Kemon Spell is the 247Sports Preseason Player of the Year in Pennsylvania for high school football’s 2026 season.
The 5-foot-9, 205-pounder is a senior running back from McKeesport (Pa.) High.
In nine games as a junior during the 2025 season, Spell totaled 1,755 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns.
“I think the WPIAL is without a doubt one of the toughest leagues in America and Spell will just make easy work of these fast and physical defenses,” said 247Sports director of scouting Andrew Ivins. “He’s extremely hard to corral. Not only can he slip past tacklers, but he can bully his way right through them. He also makes plays on defense and in the return game.”
What makes Spell stand out in Pennsylvania?
“There were plenty of options in the state of Pennsylvania, but five-star running back Kemon Spell earned the nod, and the Georgia commit has a chance to finish his career with 6,000 rushing yards and 100 total touchdowns,” said 247Sports national scouting analyst Hudson Standish. “Spell is an extremely well-rounded running back with a multi-faceted skillset, and has proven he has the ability to carry his high school squad on deep runs in the WPIAL 4A playoffs.”
Spell is a threat to score every time he touches the ball on the high school level. He has breakaway speed, his change of direction is elite and he is difficult to bring down on contact.
He loves to cut back and his vision is elite. He finds running lanes away from where the play is designed to go.
In 1-on-1 situations at the high school level, he is almost impossible to bring down. He also can catch the ball out of the backfield, which adds to his arsenal. It allows him to get into space with the ball.
Spell has been committed to Georgia’s 2027 recruiting class since Feb. 2.
“It’s just the love and relationship between all the coaches,” Spell told Dawgs247 in January. “I got down there the first time and got to meet Kirby Smart. It was nothing but great. It’s been great every other day since then, and we’ve talked every other day for real.
“(Running backs) coach (Josh) Crawford, we’ve got a great relationship and talk every day. He came up to Pittsburgh last week and did a home visit. Overall, it’s a great school and great place for me to be. It was just, as soon as I got there, the love and relationship I had with the coaches, it was just a spark. It’s a place that’s a home feel. That’s what it felt like when I got there.”
