Signing day came and went without much suspense after we reported Monday the news that three-star receiver Joshua Crabtree from Heritage High in Wake Forest, N.C., was going to go ahead and sign with NC State rather than take a blueshirt.
Over the next couple of weeks we hope to have enough information to begin a top 50 list for the 2021 class. With that said, here are some names among the juniors on offense that are strong contenders to make that first list, broken down by position:
Quarterback: The recent decommitment of four-star Aaron McLaughlin from Denmark High in Alpharetta, Ga., from Auburn will put him on the list, but we caution nothing is imminent with McLaughlin.
For some background, last June NC State felt like it was closing in on a commitment from McLaughlin and was cautiously optimistic. However, later in the summer he chose to pick Auburn over the Pack and Arkansas. He still made it back for a game last fall at NC State however. We would not discount Arkansas either now that he is back open, and Miami might be a new entrant into the picture.
The other signal caller we are watching is Ty Thompson, a four-star dual-threat from Mesquite High in Gilbert, Ariz., with impressive film. Former quarterback coach Kurt Roper had offered Thompson last fall, but new quarterback coach/offensive coordinator Tim Beck is well known in Arizona and may be able to move the needle further with Thompson. However, it may be tough to get Thompson out of Pac-12 territory, and he also has offers from Oregon, Arizona, Arizona State, Cal and Utah from that conference.
Running back: Yes, four-star Will Shipley from Weddington High in Matthews, N.C., will make the cut. That said, his recent junior day trip to Clemson seemed to stem the potential lost momentum that the Tigers had and swung things back in its direction.
Also certain to make the list is three-star Trevion Cooley from Knightdale (N.C.) High, but running back is one group where it’s probable that NC State’s board will have to expand this spring and summer. This is likely to be a class with multiple runners signed.
It’s worth noting that if you count Havelock (N.C.) High athlete three-star Kamarro Edmonds as a running back, and we get the impression that’s what he prefers, he would probably make the list as well.
Wide receiver: Three-star in-state slot-types Jakolbe Baldwin from Richmond County High in Rockingham, Jacob Gill from Cardinal Gibbons in Raleigh, Breon Pass from Reidsville High and Julian Gray from Hopewell High in Huntersville would all be high on the list. NC State, at the moment, probably represents the best options for Baldwin and Gill, while Gray grew up an admitted NC State fan. The Wolfpack has some cards it can play with Pass, but UNC is also a strong contender with him.
We had the feeling in December that Wake Forest and UNC had moved ahead of NC State for four-star Micah Crowell from East Forsyth High in Kernersville, N.C., but there is probably an opening for NC State to make up ground there. It’s worth noting that there are rumblings that UNC is closing in on four-star Gavin Blackwell from Sun Valley High in Monroe, N.C., which may be part of that opening for NC State with Crowell.
A couple of early out-of-state players to watch include Ahmari Huggins-Bruce from Dillon (S.C.) High and O’Mega Blake from Rock Hill (S.C.) South Pointe High.
After taking five wideouts in the 2020 class, we suspect that only a couple we be targeted for 2021.
Tight end: We’d be shocked if NC State is not taking multiple tight ends in this class. The Pack has done a stellar job with three-star Miles Campbell from South Paulding High in Douglasville, Ga., but Campbell is also a prime target to explode this spring and summer. Campbell has taken multiple visits to Raleigh and has a strong rapport with tight ends coach Todd Goebbel.
NC State was the first to offer three-stars Cedric and Fredrick Seabrough from Swainsboro (Ga.) High, which as we understand is a school and area of Georgia not known for prospects, so they might fly a bit under the radar. The two have visited NC State since the offers. Maryland is their lone other Power Five offer.
Prior to picking a recent offer from Miami, we would have had unrated Gunnar Greenwald from Satellite Beach (Fla.) High very high on the list as well. He visited for the junior day in January.
Offensive line: Our guess is that offensive tackle is going to be a priority in this class. Every coach has that one position they tend to carry extra players at, and offensive line is that group for Dave Doeren. They have already cast a wide net on linemen.
Three-stars Yousef Mugharbil from Murphy (N.C.) High, Jaleel Davis from Rockingham (N.C.) Richmond County High, Andrew Canelas from Raleigh Leesville Road High, Diego Pounds from Raleigh Millbrook High, Colby Smith from Wentworth (N.C.) Rockingham County High, Tristan Bounds from Wallingford (Conn.) Choate Rosemary Hall and Thornton Gentry from Chapin (S.C.) High would all be pretty sure bets to be on the top 50, with Gentry being toward the very top of the list. All of these players project as tackles at the next level with the possible exception of Mugharbil.
All have visited NC State at least once and in many cases multiple times. The only one we do not know about how many times he visited is Gentry. The others we are fairly certain have been to State on repeat visits.
In a small piece of non-revenue sports news, NC State is making a change in volleyball coaches, and we have heard rumblings that an announcement could be coming soon. We understand that interviews have concluded, and that a potential leading contender could be someone associated with the national team.
