1. The NFL Draft last weekend showed a combination of many things, but sometimes players just vastly change after high school.
That was definitely the case for NC State’s lone draftee, left guard Chandler Zavala, who was a late bloomer to the sport and was 6-foot-2 and 240 pounds his senior year in high school. He’s ended up at 6-5 and 325 pounds all these years later. He went in the fourth round to the Carolina Panthers, where he’ll be reunited with former NCSU left tackle Ikem Ekwonu.
A case could be made that a healthy Devin Leary, if he had gone through with his original plan of going pro, probably would have been considered in the fifth round when quarterbacks Clayton Tune of Houston and Sean Clifford of Penn State got drafted.
The draft also proved humbling for many other NC State football stars. Traditionally, most NC State starters end up getting invited to training camp and that is no different this cycle. Wide receiver Emeka Emezie, outside linebacker Vi Jones, running back Zonovan Knight and tight end Dylan Parham, all latched on to practice squads or eventually the main roster after going undrafted.
Also worth noting, new offensive line coach Garett Tujague had former Virginia and Michigan center Ole Oluwatimi go in the fifth round to the Seattle Seahawks. Tujague hasn’t coached many future NFL players at UVA, so having one more added to the resume always helps on the trail.
The other part of the draft is how few players who went to North Carolina high schools got drafted, which goes back to how hard it is to make it.
No. 46, second round: Georgia Tech defensive end Deion White to New England Patriots.
White was a 6-foot-4, 230-pound tight end at Garner High, and only had Old Dominion coming out of high school in the class of 2017. He caught 20 passes for 247 yards and four touchdowns his senior year. He switched to defensive end during the spring of 2019, and emerged. He made the move to Georgia Tech this past year and is now 6-5 and 286 pounds. He had 54 tackles and 7.5 sacks for the Yellow Jackets. He had 120 career tackles, 33.5 tackles for loss and 11 sacks in 34 games.
No. 68, third round: Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker to Detroit Lions.
NC State wanted Hooker out of Greensboro (N.C.) Dudley, but that task became hard after landing Matthew McKay in the class of 2017. He eventually picked Virginia Tech, where he played for three years, but after not meshing for since-fired coach Justin Fuente, he transferred to Tennessee, and blossomed. The 6-4, 218-pounder finished his five-year college career with 8,974 passing yards, 80 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, plus rushed for 2,079 yards and 25 scores. He tore his ACL toward of the UT season, which affected his draft stock.
No. 72, third round: Syracuse cornerback Garrett Williams to Arizona Cardinals.
Williams was an under the radar three-star sleep at Harrisburg (N.C.) Hickory Ridge. He picked the Orange over Maryland, West Virginia and several Group of Five programs. Williams quickly emerged at Syracuse and had 152 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and four interceptions in 28 career games. The 6-0, 189-pounder had his season end due to injury against Notre Dame on Oct. 29 this past fall.
No. 86, third round: Clemson outside linebacker Trenton Simpson to Baltimore Ravens.
Simpson first gained notice his sophomore year at Charlotte (N.C.) Mallard Creek at running back, but then became a five-star prospect at linebacker his last two years at the prep powerhouse. NC State offered early, but it eventually came down to Clemson and North Carolina, and the Tigers came in late and snatched the victory. He had 165 career tackles, 23 tackles for loss and 13 sacks in 33 career games. The 6-3, 225-pounder was projected to go higher in the draft, but probably found the best fit.
No. 137, fourth round: Clemson defensive end KJ Henry to Washington Commanders.
Henry emerged early as a future high major prospect at Clemmons (N.C.) West Forsyth High. NC State offered him early in the process, but Clemson won out over Virginia Tech, Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama. He had 124 career tackles, 28.0 tackles for loss and 13 sacks in 48 career games over five years.
No. 223, seventh round: Wingate punter Ethan Evans to Los Angeles Rams.
The former Mount Airy (N.C.) North Surry punter is proof that the NFL will find you. He averaged 45.7 yards on 77 punts, with a long of 67 this past season. He landed 39 inside the 20-yard line and had 30 punts of over 50 yards. He also went 10 of 18 on field goals with a long of 41. MaxPreps.com had the eventual 6-4, 235-pound Evans averaging 40.6 yards on 33 punts in 2018.
No. 225, seventh round: South Carolina guard Jovaughn Gwyn to Atlanta Falcons
Gwyn became an intense recruitment between South Carolina and NC State coming out of Charlotte Harding High in the class of 2018. The 6-3, 300-pounder went on to start 47 games at South Carolina, and was second-team All-SEC by the coaches in 2022.
No. 243, seventh round: Oregon nose tackle Jordon Riley to New York Giants
NC State offered the Durham, N.C., native early, but there was questions about him qualifying in the end. He finished at Riverside High and ended up signing at North Carolina in the class of 2017. He then went on a journey that had stops at junior college, two years at Nebraska and he finished up at Oregon. The 6-3, 330-pounder tallied 35 career tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss in 15 career games.
No. 244, seventh round: Wingate/South Carolina wide receiver Jalen Brooks to Dallas Cowboys.
Brooks played with Garrett Williams at Harrisburg Hickory Ridge, catching 44 passes for 771 yards and nine touchdowns his senior year. He played his first two years at Wingate, catching 52 passes for 1,048 yards and 10 touchdowns in 24 games. He then made the move to Tarleton State in 2020 where he caught 11 passes for 100 yards in six games due to eligibility issues. He transferred to South Carolina and caught 58 passes for 785 yards and two touchdowns in 24 career games.
