Mark Hall, UNC Pembroke’s Master Football Recruiter

Immediate success on the recruiting trail has Braves’ fans buzzing.

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After being on campus less than a month before Signing Day, new UNC Pembroke football coach Mark Hall assembled the best recruiting class in school history and one that is sure to rank high nationally. Hall succeeded in the transfer portal and signed 15 prep stars.

Key transfers came from Hall’s previous school, Chowan, including Caleb Pierce (QB with 776 yards and five TDs), Raydarius Freeman (DL with 54 tackles and five sacks), and Jordan Gregg (DB with a team-leading 69 tackles). On the prep side, Hall signed all-state running back Sincere Baines from Jack Britt High School. Baines rushed for 2,167 yds and scored 25 TDs in his senior year, averaging 8.6 yds/carry. Hall also corralled one of the state’s top linebackers, Ta’Darrin Griffin, from Shelby, NC, a program known for sending linebackers to top programs.

Barber went on to star for Pinecrest high school, and Shaw played in Raleigh for Leesville Road. Both players had stellar prep careers and landed multiple D1 offers.  Barber, who was selected to play in the Shrine Bowl, was a three-time all-conference player and averaged 400+ yards per game, including 241.8 rushing yards an outing. Shaw was a MaxPreps Freshman All-American with a high school career that totaled over 5,000 total yards with 50 TDs. Barber and Shaw re-connected when Hall brought them in on the same recruiting trip, and they soon decided to play at UNCP.

Coach Hall has certainly hit the ground running, and there’s every reason to believe that high-level recruiting will result in an upgrade from an 11-11 record over the past two seasons. Don’t be surprised if he builds a powerhouse D-2 football program in the rugged Mountain East Conference.