Over the next couple of weeks we hope to have enough information to begin a top 50 list for the 2021 class. With that said, here are some names among the juniors on offense that are strong contenders to make that first list, broken down by position:
Quarterback: The recent decommitment of four-star Aaron McLaughlin from Denmark High in Alpharetta, Ga., from Auburn will put him on the list, but we caution nothing is imminent with McLaughlin.
For some background, last June NC State felt like it was closing in on a commitment from McLaughlin and was cautiously optimistic. However, later in the summer he chose to pick Auburn over the Pack and Arkansas. He still made it back for a game last fall at NC State however. We would not discount Arkansas either now that he is back open, and Miami might be a new entrant into the picture.
The other signal caller we are watching is Ty Thompson, a four-star dual-threat from Mesquite High in Gilbert, Ariz., with impressive film. Former quarterback coach Kurt Roper had offered Thompson last fall, but new quarterback coach/offensive coordinator Tim Beck is well known in Arizona and may be able to move the needle further with Thompson. However, it may be tough to get Thompson out of Pac-12 territory, and he also has offers from Oregon, Arizona, Arizona State, Cal and Utah from that conference.
Running back: Yes, four-star Will Shipley from Weddington High in Matthews, N.C., will make the cut. That said, his recent junior day trip to Clemson seemed to stem the potential lost momentum that the Tigers had and swung things back in its direction.
Also certain to make the list is three-star Trevion Cooley from Knightdale (N.C.) High, but running back is one group where it’s probable that NC State’s board will have to expand this spring and summer. This is likely to be a class with multiple runners signed.
It’s worth noting that if you count Havelock (N.C.) High athlete three-star Kamarro Edmonds as a running back, and we get the impression that’s what he prefers, he would probably make the list as well.
Wide receiver: Three-star in-state slot-types Jakolbe Baldwin from Richmond County High in Rockingham, Jacob Gill from Cardinal Gibbons in Raleigh, Breon Pass from Reidsville High and Julian Gray from Hopewell High in Huntersville would all be high on the list. NC State, at the moment, probably represents the best options for Baldwin and Gill, while Gray grew up an admitted NC State fan. The Wolfpack has some cards it can play with Pass, but UNC is also a strong contender with him.
We had the feeling in December that Wake Forest and UNC had moved ahead of NC State for four-star Micah Crowell from East Forsyth High in Kernersville, N.C., but there is probably an opening for NC State to make up ground there. It’s worth noting that there are rumblings that UNC is closing in on four-star Gavin Blackwell from Sun Valley High in Monroe, N.C., which may be part of that opening for NC State with Crowell.
A couple of early out-of-state players to watch include Ahmari Huggins-Bruce from Dillon (S.C.) High and O’Mega Blake from Rock Hill (S.C.) South Pointe High.
After taking five wideouts in the 2020 class, we suspect that only a couple we be targeted for 2021.
Tight end: We’d be shocked if NC State is not taking multiple tight ends in this class. The Pack has done a stellar job with three-star Miles Campbell from South Paulding High in Douglasville, Ga., but Campbell is also a prime target to explode this spring and summer. Campbell has taken multiple visits to Raleigh and has a strong rapport with tight ends coach Todd Goebbel.
NC State was the first to offer three-stars Cedric and Fredrick Seabrough from Swainsboro (Ga.) High, which as we understand is a school and area of Georgia not known for prospects, so they might fly a bit under the radar. The two have visited NC State since the offers. Maryland is their lone other Power Five offer.
Prior to picking a recent offer from Miami, we would have had unrated Gunnar Greenwald from Satellite Beach (Fla.) High very high on the list as well. He visited for the junior day in January.
Offensive line: Our guess is that offensive tackle is going to be a priority in this class. Every coach has that one position they tend to carry extra players at, and offensive line is that group for Dave Doeren. They have already cast a wide net on linemen.
Three-stars Yousef Mugharbil from Murphy (N.C.) High, Jaleel Davis from Rockingham (N.C.) Richmond County High, Andrew Canelas from Raleigh Leesville Road High, Diego Pounds from Raleigh Millbrook High, Colby Smith from Wentworth (N.C.) Rockingham County High, Tristan Bounds from Wallingford (Conn.) Choate Rosemary Hall and Thornton Gentry from Chapin (S.C.) High would all be pretty sure bets to be on the top 50, with Gentry being toward the very top of the list. All of these players project as tackles at the next level with the possible exception of Mugharbil.
All have visited NC State at least once and in many cases multiple times. The only one we do not know about how many times he visited is Gentry. The others we are fairly certain have been to State on repeat visits.
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In a small piece of non-revenue sports news, NC State is making a change in volleyball coaches, and we have heard rumblings that an announcement could be coming soon. We understand that interviews have concluded, and that a potential leading contender could be someone associated with the national team.
