This is the second edition of The Wolfpacker’s mock class for NC State football recruiting in 2021.
In the first mock class we had 23 signees. This time we went with 24 players, right in the middle of our projected range of 23-25 likely recruits to be signed. On defense, we are currently projecting a dozen players (although one is listed as an athlete).
DE – Three-star Zyun Reeves, Kernersville (N.C.) East Forsyth High
Reeves is a 6-foot-6, 240-pounder who projects well as an edge player at NC State. He had 88 tackles, including 13.5 for loss and 7.5 sacks, last season. The Wolfpack would love to be able to add a second (Micah Crowell) and third East Forsyth player to join redshirt freshman safety Khalid Martin. East Forsyth has won back-to-back state titles. Reeves though is not a sure thing by any stretch, with Florida State and South Carolina two very strong challengers.
DL – Three-star Travali Price, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln
We think it is increasingly likely that Price will be a package deal with Jayden Tate, and NC State, Louisville and South Carolina are the three teams that are pursuing that option. We also like, for NC State’s perspective, how Price prefers the low-key recruitment, which tend to favor NC State more. The 6-foot-4, 240-pounder had 84 tackles, including 21 for loss and 5.5 sacks, and 27 quarterback hurries last year.
DL – Jacquez Williams, Savannah (Ga.) Jenkins High
As we prepared this mock class, Williams was our “projected offer down the road” pick to join the class. Then Williams collected an offer from Virginia Tech late Thursday-evening which make that trickier. Nevertheless, Williams is a 6-foot-2, 280-pounder that has risen on NC State’s radar recently, and he also has offers from Navy and South Florida. The Pack has had good luck lately in the Savannah area of Georgia. He had 54 tackles, including a whopping 22 for loss and 6.5 sacks, a year ago.
LB – Three-star Jabril McNeill, Raleigh Sanderson High
When McNeill’s older brother, NC State junior defensive tackle Alim McNeill, was going through the recruiting process, it was not until the end of the summer that he publicly make it clear he was favoring NC State. However, he later admitted to us that he had known for a long time he was going there, and he just wanted to enjoy the recruiting process. We could see Jabril (6-foot-4, 220 pounds) having a similar process play out. We’re also curious to see if McNeill grows into a defensive end prospect as he continues to fill out his frame nicely. McNeill had 35 tackles, including 6.5 for loss and two sacks, in 11 games last year.
LB – Three-star Jordan Poole, Oakboro (N.C.) West Stanly High
We have long thought that Poole has been a NC State-Virginia Tech battle, and now South Carolina is also in the mix. However, will Poole’s recent inclusion in the All-American Bowl change the game a bit for the athletic Poole? He was gearing up for an early-summer decision on a timeline that was probably favorable to NCSU. West Stanly is not traditionally a must-stop on college recruiters’ list, so we are not sure how many more options Poole may get. The 6-foot, 215-pounder is an outstanding two-way performer. He ran 113 times for 1,534 yards and 21 touchdowns last year while making 36 tackles, a forced fumble and an interception.
LB — Trevin Wallace, Jesup (Ga.) Wayne County High
The million-dollar question is will the athletic Wallace stay under the radar long enough. The 6-foot-2, 215-pounder has been timed at 11.09 seconds in the 100-meter dash and 22.84 seconds in the 200, and he also has a 22-3 long jump while clearing 6-foot-2 in the high jump. NC State and Illinois are his offers right now. The inclusion of Wallace added a third linebacker to this class dropped the number of defensive backs to five.
CB – Three-star Mario Love Jr., Cornelius (N.C.) Hough High
The 5-foot-9, 170-pound Love made us look good in our first mock class by picking NC State since then. Love had 23 tackles and an interception for Hough last year.
CB – Three-star cornerback Robert Simmons, Jacksonville (Fla.) Sandalwood High
The truth is that after Love, projecting a mock class for defensive backs becomes much trickier. We originally had Javon Bullard in this spot in the last mock class, but he picked up an offer from Georgia this week that could change the game for the Milledgeville (Ga.) Baldwin High product. Thus our new pick is Simmons (5-foot-10, 170 pounds), who also has offers from Colorado, Duke and Wake Forest, among others.
S – Two-star safety Sean Brown, Charlotte (N.C.) Hough High
The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder also has offers from Louisville, Michigan State, Missouri and Wake Forest, but NC State has his teammate in the fold in Love. Last season, Brown had 65 tackles, including four for loss and three sacks, in 13 games.
S – Three-star Tyler Morehead, Homerville (Ga.) Clinch County
Again, this is a tough call, but for now Morehead is the bet. Although the 5-foot-10, 195-pounder rushed for 1,548 yards and 19 touchdowns in 13 games last season, we believe the Wolfpack likes him at safety.
ATH — Four-star Kaemen Marley, Ramseur (N.C.) Eastern Randolph High
It’s always good to have a mild surprise in a mock class. For this edition, it’s Marley. We think this is a Tennessee-NC State battle for now. UT is not letting up, but our sources tell us that Marley is not that into the recruiting process at the moment. This is one where NC State being patient (which it has been thus far this recruiting process) might pay off. The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder could play a number of positions for the Wolfpack (or any college).
LS/DL/OL – Jayden Tate, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln High
We went with Tate and Price as a package deal. Tate also has an offer from Louisville and South Carolina and could also play on either offensive line or defensive tackle.
