Darius Lipford got one of the biggest honors of his high school football career when he was named to the North Carolina squad for the annual N.C.-S.C. Shrine Bowl, one of the nation's longest-running all-star games.

But Lipford got a lot more out of his week in Greenville, S.C., than just practicing and playing against some of the best players in the two-state area.

"It was really fun," Lipford said in a telephone interview a few days after the game, in which he made four tackles and had a sack as one of the North Carolina squad's starting linebackers.

"I made a lot of friends down there. It was a great experience playing against a lot of people of that high a caliber. ... But there was a lot more to it than that."

Like the trip to visit the patients at the Shriners Hospital in Greenville -- the game's proceeds go to the hospital, which treats children from across the country -- the nightly dinners at area restaurants, and visits to local churches.

The trip to the Shriners Hospital was the most attention-grabbing aspect of the weekend to Lipford.

"It was a good experience," he said. "We got to see first-hand what they do there and how they're helping kids. ... They showed us stuff like the prosthetic limbs they make and the operating rooms.

"It made us more grateful for everything that we have. Not everybody is capable of even walking, much less sitting up or going outside and playing. For us to have the ability to go out and have fun doing what we like doing ... that was really eye-opening."

Just a few weeks earlier, Lipford wasn't even sure if he was going to be able to play in the Shrine Bowl. He suffered a knee injury -- a torn meniscus in his left knee -- in the final minutes of the Panthers' 28-27 loss to Tuscola in the third round of the NCHSAA 3A playoffs, and had surgery on it the following week.

"I was worried, but I was pretty determined to tough it out and get there to play," Lipford said. "I wasn't 100 percent -- I was probably about 80 percent -- but it was good enough for me to play and have fun at the same time."

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Speaking of Lipford, he was one of three Hibriten players named New Year's Day to a pair of all-state teams picked by the editorial staff of NCPreps.com, a Web site operated by Rivals.com that cover high school sports in North Carolina.

Lipford was one of five players named to the athlete position, and one of two players from the Unifour region -- the other was Bandys wide receiver Seth Cranfill -- picked for the NCPreps.com all-state team.

Lipford was also named to the NCPreps.com 3A all-state team as a linebacker, and was joined on the team by Panthers teammates Josh Dula at defensive back and Nick Easton at offensive lineman.