Current commits:
Three-star receiver Jakolbe Baldwin, Rockingham (N.C.) Richmond County High
Three-star receiver Julian Gray, Huntersville (N.C.) Hopewell High
Three-star cornerback Mario Love Jr., Cornelius (N.C.) Hough High
Three-star running back Caleb McDowell, Leesburg (Ga.) Lee County High
Three-star quarterback Aaron McLaughlin, Alpharetta (Ga.) Denmark High
These are the top 50 players ranked in order of the odds we see them ending up at NC State.
1. Linebacker Trevin Wallace, Jesup (Ga.) Wayne County High
As long as it is status quo with Wallace, he will be at the top of the list. There are two potential factors that could change that. One is that his stock could rise. His intriguing size (6-2, 215 pounds) and athleticism is expected to draw more attention. For now, NC State has to beat out Illinois. Two is that NC State has quietly carved out a nice linebacker board and there are others who may jump ahead of Wallace on deciding. That said, we know that some around NC State feel that Wallace is one of the more underrated players in region.
Last week: 1
Projection: NC State
2. Two-star athlete Demie Sumo, Willingboro (N.J.) High
Sumo told us a couple of weeks ago that he had a zoom call with the NC State offensive coaches, and from what we understand it may have even included head coach Dave Doeren. That’s a strong sign that Sumo (6-foot, 200 pounds) is being targeted with a committable offer. NC State is the lone Power Five school on Sumo. In 12 games as a junior, Sumo carried 65 times for 648 yards, averaging almost 10.0 yards per rush, and 11 touchdowns. He also caught 21 passes for 430 yards and eight scores. He averaged 24.8 yards on eight kickoff returns, running one back the distance.
Last week: Unrated
Projection: NC State
3. Three-star offensive tackle Jaleel Davis, Rockingham (N.C.) Richmond County High
We have more confidence this week in Davis than probably at any prior point. The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Davis also has Power Five scholarships from Georgia Tech, Kansas, Maryland South Carolina and Tennessee, although insiders lead us to believe that South Carolina and Tennessee may not be committable.
Last week: 2
Projection: NC State
4. Four-star receiver Micah Crowell, Kernersville (N.C.) East Forsyth High
Last week we picked up vibes that Wake Forest had momentum here, but since the Aaron McLaughlin commitment things have trended much more heavily to NC State. We are not certain Crowell (6-foot-2, 205 pounds) is locked in yet, but we feel better about the Pack’s odds enough to go back to our NC State projection and give him a nice boost up the rankings. As a sophomore, Crowell made 25 receptions for 511 yards and seven touchdowns as a sophomore in 15 games while helping East Forsyth to the first of its back-to-back state titles.
Last week: 9
Projection: NC State (previously shared with Wake Forest)
5. Two-star offensive lineman Thornton Gentry, Chapin (S.C.) High
Gentry has Power Five offers from NC State, Kansas State, Missouri, Syracuse and Virginia Tech, but of that group we would think the only realistic challenger is Virginia Tech. NC State was the 6-foot-5, 280-pounder’s first major offer, and he almost looked like was on the fast track for NCSU. He was going to come to the spring game before everything was canceled.
Last week: 4
Projection: NC State
6. Three-star linebacker Jordan Poole, Oakboro (N.C.) West Stanly High
For whatever reason, the 6-foot, 215-pounder’s stock has not taken off, and thus it sill looks like a NC State-Virginia Tech-South Carolina battle and in our belief it’s in that order. The question for now is how patient Poole will be? The absence of a wave of offers may lead to a June decision. The athletic Poole ran 113 times for 1,534 yards and 21 touchdowns on offense (in eight games) and had 36 tackles, including 4.5 for loss, a pick and a forced fumble.
Last week: 6
Projection: NC State
7. Three-star linebacker/defensive end Jabril McNeill, Raleigh Sanderson High
We have been saying all along, we fully expect that Pack junior defensive tackle Alim McNeill’s younger brother will enjoy the recruiting process. Indeed, last week Jabril said that he could wait till December/January to decide. Ultimately, we think it will be difficult to imagine McNeill not going where his brother went, all things being equal. As a junior, McNeill (6-foot-4, 225 pounds) had 35 tackles, including 6.5 for loss and two sacks, in 11 games. He also recovered a pair of fumbles.
Last week: 6
Projection: NC State
8. 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. As a junior, Brown had 65 tackles, including four for loss and three sacks, in 13 games. He also had a pick. NC State has a commitment from his teammate in the Hough secondary, Mario Love Jr, that should help, but Brown is playing out his recruitment quietly at the moment. Love is working Brown hard, however.
