1. We’ll start with the main news item and that is offensive lineman Kamen Smith will decide Sunday.
The details of what time and how he’ll be doing it are still somewhat unclear, but I’ll update that on the board when I find out.
Everything has pointed NC State’s way, even though the Wolfpack weren’t the last official visit. Every step of the way, NC State has done an ideal good job with him. He was invited to a Junior Day on Jan. 30 at a time when he wasn’t getting recruited much at all. Gardner-Webb was his lone offer at that point in time.
NC State went to see him workout with offensive line coach John Garrison and offensive coordinator Tim Beck checking on him this past spring. That led to his first high major offer from NC State on April 25. That set the stage for a mini-frenzy of offers, including Wake Forest, Duke, North Carolina and Virginia Tech. South Carolina came along June 7.
Smith set up visits to Virginia Tech, NC State and North Carolina, in that order. The Wolfpack trip came June 16-18, which is when there was nine official visitors. He has never officially visited South Carolina.
Smith also went to a spring practice March 10 and took an unofficial visit to NCSU on June 2.
Some worry about boyhood fandom with recruits, but that didn’t come into play in this recruitment. He and his father grew up big Georgia fans.
Smith also wants to major in mechanical engineering, which is right in NC State’s academic wheelhouse. Another aspect that helps Smith is that NC State hasn’t landed any other sure-fire interior lineman. He can help fill that void.
One of the reasons it took some time for college coaches to offer Smith is that he only played in four out of eight games lsat year due to injury and some games were canceled due to COVID issues. He also got hurt this summer with a stress fracture in his foot. He did his NC State official visit wearing a boot.
Because of the injuries, there is hope the 6-foot-4, 280-pounder has a lot of growth coming in his development. Another ace in hole for NC State, is he has become good friends with Boone (N.C.) Watauga High senior defensive end commit Isaiah Shirley.
2. The second major announcement is West Charlotte (N.C.) High senior running back Daylan Smothers on July 14.
Smothers is a little harder to predict but Oklahoma folks seem confident after running backs coach DeMarco Murray tweeted out his version of the Wolfpack’s Red Light. Oklahoma has more than just a former NFL running back guiding his career in Murray. The Chambers players look up to Jeremiah Hall over the years. He was that unorthodox 6-3, 225-pound three-star H-back in high school, but he picked the Sooners. NC State had offered him but due to the offensive scheme at the time, the mutual interest faded. He ended up catching 68 passes for 757 yards and 12 touchdowns at Oklahoma.
Florida State was also confident after getting his last official visit. The Seminoles have targeted him a long, long time, but not as long as NC State.
The Wolfpack were among his first four scholarship offers, along with Virginia Tech, Penn State and South Carolina. The Hokies offered Sept. 25, 2019, which seems like an obscene long time ago. The Wolfpack offered April 24, 2021, which was probably as early as nearly any 2023 prospect.
NC State gives him the opportunity to play with friends, besides senior wide receiver target Kevin Concepcion, his old teammate at Charlotte Chambers. If being close to home is important, there’s clearly one choice.
I’ve interviewed Smothers off and on since November and it’s always been clear there has been a tug-a-war between his desire to leave the state and staying home and attend NC State. I generally think a part of him would love being an in-state hero. There is also the narrative that he must be loud and flashy due to his great nickname of “Hollywood,” but he isn’t either.
Oklahoma has been a running back factory in the NFL Draft, but haven’t been quite as strong lately. Joe Mixon went in the second round in 2017, Samaje Perine went in the fourth round that same year.
Rhamondre Stevenson was a fourth round pick in 2021, and Rodney Anderson was a sixth round selection in 20219. That is a solid list, but not quite on par of the star power of Billy Simms or Adrian Peterson of year’s past.
My guess is that whoever doesn’t get Smothers on July 14 will keep recruiting him. At a little over 5-10 and 173 pounds, he’d also have to be in a running back committee.
3. Sources have indicated it would be in NC State’s best interests if Raleigh Millbrook senior wide receiver Nathan Leacock would wait until August to decide.
Whether it’s the glow of the last official visit, but Tennessee has struck a cord with Leacock per one trusted source. He has a top four of the Volunteers, NC State, Michigan and North Carolina. He’s not officially visited NC State or Michigan, but he doesn’t need to in the Wolfpack’s case. He knows every inch of the program, living 25 minutes away from the Wolfpack.
In a best-case scenario, NC State keeps adding in-state recruits he’s friends with, he spends more time around the program and recruits — perhaps starting with Alpha Wolf later this month — and he get some good NC State mojo.
That is why it might be important that Leacock doesn’t announce in the next week or two. NC State targeted Noah Rogers (Ohio State), Christopher Culliver (North Carolina) and Leacock as the main deep threat targets in the class. The Wolfpack finished second on Rogers and maybe third or fourth on Culliver.
A part of Leacock might also want to show how his hard work this offseason has paid off to college coaches during the first few games. He gave up some track meets this spring because he was so locked into football. He wouldn’t have done that when he was younger I believe.
NC State has recruited Leacock for 13 months. That is an eternity in the recruiting world. One recruit who just committed compared his commitment to getting engaged because of the length of an recruitment. If Tennessee is the perceived leader, then it’s time to chip away at all things Volunteers.