In the first mock class we had 23 signees. This time we went with 24 players, right in the middle of our projected range of 23-25 likely recruits to be signed. On defense, we are currently projecting a dozen players (although one is listed as an athlete).
DE – Three-star Zyun Reeves, Kernersville (N.C.) East Forsyth High
Reeves is a 6-foot-6, 240-pounder who projects well as an edge player at NC State. He had 88 tackles, including 13.5 for loss and 7.5 sacks, last season. The Wolfpack would love to be able to add a second (Micah Crowell) and third East Forsyth player to join redshirt freshman safety Khalid Martin. East Forsyth has won back-to-back state titles. Reeves though is not a sure thing by any stretch, with Florida State and South Carolina two very strong challengers.
DL – Three-star Travali Price, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln
We think it is increasingly likely that Price will be a package deal with Jayden Tate, and NC State, Louisville and South Carolina are the three teams that are pursuing that option. We also like, for NC State’s perspective, how Price prefers the low-key recruitment, which tend to favor NC State more. The 6-foot-4, 240-pounder had 84 tackles, including 21 for loss and 5.5 sacks, and 27 quarterback hurries last year.
DL – Jacquez Williams, Savannah (Ga.) Jenkins High
As we prepared this mock class, Williams was our “projected offer down the road” pick to join the class. Then Williams collected an offer from Virginia Tech late Thursday-evening which make that trickier. Nevertheless, Williams is a 6-foot-2, 280-pounder that has risen on NC State’s radar recently, and he also has offers from Navy and South Florida. The Pack has had good luck lately in the Savannah area of Georgia. He had 54 tackles, including a whopping 22 for loss and 6.5 sacks, a year ago.
LB – Three-star Jabril McNeill, Raleigh Sanderson High
When McNeill’s older brother, NC State junior defensive tackle Alim McNeill, was going through the recruiting process, it was not until the end of the summer that he publicly make it clear he was favoring NC State. However, he later admitted to us that he had known for a long time he was going there, and he just wanted to enjoy the recruiting process. We could see Jabril (6-foot-4, 220 pounds) having a similar process play out. We’re also curious to see if McNeill grows into a defensive end prospect as he continues to fill out his frame nicely. McNeill had 35 tackles, including 6.5 for loss and two sacks, in 11 games last year.
LB – Three-star Jordan Poole, Oakboro (N.C.) West Stanly High
We have long thought that Poole has been a NC State-Virginia Tech battle, and now South Carolina is also in the mix. However, will Poole’s recent inclusion in the All-American Bowl change the game a bit for the athletic Poole? He was gearing up for an early-summer decision on a timeline that was probably favorable to NCSU. West Stanly is not traditionally a must-stop on college recruiters’ list, so we are not sure how many more options Poole may get. The 6-foot, 215-pounder is an outstanding two-way performer. He ran 113 times for 1,534 yards and 21 touchdowns last year while making 36 tackles, a forced fumble and an interception.
LB — Trevin Wallace, Jesup (Ga.) Wayne County High
The million-dollar question is will the athletic Wallace stay under the radar long enough. The 6-foot-2, 215-pounder has been timed at 11.09 seconds in the 100-meter dash and 22.84 seconds in the 200, and he also has a 22-3 long jump while clearing 6-foot-2 in the high jump. NC State and Illinois are his offers right now. The inclusion of Wallace added a third linebacker to this class dropped the number of defensive backs to five.
CB – Three-star Mario Love Jr., Cornelius (N.C.) Hough High
The 5-foot-9, 170-pound Love made us look good in our first mock class by picking NC State since then. Love had 23 tackles and an interception for Hough last year.
CB – Three-star cornerback Robert Simmons, Jacksonville (Fla.) Sandalwood High
The truth is that after Love, projecting a mock class for defensive backs becomes much trickier. We originally had Javon Bullard in this spot in the last mock class, but he picked up an offer from Georgia this week that could change the game for the Milledgeville (Ga.) Baldwin High product. Thus our new pick is Simmons (5-foot-10, 170 pounds), who also has offers from Colorado, Duke and Wake Forest, among others.
S – Two-star safety Sean Brown, Charlotte (N.C.) Hough High
The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder also has offers from Louisville, Michigan State, Missouri and Wake Forest, but NC State has his teammate in the fold in Love. Last season, Brown had 65 tackles, including four for loss and three sacks, in 13 games.
S – Three-star Tyler Morehead, Homerville (Ga.) Clinch County
Again, this is a tough call, but for now Morehead is the bet. Although the 5-foot-10, 195-pounder rushed for 1,548 yards and 19 touchdowns in 13 games last season, we believe the Wolfpack likes him at safety.
ATH — Four-star Kaemen Marley, Ramseur (N.C.) Eastern Randolph High
It’s always good to have a mild surprise in a mock class. For this edition, it’s Marley. We think this is a Tennessee-NC State battle for now. UT is not letting up, but our sources tell us that Marley is not that into the recruiting process at the moment. This is one where NC State being patient (which it has been thus far this recruiting process) might pay off. The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder could play a number of positions for the Wolfpack (or any college).
LS/DL/OL – Jayden Tate, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln High
We went with Tate and Price as a package deal. Tate also has an offer from Louisville and South Carolina and could also play on either offensive line or defensive tackle.
