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War Room (March 8)

Jacey Zembal

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Jun 15, 2007
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The out of state recruiting board has come into a bit of a clearer focus earlier than in past years, but new names continue to emerge, especially from Florida.

Hours after we released our top 25, we learned that four-star receiver Aydin Henningham from Deerfield Beach (Fla.) High had NC State in his top four. We were also told that three-star linebacker Jamari Stewart from Fort Pierce (Fla.) St. Lucie West Centennial is another to keep an eye on. Indeed, Stewart (6-foot-3, 205 pounds) told Rivals.com two weeks ago his top three were Miami, NC State and South Carolina.

Stewart joins Jayland Parker from Macon (Ga.) Westside High as out-of-state linebackers on NC State’s board. Parker, a three-star, visited recently. It would not surprise us if the Pack takes only one linebacker in this class.

NC State appears to be sticking to its basic footprint under head coach Dave Doeren: Virginia through Florida on the East Coast with a presence in New Jersey as well.

Three-star and fast-rising defensive back Joseph Johnson from Chester (Va.) Life Christian Academy was on campus for a second visit, arriving Thursday for the trip. Three-star R.J. Adams from Woodbridge (Va.) High was also expected this weekend for a trip.

Doeren has established a goal at NC State of having at least half the class from in-state products, and it probably will be able to meet that objective this year. But it will not be almost all in-state like it was in 2019 (we don’t think).

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The first time that Larry Fedora was head coach at UNC and the Heels played Duke in hoops, Fedora came up with a “revolutionary” idea to turn it into an elite in-state junior day. That game he picked up commitments from Durham Hillside teammates Khris Francis and Korrin Wiggins (although the latter ended up at Clemson instead).

We bring this up because Mack Brown and company are going to the same bag of tricks Fedora (and to be fair his predecessors probably did as well) used. Thus for NC State football recruiting followers one eye should be kept on what is going on in Chapel Hill this weekend as it hosts Duke.

Among the expected visitors are these of heavy interest to the Pack in the 2020 class (per TarHeelIllustrated.com):

• Four-star defensive lineman Kedrick Bingley-Jones from Charlotte Providence Day
• Three-star safety Ja’Qurious Conley from Jacksonville (N.C.) Northside
• Four-star defensive lineman Jacolbe Cowan from Charlotte Providence Day
• Four-star defensive end Desmond Evans from Sanford (N.C.) Lee County
• Three-star linebacker Mohamed Kaba from Clinton (N.C.) High
• Three-star tight end Kendall Karr from Belmont (N.C.) Stuart Cramer
• Four-star receiver Muhsin Muhammad from Charlotte Myers Park
• Four-star defensive lineman Myles Murphy from High Point (N.C.) Southwest Guilford
• Three-star receiver Jhari Patterson from Asheville (N.C.) A.C. Reynolds
• Four-star linebacker Trenton Simpson from Charlotte Mallard Creek

Elsewhere, four-star offensive tackle Mitchell Mayes from Raleigh Leesville Road and three-star defensive back Dru Phillips from Mauldin (S.C.) High will be visiting Clemson.

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Over the past few weeks in the War Room we have shared thoughts from Rivals.com analysts Mike Farrell and Adam Friedman on the NC State 2019 recruiting class. Last week we had Friedman’s views on the defensive signees for the Wolfpack.

We conclude this week with Friedman’s thoughts on the offensive side of the ball.

On Charlotte Providence Day three-star offensive lineman Ikem Ekwonu: “Ekwonu is a guy who can maybe play in a year and can also be a guard. He has very strong hands once he locks up a defensive lineman. You can pretty much count that rep or that play over for the defensive lineman. He is pretty technically sound. It’s about him adjusting to the size and speed in the college game.”

On Fayetteville Trinity Christian offensive lineman Zovon Lindsay: “The Wolfpack's 2019 recruiting class includes a high potential prospect in Lindsay. He has a big frame and is pretty athletic for a player of his build. The strength and conditioning staff will have to mold Lindsay into the type of player that can stay on the field in the ACC but if they can, look for Lindsay to cause a lot of problems.”

On Raleigh Wakefield offensive lineman Timothy McKay: “I’m not as high on McKay as some other people out there, but he has a good foundation when he gets to college. He moves his feet well and is a strong guy. He’s not as quick as I would like out of a lineman with his size and frame. He has some bad weight on him that he’ll need to work on to get rid of. I like his feet and he’s a good player that NC State will turn into a reliable starter after the first couple of years of being on campus.”

On Bailey Southern Nash running back Zonovan Knight: “His acceleration really has been impressive. We love what we’ve seen so far. This past spring and summer that we saw him until the end of his senior season, we really like him what we saw of him. … He can go up the gut and break a long run. He can bounce it to the outside and is an all-around home-run threat. He doesn’t have the size to consistently pound the rock between the tackles but he certainly has the ability.”

On Ashton (Va.) Flint High running back Jordan Houston: “I like him a lot too because he can affect the game in multiple ways, not just at runner, but also at receiver, and in the slot. He can go in motion a lot and is a very versatile offensive weapon. He can also be a returner. Any time he has the ball in his hands, he’s a threat to score. He’ll go across the middle or he’ll try to run over somebody that is much bigger than him. He has no problem sticking his nose in for those tough yards.”

On Matthews Butler receiver Keyon Lesane: “He’s electric in the open field. He’ll need to improve his route running, but he has longer arms [than some slot receivers]. He is a really strong guy too.”

On Wilmington Hoggard receiver Chris Toudle: “He is more of a H-back type who can be used in the slot. He has pretty good hands, but doesn’t have a true position on the field. He’s a little small for an in-line tight end and he’s not the fast guy on the outside and won’t be an amazing receiver. He could be used as a utility player and come up big in certain situations.”

On Canton Pisgah tight end Kam Walker: “I liked him at Shrine Bowl. I was surprised more teams didn’t come after this guy. He’s a big frame with good hands and can move pretty well for a big guy like that. He’s a guy that we could be talking about him in a few years as a major offensive weapon for this team as a receiver. I think Kam Walker will add another dimension to this offense.”
 
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