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Ritchie had never played football until he was a sophomore, and he said it was midway through his senior year when he began to think he had a chance to play in college.
He credited SM Coach Cameron Brooks with encouraging him to play college football.
"I'd like to thank Coach Brooks for giving me the opportunity to play," Ritchie said. "He's probably the reason I'll be playing college football."
He added, "I think I'm prepared to take the step to Division II."
Ritchie will be getting in on the ground floor as the South Atlantic Conference Bulldogs look to turn around a program that was 1-10 a year ago. Joe Reich, brother of former NFL quarterback Frank Reich, will be starting his first season as Wingate's coach.
"Michael has everything we're looking for," said Matt Durant, Wingate's wide receiver coach. "He's a good football player, very strong academically and a fine young man. We're real excited to have him be part of our program."
Durant expects Ritchie to have a chance to compete for paying time at wide receiver as a freshman.
"I'm really proud of Michael for having a chance to go on to the next level and play college football," Brooks said. "Michael has become a fine student-athlete with his work habits and positive attitude. I think Michael can continue to play well on the college level."
Brooks was a star wide receiver at Gardner-Webb and played in the Canadian Football League. He said Ritchie had a lot of the same characteristics he had in high school.
"He runs great routes, has extremely good hands and has a knack for being a good wide receiver," Brooks said. "He is also an exceptional student with his very high academic standards."
Ritchie also played basketball for the Mustangs. He was team captain and honorable mention all-conference in both sports.
He is the son of John Ritchie and Jean Kirkland of Sylva. His twin sister, Kaitlin, recently signed to play volleyball for St. Andrews.
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