With season over halfway over, NC State is in the midst of figuring out the remainder of its 2020 class.
This breakdown includes former walk-on receiver Thayer Thomas as a scholarship player.
The scholarship roster breaks down as follows:
Seniors (10)
Fifth-year seniors (8): WR Tabari Hines, OT Emanuel McGirt Jr., OT Tyrone Riley*, DE Deonte Holden (technically sixth-year senior), DE James Smith-Williams, DT Larrell Murchison, S Stephen Griffin, S Jarius Morehead
True seniors (2): CB Nick McCloud*, CB Kishawn Miller
* — Note Riley is applying for a sixth season of eligibility, and McCloud could also be on a path towards redshirting this year.
Juniors (16)
Redshirt juniors (11): WR C.J. Riley*, TE Cary Angeline, TE Dylan Autenrieth*, TE Dylan Parham, OG Justin Chase, OG/C Joe Sculthorpe, OT Justin Witt, DT Val Martin, LB Brock Miller, S Isaiah Stallings
True juniors (6): WR Emeka Emezie, OG Joshua Fedd-Jackson, DE Jeffrey Gunter*, LB Louis Acceus, LB Levi Jones*, CB Chris Ingram
* - Note Jeffrey Gunter and Levi Jones have to sit out this season per transfer rules and will redshirt. Riley and Autenrieth are both expected to apply for sixth seasons of eligibility.
Sophomores (19)
Redshirt sophomores (12): QB Bailey Hockman, QB Matt McKay, WR Max Fisher, WR Thayer Thomas*, OL Kollin Byers, OL Grant Gibson, OL Bryson Speas, DE Ibrahim Kante, DE Xavier Lyas, DT Dante Johnson, LB Isaiah Moore, P Mackenzie Morgan
True sophomores (7): RB Ricky Person Jr., DT Alim McNeill, NIC Tyler Baker-Williams, S De’Von Graves, S Tanner Ingle, CB Teshaun Smith, K Christopher Dunn
* - Note redshirt freshman walk-on receiver Thayer Thomas was put on scholarship for last season and this operates under the assumption he remains on scholarship. It is also possible that this number could be 20 if redshirt sophomore punter Trenton Gill becomes a full-time scholarship player.
Freshmen (34)
Redshirt freshmen (11): QB Devin Leary, RB Trent Pennix, WR Devin Carter, WR Jasiah Provillon, OT Derrick Eason, OL Gabriel Gonzalez, , DE Joseph Boletepeli, LB Calvin Hart Jr., LB Payton Wilson, CB Taiyon Palmer, CB Malik Dunlap
True freshmen (23): QB Ty Evans, RB Jordan Houston, RB Zonovan Knight, RB Delbert Mimms, WR Keyon Lesane, WR Chris Toudle, TE Kam Walker, OL Ikem Ekwonu, OL Zovon Lindsay, OL Timothy McKay, OL Dylan McMahon, DE Terrell Dawkins, DE Savion Jackson, DT C.J. Clark, DT Joshua Harris, LB Jaylon Scott, LB Drake Thomas, NIC Jalen Frazier, CB Shyheim Battle, S Jakeen Harris, S Khalid Martin, S Cecil Powell, LS Joe Shimko
• Since the end of the 2018 season, 11 players have left the team — receivers Kelvin Harmon and Jakobi Meyers turned pro. Both would have been seniors this upcoming season (Meyers a fifth-year senior).
Offensive tackle Phillip Walton, nickel Freddie Phillips Jr. and cornerback Vernon Grier all left as graduate transfers. All would have been fifth-year seniors. Walton enrolled at Charlotte, and Grier went to South Carolina State. There has been no word on Phillips
Defensive tackle Davontae McCrae, who would have been a redshirt freshman, was dismissed, and defensive end Joe Babros, who would have been a redshirt junior, entered the transfer portal. McCrae went to a junior college and has committed to Mississippi State. Babros picked Montana as his new destination.
Tight end Adam Boselli, who would have been a redshirt sophomore, left the team in the spring. Although unconfirmed he is believed to have taken a medical hardship.
At the end of the summer, offensive tackle Jalynn Strickland also took a medical hardship entering what would have been his redshirt freshman season. Redshirt junior offensive tackle Kendall Brown became academically ineligible as well.
Early in fall camp, senior safety Tim Kidd-Glass decided to transfer to Liberty.