Last week: 8
Projection: NC State
9. Three-star safety/linebacker Caden Fordham, Jacksonville (Fla.) Bolles High
Fordham, who is 6-1 and 210 pounds, camped at NC State last summer and was offered. We have picked up a vibe that if Fordham had followed through on an announcement last week it would have been NC State. Wake Forest and Louisville are also in the mix, and perhaps Georgia Tech and Miami as well. As a junior in 13 games, Fordham had 93 tackles, including 11 for loss and six sacks. He had four interceptions, forced two fumbles and recovered two.
Last week: 15
Projection: NC State (previously Wake Forest)
10. Long snapper/defensive tackle Jayden Tate, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln High
Tate has added an offer from Tennessee to join South Carolina, Louisville and NC State. It is worth noting that he has a close relationship with prime Wolfpack target Travali Price (they are practically brothers). NC State and Louisville are recruiting Tate (5-foot-11, 250 pounds) to play defensive tackle, while South Carolina is offering him as a fullback. We are not sure on Tennessee. That said, Louisville has loaded up on defensive line commits, landing a pair of DEs from Florida in the past 24 hours. Overall, it has four D-line commits, and so does Tennessee.
Last week: 10
Projection: Unknown
11. Three-star defensive lineman Travali Price, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln
Price is a national-level recruit, but we think that NC State has positioned itself well thanks in part to the package deal offer with Tate. Price wants to play with Tate in college. Looking at the options, one wonders if South Carolina and NC State might be the most realistic The 6-foot-4, 240-pounder had 84 tackles, including 21 for loss and 5.5 sacks, and 27 quarterback hurries last year.
Last week: 11
Projection: Unknown
12. Three-star offensive lineman Yousef Mugharbil, Murphy (N.C.) High
We finally bumped Mugharbil up some after weeks of hesitating. Primarily because if you were to do a straw poll and ask people where they thought he was going, the winner would probably be NC State. The 6-foot-4, 300-pounder is playing out a low-key recruitment, which is often times the type that NC State does best. NC State loves Mugharbil and has emerged as the likely in-state school of choice. His brother doing grad school at the school probably only helps.
Last week: 21
Projection: Unknown
Three-star receiver Jakolbe Baldwin, Rockingham (N.C.) Richmond County High
Three-star receiver Julian Gray, Huntersville (N.C.) Hopewell High
Three-star cornerback Mario Love Jr., Cornelius (N.C.) Hough High
Three-star running back Caleb McDowell, Leesburg (Ga.) Lee County High
Three-star quarterback Aaron McLaughlin, Alpharetta (Ga.) Denmark High
These are the top 50 players ranked in order of the odds we see them ending up at NC State.
1. Linebacker Trevin Wallace, Jesup (Ga.) Wayne County High
As long as it is status quo with Wallace, he will be at the top of the list. There are two potential factors that could change that. One is that his stock could rise. His intriguing size (6-2, 215 pounds) and athleticism is expected to draw more attention. For now, NC State has to beat out Illinois. Two is that NC State has quietly carved out a nice linebacker board and there are others who may jump ahead of Wallace on deciding. That said, we know that some around NC State feel that Wallace is one of the more underrated players in region.
Last week: 1
Projection: NC State
2. Two-star athlete Demie Sumo, Willingboro (N.J.) High
Sumo told us a couple of weeks ago that he had a zoom call with the NC State offensive coaches, and from what we understand it may have even included head coach Dave Doeren. That’s a strong sign that Sumo (6-foot, 200 pounds) is being targeted with a committable offer. NC State is the lone Power Five school on Sumo. In 12 games as a junior, Sumo carried 65 times for 648 yards, averaging almost 10.0 yards per rush, and 11 touchdowns. He also caught 21 passes for 430 yards and eight scores. He averaged 24.8 yards on eight kickoff returns, running one back the distance.
Last week: Unrated
Projection: NC State
3. Three-star offensive tackle Jaleel Davis, Rockingham (N.C.) Richmond County High
We have more confidence this week in Davis than probably at any prior point. The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Davis also has Power Five scholarships from Georgia Tech, Kansas, Maryland South Carolina and Tennessee, although insiders lead us to believe that South Carolina and Tennessee may not be committable.
