Class 5 Top Ten – #9 Salem-VB

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As part of our comprehensive coverage, we count down the Top Ten Rankings for each classification. It’s found exclusively on this web site with updates weekly during the season.

#9 – Salem Sun Devils

What to Know:  A model of consistency best sums up the Salem Sun Devils, sporting the longest streak of consecutive postseason trips of the 11 Beach District schools.  Salem has gone to the playoffs 15 straight times and their 10-3 record from 2024 was quite commendable, doubling up Bayside 14-7 in the regional quarterfinals and blasting Deep Creek 42-3 before falling to Green Run in a 21-14 tussle for the Region 5A crown.  The offense was rather potent, putting un up 38.7 points per game, the highest total for the school in 13 years.  There are some big shoes to fill, though.

Gone is First Team All-State offensive lineman Jaylen Gilchrist to Maryland, a dual-threat QB in Jason ‘Scooter’ Williams to Navy after producing 3309 yards and 31 TD’s a season ago, and 2nd Team All-State DB in Fabian Wells plays safety for Texas Southern.  They also saw 2nd Team All-State RB Willie Moore move on to Morehead State after accumulating 2214 yards and an area-best 32 TD’s.  However, the cupboard is far from bare for Head Coach Mark Hall, a former linebacker at UVA who’s eager to lead the Sun Devils to their first State Playoff appearance since 2014.

The marquee name on the roster hails from the Class of 2027 that’s wideout Kasir Patterson (6-4, 180), who holds a slew of offers with the likes of Indiana, Pittsburgh and Tennessee among the double-digit options he holds.  A year ago as a sophomore, Patterson was one of the top pass catchers in all of Tidewater with 45 receptions for 1011 yards and 10 TD’s on his way to First Team All-Region honors.  Sliding in as the new QB to deliver him the football is junior Landen Curles (6-1, 190), a transfer from Grassfield that helped the Sun Devils win the Mike London 7 on 7 Passing Tournament at William & Mary in June.

It’s a deep receiving core even beyond the bona-fide go-to guy in Patterson as seniors Christian Henry (5-10, 180), Cameron Hall (6-1, 168), Amin Manning (5-11, 165) and Landyn Shipley (5-10, 165) figure into the equation alongside junior Kaeden Drenning (6-0, 175), sophomore Asaiah Brown (5-11, 160) and incoming freshman Gavin Square.  Both Drenning and Brown are already getting recruiting attention.  Drenning holds an offer from UConn, while Brown claims such schools as Miami of Ohio, Ohio, Sacramento State, Syracuse, UTSA, Western Kentucky on his sheet.  There’s also a jumbo-sized option at tight end in junior Damari Adams (6-5, 218), an active body from the basketball team.

To run the football, the Devils will turn to a couple of sophomores in Jason Harden (5-9, 180), a track standout with speed, and newcomer Maleak Peoples.  Blocking them is a rotation of about seven linemen, all of whom have gotten playing time before in senior Brody Allen (6-3, 215) junior center David Johns (6-0, 250), junior guard Brody White (5-11, 240), junior tackle Logan Smith (6-3, 280), sophomore guard Ben Hanuven (6-2, 268), sophomore tackle Owen Ganson (6-3, 230) and Dreden Lamb.  Allen and Hanuven, who holds an offer from Hampton University, came in from Landstown in the off-season.

For several years, the identity of Salem’s program has been its brand of aggressive, hard-nosed defense.  They’ve held opponents to under 20 points per game now in 20 straight seasons and being even stingier will be the goal.  Second Team All-State linebacker Markus McCoy (6-0, 215) is back for his senior campaign after recording 96 tackles, 26 for loss, during the regular season last year.  McCoy has drawn recruiting attention from Charlotte, Fayetteville State, Liberty and others.  Peoples, junior Colby Wehr (5-11, 205) and senior Rover Jaden Hudson (6-0, 180) join him on the second level of the defense.

Up front, sophomore Izayiah Bray (6-0, 265 2028) is expected to be a big-time force after starting as a freshman for Class 6 State Champion Oscar Smith.  Bray penetrates into opposing backfields with relative ease and already holds an offer from East Carolina.  A trio of seniors in Jeremiah Brown (5-11, 250), D.J. Wright (6-1, 235) and Landstown transfer Sincere Chevallier-Colean (6-1, 215) team with him on the d-line.  Like the receiver position, the secondary figures to be a spot of quality and quantity, headed up by Brown, Henry, Drenning and junior Jack Strother (6-1, 185), who has offers so far from Buffalo, ECU and UConn.

Even beyond those four in the defensive backfield, Salem can mix in some other athletes, such as Shipley, Square, Maury transfer Tyson Short (5-6, 150) and fellow junior Reggie Wilson (5-10, 150) without suffering much of a drop-off in terms of overall effectiveness.  That is a luxury most teams do not have. 

Staying balanced on offense and opportunistic defensively should be the mantra for this group to reach its full potential.  The home opener on August 28th vs. Kempsville must be taken care of in order to have a chance of being 4-0 when they visit Green Run on October 3rd looking to halt a seven-game losing skid to a Stallions team they had beaten 13 times in a row prior.

Other Class 5 Top Ten Previews:

#10 – Hermitage Panthers – Read More Here

Final Class 5 Top Ten Rankings from 2024:

#1 – Maury (15-0)

#2 – Green Run (13-1)

#3 – King’s Fork (11-2)

#4 – Briar Woods (10-4)

#5 – Warwick (10-2)

#6 – L.C. Bird (10-4)

#7 – Matoaca (10-2)

#8 – William Fleming (11-2)

#9 – Salem-VB (10-3)

#10 – Nansemond River (9-3)

Matthew Hatfield has served as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com since 2016 and been writing for the web site under the Rivals umbrella dating back to 2004.  Matthew also has served as the Play-by-Play Voice for Old Dominion Women’s Basketball since 2021.  Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates.  To contact Matthew, please e-mail [email protected], and be sure to Subscribe to CoVA Sports TV, where you can watch and hear his Podcasts.