Battling injuries over the past four years, Orange senior Luke Cecil was named All-Central Conference for the first time last fall. His will to win led him to play against Eastern Alamance in his final regular season game last October even though he had an injured foot. After the game, Cecil learned he had actually broken his foot. On Monday night, Cecil formally signed with Division III Methodist University. Also on hand was his father, Anthony; his mother, Robin and his sister, Sadie. Also there was Luke’s head coach since his sophomore year, DeVante’ Pettiford, and longtime Orange assistant coach Eric Stephens. Luke started playing football when he was six years old in the Hawfields community. He went on to play at Gravelly Hill Middle School and spent all four years at Orange on the varsity. During his junior season, Cecil reached the 3A State Playoffs. This season, he helped block Ja’ki McDaniels for three touchdowns in the win at Chapel Hill, the first time the Panthers defeated the Tigers since 2019. Cecil has a career in criminal justice in mind once he’s done with football. It’s been a busy year for the Cecil family. In February, his sister Sadie signed to play softball at Mars Hill College.
Orange football Offensive Lineman of the Year: Luke Cecil, commits to Methodist University
Battling injuries over the past four years, Orange senior Luke Cecil was named All-Central Conference for the first time last fall. His will to win led him to play against Eastern Alamance in his final regular season game last October even though he had an injured foot.