 18 for loss. Hughes also had time to score four rushing touchdowns on 32 carries for 415 yards. He earned 2nd Team All-Eastern District on defense and Honorable Mention for offense. Hughes has an offer from Fayetteville State University.
Rising senior Jahvon Wiggins (5-foot-10, 150) has half a dozen offers including Virginia Tech, Duke, Liberty, and East Carolina. When he was the primary option his freshman year at Princess Anne in 2022, Wiggins put up very strong numbers - 42 catches for 881 yards and 8 TD's - on a team that struggled to win.
As a junior, Wiggins had 31 receptions for 642 yards and seven touchdowns, bouncing back from gruesome injury that forced him to miss much of his sophomore season.
Rising senior Hunter Collins (5-foot-11, 170) has two D1 offers from Delaware and Toledo. He had four interceptions, one of which came in the Class 5 State Finals, and four pass breakups with 23 tackles as a junior.
Center Elijah Jones is a rising senior and he earned 1st Team All-State.
Linebacker Markus McCoy was an All-State linebacker at Salem after being credited with 96 tackles including 26 tackles for loss. He has offers from UNC Charlotte and Alcorn state and he is talking with Howard, Navy, and New Hampshire.
2027:
Maury sophomore defensive back Matt Williams (5-foot-11, 165) led the team with 11 pass breakups while adding four interceptions in the Commodores defensive backfield. It's rare for someone to have three defensive touchdowns in one season, but that's what Williams did as a sophomore with two coming on pick-sixes against city rival Lake Taylor.
Williams has at least eight offers so far, including Maryland, Duke, Syracuse, Old Dominion, Charlotte, and Toledo.
Sophomore Tayshawn Branche (5-foot-11, 187) led the Commodores with 968 yards rushing on 77 carries with 16 rushing touchdowns. His three receptions totaled 104 yards with two scores, showing the ability to be a scoring threat. Defensively, he added depth on the back end with 19 tackles, three for loss, three pass breakups, a trio of fumble recoveries, a pair of sacks, a forced fumble and defensive score.
Branche has offers from East Carolina, Toledo, and Charlotte. Look for his recruitment continue to pick up in the coming months.
Maury hasn't had a star rated offensive lineman since Vinston Painter in 2008, but sophomore Patrick Anderson (6-foot-3, 285) hopes to end that trend.
Receiver Carter O'Rourke (5-foot-9, 170) is another promising name who should see the field more as a junior. He scored a defensive touchdown last season.
2028 / 2029:
Sophomore Dominick Everette (6-foot-2, 180) is expected to be the next star rated quarterback at Maury. He has offers from Indiana and Syracuse. Everette completed 3 of 8 attempts for 84 yards and a touchdown in limited action.
Rising sophomore Trequan Duke (5-foot-9, 160) is listed as an athlete while Tajuan Pair is a name to remember in the 2029 class.
The title was the third for the Commodores under Head Coach Dyrri McCain, who once was a standout receiver for the program before going on to play in college at Hampton University.
2025:
Defensive end Ari Watford (6-foot-5, 234) was the highest ranked Maury prospect coming in at #4 in the state by Rivals.com. He had offers from schools such as Ohio State, Michigan, Texas and LSU before signing with Clemson.
Watford finished with 10 sacks for the Commodores in 2025 and was selected 1st Team All-State. More of his journey to Clemson can be seen here in this VaPreps profile with Video Interview from the summer of 2024 here.
Maryland commit Carlton Smith (6-foot-1, 205) had an outstanding season leading Maury with 100 tackles, 48 for loss, while adding 17 sacks, eight fumble recoveries and six forced fumbles. He was the Class 5 Defensive Player of the Year, scooping up Region 5B and Eastern District Defensive Player of the Year accolades along the way.
Smith had offers 22 offers, including Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech, Michigan and Notre Dame before choosing Maryland. He was ranked the #9 player in the state by Rivals.com.
Safety Kendall Daniels (6-foot-3, 180) reminds some analysts of former Maury NFL star Kam Chancellor, who won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks.
