NC State fans are getting a bonus early in the high school season: a national TV look at one of the program’s prized future quarterbacks.
Gunner Rivers, the Wolfpack’s 2027 quarterback commit, will lead St. Michael Catholic (Fairhope, Ala.) into its 2026 opener against Battle Ground Academy (Franklin, Tenn.) on August 22 at 1:30 p.m. The game will air on the ESPN Network, putting Rivers in a spotlight that comes with plenty of attention before the first snap is even taken.
The matchup has a built-in storyline on both sidelines. Rivers is the son of Philip Rivers, who is now the head coach at St.
Michael Catholic. Across the field will be Battle Ground Academy quarterback Bo Bryan, whose father is country music star Luke Bryan.
It’s a meeting of two programs that aren’t just there for the names on the back of the jerseys. Both arrive after huge 2025 seasons.
St. Michael Catholic finished 13-1 and fell in the Alabama state semifinals, while Battle Ground Academy also went 13-1 and won the Tennessee state championship.
Bryan is expected to take over as Battle Ground Academy’s starting quarterback this season after working mostly as a backup a year ago. In 2025, he completed 28 of 44 passes for 336 yards and five touchdowns. The three-star prospect is ranked No. 67 overall in Tennessee in the 2027 class and has offers from UT Martin, Austin Peay and North Alabama.
Rivers, though, is the bigger recruiting headliner by a wide margin. The NC State pledge checks in at No. 43 nationally, No. 4 among quarterbacks and No. 1 in Alabama in the 2027 class according to 247Sports. That ranking also ties him as the eighth-highest rated recruit to commit to NC State since modern recruiting rankings began.
And the production matches the billing. During his junior season, Rivers completed 69.1% of his passes for 3,176 yards, 46 touchdowns and five interceptions, finishing with a 131.8 passer rating.
So while the names will draw eyes, the quarterback play is what makes this one worth watching. For Wolfpack fans, it’s an early chance to see a future cornerstone under the lights against one of the top teams in the Southeast.
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Among the newcomers, Jojo Trader stands out for more than just his talent. The Miami transfer is a former high school teammate of Baileys, and the two already have the kind of built-in trust that can matter when a quarterback is trying to sort through a new set of targets. Bailey made it clear he wants Trader to feel supported and believes he can make a real impact, which only adds to the sense that this receiver competition could shape a lot of what the Wolfpack offense becomes. [Read more 🡒]