As an exclusive offer, JFQ Lending will cover any appraisal costs AND add an additional $500 credit for all members of TheWolfpacker.com!
Please email hclaussen@jfqlending.com or shoot NC State alum Hunter Claussen a private message (@WolfPackMortgageGuy). You can check out their website JFQLending.com as well.
•••
A very brief COVID update before we move onto other Wolfpack sports matters. As of Friday, the ACC is still clearly pressing forward for a football season this fall. In one clear sign of such, NC State sent out an email outlining media credential requests on Friday morning, which will be scaled down to allow for social distancing in the press box. As part of clearing the sidelines, only one pool photographer will be allowed as well.
Furthermore, schools have been gauging demand to see how much visiting seating will be needed. It is signals like this that suggest the league is pressing forward.
Next week though will be a significant one to watch, as we have long noted. Midday on Thursday we received our first hint of something was up when we were told by a source about team meetings being arranged, and it was not long before NC State announced it was going virtual only. COVID cases are spiking on campuses across the state, which has stalled the progress North Carolina was making in decreasing the amount of daily cases.
That was not unexpected, but now comes the million-dollar question: what’s the fallout? As we noted in last War Room, there’s not believed to be unanimity in the league about going forward, but rather better described as a strong majority. Could the optics of trying to play football while being unable to curtail the disease on campus prove too nefarious to continue? Our guess for now is not necessarily, but we’ll have to wait and see.
If football season has not been called off by the first week of September, our hunch that means it is a go.
•••
Given the news that the recruiting dead period has been extended through Sept. 30, and in the state of North Carolina the high school season has been pushed back to the spring, decisions could be forthcoming over the next few weeks.
From talking with sources throughout the week, the latest tidbits we have picked up:
• Nothing is certain yet on three-star defensive end Zyun Reevesahead of his Sept. 1 announcement but most feel good about NC State’s chances with the 6-foot-6, 240-pounder from East Forsyth High in Kernersville, N.C.
It’s important to note that Reeves is still raw and his main attraction as a prospect is an impressive frame and upside. We had one source back in the spring compared him (on the field) to former UNC defensive lineman Jalen Dalton.
Dalton was overrated as the top prospect in the state in the 2015 class, a fact we noted at the time of his commitment to UNC. His offer list may have looked better than it really was, but he ultimately picked the Heels over Virginia Tech. (Note, NC State defensive line coach Ryan Nielsen did in fact like Dalton a lot, but Dalton never had much interest in the Wolfpack.)
While Dalton never lived up to the hype, that doesn’t mean he had a poor career at UNC. He was a solid performer who eventually earned a spot on the Chicago Bears’ roster. He bulked up into a 300-pounder who 15.0 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks in college, the latter all coming in his last two seasons for UNC.
• Trends are also positive for three-star linebacker Jabril McNeill from Sanderson High in Raleigh and three-star safety Chase Hattley from Panther Creek High in Cary.
•••
A quick basketball recruiting note:
• Over the weekend, we responded to a post on the State of Basketball message board about a list of targets for NC State that did not include Raleigh native Carter Whitt by suggesting it’s premature to leave Whitt off.
The bigger question has always been how much interest does Whitt have in the Wolfpack after it landed guards Cam Hayes and Shakeel Moore in the 2020 class. One school of thought was that Michigan was going to be a prime candidate for Whitt, but the Wolverines landed a verbal commitment from four-star point guard Frankie Collins this week.
It remains to be seen how urgently head coach Kevin Keatts wants a point guard in this class, but what is known is Keatts likes point guards, so if he can find a way to squeeze one in he probably would. However, based on what we have seen and heard we are beginning to wonder if A.J. Neal from West Oaks Academy in Orlando, Fla., is a realistic option at this point.
We still believe that a wing is a top priority, and NC State would take four-star center Roosevelt Wheeler from Richmond (Va.) John Marshall.
Please email hclaussen@jfqlending.com or shoot NC State alum Hunter Claussen a private message (@WolfPackMortgageGuy). You can check out their website JFQLending.com as well.
•••
A very brief COVID update before we move onto other Wolfpack sports matters. As of Friday, the ACC is still clearly pressing forward for a football season this fall. In one clear sign of such, NC State sent out an email outlining media credential requests on Friday morning, which will be scaled down to allow for social distancing in the press box. As part of clearing the sidelines, only one pool photographer will be allowed as well.
Furthermore, schools have been gauging demand to see how much visiting seating will be needed. It is signals like this that suggest the league is pressing forward.
Next week though will be a significant one to watch, as we have long noted. Midday on Thursday we received our first hint of something was up when we were told by a source about team meetings being arranged, and it was not long before NC State announced it was going virtual only. COVID cases are spiking on campuses across the state, which has stalled the progress North Carolina was making in decreasing the amount of daily cases.
That was not unexpected, but now comes the million-dollar question: what’s the fallout? As we noted in last War Room, there’s not believed to be unanimity in the league about going forward, but rather better described as a strong majority. Could the optics of trying to play football while being unable to curtail the disease on campus prove too nefarious to continue? Our guess for now is not necessarily, but we’ll have to wait and see.
If football season has not been called off by the first week of September, our hunch that means it is a go.
•••
Given the news that the recruiting dead period has been extended through Sept. 30, and in the state of North Carolina the high school season has been pushed back to the spring, decisions could be forthcoming over the next few weeks.
From talking with sources throughout the week, the latest tidbits we have picked up:
• Nothing is certain yet on three-star defensive end Zyun Reevesahead of his Sept. 1 announcement but most feel good about NC State’s chances with the 6-foot-6, 240-pounder from East Forsyth High in Kernersville, N.C.
It’s important to note that Reeves is still raw and his main attraction as a prospect is an impressive frame and upside. We had one source back in the spring compared him (on the field) to former UNC defensive lineman Jalen Dalton.
Dalton was overrated as the top prospect in the state in the 2015 class, a fact we noted at the time of his commitment to UNC. His offer list may have looked better than it really was, but he ultimately picked the Heels over Virginia Tech. (Note, NC State defensive line coach Ryan Nielsen did in fact like Dalton a lot, but Dalton never had much interest in the Wolfpack.)
While Dalton never lived up to the hype, that doesn’t mean he had a poor career at UNC. He was a solid performer who eventually earned a spot on the Chicago Bears’ roster. He bulked up into a 300-pounder who 15.0 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks in college, the latter all coming in his last two seasons for UNC.
• Trends are also positive for three-star linebacker Jabril McNeill from Sanderson High in Raleigh and three-star safety Chase Hattley from Panther Creek High in Cary.
•••
A quick basketball recruiting note:
• Over the weekend, we responded to a post on the State of Basketball message board about a list of targets for NC State that did not include Raleigh native Carter Whitt by suggesting it’s premature to leave Whitt off.
The bigger question has always been how much interest does Whitt have in the Wolfpack after it landed guards Cam Hayes and Shakeel Moore in the 2020 class. One school of thought was that Michigan was going to be a prime candidate for Whitt, but the Wolverines landed a verbal commitment from four-star point guard Frankie Collins this week.
It remains to be seen how urgently head coach Kevin Keatts wants a point guard in this class, but what is known is Keatts likes point guards, so if he can find a way to squeeze one in he probably would. However, based on what we have seen and heard we are beginning to wonder if A.J. Neal from West Oaks Academy in Orlando, Fla., is a realistic option at this point.
We still believe that a wing is a top priority, and NC State would take four-star center Roosevelt Wheeler from Richmond (Va.) John Marshall.