For comparison, between the end of the 2017 season and the end of the 2018 campaign, 15 players left the program.
Speaking of attrition, we went back and calculated how many players from head coach Dave Doeren’s first five full recruiting classes (not including transfers) that are either still around or completed their full eligibility at NC State (unofficial rule of thumb is keeping somewhere between 3/5 or 2/3 of the class intact throughout is probably pretty good):
2014: 20 of 31 (64.5 percent)
- Offensive lineman Will Richardson turned pro after his redshirt junior season. If you adjusted the numbers to include those who played their entire football at NC State before either graduating or turning pro, the retention rate would rise to 67.7 percent.
- Quarterback Jalan McClendon (Baylor) corner Troy Vincent (walked on at Iowa State), safety Kalen McCain (JC and then North Carolina Central), receiver Bo Hines (Yale) and defensive tackle Daeshaywn Middleton (Norfolk State) transferred to other schools.
- Running back Marcelias Sutton did not qualify and signed with Oklahoma out of junior college.
- Corner Elliott Davis and tight end Micah Till were dismissed from the team. Till ended up playing basketball at Division II Slippery Rock where he was named third-team All-American in 2017-18.
- Offensive lineman Eric Shute and linebacker/defensive tackle/offensive guard Coult Culler gave up football, the latter for health reasons.
2015: 8 of 22 (36.4 percent)
- Running back Nyheim Hines and receiver Jakobi Meyers turned pro after their junior seasons. If you adjusted the numbers to include those who played their entire football at NC State before either graduating or turning pro, the retention rate would rise to 45.5 percent.
- Running back Johnny Frasier, receiver Brian Sessoms, defensive tackle Quentez Johnson and offensive lineman Daris Workman all left the team for undisclosed reasons.
- Offensive lineman T.J. McCoy transferred to Florida where he started nine games in 2017 at center before suffering an injury. He played just three games in 2018 and left as a grad transfer to Louisville, where he has started six games this year.
- Defensive end Emmanuel Olenga and receiver Freddie Simmons were dismissed. Olenga has matriculated at Campbell, where he had 8.5 sacks in 2017. He was at Northeast Mississippi C.C. in 2018, where he had 10.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks, and signed with Jackson State. He left there without ever playing and ended up at Tennessee State, and from there caused a media storm when he accused Jackson State of paying players. He has 15 tackles, including 2.5 for loss, and four QB hurries for Tennessee State this year.
Simmons had been expected to end up at Akron but never made it on their roster.
- Offensive lineman Aaron Wiltz and linebacker Riley Nicholson took medical hardships.
- Offensive lineman Phillip Walton Jr., nickel Freddie Phillips Jr. and cornerback Vernon Grier left as grad transfers (noted above).
2016: 10 of 24 (41.7 percent)
- Receiver Kelvin Harmon turned pro after his junior season. If you adjusted the numbers to include those who played their entire football at NC State before either graduating or turning pro, the retention rate would rise to 54.2 percent.
- Corner Bryce Banks (South Dakota State), defensive tackle Shug Frazier (Hampton), safety Tim Kidd-Glass (Liberty), corner J.J. Givens (Norfolk State), tight end Thaddeus Moss (LSU) and receiver Daeshawn Stephens (NCCU) transferred to other schools.
Banks is no longer at South Dakota State, and Givens is not at Norfolk State anymore. Frazier has had six tackles, including 1.5 for loss and half a sack, at Hampton this fall in six games. Moss has 21 catches for 246 yards and a score this year in seven games for No. 1 LSU. Stephens has 19 receptions for 227 yards in eight contests for NCCU.
- Tight end Bryce Dixon and cornerback Markel Valdez were dismissed from the team, with Dixon’s departure coming before he ever played. Valdez, who was dismissed in the spring of 2018, has matriculated to Hampton. Valdez has six tackles, an interception and two pass breakups in eight games this season.
- Linebacker Garrett Hooker and offensive lineman Bryce Folsom left the team for undisclosed reasons. Offensive lineman Harrison Gee left for health reasons.
- Nickel Trae Meadows left the team for personal reasons and went to Garden City (Kan.) Community College. He signed with Western Kentucky in December. In eight games this year, Meadows has 23 tackles, including one for a loss, an interception and two pass breakups.