Rangy and instinctive, Daniels was selected 1st Team All-State and he signed to play at South Carolina in the SEC. Daniels finished with six interceptions, 40 tackles and four fumble recoveries. His versatility and impact was seen on both sides of the ball for the Commodores.
Fully healthy as a senior after recovering from an injury that sidelined him at the end of his sophomore campaign and beginning of his junior season, Daniels mixed in his stellar play on defense with 635 all-purpose yards and 11 touchdowns on offense.
Quarterback Au'Tori Newkirk was the VHSL State Offensive Player of the Year. He had one of the greatest seasons ever in Virginia after passing for 3802 yards with 50 touchdown passes while adding another 603 yards on the ground with six scores.
Newkirk threw five touchdown passes in the State Championship game - a 46-0 blanking of Briar Woods at JMU - while completing14 of 20 passes for 311 yards. He won back-to-back titles in his final two High School seasons, posting a perfect 30-0 record.
After more than a dozen offers, Newkirk signed with North Carolina in the ACC, where he will play for Bill Belichick, a man that guided the New England Patriots to six Super Bowl trophies.
"I think this is a great decision for Au'Tori. I am happy for him and all that he's put in to have the opportunity to live out his dream of playing football on the next level," Maury Head Coach Dyrri McCain told VirginiaPreps.com.
"It's a great fit I think as far as the offensive staff they have there for him at UNC. Also, he gets a chance to learn from the greatest mind footblal has ever witnessed. I am glad that staff and Coach Belichick saw something in him. To me, it just shows that the kid is special. They are getting a leader and a winner, two things that can't be denied. So proud of him."
The top receiver for Newkirk was Rivals.com 3-Star Lebron Bond, who will take his talents to Indiana University in the Big Ten. There might not have been a faster player with the ball in his hands around the state this past year.
Bond was selected All-State after making 63 catches for 938 yards and 16 touchdown receptions. As a junior, Bond made All-State with 47 receptions for 1327 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Furthermore, his dynamic abilities enable him to make an impact in the return game, as seen in the form of eight kick/punt returns racking up a whopping 494 yards and 5 TD's in 2024.
Both cornerback Trevon Cannon and running back Leon Clark signed to play for Coach Mike London at William & Mary. Cannon had 26 tackles and seven pass breakups, while Clark had 607 yards and 10 rushing touchdowns.
Jayvon Wynn (6-foot-3, 302) was selected 2nd Team All-State on the offensive line. He committed to Virginia University of Lynchburg.
Playmaker Leslie Hines (6-foot-2, 220) was selected 2nd Team All-State on the defensive line. He had 63 tackles while leading the team with 23 sacks. Hines is receiving D-2 interest for outside linebacker and defensive end.
Cameryn Simmons was a two-year starter who played safety and running back. Simmons had 108 all-purpose yards on offense.
Elijah Moss-Williams is 1 of 2 ranked prospect for the Commodores. The Rivals 3-star has more than a dozen offers including Virginia Tech, Virginia, Tennessee, West Virginia, Miami and Pittsburgh. Moss was selected 2nd Team All-State and he is the leading returning receiver for Maury.
His junior stats included 40 receptions for 688 yards and 11 touchdowns, plus did damage in the return game with another 148 yards in that department. That was an uptick from 2023 when he caught 25 balls for 566 yards and 7 TD's.
Quietly kept, he was actually the leading tackler during the 45-34 State Championship win over Stone Bridge his sophomore year with six total stops.
2026:
Linebacker Isaiah Simmons was selected 1st team All-State as a junior while collecting 47 tackles, including 11 tackles for loss and four sacks. The Rivals.com 3-Star has offers from Pittsburgh, East Carolina, Temple, and Toledo, among others.
Starting each of the past three seasons, Simmons has stood out physically ever since his freshman campaign when he burst on to the scene with 87 total stops, 22 for loss and eight sacks to earn 2nd Team All-State honors. He also was a 2nd Team All-State performer as a sophomore with 43 total stops, 15 for loss, five sacks, two pass breakups and a fumble recovery.
Rising senior Jyran Evans brings a 6-foot-4 length receiving to the Commodores. He missed most of the 2024 season with an injury, but looks to rebound this season. Evans participated in a Rivals camp and his Rivals profile lists Michigan, Ole Miss, Old Dominion and Buffalo among his offers.