The details of what time and how he’ll be doing it are still somewhat unclear, but I’ll update that on the board when I find out.
Everything has pointed NC State’s way, even though the Wolfpack weren’t the last official visit. Every step of the way, NC State has done an ideal good job with him. He was invited to a Junior Day on Jan. 30 at a time when he wasn’t getting recruited much at all. Gardner-Webb was his lone offer at that point in time.
NC State went to see him workout with offensive line coach John Garrison and offensive coordinator Tim Beck checking on him this past spring. That led to his first high major offer from NC State on April 25. That set the stage for a mini-frenzy of offers, including Wake Forest, Duke, North Carolina and Virginia Tech. South Carolina came along June 7.
Smith set up visits to Virginia Tech, NC State and North Carolina, in that order. The Wolfpack trip came June 16-18, which is when there was nine official visitors. He has never officially visited South Carolina.
Smith also went to a spring practice March 10 and took an unofficial visit to NCSU on June 2.
Some worry about boyhood fandom with recruits, but that didn’t come into play in this recruitment. He and his father grew up big Georgia fans.
Smith also wants to major in mechanical engineering, which is right in NC State’s academic wheelhouse. Another aspect that helps Smith is that NC State hasn’t landed any other sure-fire interior lineman. He can help fill that void.
One of the reasons it took some time for college coaches to offer Smith is that he only played in four out of eight games lsat year due to injury and some games were canceled due to COVID issues. He also got hurt this summer with a stress fracture in his foot. He did his NC State official visit wearing a boot.
Because of the injuries, there is hope the 6-foot-4, 280-pounder has a lot of growth coming in his development. Another ace in hole for NC State, is he has become good friends with Boone (N.C.) Watauga High senior defensive end commit Isaiah Shirley.
2. The second major announcement is West Charlotte (N.C.) High senior running back Daylan Smothers on July 14.
Smothers is a little harder to predict but Oklahoma folks seem confident after running backs coach DeMarco Murray tweeted out his version of the Wolfpack’s Red Light. Oklahoma has more than just a former NFL running back guiding his career in Murray. The Chambers players look up to Jeremiah Hall over the years. He was that unorthodox 6-3, 225-pound three-star H-back in high school, but he picked the Sooners. NC State had offered him but due to the offensive scheme at the time, the mutual interest faded. He ended up catching 68 passes for 757 yards and 12 touchdowns at Oklahoma.
Florida State was also confident after getting his last official visit. The Seminoles have targeted him a long, long time, but not as long as NC State.
The Wolfpack were among his first four scholarship offers, along with Virginia Tech, Penn State and South Carolina. The Hokies offered Sept. 25, 2019, which seems like an obscene long time ago. The Wolfpack offered April 24, 2021, which was probably as early as nearly any 2023 prospect.
NC State gives him the opportunity to play with friends, besides senior wide receiver target Kevin Concepcion, his old teammate at Charlotte Chambers. If being close to home is important, there’s clearly one choice.
I’ve interviewed Smothers off and on since November and it’s always been clear there has been a tug-a-war between his desire to leave the state and staying home and attend NC State. I generally think a part of him would love being an in-state hero. There is also the narrative that he must be loud and flashy due to his great nickname of “Hollywood,” but he isn’t either.
Oklahoma has been a running back factory in the NFL Draft, but haven’t been quite as strong lately. Joe Mixon went in the second round in 2017, Samaje Perine went in the fourth round that same year.
Rhamondre Stevenson was a fourth round pick in 2021, and Rodney Anderson was a sixth round selection in 20219. That is a solid list, but not quite on par of the star power of Billy Simms or Adrian Peterson of year’s past.
My guess is that whoever doesn’t get Smothers on July 14 will keep recruiting him. At a little over 5-10 and 173 pounds, he’d also have to be in a running back committee.
3. Sources have indicated it would be in NC State’s best interests if Raleigh Millbrook senior wide receiver Nathan Leacock would wait until August to decide.
Whether it’s the glow of the last official visit, but Tennessee has struck a cord with Leacock per one trusted source. He has a top four of the Volunteers, NC State, Michigan and North Carolina. He’s not officially visited NC State or Michigan, but he doesn’t need to in the Wolfpack’s case. He knows every inch of the program, living 25 minutes away from the Wolfpack.
In a best-case scenario, NC State keeps adding in-state recruits he’s friends with, he spends more time around the program and recruits — perhaps starting with Alpha Wolf later this month — and he get some good NC State mojo.
That is why it might be important that Leacock doesn’t announce in the next week or two. NC State targeted Noah Rogers (Ohio State), Christopher Culliver (North Carolina) and Leacock as the main deep threat targets in the class. The Wolfpack finished second on Rogers and maybe third or fourth on Culliver.
A part of Leacock might also want to show how his hard work this offseason has paid off to college coaches during the first few games. He gave up some track meets this spring because he was so locked into football. He wouldn’t have done that when he was younger I believe.
NC State has recruited Leacock for 13 months. That is an eternity in the recruiting world. One recruit who just committed compared his commitment to getting engaged because of the length of an recruitment. If Tennessee is the perceived leader, then it’s time to chip away at all things Volunteers.