- Offensive tackle Kendall Brown left for academic reasons.
This breakdown includes former walk-on receiver Thayer Thomas as a scholarship player.
The scholarship roster breaks down as follows:
Seniors (10)
Fifth-year seniors (8): WR Tabari Hines, OT Emanuel McGirt Jr., OT Tyrone Riley*, DE Deonte Holden (technically sixth-year senior), DE James Smith-Williams, DT Larrell Murchison, S Stephen Griffin, S Jarius Morehead
True seniors (2): CB Nick McCloud*, CB Kishawn Miller
* — Note Riley is applying for a sixth season of eligibility, and McCloud could also be on a path towards redshirting this year.
Juniors (16)
Redshirt juniors (11): WR C.J. Riley*, TE Cary Angeline, TE Dylan Autenrieth*, TE Dylan Parham, OG Justin Chase, OG/C Joe Sculthorpe, OT Justin Witt, DT Val Martin, LB Brock Miller, S Isaiah Stallings
True juniors (6): WR Emeka Emezie, OG Joshua Fedd-Jackson, DE Jeffrey Gunter*, LB Louis Acceus, LB Levi Jones*, CB Chris Ingram
* - Note Jeffrey Gunter and Levi Jones have to sit out this season per transfer rules and will redshirt. Riley and Autenrieth are both expected to apply for sixth seasons of eligibility.
Sophomores (19)
Redshirt sophomores (12): QB Bailey Hockman, QB Matt McKay, WR Max Fisher, WR Thayer Thomas*, OL Kollin Byers, OL Grant Gibson, OL Bryson Speas, DE Ibrahim Kante, DE Xavier Lyas, DT Dante Johnson, LB Isaiah Moore, P Mackenzie Morgan
True sophomores (7): RB Ricky Person Jr., DT Alim McNeill, NIC Tyler Baker-Williams, S De’Von Graves, S Tanner Ingle, CB Teshaun Smith, K Christopher Dunn
* - Note redshirt freshman walk-on receiver Thayer Thomas was put on scholarship for last season and this operates under the assumption he remains on scholarship. It is also possible that this number could be 20 if redshirt sophomore punter Trenton Gill becomes a full-time scholarship player.
Freshmen (34)
Redshirt freshmen (11): QB Devin Leary, RB Trent Pennix, WR Devin Carter, WR Jasiah Provillon, OT Derrick Eason, OL Gabriel Gonzalez, , DE Joseph Boletepeli, LB Calvin Hart Jr., LB Payton Wilson, CB Taiyon Palmer, CB Malik Dunlap
True freshmen (23): QB Ty Evans, RB Jordan Houston, RB Zonovan Knight, RB Delbert Mimms, WR Keyon Lesane, WR Chris Toudle, TE Kam Walker, OL Ikem Ekwonu, OL Zovon Lindsay, OL Timothy McKay, OL Dylan McMahon, DE Terrell Dawkins, DE Savion Jackson, DT C.J. Clark, DT Joshua Harris, LB Jaylon Scott, LB Drake Thomas, NIC Jalen Frazier, CB Shyheim Battle, S Jakeen Harris, S Khalid Martin, S Cecil Powell, LS Joe Shimko
• Since the end of the 2018 season, 11 players have left the team — receivers Kelvin Harmon and Jakobi Meyers turned pro. Both would have been seniors this upcoming season (Meyers a fifth-year senior).
Offensive tackle Phillip Walton, nickel Freddie Phillips Jr. and cornerback Vernon Grier all left as graduate transfers. All would have been fifth-year seniors. Walton enrolled at Charlotte, and Grier went to South Carolina State. There has been no word on Phillips
Defensive tackle Davontae McCrae, who would have been a redshirt freshman, was dismissed, and defensive end Joe Babros, who would have been a redshirt junior, entered the transfer portal. McCrae went to a junior college and has committed to Mississippi State. Babros picked Montana as his new destination.
Tight end Adam Boselli, who would have been a redshirt sophomore, left the team in the spring. Although unconfirmed he is believed to have taken a medical hardship.
At the end of the summer, offensive tackle Jalynn Strickland also took a medical hardship entering what would have been his redshirt freshman season. Redshirt junior offensive tackle Kendall Brown became academically ineligible as well.
Early in fall camp, senior safety Tim Kidd-Glass decided to transfer to Liberty.