Rising senior Damon McDaniel Jr (5-foot-10, 175) had 35 receptions for 518 yards and three touchdowns while adding had 14 tackles, five pass breakups and three interceptions. McDaniel seemed to make his best plays when the games counted the most. He made a key interception in the State Semifinal game vs. Green Run to secure the Maury win.
Additionally, McDaniel Jr. had a touchdown reception and interception in the State Championship shutout of Briar Woods. The young man comes from good stock, too, as his dad helped star on Landstown's 2004 state title winning team before going on to play College Football at Florida State, then Hampton University.
The younger McDaniel doesn't have any offers to date, but is receiving interests from Air Force, Hampton, Navy, Campbell, Georgetown, Bucknell, and New Hampshire.
Isaiah McDaniel (5-foot-11, 165) spent his 1st two years at Fork Union before playing at Maury last season. McDaniel has offers from Offers from University of North Carolina at Pembroke and University of Pennsylvania with interest from Toledo, Campbell, Princeton, Brown university, and Dartmouth.
Inside linebacker Javonti Hughes (5-foot-10, 190) is the leading returning tackler with with 72 stops, including 18 for loss. Hughes also had time to score four rushing touchdowns on 32 carries for 415 yards. He earned 2nd Team All-Eastern District on defense and Honorable Mention for offense. Hughes has an offer from Fayetteville State University.
Rising senior Jahvon Wiggins (5-foot-10, 150) has half a dozen offers including Virginia Tech, Duke, Liberty, and East Carolina. When he was the primary option his freshman year at Princess Anne in 2022, Wiggins put up very strong numbers - 42 catches for 881 yards and 8 TD's - on a team that struggled to win.
As a junior, Wiggins had 31 receptions for 642 yards and seven touchdowns, bouncing back from gruesome injury that forced him to miss much of his sophomore season.
Rising senior Hunter Collins (5-foot-11, 170) has two D1 offers from Delaware and Toledo. He had four interceptions, one of which came in the Class 5 State Finals, and four pass breakups with 23 tackles as a junior.
Center Elijah Jones is a rising senior and he earned 1st Team All-State.
Linebacker Markus McCoy was an All-State linebacker at Salem after being credited with 96 tackles including 26 tackles for loss. He has offers from UNC Charlotte and Alcorn state and he is talking with Howard, Navy, and New Hampshire.
2027:
Maury sophomore defensive back Matt Williams (5-foot-11, 165) led the team with 11 pass breakups while adding four interceptions in the Commodores defensive backfield. It's rare for someone to have three defensive touchdowns in one season, but that's what Williams did as a sophomore with two coming on pick-sixes against city rival Lake Taylor.
Williams has at least eight offers so far, including Maryland, Duke, Syracuse, Old Dominion, Charlotte, and Toledo.
Sophomore Tayshawn Branche (5-foot-11, 187) led the Commodores with 968 yards rushing on 77 carries with 16 rushing touchdowns. His three receptions totaled 104 yards with two scores, showing the ability to be a scoring threat. Defensively, he added depth on the back end with 19 tackles, three for loss, three pass breakups, a trio of fumble recoveries, a pair of sacks, a forced fumble and defensive score.
Branche has offers from East Carolina, Toledo, and Charlotte. Look for his recruitment continue to pick up in the coming months.
Maury hasn't had a star rated offensive lineman since Vinston Painter in 2008, but sophomore Patrick Anderson (6-foot-3, 285) hopes to end that trend.
Receiver Carter O'Rourke (5-foot-9, 170) is another promising name who should see the field more as a junior. He scored a defensive touchdown last season.
2028 / 2029:
Sophomore Dominick Everette (6-foot-2, 180) is expected to be the next star rated quarterback at Maury. He has offers from Indiana and Syracuse. Everette completed 3 of 8 attempts for 84 yards and a touchdown in limited action.
Rising sophomore Trequan Duke (5-foot-9, 160) is listed as an athlete while Tajuan Pair is a name to remember in the 2029 class.