That was definitely the case for NC State’s lone draftee, left guard Chandler Zavala, who was a late bloomer to the sport and was 6-foot-2 and 240 pounds his senior year in high school. He’s ended up at 6-5 and 325 pounds all these years later. He went in the fourth round to the Carolina Panthers, where he’ll be reunited with former NCSU left tackle Ikem Ekwonu.
A case could be made that a healthy Devin Leary, if he had gone through with his original plan of going pro, probably would have been considered in the fifth round when quarterbacks Clayton Tune of Houston and Sean Clifford of Penn State got drafted.
The draft also proved humbling for many other NC State football stars. Traditionally, most NC State starters end up getting invited to training camp and that is no different this cycle. Wide receiver Emeka Emezie, outside linebacker Vi Jones, running back Zonovan Knight and tight end Dylan Parham, all latched on to practice squads or eventually the main roster after going undrafted.
Also worth noting, new offensive line coach Garett Tujague had former Virginia and Michigan center Ole Oluwatimi go in the fifth round to the Seattle Seahawks. Tujague hasn’t coached many future NFL players at UVA, so having one more added to the resume always helps on the trail.
The other part of the draft is how few players who went to North Carolina high schools got drafted, which goes back to how hard it is to make it.
No. 46, second round: Georgia Tech defensive end Deion White to New England Patriots.
White was a 6-foot-4, 230-pound tight end at Garner High, and only had Old Dominion coming out of high school in the class of 2017. He caught 20 passes for 247 yards and four touchdowns his senior year. He switched to defensive end during the spring of 2019, and emerged. He made the move to Georgia Tech this past year and is now 6-5 and 286 pounds. He had 54 tackles and 7.5 sacks for the Yellow Jackets. He had 120 career tackles, 33.5 tackles for loss and 11 sacks in 34 games.
No. 68, third round: Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker to Detroit Lions.
NC State wanted Hooker out of Greensboro (N.C.) Dudley, but that task became hard after landing Matthew McKay in the class of 2017. He eventually picked Virginia Tech, where he played for three years, but after not meshing for since-fired coach Justin Fuente, he transferred to Tennessee, and blossomed. The 6-4, 218-pounder finished his five-year college career with 8,974 passing yards, 80 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, plus rushed for 2,079 yards and 25 scores. He tore his ACL toward of the UT season, which affected his draft stock.
No. 72, third round: Syracuse cornerback Garrett Williams to Arizona Cardinals.
Williams was an under the radar three-star sleep at Harrisburg (N.C.) Hickory Ridge. He picked the Orange over Maryland, West Virginia and several Group of Five programs. Williams quickly emerged at Syracuse and had 152 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and four interceptions in 28 career games. The 6-0, 189-pounder had his season end due to injury against Notre Dame on Oct. 29 this past fall.
No. 86, third round: Clemson outside linebacker Trenton Simpson to Baltimore Ravens.
Simpson first gained notice his sophomore year at Charlotte (N.C.) Mallard Creek at running back, but then became a five-star prospect at linebacker his last two years at the prep powerhouse. NC State offered early, but it eventually came down to Clemson and North Carolina, and the Tigers came in late and snatched the victory. He had 165 career tackles, 23 tackles for loss and 13 sacks in 33 career games. The 6-3, 225-pounder was projected to go higher in the draft, but probably found the best fit.
No. 137, fourth round: Clemson defensive end KJ Henry to Washington Commanders.
Henry emerged early as a future high major prospect at Clemmons (N.C.) West Forsyth High. NC State offered him early in the process, but Clemson won out over Virginia Tech, Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama. He had 124 career tackles, 28.0 tackles for loss and 13 sacks in 48 career games over five years.
No. 223, seventh round: Wingate punter Ethan Evans to Los Angeles Rams.
The former Mount Airy (N.C.) North Surry punter is proof that the NFL will find you. He averaged 45.7 yards on 77 punts, with a long of 67 this past season. He landed 39 inside the 20-yard line and had 30 punts of over 50 yards. He also went 10 of 18 on field goals with a long of 41. MaxPreps.com had the eventual 6-4, 235-pound Evans averaging 40.6 yards on 33 punts in 2018.
No. 225, seventh round: South Carolina guard Jovaughn Gwyn to Atlanta Falcons
Gwyn became an intense recruitment between South Carolina and NC State coming out of Charlotte Harding High in the class of 2018. The 6-3, 300-pounder went on to start 47 games at South Carolina, and was second-team All-SEC by the coaches in 2022.
No. 243, seventh round: Oregon nose tackle Jordon Riley to New York Giants
NC State offered the Durham, N.C., native early, but there was questions about him qualifying in the end. He finished at Riverside High and ended up signing at North Carolina in the class of 2017. He then went on a journey that had stops at junior college, two years at Nebraska and he finished up at Oregon. The 6-3, 330-pounder tallied 35 career tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss in 15 career games.
No. 244, seventh round: Wingate/South Carolina wide receiver Jalen Brooks to Dallas Cowboys.
Brooks played with Garrett Williams at Harrisburg Hickory Ridge, catching 44 passes for 771 yards and nine touchdowns his senior year. He played his first two years at Wingate, catching 52 passes for 1,048 yards and 10 touchdowns in 24 games. He then made the move to Tarleton State in 2020 where he caught 11 passes for 100 yards in six games due to eligibility issues. He transferred to South Carolina and caught 58 passes for 785 yards and two touchdowns in 24 career games.