For comparison, between the end of the 2017 season and the end of the 2018 campaign, 15 players left the program.
Speaking of attrition, we went back and calculated how many players from head coach Dave Doeren’s first five full recruiting classes (not including transfers) that are either still around or completed their full eligibility at NC State (unofficial rule of thumb is keeping somewhere between 3/5 or 2/3 of the class intact throughout is probably pretty good):
2014: 20 of 31 (64.5 percent)
- Offensive lineman Will Richardson turned pro after his redshirt junior season. If you adjusted the numbers to include those who played their entire football at NC State before either graduating or turning pro, the retention rate would rise to 67.7 percent.
- Quarterback Jalan McClendon (Baylor) corner Troy Vincent (walked on at Iowa State), safety Kalen McCain (JC and then North Carolina Central), receiver Bo Hines (Yale) and defensive tackle Daeshaywn Middleton (Norfolk State) transferred to other schools.
- Running back Marcelias Sutton did not qualify and signed with Oklahoma out of junior college.
- Corner Elliott Davis and tight end Micah Till were dismissed from the team. Till ended up playing basketball at Division II Slippery Rock where he was named third-team All-American in 2017-18.
- Offensive lineman Eric Shute and linebacker/defensive tackle/offensive guard Coult Culler gave up football, the latter for health reasons.
2015: 8 of 22 (36.4 percent)
- Running back Nyheim Hines and receiver Jakobi Meyers turned pro after their junior seasons. If you adjusted the numbers to include those who played their entire football at NC State before either graduating or turning pro, the retention rate would rise to 45.5 percent.
- Running back Johnny Frasier, receiver Brian Sessoms, defensive tackle Quentez Johnson and offensive lineman Daris Workman all left the team for undisclosed reasons.
- Offensive lineman T.J. McCoy transferred to Florida where he started nine games in 2017 at center before suffering an injury. He played just three games in 2018 and left as a grad transfer to Louisville, where he has started six games this year.
- Defensive end Emmanuel Olenga and receiver Freddie Simmons were dismissed. Olenga has matriculated at Campbell, where he had 8.5 sacks in 2017. He was at Northeast Mississippi C.C. in 2018, where he had 10.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks, and signed with Jackson State. He left there without ever playing and ended up at Tennessee State, and from there caused a media storm when he accused Jackson State of paying players. He has 15 tackles, including 2.5 for loss, and four QB hurries for Tennessee State this year.
Simmons had been expected to end up at Akron but never made it on their roster.
- Offensive lineman Aaron Wiltz and linebacker Riley Nicholson took medical hardships.
- Offensive lineman Phillip Walton Jr., nickel Freddie Phillips Jr. and cornerback Vernon Grier left as grad transfers (noted above).
2016: 10 of 24 (41.7 percent)
- Receiver Kelvin Harmon turned pro after his junior season. If you adjusted the numbers to include those who played their entire football at NC State before either graduating or turning pro, the retention rate would rise to 54.2 percent.
- Corner Bryce Banks (South Dakota State), defensive tackle Shug Frazier (Hampton), safety Tim Kidd-Glass (Liberty), corner J.J. Givens (Norfolk State), tight end Thaddeus Moss (LSU) and receiver Daeshawn Stephens (NCCU) transferred to other schools.
Banks is no longer at South Dakota State, and Givens is not at Norfolk State anymore. Frazier has had six tackles, including 1.5 for loss and half a sack, at Hampton this fall in six games. Moss has 21 catches for 246 yards and a score this year in seven games for No. 1 LSU. Stephens has 19 receptions for 227 yards in eight contests for NCCU.
- Tight end Bryce Dixon and cornerback Markel Valdez were dismissed from the team, with Dixon’s departure coming before he ever played. Valdez, who was dismissed in the spring of 2018, has matriculated to Hampton. Valdez has six tackles, an interception and two pass breakups in eight games this season.
- Linebacker Garrett Hooker and offensive lineman Bryce Folsom left the team for undisclosed reasons. Offensive lineman Harrison Gee left for health reasons.
- Nickel Trae Meadows left the team for personal reasons and went to Garden City (Kan.) Community College. He signed with Western Kentucky in December. In eight games this year, Meadows has 23 tackles, including one for a loss, an interception and two pass breakups.
- Offensive tackle Kendall Brown left for academic reasons.