Last week: 2
Projection: NC State
4. Four-star receiver Micah Crowell, Kernersville (N.C.) East Forsyth High
Last week we picked up vibes that Wake Forest had momentum here, but since the Aaron McLaughlin commitment things have trended much more heavily to NC State. We are not certain Crowell (6-foot-2, 205 pounds) is locked in yet, but we feel better about the Pack’s odds enough to go back to our NC State projection and give him a nice boost up the rankings. As a sophomore, Crowell made 25 receptions for 511 yards and seven touchdowns as a sophomore in 15 games while helping East Forsyth to the first of its back-to-back state titles.
Last week: 9
Projection: NC State (previously shared with Wake Forest)
5. Two-star offensive lineman Thornton Gentry, Chapin (S.C.) High
Gentry has Power Five offers from NC State, Kansas State, Missouri, Syracuse and Virginia Tech, but of that group we would think the only realistic challenger is Virginia Tech. NC State was the 6-foot-5, 280-pounder’s first major offer, and he almost looked like was on the fast track for NCSU. He was going to come to the spring game before everything was canceled.
Last week: 4
Projection: NC State
6. Three-star linebacker Jordan Poole, Oakboro (N.C.) West Stanly High
For whatever reason, the 6-foot, 215-pounder’s stock has not taken off, and thus it sill looks like a NC State-Virginia Tech-South Carolina battle and in our belief it’s in that order. The question for now is how patient Poole will be? The absence of a wave of offers may lead to a June decision. The athletic Poole ran 113 times for 1,534 yards and 21 touchdowns on offense (in eight games) and had 36 tackles, including 4.5 for loss, a pick and a forced fumble.
Last week: 6
Projection: NC State
7. Three-star linebacker/defensive end Jabril McNeill, Raleigh Sanderson High
We have been saying all along, we fully expect that Pack junior defensive tackle Alim McNeill’s younger brother will enjoy the recruiting process. Indeed, last week Jabril said that he could wait till December/January to decide. Ultimately, we think it will be difficult to imagine McNeill not going where his brother went, all things being equal. As a junior, McNeill (6-foot-4, 225 pounds) had 35 tackles, including 6.5 for loss and two sacks, in 11 games. He also recovered a pair of fumbles.
Last week: 6
Projection: NC State
8. 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. As a junior, Brown had 65 tackles, including four for loss and three sacks, in 13 games. He also had a pick. NC State has a commitment from his teammate in the Hough secondary, Mario Love Jr, that should help, but Brown is playing out his recruitment quietly at the moment. Love is working Brown hard, however.
Last week: 8
Projection: NC State
9. Three-star safety/linebacker Caden Fordham, Jacksonville (Fla.) Bolles High
Fordham, who is 6-1 and 210 pounds, camped at NC State last summer and was offered. We have picked up a vibe that if Fordham had followed through on an announcement last week it would have been NC State. Wake Forest and Louisville are also in the mix, and perhaps Georgia Tech and Miami as well. As a junior in 13 games, Fordham had 93 tackles, including 11 for loss and six sacks. He had four interceptions, forced two fumbles and recovered two.
Last week: 15
Projection: NC State (previously Wake Forest)
10. Long snapper/defensive tackle Jayden Tate, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln High
Tate has added an offer from Tennessee to join South Carolina, Louisville and NC State. It is worth noting that he has a close relationship with prime Wolfpack target Travali Price (they are practically brothers). NC State and Louisville are recruiting Tate (5-foot-11, 250 pounds) to play defensive tackle, while South Carolina is offering him as a fullback. We are not sure on Tennessee. That said, Louisville has loaded up on defensive line commits, landing a pair of DEs from Florida in the past 24 hours. Overall, it has four D-line commits, and so does Tennessee.
Last week: 10
Projection: Unknown
11. Three-star defensive lineman Travali Price, Lincolnton (N.C.) North Lincoln
Price is a national-level recruit, but we think that NC State has positioned itself well thanks in part to the package deal offer with Tate. Price wants to play with Tate in college. Looking at the options, one wonders if South Carolina and NC State might be the most realistic The 6-foot-4, 240-pounder had 84 tackles, including 21 for loss and 5.5 sacks, and 27 quarterback hurries last year.
Last week: 11
Projection: Unknown
12. Three-star offensive lineman Yousef Mugharbil, Murphy (N.C.) High
We finally bumped Mugharbil up some after weeks of hesitating. Primarily because if you were to do a straw poll and ask people where they thought he was going, the winner would probably be NC State. The 6-foot-4, 300-pounder is playing out a low-key recruitment, which is often times the type that NC State does best. NC State loves Mugharbil and has emerged as the likely in-state school of choice. His brother doing grad school at the school probably only helps.
Last week: 21
Projection: Unknown
